In the Walnut by Kawai Toko

Rating: 10
Juné 2010 - Biblos 2002/Libre 2007 - 3+ volumes

I've always liked Kawai Toko but it was In the Walnut that catapulted her onto my personal list of all-time favourite mangaka. In the Walnut is a wonderful slice of life manga that I believe transcends the BL genre and is a title that I'd recommend to not just the fujoshi but to any fan of warm, sweet, thoughtful, moving manga. I feel perfectly justified in rating it a 10; it deserves at least a 9 for its sheer quality of writing, and it gets my personal full marks because it's a work that grabs my heart, gives it a squeeze and wins my love.

Tanizaki is the scruffy roguish owner of art gallery 'In the Walnut'. The series is an episodic collection of stories, usually about the clients of the gallery who present Tanizaki with a problem to solve for each story arc. As well as being an expert restorer of paintings, Tanizaki is also a master forger of fakes, a skill that he employs both to deceive the unworthy and to help the troubled. Usually a grouchy cynical man who has no scruples about tricking people for a painting, when his compassion is triggered, his kindness impels him to help people in the most touching ways. Each story is a little gem in its own right and more than one moved me to the brink of tears.

Tanizaki's sidekick is his boyfriend, Nakai, an aspiring filmmaker whom he's dated since their college days. The series is unconventional for BL in that the leads are already an established couple at the start of the manga, thus the story is not the usual tale of two bishies getting it together and indeed, the romantic element usually takes a backseat to the main storyline. That's not to say there isn't much romance in the story because even if it's not headlining, it's usually there in the background; the couple's affection for each other can be seen in their everyday conversation, in their gestures and behaviour towards one other, each chapter becomes a vignette of their life together and we see the ups and downs of their relationship as they address the problems faced in each new story. Kawai blends the main narrative and the romantic element together seamlessly and the stories are consequently all gently suffused with a warmth of feeling and emotion.

Nakai is the complete opposite of the cool, unflappable Tanizaki; he's cheerful, friendly, open, honest and has a heart of gold. He provides all the cute factor in the manga and most of the comedic relief. His presence is something akin to Tanizaki's conscience; left on his own, Tanizaki gets up to all sorts of shady dealings but Nakai's honesty regularly stops Tanizaki in his tracks to question his own actions and motives. Nakai is a good foil for Tanizaki, but it's the latter who's the star of the book. He's one of the few 2D characters that I find myself attracted to! He's like a gentleman thief cross lovable rogue whom most days can't give a toss about his appearance and to Nakai's despair has a habit of not showering and wearing the same clothes for days, but give him a shave, a comb, suit him up, and he's transformed into an urbane erudite heartthrob! Nakai has an obsession with filming him and celebrates whenever clean-shaven, super-cool, Tanizaki makes a rare appearance...

As is evident in her other projects, it's obvious that Kawai loves her subject and her characters. Each story is steeped in art trivia, it's a pleasure to read for art fans, educational in an entertaining way for the uninitiated, and the plots benefit from her personal interest. The little universe she creates around the gallery and the large cast of characters that inhabit it are rich in detail and personality. Each new story arc necessarily introduces a new character and it's down to Kawai's skill in writing that those characters are deftly portrayed with a quick hand and in the matter of a few pages elicit our sympathy, or loathing, or whatever the mangaka chooses. Tanizaki and Nakai are an endearing pair and it's clear that Kawai enjoys writing stories for them, as she has been doing on and off for ten years now. Included in the first volume is the original short story about how they met, My Beautiful World, which was published before the In the Walnut series. The art easily dates the age of the piece to the earliest days of Kawai's career and it's a testament to her affection for these characters that a decade on she's still writing about them.

I can't enthuse enough about this series and want to share it with people because although it might not be for everyone, especially for those looking for a generic exciting smutty BL story (this is not that story), I know that for those who do fall for it, it will be love.