Welcome back to Romance Roundtable: a feature where the editorial POME Crones gather together to discuss Romance Manga. Today we’re covering volume 1 of Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?! by Yuu Toyota (translated by Taylor Engel). Join us for improbable magical powers, matchmaking bosses, and, most importantly, two cute hunks having big feelings.
Jenny: ok i will start by saying that this was very cute and fun!
the premise:
CC: always appreciate when it’s all right there in the title
30 year old virgin becomes a wizard
Rachel: i really enjoyed how there was absolutely no preamble to this
who cares why it is this way!! it just is!!!
Jenny: just jumped right in!
cut anything that does not spark joy!
Ashley: LOL yes
at first it caught me off guard but i came around immediately like, ok let’s go!
CC: no time to waste
every moment spent building lore is a moment without sexual tension
Rachel: exaCTLY
the older i get, the less i care about worldbuilding
Ashley: LMAO
Jenny: yes!!
CC: look: i love worldbuilding, i truly do, but did not need it here & appreciated just cutting to the chase
also LOL jenny I was about to post this same screenshot
great minds
Jenny: huge brains that’s us
CC: i love that both of these boys have like one shared brain cell and it’s just thinking about smooching
Jenny: truly
and also who doesn’t love a classique ‘popular boy loves awkward nerd’?
Rachel: the classic “he’s blinding”
☀️🌑
CC: literally so hot that they have to send him away on valentine’s day to get anything in the office done
L M A
Rachel: LOL yes i did love that
Rachel: LOL yes i did love that
Ashley: he is truly the perfect hot boy
humble, a little lonesome
CC: a great cook
Ashley: literal chef kiss
CC: whatta hunkasaurus
Jenny: and also! he’s so nice!
PURE!
Rachel: so cute!!!
love to lend your crush your scarf!!
Ashley: the shojo sparkles, restrained, really hits
CC: ok, the one thing that really felt like a bit much
even though honestly: fantastically played
was him having a pair of PJs perfectly in his crush’s size just on the off chance that he had to crash there someday
Jenny: oh agreed — that was Too Much
Ashley: I ATE IT UP
lolllll
let me have this!!!!
Jenny: lolololololol
Rachel: yeah honestly i am here for it hahahaha
love to indulge in innocent ways!!
let him have his little fantasy!!
CC: like, well played, in the same way that the girl from our prev book long conned her crush into marrying and then falling in love with her
genious brain
Jenny: love to have both wolves represented here
Ashley: LOL
Jenny: but i DID really like:
CC: LMAO YES
Jenny: the pj’s feature prominently!
Rachel: hahaha the character limit comment
Jenny: yes! “fantasies over a certain character limit are displayed as visuals” — v funny. i love comics
CC: rachel i knew u would appreciate that
comics are great
love comics
Ashley: the thing that I thought was much was the third person 30 yr old male captions???
who is in the quotation marks????????????? who is saying this?
Rachel: oh yes i struggled with that as well!
CC: it reminded me of like, online advice forum posts?
Jenny: oh yeah i didn’t totally get that. thought maybe it was like someone writing in to an advice column?
lol +1 cc
Rachel: my spouse told me that apparently turning into a wizard when you are a 30 year old virgin is like a 4chan meme or something
so maybe it’s a reference to that?
Jenny: ohhhhh that would make some sense, i think
Ashley: ohhhhhh yeah okay
CC: i [30m] can read my hot coworker’s [??m] mind & he gives me soft pajamas and delicious breakfast, i want to kiss him, what do i do??
Rachel: LOL
Ashley: AITA: i (30m) paid for my crush’s (30m) thank you lunch so he would have to take me out again
Rachel: ahahahahaah love it though
ok so, i thought this book was overall very sweet and cute and fun, but there was a thing that kept happening that i have conflicting feelings about
which was how Adachi, our virgin wizard, was always bracing Kurosawa to assault him??
like the idea that oh, this man is gay, i must be in danger
Jenny: ah yeah — it felt like it was played off as a joke a lot of the time, like:
Jenny: but agree that it came off a little paranoid in a homophobic way
Rachel: yeah!!
CC: also every time kurosawa is just like “cool, goodnight!” adachi is like
wow, amazing, what a great guy, did not assault me
maybe it’s just that he read too many harlequin mangas
Ashley: ACK HAHAHA
he DID canonically read his mom’s shojo manga
Ashley: lol
i mean, i think it could be read generously as internalized homophobia
Rachel: yeah for sure! i also think like, sometimes men ARE scary
hence my conflicting feelings
Jenny: ah yeah that’s a fair point rachel
CC: yeah agreed, the harlequin manga guess is….a very generous interpretation L O L
Jenny: like, i remember adachi would sometimes think like “what if i were a woman in this situation”
and like, yeah if he were it might genuinely be cause for some paranoia
Rachel: yes exactly!!
i think another somewhat generous reading of it could be the fear of falling in love, being seen and known
insert that meme about being seen here
i do get the vibe that it’s a lot of internalized homophobia though, i think ashley is right on the money about that
how he would say things like he was “surprised” that being kissed didn’t “gross” him out
that’s like, classic internalized homophobia i think
Jenny: for sure
Ashley: been there
Jenny: but also a little bit just being a virgin and inexperienced
Ashley: hahah been there too
Jenny: like, bodily fluids, y’know; mouths–they’re not clean
Ashley: i mean let’s be real kurosawa has excellent oral hygiene
Jenny: yes he’s perfect
Ashley: hahaha
Rachel: what did y’all think of Adachi’s romance novelist best friend, and future virgin wizard??
