すんドめ

SUNDOME

MANGA

STATUS
COMPLETE
VOLUMES
8
RELEASE
August 18, 2009
CHAPTERS
76

DESCRIPTION

The "Roman Club," a school group interested in the occult, to which he's practically enslaved, has become boring for one Hideo Aiba. In fact, he finds his entire existence pretty tiresome until, one day, when a girl named Kurumi Sahana shows up and wants to join up. When the two are left alone in the club classroom, Kurumi makes a special "request" of Hideo, which makes him (understandably) freak out. Though he doesn't know what to think, one thing's for sure, Hideo's life just became anything but boring.

(Source: Yen Press)

CAST

Kurumi Sahana
Hideo Aiba
Kyouko
Katsu Toshitsuku
Ex President
Tatsuya Yatsu

CHAPTERS

REVIEWS

saulgoodman
90/100
Need something to stimulate the libido and tear ducts? Look no further
Sundome (すんドめ): "stopping the moment before"

Need something to stimulate the libido and tear ducts? Look no further than Sundome.

So someone may tell you that Sundome is a smutty story entailing two middle-schoolers and their sexual misadventures.

Ecchi is certainly the most prominent part of this series, but there is much, much more going on that it makes it one of my favorite series.

Story

Introducing Hideo Aiba, a plain middle-schooler in the dysfunctional Roman Club. The members investigate UFO sightings, urban legends, and other mysteries. The club's golden rule is NO SEX. Cue in Kurumi Sahana, a cute, seemingly-innocent transfer student. With an interest in Hideo, Kurumi joins the club and tells him that she will never have sex with him. Thus, began a strange relationship between the two.

The story is generally split in two.
- On one hand, is the Roman Club's wacky investigations. You see side-characters characterized/developed through risqué situations. In the midst of the general lighthearted atmosphere, there are dark moments and foreshadowing.
- On the other hand, is Hideo and Kurumi's sexual misadventures. It goes beyond pantsu shots and lucky pervert grabs. It explores piss-drinking, choking, etc. The depraved, dark aspect of their relationship really does develop their intimacy. Not just sexual intimacy, but human intimacy. It's heartwarming seeing their relationship grow.
Pacing-wise, I think it's a bit clunky at times, especially during the middle. Really accelerates towards the end. Some folks may find the quick switch from serious, somber moments to goofy, cartoony scenes jarring, but I personally like it. The story is a blend of strangely wholesome, sexually depraved and goofy moments.

Now, the ending. Oh, boy. It has got to be my favorite bittersweet ending. Hideo breaks the bedridden, terminally-ill Kurumi out of the hospital in a romantic getaway by the sea. There, the two once again engage in sexual intimacy. Just before her life dissipates, she whispers to Hideo; "When I wake up, let's have sex", as he lets a madlad load on her lifeless body. As she promised in the first chapter, Kurumi never let Hideo have sex with her. Years later, Hideo becomes a doctor and has a girlfriend who looks strikingly similar to his deceased first love. Just ... writing and recalling this is making me choke up. This is the climax. Figuratively and literally. Hideo was very close to having sex with Kurumi, but she again denies him of it. She promises sex when she wakes up, but enters an eternal slumber. The embodiment of "Sundome". Recall the Roman Club's golden rule. I think Kurumi always denied Hideo of sex so he could fulfill the role of club presidency and secure its alumni support for his dream of becoming a doctor. The two truly loved each other. Instead of lamenting over her eventual demise, Hideo never broke his smile in his last moments with her. Compared to his past behavior, where he always overthought, dwelled and hesitated; Hideo truly has grown. I could ramble on and on but I want to keep it short.

Recall the defintion of "Sundome". It's a recurrent idea throughout the story, in the form of ejaculation and human intimacy.

Characters

Some great development, both main and side. Everyone grows from the smutty situations they often get themselves into, providing both cheap amusement and heartwarming satisfaction. They have realistic conflicts. For example, Hideo's initially an awkward, hesitant person. He tended to avoid and overthink situations. As the story went on, his hesitation disappeared and became more assertive. Kurumi is great, too. It's obvious she's terminally-ill and doesn't have much time left. However, it doesn't stop her from experiencing her youth and enjoying her life. I found her motives for teasing Hideo vague. If you refer to my theory in the ending, it may fit but I don't think she was in contact with the alumni until later on? Anyways, Kurumi was also full of lamentation, like Hideo. We saw her cry over her condition and avoid talking about it with Hideo. But towards the end, she spends her last moments in peace with Hideo. I really do love the "Enjoy the little time you have left" theme and Kurumi excellently embodies it.

