Finder

This is certainly a manga series that is controversial and either you love it or hate it. I for one absolutely love it!!

The artwork is beautiful and the story-line is woven together with intrigue, excitement, power and of course, hot sex.

Yamane Ayano certainly draws the sexiest characters, but each one is different and very unique in their own right.

First off, you have the very sexy, yet dangerous 'Under-World" leader - Asami Ryuichi. Whom many might say is sadistic and cruel, but he actually does everything for a reason and expects the best out of himself and those around him.

Next comes The Dragon - the beautiful and deadly 'Baishe' leader - Liu Fei Long, whose past has haunted him for years, and constantly directs him along a path of revenge and sorrow.

Then the Uke of the story, who is caught between two dangerous men, is the always rambunctious, constantly getting into trouble photographer - Takaba Akihito. He certainly is not your ‘typical’ uke.

One part of the story that people find controversial takes place right after Asami meets Takaba, but Asami never does anything unless it serves a specific purpose, and in this instance it was to teach a lesson to Takaba, and for that reason, I feel it was necessary.

I recommend this series to everyone, for not only the great characters and intriguing story-line, but also because Yamane Ayano in my opinion is one the greatest mangaka's.

I can't understand why some people dislike this manga. It's really wonderful.

why is this so popular? it's far from the worst yaoi ever, mind, and yamane ayano's art brings the pretty in spades, but "the best", or "cute and funny" -- not by a long shot. the rabid fangirling about it on every manga forum is almost enough to turn me off completely. now then, here's a review from a not-fangirl:

asami should be in jail, and in psychotherapy. yeah, he looks hot, but he's only drawn that way, wry grin. he's cold and cruel, and his sexual proclivities tend towards rape, domination and sadism. i don't find seme like him attractive, i find them despicable. fei long -- oi, so pretty, and oi, so messed up. he should be in jail and therapy with asami (and if they were to get it on, i'd be ok with that; the battle would be worth it). takaba is the shining light of the manga, or rather, he was. he started out feisty, taking no shit from anyone, dusting himself off after that initial rape and moving right along. but since then he's become a powerless pawn who gets raped as a matter of course and guess what? comes to like it. urgh.

the story line is terribly convoluted -- i just bet yamane-san didn't plot this out from the start -- and consequently i couldn't care less for the yakuza vs triad machinations. the bits about fei long's background, those are interesting, and i like it best when asami and fei long interact. unfortunately 3/4 of the fandom would lynch yamane-san if she actually let them be together in the end, so that won't happen. it's worth a look to see whether you'll get subsumed into the fandom or can resist and pray for takaba to find himself a nice, non-criminal boy with whom to shack up.

i totaly love this story ^_^ its cute and funny but when i was reading ch.16 i thought it was going down a lot but know that i've read ch.22 i think it picked back up agian

My favorite BL series. Anyone who thinks this is typical and cliched isn't paying attention to what they're reading. Sure, the first volume doesn't really come together as a story since it was only intended as one shots at that point. A story arc and character development truly begin in volume 2 in a flashback story arc that is background for the current Naked Truth arc begun in volume 3. And the characters in this one are the most memorable I've read in BL. Asami, a typical cool potent(!) emotionless seme, or is he? Turns out there's more to him than meets the eye. Feilong, typical evil Chinese triad leader....Not. His fascinating character could keep psychologists arguing for ages about his motivations and goals and psyche. Takaba Akihito, the young journalist uke who is put upon by both of these men... Not your typical uke. He is the spirit of the series and the glue that holds it together, fighting for what he cares for, and he comes to care for Asami.

This is just a wonderful romance, and action story, and I encourage all lovers of such to read it.

Since this just finished, I'll add an addendum. This isn't a series to be read by people who only skim the surface of a manga. You have to watch the graphics and read and think about what the characters are really thinking, what they really mean. Yamane tells what Asami means through his eyes and actions, and very rarely when she gives us his thoughts; he's a deep player. But if you read closely you can see that she plotted his downfall to Takaba from almost the beginning, his obsession turning to caring and something more, right under his nose. It's no sudden change of character. It's a gradual revelation.

Takaba is different, yet the same. His personality is open and honest about everything, except his relationship with Asami. Like Asami, he hides it from himself, yet it's apparent to a closereading audience what he's feeling.

Their relationship is by its very nature hidden from plain view. Yamane drew it that way. We're seeing them as they see each other and themselves. It's a masterful use of POV. But unlike them we can dig for the clues she leaves to understand the real story that she's telling. We get to glimpse the naked truth before they themselves realize it.

This is a book I recommend to those who don't need things spelled out to them, and who like to ponder the subtext to get at the truth of what a piece is really saying.

A very hot and sexy yaoi manga with a lot of class. A little hardcore, but well worth the read.

Re-edit: Recent chapters, especially after the HK arc, has been quite a disappointment to me. The story just kept dragging on and on and I'm just hanging on to each chapter in the hopes that better plot will crop up. But no... Interesting and intriguing as it is, YA has left out the essence of character development, and I meant side characters by that.

The latest few chapters had a lot of issues and new stuffs thrown in. But as things wrapped up, so many are left unresolved. Even the main characters felt underdeveloped as it nears its end. Fei Long, who was once the dangerous yet graceful dragon is one example whose story has been left hanging.

Other characters could have been developed more. I might be biased because I'm a fan of Mikhail. But those aside, I just felt the plot wasn't built up enough. YA has many wonderful ideas, but she just failed to pull them all together. It could have been an awesome manga, but the latter half just left me dissatisfied...

Maybe I should try rereading the series as a whole instead of just in chapters...

What can I say that hasn't already. Finder series is by far the best manga I've read. It has everything, a well woven plot, beautiful art, steaming sex scenes, that always, at the end of every chapter leaves you pulling your hair for more. By now, I think most Yaoi readers have recognized Ayano Yamane sensei as one of the most talented yaoi artist out there... there is a good reason why.

this is the best yaoi series once u get into it

What can I say - It's the best manga ever. I love Asami and Takaba and Fei and Yoh, I love all of them, they are so beautiful.

This series starts off very complicated, but love prevails...mind you that problems will still occure because this is the wonderful world of manga xD

This is series is one of Yamano-Sempai's best and is a must read for yaoi fans, and fans of her work. It is one of the few well writtin' Hard Core Yaois

I edited and added almost ALL of the information on this page so if it is worng please change it^^

its the best in the whole entire world