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Farewell to My Alter: Nakatani Nio Short Story Collection
Nio Nakatani, known for her delicate and heartwarming portrayal of girls’ love, presents a marvelous collection of short stories that span her whole career. With works including her striking debut title Farewell to My Alter, enthralling tales from the Éclair anthologies, and a hauntingly captivating piece penned exclusively for this volume, Nakatani explores the deeper nuances of loss, identity, and matters of the heart.
146 pages, Paperback
First published February 25, 2020
About the author
Nakatani Nio
44 books196 followersNio NAKATANI 仲谷鳰 is a Japanese mangaka and doujinsha.
Associated Names:
Rireba リレバ
Official site:
Doujinsha site: 「リレバ」 rireba
Pixiv: 仲谷鳰[Nakatani]
Associated Names:
Rireba リレバ
Official site:
Doujinsha site: 「リレバ」 rireba
Pixiv: 仲谷鳰[Nakatani]
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
July 14, 2021
Nio Nakatani is the mangaka behind Bloom Into You, currently my all time favourite manga series and the only one that has ever made me tear up while reading it. This is her short story collection, so please be advised my bias is pretty heavy going in.
Let’s get the bad part out of the way - the majority of these stories are reprints from the Eclair yuri anthology and if you’re current on those (hello!) then you are getting a paltry three stories in here that you haven’t read before. So a real dearth of new material for that reader.
Okay, that’s the bad part. The good part is that Nio Nakatani is an amazing creator and knows how to tell an actual proper short story. So many times in manga anthologies I complain that there’s no ending and stories just stop. None of these do that and that’s a skill worth lauding.
All the Eclair stories are great. I’ve really come around on the piano playing girl whose love interest accidentally forgets to be careful what you wish for - there’s easily a two to three volume series in this one. There’s also a fun fox girl story, a cute idol story, etc, none of these are bad.
Interestingly, outside of those Eclair stories there isn’t any yuri to be found, showing that Nakatani shouldn’t just be pigeonholed into one genre. They’re good at writing anything.
Of the new stories, I really like one of their first works, the titular Farewell to my Alter, which involves twin girls (it amusingly drifts just this close to where you think it will and then shrugs and says ‘nah’) who function as a single entity and has some interesting thoughts on identity and love. Shades of a certain manga series…
The fantasy story is more straightforward, but no less pensive, with a pretty obvious point about people, but what appears to be a much more subtle one about maybe not ascribing too much nobility to somebody’s actions without knowing the details. It’s good, but I would peg this as the least interesting of the book.
The last story contains a suicide, so, content warning, but is a lovely little piece about two people who have very different perspectives on the same actions and the desire to be a better person. It’s really charming, in its way, amidst all the melancholia, and I really like the way the two leads interact.
4 stars for me, just because I read most of this content before. For the neophyte, I really think every story here has worth and there are some really cracking ones to be found in these pages. That’s a hit to miss ratio that most collections would kill for, so I heartily recommend this one on that basis alone.
Let’s get the bad part out of the way - the majority of these stories are reprints from the Eclair yuri anthology and if you’re current on those (hello!) then you are getting a paltry three stories in here that you haven’t read before. So a real dearth of new material for that reader.
Okay, that’s the bad part. The good part is that Nio Nakatani is an amazing creator and knows how to tell an actual proper short story. So many times in manga anthologies I complain that there’s no ending and stories just stop. None of these do that and that’s a skill worth lauding.
All the Eclair stories are great. I’ve really come around on the piano playing girl whose love interest accidentally forgets to be careful what you wish for - there’s easily a two to three volume series in this one. There’s also a fun fox girl story, a cute idol story, etc, none of these are bad.
Interestingly, outside of those Eclair stories there isn’t any yuri to be found, showing that Nakatani shouldn’t just be pigeonholed into one genre. They’re good at writing anything.
