The Game Called Love

Jiro Matsumoto's short story collection opens with a quirky, intricately detailed tale of love set against the backdrop of a city at war. Our spirited protagonist finds herself assuming her neighbor's identity on a whim, becoming entangled in an unwitting revolutionary's assassination plot—and also his intimate affections along the way. It’s a whimsical narrative akin to Wong Kar-Wai's style, exploring fleeting lust, love, and laughter.

The second story appears linked to the first only by the war itself, focusing instead on Sergey, a stiff man working for intelligence who begins his day by ejecting a panty-less stranger from his bathroom. His frustrations escalate when dragged to a group date, leading to an obsession with an Aryan blonde. This tale mirrors "The Conversation" if Gene Hackman indulged in more romance before descending into paranoia and conspiracy theories, echoing Orwell's "1984" not just through its dystopian setting but also via the oppressive regime's weight on doomed romance.

The third story is a western steeped in dark humor, torturing a thirsty fugitive by urinating beside him in the desert. The cruelty continues until he becomes dependent on it, creating a bizarre tale of magic and melancholy. The brilliance lies in questioning the sanity of the desert witch or the man drinking her urine to survive.

In the fourth story, we encounter a natto-eating vampire, signaling that Matsumoto isn't aiming for literary heights but reflecting his humor amidst ambitious settings. If you don’t laugh out loud when our vampire hero rejects a well-endowed woman's advances with “there isn’t any medical reason to suck any more of your blood!”, this manga might not be for you.

The fifth story transports us to 17th century Japan, following two samurai fleeing defeat, reminiscent of the battle of Sekigahara and Eiji Yoshikawa's portrayal of Miyamoto Musashi—if Musashi and his companion were both unskilled losers. Encountering an orphaned girl, they plan to sell her rather than return empty-handed after their defeat by Ieyasu Tokugawa’s army. Despite their ineptitude, Matsumoto's humor keeps the tale lively, while maintaining poignancy that honors the historical backdrop.

Though the art seems haphazard, as if sketched hastily, it's actually intricate and well-staged, offering satisfying pay-offs. Reading it feels like watching a random French New Wave film (or Russian, as Matsumoto jokes in the afterword). I reference films because Matsumoto's writing transcends manga form, focusing purely on compelling storytelling wherever his depraved imagination takes him.

Ch 86. wtf, you can't do this to me. The story already fucking ended and then you hit me with this? Where is the closure, where are the answers, will this even be revisited? Will we ever know the whole story?

at first i read this story with enthusiasm, ah finally i found a good story after so long searching! uhm it until i nosy to peek at some random chapters.. and then i cried so hard. why is this story so emotional? why did Mr. Gu and Mo'er have a hobby of parting? yes i know i haven’t read on the whole chapter but still this story is sooo emotional it makes me lose my mood to read it. ok bye bye i know i’m a coward!

if ur not a fan of cuckholding then this is not for you because the mc does it on a daily basis. even his father and brother were victims of cuckholding and he does it in the most bizarre ways(and yes there is *nc*st in this sh*t).