I started reading this as a scanlation and was thrilled to see it licensed and given a proper translation! [Unrelated ~ I really need to grab something off my shelf from Toyko Pop, Yen Press, or J-Novel Club just to prove that I *do* actually read stuff from publishers other than Seven Seas.] Anyhow… This series started its licensing run in February 2021 ~ so if you’re looking to get in on it from the beginning, you have some time until the next volume is released (as of this writing).

Shio Usui is the genius behind Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon (and Trying Out Marriage with My Female Friend which is equally cute and adorable), a story of two salarywomen that have a respectful relationship (from a distance) until, one day, that distance is closed. The story is pretty cute, but believably real ~ Imposter Syndrome is a hell of a drug ~ as well as being stunningly illustrated.

Characters: Our two MCs are the fashionable Uno Hinako and reliable Satou Asahi, coworkers in a department at a decent-sized firm in the city. From the very beginning, we see Uno-san holding up a mask to the world, through her use of fashion, makeup, and a never ending quest to fall in love, to hide her terror that people might discover that she’s ‘not normal’. Satou-senpai is somewhat cold and icy, comfortable being alone, and portrays a calm reliability to her colleagues. Right off the bat, we have some solid Yuri tropes to work with here: Senpai / Kōhai relationship, seeming opposites in personality and demeanor, and a heteronormative pursuit that doesn’t bring happiness. Good stuff!

The Art: Okay, I’m sure you’re picking up a trend here, as this is the forth manga review (and sixth overall), I’m drawn to beautiful art. The styles are often different, but they’re all technically proficient, well-executed, and an absolute joy to look at! Art with these characteristics is one of the key things that attracts me to a particular manga or anime. Doughnuts is no different. Shio-Sensei uses crisp lines, perfectly placed screentones, a nice mix of detailed and simple & clean backgrounds, and expressive facial features to convey a lot of emotion and immerse the reader into this version of the city. The slightly larger ~A5 size (same size as Citrus vs. the traditionally slightly smaller volume size of many manga) really lets the details of the images pop as the reader dives into the setting.

Story Impressions: At first glance, this can be depressing ~ and there’s certainly a bit of a ‘feels trip’ element to Uno’s self loathing ~ and messy, but Shio Usui handles this pretty well and effectively humanizes our MCs right off the bat. There’s a number of elements for readers in their mid- / late- twenties to thirties will see of themselves in these pages: societal / familial pressures to conform to the ‘normal’ and expected path in life, the stress of maintaining appearances, imposter syndrome, and the questioning that comes as a result of these things.

Satou Asahi is an interesting case of contradictions ~ cool and poised at work, where her colleagues see her as competent, but cold and detached. She’s neat, tidy, and organized, but at home is a bit messy and has a nasty habit of getting food all over herself. Uno Hinako is a mirrored set of contradictions ~ she’s a bit clumsy with her job and makes some mistakes, but her colleagues see her as outgoing, energetic, fun, and “a nice young lady”. She may be a bit scattered at work, but her house is even more of a train wreck, and despite outward appearances, she seems to hate not only herself, but also being outgoing and interacting with her peers ~ specifically the men she’s always trying to find ‘normal’ with.

There’s a couple of subtle themes in here that I appreciate the author throwing into the mix ~ the casual sexism at work, the overbearing parents, the responsibility Satou has for her sister, and the way both Satou and Hinako act through their masks to the world. Specifically, Hinako references her ‘armor of femininity’ and is pretty blatant in her inner monologues that she’s putting on a face for the world, Satou on the other hand, is who she is ~ the face she presents is her, and people don’t like her because she doesn’t force herself to mold her behavior into expectations.

Satou Subaru is an incredibly fun secondary character. Clearly, she and her older sister have grown up relying on each other, following the death of their parents, and they have a close relationship. But, Subaru is more than a little mischievous and relishes the opportunities to tease her cool-headed sister, Asahi. In many ways, she’s completely opposite both Satou Asahi and Uno Hinako ~ she’s bold, outgoing, brash, fun, confident, and has this great ‘let’s just see what happens’ kind of personality.

Rating Time! Like I said, the art really sells this one for me and the story is very relatable for an office lady, adult life, yuri romance ~ I’m going with a solid 9/10 on this volume and hoping we can hit a 10/10 in future volumes.

• Strengths
  • The clean, beautiful lines of Shio Usui’s artwork
  • Backgrounds are always appropriate and add to the overall feel of each panel ~ or are so simple as to do nothing to detract from it
  • MCs act like the adults they are, sure ~ they’re a bit unsure, but they don’t read as high school students plunked into an office life story (yeah, I’m subtweeting another manga ~ see my review of Our Teachers are Dating for the context of that)
  • Uno’s inner monologues really capture her uncertainty and feelings
  • Facial expressions / overall emotional conveyance throughout
• Weaknesses
  • Aside from Subaru, secondary characters have yet to see any real development

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.)