One More
Kainokainen
Flowfo.com
One More is a rom com story about two men who seem to have little in common and then an accident puts them in each other’s trajectory. Theodore (Ted) Salo is a graphic designer working for a firm in Helsinki. If it weren’t for best friend and coworker Maria taking charge and creating a Tinder profile he might spend the next ten years alone with Missy, his adorable Shina. Mika Saito’s insistence on keeping things casual has led to a string of failed relationships. Friends since their university days, Johannes plays a counterpart role to Thedore’s Maria by delivering some tough advice Mika’s way. All it takes is a few swipes to find each other’s profiles and one funny accident that I won’t spoil to put them on a collision course for one another.
Kainokainen’s story quickly won me over after reading just a few pages and I found myself binging the story in one sitting. Overall the dialog is witty and natural and especially the banter between Theodore and Mike which is flirty, sweet, sexy, funny, and a little naughty. The bones of the plot may be a meet cute extended over a few days time but it’s a solid framework for Kainokainen to flesh out the characters and to have fun with them. Yes, as with most meet cute style stories there’s awkwardness and embarrassment, most often on Theodore’s part though Mika too. The romantic leads aren’t treated too preciously either as to avoid legitimate and well intentioned criticism of character foibles. Individually Theodore can be uncertain and prone to feeling vulnerable while Mika can be aloof and overly confident while together they bring out the best in each other even if neither one quite realizes it yet.
The art for One More is a perfect match for the script with line work that is precise and certain yet fluid in all the right places with grey tones to add depth and texture. To my eye Kainokainen’s style combines European and manga influences for an overall very pleasing result. This is doubly true with the range of facial expressions, sometimes conveyed with a cartoon or manga like flourish for accent, and gestural qualities that give life to the characters. More than a couple times I’ve gone from page to page stopping to look closer at the deceptively simple smiles, smirks, blushes, and other emotions at play throughout as the story advances.
One More is enjoyable and charming gem of a story. If you’re a fan of BL manga or series or appreciate male male romance stories in general then One More just may be for you!
Check out One More! Rated for readers 18+
Kainokainen is working on volume two which will be available on a subscription basis for 5€ plus VAT.