Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon - Vol. 1 Ch. 2 - Tasteless Night

[MangaDex]

 

[Serenata]

This is great... but as I thought, the comedy tag is really misleading, just because they laugh in one panel doesn't make this a comedy and I'm yet to see an actual joke or gag... Maybe slice of life would be more appropriate. Well is not a big deal after all. But if you want OL with yuri in a comedy setting, check out Yuri Kagi, is super good!

Thanks for the translation!! this is so real!

 

[igenetycs]

@Serenata - There are some comedic elements, especially in the upcoming third chapter. I don't think the presence of drama and dark themes forbids it from having comedy, but since it's particularly bothering you, I've went ahead and removed it.

 

[Morndas]

Woow this is good, top quality characterisation and it feels so grounded compared to most of the stuff in the genre.
This is the most I've ever been invested in a romance only 2 chapters in lol

 

[Serenata]

@igenetycs thanks and sorry for being so fixated on this, and of course, it's okay to make us laugh no matter the genre because that's what people do and is more realistic ... I just feel like the tag removes some of the seriousness that the MC is going through. Just like in Bloom into you, there were some funny moments but is not tagged as comedy- ah but guess I've said enough. Anyway, I really really like these girls and I hope they learn from each other too.

 

[MoonlightwolfchanX]

The end of this chapter... that hurts ;-;

 

[igenetycs]

@Serenata That's fair, and no worries. Nobody should be picking this up for the comedy anyway.

 

[Ranzo]

Satou is soooo adorable dude

But yeah, this chapter feels really realistic

 

[JKTV]

“Literally who” lmao

 

[icekatze]

I can't help but feel like this is inspired from some real-life event, cause it feels so authentic. Even though I was never into fashion magazines myself, I know people who went through that when they were younger and had to deal with all the unpleasant expectations.

 

[Babydel]

People talking all about realism of the emotions and I am sitting here wondering how she can hold that massive water jug so casually.

Your editing is really coming along igenetycs, these recent releases are top quality.

 

[icekatze]

@Babydel
As long as the water doesn't have an excess of deuterium oxide, it shouldn't be that heavy. (badum psh!) 😛

Seriously though, it looks like that's supposed to be a 2 liter pitcher? It's about the diameter of her head in the bottom panel, though it looks slightly bigger in the side panel. What I want to know is: what is she pouring the water into? A standard 12-cup coffee maker can easily hold 2 liters, but usually you use the carafe to pour the water?

 

[NinjaGoemon]

Only one time that she felt alive again and she doesn't know how to reclaim it with that person because doing so means leaving her armor behind and being vulnerable. Dang son. That smarts in the feels.

 

[igenetycs]

@Babydel oh stop it, you're making me blush

 

[SoloSera]

armor to make men choose me

This bit feels weird. She doesn't seem to be all that interested in men choosing her. One could argue she meant it in career-oriented way, but it reeks of the inane idea that women wear makeup for men. 😒

 

[Machaka22]

After only 2 chapters I love the 2 MC. Hoping the on coming chapters will be as interesting as this the first two chapters. Thank you for the translation.

 

[igenetycs]

@SoloSera A big theme thus far is her trying to be "normal" and to "fit in", and a big part of that (in her mind) is falling in love with a guy and living a "normal" life together. To her, materialistic things like clothes, makeup, etc. are all to accomplish the goal of being normal - and attracting men is part of that. I don't think the author is making a blanket statement about why women use makeup, this is just Hinako's personal experience.

 

[SoloSera]

I thought of the possibility that it was a "fitting in" behavior, but it just doesn't really feel like it works with the rest of the chapter for me. In this chapter, the idea of getting a boyfriend seemed like it didn't show up until her friends mentioned it. This doesn't mean that the mentioned possibility is wrong, but it makes it seem like the two scenes were poorly framed when considered together. Maybe there's something I'm forgetting from a previous chapter, though.

Also, I didn't mean to imply that the author was intentionally making a blanket statement. I was merely thinking that the assumptions of certain subcultures may have subconsciously leaked into the author's work. Even if the author isn't saying it is true of all women(which they aren't), why are they choosing to make it true for this character? I find thinking about such things interesting. 😋

 

[icekatze]

@SoloSera
I don't think the author is making any mistake or doing anything unconsciously. The opening lines of the story in the first chapter are, "Fashion magazines are my textbooks. They say that, if I dress up, put on makeup, and find love, then even someone like me, who's subpar in every way, can be normal."

Given the way it is framed, with Hinako looking depressed at the same time, it seems pretty clear that the author is well aware of the way media for women tries to undermine their self-esteem to sell them products. The idea of getting a boyfriend in order to be normal is a recurring theme in the story, and showed up in the previous chapter too.

So far, this story seems like a deliberate critique of the subcultures you suspect the author is leaking unintentionally.

 

[igenetycs]

@SoloSera Her friends are setting her up, yeah, but she's going along with the dates because she thinks that's part of what she should do to be normal. It's clearly something she wants to figure out, too, given how, in the first chapter, she laments how she's "defective goods" for not being able to fall in love with any of the guys she's been on dates with.

Spoiler

The specific topic of "finding the right guy" gets explored a little bit further in the next chapter. It's not just for her friends' sake.

Her friends are certainly a negative influence with how they're pressuring her, but her issues run deeper than that.

To me at least, she reads as someone who doesn't really do *anything* for her own sake. It's always to match some ideal and fit in with what she perceives as the correct way to be. I think it'd be strange if makeup was the only exception to this.