Art

The art-style is certainly not the highlight of this series. It's rather simple, crude and hasn't aged well. The art itself can fluctuate. Comedic scenes will have bobblehead characters and a cartoonish feel. Serious and primarily sexual scenes are more detailed, pseudo-realistic to really draw attention to facial expressions and the sexual nature of the series.

Enjoyment

Absolutely love this series. I love how it annihilated my doubts that a dark, sexual series about various fetishes could be great.

Final Words

Even after all this praise I give, I still wouldn't recommend it to the vast majority. But, along with Onani Master Kurosawa, this series proves that you should never judge a book by its cover.
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beachrats
100/100
The saddest porn you will ever read.
Now first and foremost, I must tell you that I absolutely adore Sundome. It's raunchy, it's ridiculous, and it's surprisingly touching.

I found it through the recommended section from the manga series Mysterious Girlfriend X (another one of my favorites) and upon reading the first few chapters, decided it wasn't really for me. And then its tab sat open, on my phone, for a few months. One afternoon I was really bored so I decided to pick it back up, and I'm so, so glad that I did. Sundome is surprisingly deep with complex characters and really well-written relationships. Its humor is very bawdy, but if you're into that or can at least look past that fact, then I totally recommend it. I can't say much more without spoiling it since it's the kind of story that's best knowing as little as possible. It also helps to be into at least one of the fetishes in the story (it's mainly s&m and piss) but it touches on a lot of different ones. Then again, if your threshold to put up with weird shit is higher than most other people, then you shouldn't really have any problem with the content of this manga.

The art in it is... eh. I don't love it, but I don't hate it either. On my second read-through of it, I didn't mind it as much as I did the first time I read it. The chapter cover art is usually a pin-up of the main character Kirumi, and that's always really well-drawn. And within the actual story, most sexual moments are drawn really dark with striking highlights on the characters. It makes them look weirdly shiny at times, but I wouldn't write it off as completely terrible. I think this artist uses contrast amazingly, in fact. So while the art isn't the best at times, it's not terrible and should not be a reason to not read this manga. The one gripe I do have with it is how when the girls wear their casual clothes, the shorts always are really tight around their.. area. And I mean like, really tight. I think someone in the comments on one of the chapters put it best, saying: "Goddamn, whenever they are in their casual clothes they really make that fucking cameltoe look like double mountain meat."

Alright, spoiler warning for the next two paragraphs. Nothing major, but if you want to truly appreciate Sundome how it should be appreciated then maybe skip this part. Again, it's read best knowing as little as possible.

Sundome is devastating. The buildup and the foreshadowing in this are perfect. Even though you know the ending is coming, you can't help but feel crushed when it actually comes. I think that's what surprised me the most on my first read-through of it, I was not at all expecting to be that sad. For what it is, it does its job well and gets its point across. It's about teenage relationships and how nothing lasts forever. The first time I read it, I was a lot sadder during the buildup. I cried at all the hints leading up to the final few chapters and then all through the few final ones. On the second readthrough, I feel like the final few chapters hit me a lot harder, even though I knew what was coming. It seems the main criticism for Sundome is that the main two characters are in a toxic relationship, and that's just not true. In fact, their relationship is incredibly endearing. They really love each other and you can tell, and I think that's the main cause for the last few chapter's impact.

However, I feel like the last few chapters can be interpreted very differently. The manga ends very sexually. I mean, the main chick [spoilers] during intercourse. If this manga is more stimulating for you then maybe the last few chapters would be interpreted differently. Still sad, but differently. I was crying so hard the last few chapters, but then again I was also listening to sad music to enhance the story. The first read-through I did I had listened to "My Blueberry Life" by the Current Joys, and then for my second read-through, I listened to "Hello-Sin-Nation" by The Red Pears. I feel like both songs did give a slightly different tone to the ending, so I feel like if you're going to listen to music towards the ending, then go with "My Blueberry Life." "Hello-Sin-Nation" seems more of like a reflection on the final chapter's events rather than the emotions at the moment, which lends well to a second read-through, but not so much the first.

Alright, spoilers over.

