We take a look today at the first eromanga compilation to be released from the pen of veteran artist Bosshi of doujin circle Askray. While he made a name for himself with work in more maniac themes this book is a straightforward departure from his normal fare, one I would venture to say is palatable across a broad range of tastes, like a delicious cake made of sunshine and happy, smiling girls. In swimsuits. See below for the most persuasive argument to date that the bikini was actually an evolutionary step back from the one piece. 18+ ONLY, NWS.

Title: Mizugi Kanojo (水着彼女)
Author: Bosshi ( ぼっしぃ)
Release Date: July 28th, 2007
Publisher: Wani Magazine
Imprint: Wani Magazine (Comic Kairakuten)
ISBN 13: 978-4862690272
Availability: Mangaoh, Amazon
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Art: ★★★★☆
Story: ★★★★☆
Ero: ★★★★★
Themes: swimsuit sex, beach sex, pool sex, bathroom sex, wet shirt sex, threesomes, paizuri, megane, kyonyuu, hinyuu, lingerie, ninjas

Bosshi, an artist perhaps better known by the name of his doujin circle AskRay, has had his work published in eromanga serials since at least 2003 and was involved in doujin activity considerably before that. When he moved his site to its current location back in ‘05 he neglected to port the information on his past doujin work over along with it so it’s hard to establish a complete history of his activities; I first became aware of him in ‘02-’03 due to his futanari work and have been a fan ever since.

This volume is a compilation of his more recent eromanga serial work for Wani Magazine, and contains none of the maniac themes (lolicon, futanari, tentacles) that tend to characterize his doujinshi. Instead what we have here is a wonderfully sexy romp through thirteen stories of varying lengths, and while only a few are related to the book’s title (”swimsuit girlfriend”), general splashiness pervades throughout. The vast majority of the sex in the book looks genuinely fun for all concerned, a rare quality that makes for an equally pleasurable read; whether it be on the beach, in a pool, in the bathroom, bedroom, laundry room, or science lab, boys who dig girls who dig boys are having a great time, and as the reader I found this feeling to be almost irresistibly infectious.

Bosshi’s signature style contributes to the lighthearted feel of the book, and I think I’ve figured out why: he is a consummate artist of the bishoujo. This is a term that we’ve all heard translated roughly as “beautiful girl”, but when you pry away at its usage in the context of Japan’s 2D art you’d see Bosshi’s work as one of its very firm offshoots - the girls he draws are positively radiant, and undeniably girlish. Even when their womanly endowments are more pronounced, he draws females that are best described as “maidens”, from the blushingly awkward, to the embarrassed, inquisitive, and high-spirited, but never contrived, hard-edged or mean. His work both in CG (plentiful here at 32 pages) and monochrome is truly a joyous experience.

For fans of Bosshi’s more maniac work he has several doujin soft offerings currently available, including his own Askray lineup as well as the recently released Shokushu Shoujo from Courreges A (highly recommended) and Team Tanabe’s Touki Inbaku, featuring some well known fighting game characters. Regardless of your particular flavor Bosshi just about has you covered, and in my opinion he’s an artist strongly worth supporting. Here’s looking forward to many more years of doujin, manga and games to come!