Jenny: I LOVE HIM
CC: i love that he and the hot postal worker have a real yuri manga couple vibe. chaotic blond one, blockheaded dark haired cutie
Ashley: YESSS
Jenny: HUGE paulette bonafonte vibes
CC: “this old guy”
Ashley: LITTLE YURI FANG
Jenny: YESSSSS
Rachel: THUNK
Ashley: thunk
Jenny: THUNK!!
Ashley: direct hit
CC: i like that they reused the panel with the cat in the box with the umbrella like 2 or 3 times
could reuse it on every page honestly, i wouldn’t mind
i love udon the cat
cat
i love cat
Ashley: when you draw something really good don’t be afraid to repost!!!!
Jenny: yes i really respect it
Rachel: i am not trying to draw an umbrella more than once if i can help it
a surprisingly complex geometric shape!!
Ashley: lmao
CC: LOL
fair
Ashley: will keep that in mind for our next fashion post
Jenny: i wish only the best for my romantic idiot son
but i wanted to mention that this whole book is v fun!
like
the meddling boss!
CC: oh LOL yall i just realized something
the boss
he’s also there during the kissing game at the afterparty
Ashley: HAHAHAHA WAIT WHAT
CC: same bowl cut!
dang jenny you really called it!!!!
he was pulling the strings the whole time!!!!!
Rachel: wow dang!!! the real mvp???
Jenny: bullies adachi into taking kurosawa out to dinner bc kurosawa helped adachi out w some paperwork; gives them a coupon for a restaurant and then when they go the coupon is expired!! does not say anything when one coworker bullies adachi and kurosawa into kissing!
meddlesome crone energy
CC: the bossman
Ashley: this whole world’s function is to get these two together
Jenny: but genuinely the expired coupon meat shop date was funny and cute
Jenny: adachi out here again like “wow i can’t believe i had a really nice time with this beautiful man who is super nice and also into me”
simpleminded!
but also it does end so disastrously
see: “AITA: i (30m) paid for my crush’s (30m) thank you lunch so he would have to take me out again”
so when adachi makes them go to an ATM so he can repay the debt immediately
i sad
Rachel: yes 😥
CC: hope these 2 crazy kids can figure it out
Jenny: yes!!
Ashley: final thoughts?????
Rachel: i’m down!
Jenny: sure thing!
CC: yeah!
ok, I have a very simple final thought, mind if I go first yall?
Jenny: go for it
CC: rad: my final thought is
this manga was so cute and fun, but i have it on good authority that there is a drama of this story that is even more cute and fun
and now that we’ve read the book i canNOT wait to check it out!!!
Ashley: !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Jenny: !!!!!!!!!!!!
yes yes yes yes yes
Ashley: omg wait i think i’ve seen stills of this on twitter
CC: 1 sec
lemme grab a link here
Rachel: DANG
yes would 10000% be down to watch this!!
Ashley: yessssssssssssssssSSSSSSSSSSSSS
Rachel: ok so my final thought is kind of related
i have to say, i was a little disappointed at the low spice level of this book, but the author’s afterward gives me hope for future books
CC: LOL
Jenny: lol this was going to be my final thought!
Rachel: hahahah great minds jenny!!
Jenny: i immediately tried to find vol2 and came up w nothing!
i have a backup thought though
which is just that kurosawa really is perfect
so patient
his determination so easily renewed
CC: LOL this internal monologue is so relatable
Jenny: i too have been down bad enough that my thoughts go from “i should just give up” to “oh my god fuck fuck fuck”
Ashley: HAHAHAHA
Jenny: whomst among us etc
Ashley: “this will get me through the next month at least”
Jenny: YES
Rachel: lollllll
CC: me_irl
Ashley: we are all simple creatures at heart
my final though is
only a true genious could make hot boy problems so relatable
Rachel: HHAHAHA
CC: L O L
Jenny: this scene was so sweet
really made it all make sense
Ashley: i like it because it’s not “he doesn’t know how beautiful he is” it’s “he doesn’t know he’s beautiful inside toooo”
Rachel: :sob:
CC: ;__;
Jenny: this is what 1 Direction was telling us all along
Ashley: LOL i will never know but i believe u
Jenny: thank
Rachel: jenny, pome youth correspondent
Jenny: always here to relay the trends that were popular 10 years ago
Ashley: * cackles into dust *
Join us next time for even more love story shouting in our next Romance Roundtable! In the meantime, Monthly Ko-Fi members: head on over to Ko-Fi for just a few bonus goofs that didn’t make it into today’s roundtable, as a treat.
All images in this article via volume 1 of Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?! by Yuu Toyota (translated by Taylor Engel), unless otherwise specified.