Dost Thou Know mostly follows the tale of Tsurugi, a gorgeous blonde kendo champ, and Katsumoi, a gorgeous black-haired kendo champ. Work with me here, people. Also featured are their younger siblings, who match them in hair and hobby: Saya and Masaomi, respectively.

I tell you that because at first, it looks like the foursome (...I wish) will all have main roles, but Saya and Masaomi-- affectionately referred to as "baka-omi" by his nii-san --turn out to be mainly observers. Bummer.

That said, Tsurugi and Katsuomi seem to fall for each other while swordfighting, since we get the sense they hadn't met before then. It's a little odd the way they do it, actually. Katsuomi beats Tsurugi in a tournament. Then he bumps into Tsurugi and wonders, "what if we were friends, closer than any other?" Then they run into each other again, and Katsuomi muses, "what if I fell in love with him?" This pattern continues until, duh, Katsuomi is bonkers for Tsurugi. Go fig.

So yeah, I'm not feeling this one so much. The art is weird-- every once in a while the artist does this weird darkened outline around a character's mouth, and it looks weird. Besides, it's got that broad-shouldered pointy-chin look goin' on that I've never been a fan of.

The story is kind of odd. It's comprehensible and all, but it sorta feels...forced. The occasional inclusion of such bad inner monologue lines as "do thou knowest the frozen land of my heart" doesn't help.

That said, I've seen much, much worse.

Oh, I wanted to make sure I showed y'all the following gem of a scan from this piece:



Swords. Definitely, definitely swords. Symbolism? Never!

Manga-ka: Satoru Ishihara
Censorship: N/A
Warnings: Blatant phallic symbol, schoolboy crushes that go nowhere, occasionally awful dialogue.