This review first appeared at The Beat.

Keiichi Hozumi (30) is a perfect man who has been blessed with everything. The company he started is going well, his private life is very fulfilling, and everything in life is as he pleases. Except for one thing: he is extremely lonely.

Keiichi Hozumi has it all: the looks, the charm, the flashy CEO status… the only thing missing is a single shred of self-sufficiency. Not a problem, though— Hozumi’s assistant and long-time friend, Ibuki, has got it covered!
When Hozumi’s endless string of one-night stands suddenly falls through, Ibuki is there to tend to ALL of his boss’s needs. But once they’ve crossed that line, there’s no turning back… especially since Ibuki has spent the last eight years wanting Hozumi all to himself.

What happens when an insufferable rich kid and his steely sidekick start hooking up? Codependence never looked so cute! …Yet, totally not cute.

Hozumi has gotten everything his heart desires his entire life. He was born with great looks, great charm, and even greater success—becoming a CEO of a company right out of college! But the truth is, he is incredibly codependent, a bit of a baby, and completely lacking the ability to be self-sufficient. If it wasn’t for his college friend (and current personal assistant) Ibuki, Hozumi’s life would be in tatters. Ibuki might be the only person on the planet to find Hozumi’s not-so-cute traits to be cute, and he’s kept his feelings quiet for years until one fateful night when Hozumi needs someone in his bed…and Ibuki is right there to take the initiative.

Hozumi is going to be an element that makes or breaks this BL manga for readers, and he almost didn’t make it work for me. You need to give him a lot of leeway and baby him a bit in order for the story and relationship to be “cute” instead of “not cute,” although the title of the manga says it’s a bit of both, and that’s probably the most astute description as to what’s going on with his character.

The issue with Hozumi is the lack of self-sufficiency and his tendency to be codependent. It’s hard to believe he was so successful in college and as a current company CEO when he is unable to go to sleep without another body in bed with him, or where his assistant Ibuki has to be the one to wake him up and dress him. It’s clear Hozumi can’t do his job as a CEO without Ibuki doing the absolute basic things for him, and it’s frustrating because as readers we can’t see any evidence of Hozumi’s competence, and it makes the relationship between Ibuki and Hozumi seem painfully one-sided. Ibuki’s been in it for the long haul—eight years of pining—and it’s hard to see what Ibuki gets out of their partnership when Ibuki’s putting so much more work into it than Hozumi.

There is a flashback to their college years that sheds more light on Hozumi and Ibuki’s relationship, but it doesn’t answer many questions about their current status and interactions. In fact, it just made me wonder how they got from point A to point B when roadblocks existed all along. Maybe it was designed to show parts of Hozumi that are well suited to the CEO life (his singlemindedness and inability to give up), or to show Ibuki slowly opening up…but revisiting their college life, while a fun excursion, didn’t clarify too much for me of their present circumstances.

All this being said, I still enjoyed myself. The character designs are distinctive even while the men and women are depicted as gorgeous, and the sex scenes are steamy and fully illustrated. Amid all of the emphasis on how beautiful everyone is, especially our male leads, there are still moments where characters turn into chibis or, my favorite, when Hozumi takes on a frightened rabbit persona.

It’s just a reminder that this manga is meant to be fun and entertaining, and a little silly at times, too. Perhaps that’s the best way to go into reading Cute but Not Cute—take this more like a romantic comedy and less like a serious romance, and give Hozumi some grace (the kiddo needs it)—and you’ll have a fun time.

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Cute But Not Cute is available in print from TOKYOPOP and in digital/print through a variety of retailers.