Of the new stories, I really like one of their first works, the titular Farewell to my Alter, which involves twin girls (it amusingly drifts just this close to where you think it will and then shrugs and says ‘nah’) who function as a single entity and has some interesting thoughts on identity and love. Shades of a certain manga series…
The fantasy story is more straightforward, but no less pensive, with a pretty obvious point about people, but what appears to be a much more subtle one about maybe not ascribing too much nobility to somebody’s actions without knowing the details. It’s good, but I would peg this as the least interesting of the book.
The last story contains a suicide, so, content warning, but is a lovely little piece about two people who have very different perspectives on the same actions and the desire to be a better person. It’s really charming, in its way, amidst all the melancholia, and I really like the way the two leads interact.
4 stars for me, just because I read most of this content before. For the neophyte, I really think every story here has worth and there are some really cracking ones to be found in these pages. That’s a hit to miss ratio that most collections would kill for, so I heartily recommend this one on that basis alone.
August 9, 2021
Nio Nakatani, you absolute COCKTEASE. The only reason this is getting 4 and not 5 is because I want most of these short stories to be full ass stories godammit!
June 1, 2022
4.5 star.
December 23, 2021
因為 podcast 推薦，要說有趣也不錯，但有五篇跟百合短篇重複了耶！
October 25, 2021
I do like these one-shots a lot, but I wish some of them could have been longer.
June 3, 2021
其中有5篇已經在《與妳相依 敲響心扉的百合精選集》系列出現了
也就是說這本的厚度約有一半是重複的
在看到重複的第3篇時，腦內已經有一小部分在思考如果是用買的話，CP值……
體驗不太好
沒重複的篇章還算有意思
也就是說這本的厚度約有一半是重複的
在看到重複的第3篇時，腦內已經有一小部分在思考如果是用買的話，CP值……
體驗不太好
沒重複的篇章還算有意思
July 3, 2021
Nio Nakatani is a fantastic mangaka. These stories can be silly little slices of life, to tragedies, to romances, and everything in-between. I haven't read much of Nakatani's previous work so all of this was new to me and most every story blew me away. But if you're someone who has been following Nakatani's career closely, particularly if you've been reading her stories in the Eclair anthologies, half this book is going to be reprints and you might not be as surprised as me.
I loved the titular first story, Farewell to My Alter, about a set of twins who share their lives and live as one. It breaks your heart from the first page and sets a wonderful tone for the anthology. I also loved Happiness in the Shape of a Scar which is about jealousy, envy, and confusing feelings of malice that spark something more. And then the final, new original story for this volume, I Want to Be Kind hit a special place for me and reminded my of a high school memory close to my heart. They were my three favourites, but the whole collection is a stand-out.
I loved the titular first story, Farewell to My Alter, about a set of twins who share their lives and live as one. It breaks your heart from the first page and sets a wonderful tone for the anthology. I also loved Happiness in the Shape of a Scar which is about jealousy, envy, and confusing feelings of malice that spark something more. And then the final, new original story for this volume, I Want to Be Kind hit a special place for me and reminded my of a high school memory close to my heart. They were my three favourites, but the whole collection is a stand-out.
June 15, 2022
A short story collections that ranges from light-hearted to heartbreaking, starting with the titular Farewell to My Alter that pulls no punches. Nakatani's work is as beautiful and intriguing as ever, and each story has the potential to be a series of its own. Each chapter varies, some fantasy, some slice of life, with themes just as mixed. Some were sweet, others melancholic. It's the sort of collection I keep rereading for some reason, which for me is rare. There's not much else I can say other than finishing it felt like the end of a particularly long day, satisfying but not quite happy. Definitely a collection I recommend!
October 2, 2021
Nio Nakatani is a master of the craft of making manga. Each short story in this book, whether it deals with heavy topics such as death, or mundane, slice-of-life plots, is drawn, laid out, and written with a delicate nuance. The works here are all amazing, and there is little I can find to gripe about here.
These are the stories that are told in such a way that the reader comes back to it every time getting something different. I'd recommend this to anyone, even to my friends who've never touched a manga volume.
These are the stories that are told in such a way that the reader comes back to it every time getting something different. I'd recommend this to anyone, even to my friends who've never touched a manga volume.
February 13, 2023
Very interesting short story collection from the author of GL manga Bloom into you.
