Straight into Red- Yellow Omnibus vol 2- Makoto Tateno

When a routine drug snatch unexpectedly leads to the discovery of a murdered doctor, Taki and Goh find themselves embroiled in a sinister plot. With the only clue a napkin with a cryptic message scrawled upon it, it becomes obvious that something is definitely going on beyond a routine dispute. When postcards bearing nothing but the image of a lizard begin to be delivered to to the café at the same time he runs into the man who raised him, it jolts Taki into a panic. The café owner’s reactions to the postcards are different, with anger and a quiet burning resolve pushing him to move events forward. What do all these things have to do with each other? Taki is afraid he knows, and with the lives of Goh and their friends on the line, he decides he must take action. Rushing on past the yellow light, he heads straight into the red. Can Goh and their friends unravel the mystery and save Taki? And what other secrets is Taki hiding from Goh? After a surprising passionate encounter, what’s with Taki taking off? Has Goh won his heart or not? And if so, why did he disappear like that?

This volume of Yellow moves us forward into a suspense filled thriller of a story arc, which not only provides the readers with plenty of action but also brings revelations about the characters’ back stories. . Nor does it lack for angst. We get the straight Taki facing confusing emotions that he begins to understand all too well, Goh who knows his own heart but agonises over pushing Taki too far, an obsessive transsexual with feelings of love that more than border on mania, a long grieving husband and father, and a policeman with an emotional conflict over how justice is best served for all of his friends’ sakes. The multi-layered complexities add a substantial plot that makes this an even more tantalising volume than its predecessor. With passions of all kinds running high, questions from the first volume are not only answered but actually form the key underpinnings to the plot. Tateno’s art is beautiful to behold as ever, and her action scenes bustle with impact, her love scenes sizzle, and always, Goh and Taki’s bodies are sculpted with care that will surely feed many a yaoi fan’s fantasies.

Rated at 18+ due to mature themes and explicit sexual content, this volume is currently available as a paperback. It is not yet available for online reading via the publisher’s Emanga portal, nor as an edition for the Kindle. I’d like to thank Digital Manga Publishing for providing me with this review copy.

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