Hatsumi arrives at a party thrown by Azusa only to discover she has been set-up. Azusa has told his friends that Hatsumi is ready, willing and up for grabs. It turns out Azusa wants Hatsumi to feel the same sense of betrayal his mother felt after being dumped by her lover–Hatsumi’s father–and for her father to have to deal with a broken daughter the way Azusa had to pick up the pieces after his mother died of a broken heart. Ryoki rescues Hatsumi, then proceeds to berate her for falling for a guy who never loved her. When he makes a pass at her, Hatsumi accuses Ryoki of being like the guys at the party; he continues to push her regardless of her feelings. Not liking the comparison, Ryoki offers to make Hatsumi his girlfriend instead of his slave. Hatsumi ‘s passive nature has never been more obvious than in this volume. Hatsumi is faced with attempted rape, but does almost nothing to defend herself and tells no one about the incident, even after Shinogu asks her what happened. She continues to allow herself to be belittled by Ryoki, Ryoki’s mother, and even her younger sister. Ryoki is the only one who seems to show any growth at all when he attempts to fix Hatsumi’s problems by telling her what they are. If anything, Hatsumi and Ryoki serve as good examples of what not to do in these situations. Starting with this volume, libraries in conservative areas may want to move this series to their adult collection.
Hot Gimmick Volume 3
by Miki Aihara
ISBN: 9781591162285
Viz , 2004
Also available with volumes 1 and 2 in Hot Gimmick VIZ BIG edition, vol. 1: ISBN 9781421523484