My favorite was definitely Farwell to my Alter> I really wish it would have been longer. It has a very erie undertone to it that I often find authors having a hard time living up to.
The other stories were a bit of a mixed bag, I liked most of them quite well. Looking forward to more from Nio Nakatani in the future. I think this really demonstrate that she has even more potential that we have yet to seen in one of her serialized series.
My favorite was definitely Farwell to my Alter> I really wish it would have been longer. It has a very erie undertone to it that I often find authors having a hard time living up to.
The other stories were a bit of a mixed bag, I liked most of them quite well. Looking forward to more from Nio Nakatani in the future. I think this really demonstrate that she has even more potential that we have yet to seen in one of her serialized series.
October 3, 2021
This time a short story collection hit so many right places. All the stories are good, some a little more, others a little less so. A big chunk of them are Nakatani's contributions to Éclair series of yuri anthologies.
The title story was interesting and a little bit chilling and the last one, drawn for this collection, was the best one in my opinion. I also liked there were short comments from Nakatani about each story.
The title story was interesting and a little bit chilling and the last one, drawn for this collection, was the best one in my opinion. I also liked there were short comments from Nakatani about each story.
March 16, 2022
since this is a collection of short stories ill just review each one individually as well
farewell to my alter - 5/5
the hero saves the world three times - 4/5
tear-flavoured escargot - 4/5
happiness in the shape of a scar - 4.5/5
always in profile - 4/5
comm-ear-ication - 3.5/5
i am custom-made - 4.5/5
double bed - 5/5
i want to be kind - 5/5
farewell to my alter - 5/5
the hero saves the world three times - 4/5
tear-flavoured escargot - 4/5
happiness in the shape of a scar - 4.5/5
always in profile - 4/5
comm-ear-ication - 3.5/5
i am custom-made - 4.5/5
double bed - 5/5
i want to be kind - 5/5
September 7, 2022
Just like with prose short stories, not all manga one shots are created equal. Some were thought provoking, and I really like how Nakatani explores the subtle darkness that lurks in every person’s mind: secrets and mischief and greed and guilt and hypocrisy and indifference. But it’s also really interesting to see that kind of packaged up in love and understanding and empathy.
January 28, 2024
A strange little collection.
It doesn’t really seem to have purpose other than being a hastily put together work.
Strongest stories is the 1st and last, though I will say the 1st definitely was a bit out of place and strange.
However, the final story was wonderful. The reason why this collection was able to power to a 3 star.
It doesn’t really seem to have purpose other than being a hastily put together work.
Strongest stories is the 1st and last, though I will say the 1st definitely was a bit out of place and strange.
However, the final story was wonderful. The reason why this collection was able to power to a 3 star.
August 23, 2021
An interesting mixed bag but, being one-shots, we didn't have time to get into the character and relationship development from the author's main series, Bloom into You. Which I now might reread... But they were quite varied in terms of plot and theme, so it was nice to see the diversity there.
June 30, 2021
A nice collection of short, one shot stories ranging from the funny to the more emotional.
July 2, 2021
A collection from Nakatani Nio; not just romance, but always interesting looks at the inner thoughts and feelings of her characters. Her art's really cute, too!
September 29, 2021
Quick and easy, this doesn't really want more as they are pretty much the perfect length for some mostly low stakes but nice human drama.
December 11, 2021
There were 4 stories in this that I genuinely loved but the rest were either just too strange for me, boring, or I just didn’t like them.
January 24, 2022
A fine collection of well crafted short stories. It made me feel sad for snails!!! Or one very unlucky snail, at least.
January 28, 2022
It was okay, just kind of boring.
July 7, 2024
I really enjoyed the "Farwell to my alter" story sm
June 14, 2021
短篇果然不太行...誰來都差不多吧
March 19, 2022
By the Mangaka who created the much beloved "Bloom Into You".
A series of short stories. Many are bittersweet, but many end on a happy note. I really enjoyed this book. Full of promise that could lead to several longer manga series.
A series of short stories. Many are bittersweet, but many end on a happy note. I really enjoyed this book. Full of promise that could lead to several longer manga series.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews