Our Teachers Are Dating is a relatively new yuri series by Mangaka Pikachi Ohi-Sensei (who also wrote the adorable Abandoned Cat and the Lamp in Vol 1 of “Syrup: A Yuri Anthology” ~ which, if you like bookstores, cats, and yuri, is a short piece worth a read) with a first English printing of September 2020.

Ohi has a lovely illustration style with amazing and expressive facial expressions. Sure, it’s a Manga, so they’re a bit ‘cartoony’ and exaggerated, but each drawing conveys a wealth of character emotion. The story is not quite what I’d expect from an adult-life yuri manga, as the main characters act more like their charges than the young-adult women they are.

As a quick warning, while this Manga is rated “Teen 13+”, v2 is rated “Older Teen”, I’m not sure I’d want someone peering over my shoulder and seeing it while in public. It’s a bit on the lewd side (there’s some naked cuddling and smooshing of boobs together) and doesn’t cross outright into ecchi territory, though there’s a couple scenes in v2 drawn of the women taking turns orally pleasing each other (again, not graphic, but not sure I’d want someone over my shoulder seeing it in public).

The Story so far… The enthusiastic, yet innocent, Terano Saki (Biology) and the cool jock ~ Hayama Asuka (Health & Physical Education) are a pair of teachers at a private all-girls high school that share responsibility as Class 1-A’s Homeroom teachers. The pair have recently started dating each other and are so adorable together that many of their students and fellow teachers ship them and actively encourage their sapphic relationship to bloom. Despite the support they enjoy as a couple, individually both are pretty unsure of themselves and their new relationship, which adds to the previously referenced immaturity, and both seem to lack any real previous relationship experience.

Hayama’s dialogue above really hit hard. She’s opening up about her fear of being forward about anything in her life for fear of either getting in trouble or making others mad at her. Obviously, asking permission is great for consent, and is worth addressing in a book about relationships, but the way Hayama approaches it borders on debilitating and keeps her from expressing her feelings for the person she’s falling in love with. At the end of Chapter 1, has a short monologue about the impact of summoning a bit of courage, taking a small step, and starting to living her life the way she wants. I’m guessing this means we’ll eventually get some insight into Hayama’s family life and them not approving of her or a history of constantly trying to mold her into the “perfect girl” they wanted her to be (this would likely be an interesting story arc, if handled well).

As Hayama admitted in the previous image, she doesn’t see herself as mature and has a hard time expressing herself to Terano. Fortunately, her students are there for her as they and her coworkers actively encourage Hayama and Terano to ensure their shipping fantasies come true.

I found Terano to be an interesting character even though we don’t see as much of the story from her POV until the last two chapters of this volume. She’s innocent and a bit naive, but passionate and actively pursuing her relationship with Hayama. She’s popular among students and teachers, but she likes being alone (or with Hayama) in her lab prep room. She’s nervous and embarrassed, but still initiates her fair share of their intimate encounters. I’m looking forward to seeing more from her perspective as we move forward.

Rating time! With the unbearable cuteness and beautiful art, I’m going with a 7/10 for Volume 1

• Strengths
  • The facial expressions and emotion Ohi is capable of portraying in the medium
  • The cute toying with yuri tropes and self-awareness of it
    • ex.: characters reference shipping Hayama and Terano (HayaTera)
    • Secondary characters: English teacher Bandou Rui and Japanese teacher Miyazawa Elena and their fascination with all things yuri and HayaTera’s relationship
    • Students pouncing at the opportunity to hear Hayama practice saying “I love you” to photos of Terano on their phones
• Weaknesses
  • The maturity level of the main characters / acting more like high school students than young adults
  • The lewd art can make it uncomfortable for some people to read in public
  • The pacing of the relationship may cause some problems as being wildly unrealistic (this is a potential weakness, TBD based on how it progresses in future volumes)

I encourage you to support the author and purchase from your Local Comic Shop or an authorized retailer for Seven Seas Entertainment. (Official Seven Seas series page HERE.)