To wrap up, I love Sundome. It achieves exactly what it's going for, and it achieves it perfectly. It's gross, it's funny, and it's moving. If you're willing to put up with weird stuff or are into any of the stuff in Sundome, then I highly, highly recommend it. You'd be surprised how good it is.
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Gallad
65/100
Terrible Story, Terrible Characters, Terrible Ecchi, Beautiful Romance.

Sundome

The story is basically a boy meets a girl he likes, they both join the same club and the girls tells him that he can like her but she will never have sex with him or let him cum fully.

The Manga's title "Sundome" means "stopping the moment before" in Japanese and my friend this is the entire premise of this manga. There are many ecchi situations in this manga with these two characters where the girl pushes him to the edge but does not make him cum fully.

Lmao.

Terrible ecchi

I know know, it's an ecchi manga so it's ecchi is supposed to be good right? it should be hot right?
ha ha

NO
Let me explain,

Ruining The Romance
Despite the bad ecchi and the various problems ( which I will discuss later ), the manga has decent romance imo ( which I will also discuss later) and the ecchi parts just ruin the romance of the manga for me at least. Imagine this scenario,

Our cute protagonist is talking about his future ambitions, he talks with all his hearts giving a nice, long and beautiful explanation which touches my heart and is very wholesome/cute. He is brimming with ambition and enthusiasm.

Two pages later,

He is drinking her piss.

i wish I was exaggerating smh

The Art
All The Ecchi is given this dark and shady colour to give it a more intense and erotic view as a whole for the reader, I thought it was kinda okay at best. It's not bad or anything but I didn't find it interesting. I think it made it look more like a horror manga tbh. Here see for yourself,

Basically, what I mean to say is that I didn't find the ecchi hot or interesting tbh. It's not like I hate ecchi or anything, for example I loved the manga To Love Ru. Hell that manga is the most ecchi shit ever and I had a lot of fun reading it. This manga's ecchi is not fun for me and ruins the manga for me ngl.
But hey, Just because I hate the ecchi doesn't mean you will hate it. We all have different tastes in music, food and movies so we can have different tastes in ecchi too.

Problems

The characters of this manga suck. The characters are not very lIkeable. They don't get any character depth or character development or any meaningful arc which is shit because they show up in most of the chapters but I guess they do have some good moments here and there. Only the main leads of the manga are decent.

The story in this manga sucks too because it gets formulaic and repetitive after a while. Add this with the "interesting" characters that the manga already has resulting in a boring slice of life with terrible ecchi.

The comedy is bad and unfunny at most points.
The art is okay, but what is the point in talking about the art when most of the pages look like this.

Romance

I know that I shit on the manga a lot and it does not seem like a good read at all
but there must be a reason that I was able to finish it and am writing this review right ?

Yes sir, which is the romance.
It was a unique and interesting experience. Let's discuss why.

The manga follows only the perspective of the male lead throughout the story, so we never hear the thoughts of the female lead involved in the story. This leads to a sort of a mystery for the reader who has to answer questions like why this girl is doing these things with him? Why is she like this? What does she feel about him? etc etc. As a reader, you are only allowed to guess what is going on and what is going on inside the head of the girl. An interesting touch.

The second reason is the development of the relationship. You can clearly see that these two people are getting closer and are forming a bond as the pages turn. Though, the ecchi part of the manga ruins this a bit, but as a reader you remain interested. There are various ups and downs, you can see the characters mess up, opening up to each other while at other times, trying their hardest not to be vulnerable or pushy. The relationship clearly goes through stages which many romance manga don't bother to depict.

The Final reason is the main character, in the beginning he is not the best of guys, in fact he starts off as a coward, simp and a total virgin lol. As his love grows for this girl, he improves so much as a person going from a coward to picking fights and defending his club. He begins making positive changes to his life, that's love for you :) .
He becomes this interesting character where you know this mf has been doing all the insane and weird ecchi shit but is also caring, affectionate and a kind person who clearly loves this girl and they both complete each other in a way.

Lastly, the ending of the manga is handled well. I really liked it.
Honestly, though the manga has many many flaws ( practically all of it), reading the romance made it worth it for me.

Conclusion

Sundome is a manga that messed up it's ecchi scenes, it's art, it's characters, it's story but regardless of that I really loved the relationship depicted in this manga.

Would I recommend it to you?
No, honestly there are better ecchI manga out there like To Love Ru or Domestic Girlfriend which are more fun than this manga tbh but if you ever feel like trying a softcore porn manga with a nice romance then maybe you can give it a try.
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