About this deal
Yuriko and Gakurouta know the sides of each other that won't allow them to fit in with regular society, but otherwise they know very little about each other. Part of our love language is very much sharing our ships with each other, recommending manga to read, and watching whatever series we’re both into so we can cheer for our favorite couple. Yuriko, an asexual woman, agrees to take a husband to satisfy her parents-which is how she finds herself tying the knot with Gakurouta, a gay man in love with his childhood friend with his own family circumstances. And I feel even a chapter would have helped at this stage; hitting the ground running makes for a dramatic opening but it’s telling the story the wrong way round.
Trauma is a vicious thing, and yet I Want to Be a Wall is a reminder that trauma has an opposite: healing. I hope this series sees the characters break of out their sham marriage to pursue what truly makes them happy. There are some absolutely adorable moments when they’re both trying to figure out how to be a good husband and wife, showing that they aren’t just together for the sake of dodging what others would say to them as an ace woman and gay man. While this introductory volume makes sure that the audience understands that premise, Shirono doesn’t use it for gags or laughs.
I sit here now, penning this article that you’re reading, with an inch of hair, a prominent PCOS mustache above my lips, a septum piercing prominent in my Black nose, two tattoos on my collarbones, and a gorgeous unibrow as thick as every inch of my body. Yuriko and Gaku are such a sweet couple and even though they don't love each other I'm still rooting for their happiness. Her academic work focuses on how buildings and landscapes aid or impede the learning of culture by children.
And so I decided to change my name—not just in my public, daily presentation, but in form work, on documents with crisp, embossed seals. Like Yuriko and Gakurouta, I have made my peace with a society that isn’t suited to me: instead of trying to bend to its will, I’ve strived for my own forms of happiness, have actively carved out a pocket reality where I exist. The blood of Yuriko and Gakurouta’s covenant and pact, the promise to continue forging a bond where they get to be asexual and gay and don’t have to force themselves to put on masks, is beautifully optimistic. Ho voluto dare a questa storia un’occasione perché era stata promossa per il mese del pride e…ci sono proprio rimasta male per le opportunità sprecate? Anyway, I am really happy with this set up and really optimistic about its handling of aspec identity which is so, so nice since there aren't many honest explorations of those experiences.The introduction of a new character – Yuriko’s male friend, Momo – also adds to the different viewpoints and perspectives on the main couple’s relationship. It’s easy to say fitting in is overrated: it’s much harder to live out when one isn’t just nebulously “unique” but part of a group that is actively oppressed and put in danger when they stand out. P.S- I want to thank Goodreads algorithm for actually recommending me this manga in the "recommended" section.
When I heard about this manga I was surprised, because I heard that it was about an aroace woman and a gay man. I was especially interested in reading about her struggle with her lack of sexual attraction, as well as how she enjoys romance when it isn't about her. But it doesn’t yet reveal to us exactly how the two protagonists met and decided to commit to a partnership that would be for their ‘convenience’. And it does go immediately backfire: Yuriko is faced with ridicule and is all but laughed out the room. Childhood Friend Romance: Gakurouta has been in love with Sousuke ever since they met when they were kids.
I Want To Be A Wall (わたしは壁になりたい Watashi wa Kabe ni Naritai) is a Slice of Life manga by Honami Shirono, which was serialized in B-Log's Cheek from 2019 to 2023. This is because Yuriko describes herself as asexual and ‘incapable of romantic attraction’ and her new husband, Gakurouta, is gay and still crushing on his childhood friend, Sousuke. So, I apologise to readers who love this unquestioningly, but I can’t just happily accept the concept because the sheer practicalities of making such an arrangement work keep arising. And this premise is all it took to suck me in, because sweetie, I need me some central queer friendships and I need more aspec characters who like fictionalized romance and/or sex because as an alloace woman myself with friends across the a-spectrum. Any love story aficionado will say that the key to a successful couple is intense desire for one another—but what if the characters in question are an asexual woman with a passion for Boys Love stories and a gay man whose heart forever belongs to his oblivious childhood friend?
Yet I Want to Be a Wall is so much more than story of a beard marriage between two queer people who are genuine friends: it’s a story about the walls we erect so we can stay safe. I felt like there was more depth and sensitivity to the way Yuriko was written than the way Gakurouta was written, and I wasn't entirely comfortable with the way Yuriko hovered around Sousuke and Gakurouta like she was witness to some kind of lovely BL tragedy. there has been a glimpse into the aroace characters backstory, and her struggle with her lack of sexual attraction, but how she still enjoys romance, when it isn't about her.One of my favorite shows of the fall 2023 season was the animated adaptation of INORI's light novel series, the latest in a string of isekai anime revolving around the concept of video game "villainess" characters redeeming themselves. They comfort each other, talking about how they’ve come to terms with their identity and the euphoric feeling of finding someone who isn’t judgmental about it.