How to Deal When Your Intimidating Neighbor is Actually an Omega Volume 2 Review

“Is it me or are we living together?” Kouta.

When Alpha Kouta moved into his apartment to start his life as a university student, he didn’t expect to discover that his next-door neighbour was an intimidating tattooed fellow student. Or that the self-same neighbour Ryunosuke Myanagi would turn out to be an Omega. Unable to deny their mutual attraction and compatibility, they’ve started dating – but the deep-seated biological urges that have drawn them together are inevitably impelling them to take their relationship much further. And when the water heater in Ryunosuke’s flat breaks down, it’s only natural for him to spend a lot of time with Kouta next door until it’s fixed.

Kouta is that rare thing, an idiosyncratic Alpha, which means that he can only smell an Omega’s pheromones if they’re compatible and “their feelings are mutual”. And as Ryunosuke’s heats are difficult to control with suppressants alone, it would make sense – in a biological sense – for Kouta to bite the nape of his neck to make him his mate so he wouldn’t have to deal with being relentlessly pursued by other Alphas. But when Ryunosuke casually suggests it, Kouta refuses and doesn’t explain very well why he feels it’s too soon, saying, “How would I explain it to your parents?”

Kouta’s birthday is on the horizon and Ryunosuke’s working extra hours at his part-time bar job to buy him a present. It’s unfortunate, then, that just after work takes him away from Kouta for an event that means they’ll be apart for three days, Kouta falls ill. Ryunosuke goes back home as soon as he can, only to find Kouta with a very high fever. Kouta’s hallucinating and as soon as Ryunosuke appears, he lunges for him, trying to bite his neck!

Nikuya Inui made a big impression with the first volume of her first published manga How to Deal When Your Intimidating Neighbor is Actually an Omega, so much so, she tells us in the two-page afterword/comic, that this second volume was commissioned before the first was finished and now a third volume is underway (hence the ‘To be continued’ at the end of this volume’s main material).

The Mature 18+ rating is definitely earned in this volume as the consensual sex scenes are not only explicit, they’re uncensored. However, this title is so invested in exploring the Omegaverse relationship at its heart that this shouldn’t come as surprise. In fact, the concept of the idiosyncratic Alpha and his Omega partner dominates the narrative throughout. It’s an interesting variation on the Omegaverse theme and Nikuya Inui’s skilled depiction of her two protagonists communicates the intensity of Kouta’s obsession with Ryunosuke; his inner struggle to control the raw power of his feelings really shows in the skilful way she portrays his expressions. But seeds of doubt as to why he behaves in this way are also planted very early on in this volume when the doctor Ryunosuke consults about his heats tells him that his partner should also seek medical advice as his hormones might also be out of control. “They can only detect a narrow band of pheromones. That tends to make them more possessive… which can lead to excessive stress.” Kouta is becoming increasingly agitated whenever Ryunosuke comes into contact with other Alphas even though Ryunosuke has learned how to fend for himself. And the question on which the mangaka leaves us hanging at the end of this volume only increases concerns about where this relationship is going.

There’s also a little more exploration of what it’s like to grow up as an Omega from Ryunosuke’s point of view when he tells Kouta that he started learning judo but had to quit in middle school when he realized his gender. It’d be risky to practice takedowns with people of other genders, Kouta realizes.

Translation for Kodansha’s trade paperback edition is again by Adrienne Beck, so it’s a smooth read, brought to life by letterer Sara Linsley. There are two bonus stories, including a rather sweet one about Kouta’s enduring fascination with stag beetles since childhood.

The Omegaverse is a powerful metaphor for sexual attraction and obsession as well as a romantic wish-fulfilment fantasy. It’s not hard to see the appeal of the concept of encountering your fated mate: a partner designated only for you, and this series is well worth reading for a different and believable interpretation of the trope.

• How to Deal When Your Intimidating Neighbor is Actually an Omega © Nikuya Inui/Ichijinsha Inc.

Our review copy from Kodansha was supplied by Diamond Book Distributors UK.