The Dashing Zaddy and His Icy Protégé Volume 1 Review
Zaddy = an attractive and fashionable older man (21st century slang).
Makoto Takanashi (40) is the successful and charismatic head of the second sales division at Itsuboshi Trading Company. All the female employees adore him and would love to go out with him – but he’s not interested, although always gallant when gently turning them down. While these rejections might seem like the ethical acts of a boss not wanting to show favour to any of his female staff, the real reason is that Takanashi is ashamed to reveal that he has erectile disfunction (ED).
Ren Iwatari (26) also works for Itsuboshi and is known as the Icy Prince because, although he’s good-looking, his temperament is cold and in business dealings, he’s utterly ruthless. He also secretly admires Takanashi – so when the chance arises to invite his boss out for drinks and dinner, he seizes it. Takanashi has been wondering how best to approach Iwatari as there’s been an anonymous complaint about him, accusing him of harassment and this seems like the ideal opportunity to discuss the matter. However, as they’re settling down with drinks, Iwatari notices a couple of young women behind them taking photos of his boss and squeeing loudly as they post them to social media, “#totalzaddy! #hotcakesighted! #dilfalert!” Furious, Iwatari takes the smartphone away and drops it in a glass of beer, saying with a terrifying glare, “Karma’s a bitch!” Inevitably, this provokes one of the young women to throw the contents of the glass over him – but she misses and drenches Takanashi.
Which is why the two end up at a hotel where Takanashi strips off his drink-soaked clothes and prepares to go into the shower and the mortified Iwatari suddenly blurts out, “I just really like you… almost too much!” Takanashi is so confused by this that he turns on the cold water in the shower by mistake. He likes me?! But I’m impotent!! But is it these words that cause the sudden unexpected physical reaction in Takanashi? Because even as he confides his problem, fireworks start going off outside the hotel window and both men realize that something has changed!
The Dashing Zaddy and His Icy Protégé is the first of mangaka Fumito’s series to get a physical release in the West (there are three others available digitally through INKR and Renta!). Erectile dysfunction might not seem the most amusing topic to feature in a romance, BL or otherwise, but although this volume has some genuinely funny scenes, they’re never at the expense of what is, after all, a distressing (but treatable) condition. We’re invited to sympathize with Takanashi and his profound embarrassment which has meant he hasn’t yet sought medical help. The underlying implication, of course, is that he’s gay and hasn’t been able to get aroused with women because they don’t turn him on. But at the end of the day, the interest in any romance story has to be the main characters – and luckily, Fumito has created a really interesting potential couple, both with their flaws and issues. There are some very nice moments of visual humour such as the fireworks going off outside the window highlighting Tokyo Tower at that key moment in the hotel.
Also, this nascent relationship is almost certainly going to be a slow-burn (rarely a bad thing as too many BL these days have both characters in bed almost before we’ve worked out who’s who) as it’s ongoing at five volumes currently in Japan. It’s good to see the mangaka not allow themselves to be tempted to deepen the relationship between Takanashi and Iwatari immediately after the hotel incident but for them to go through their own journeys of self-discovery with plenty of misunderstandings along the way. The Itsuboshi office politics are extremely convoluted with rivalries threatening to destabilize both Takanashi and Iwatari, even before any kind of personal relationships complicate the situation. There is, as in so many manga at the moment, a backstory showing how Iwatari and Takanashi first met when Iwatari was eleven – and the young executive made a big impression on the boy with his kindness. But it’s not exactly the overworked ‘childhood friends’ cliché and is different enough for it to be meaningful in context. In fact, the writing is sound throughout with storylines being laid down for future developments, always a promising sign.
Another plus is that the characters are well drawn and attractive; mature, suave Takanashi ticks all the boxes for ‘old man yaoi’ which is currently A Thing even though he’s only 40! Fumito is skilled at telling the story with a good use of varied panels, close-ups and whole-page images for important reveals. Kodansha also treat us to four colour pages at the start of the volume which is always a welcome bonus. The writing is witty but far from unsympathetic to Takanashi’s plight. And that Mature rating? There’s nothing here that merits it, apart from the terminology around ED and a scene at the public baths where there are always decorously draped towels or dialogue balloons. Maybe later volumes…?
And we get to appreciate the wittiness of the writing, thanks to Jacqueline Fung’s excellent translation for Kodansha which really brings the characters to life (but also check out nice little details like the food posters on the wall at the bar in Chapter 1). Helping to illustrate the characters’ conversations is Nicole Roderick with a wonderful variety of lettering. There’s an illustrated afterword from the mangaka at the end as well as a bonus chapter and a one-page poster promoting Volume 2 – due out in July. I’m really looking forward to it as I’ve already become attached to the main characters in The Dashing Zaddy and His Icy Protégé and I can’t wait to see where Fumito will take them next. Recommended!
Read a free preview at the publisher’s website here.
Our review copy from Kodansha was supplied by Diamond Book Distributors UK.
