Veil and Capturing Intimacy Veil exists as a breath of fresh air in an oversaturated market of romance manga. For as enjoyable as a classic highschool romance manga can be the depictions of love and intimacy contained within rarely extend beyond NSFW handholding elaborate confessions and occasionally if were lucky a fleeting kiss. Dont get me wrong I thoroughly enjoy a standard wellexecuted romance manga or anime the romance elements in Kono Oto Tomare for example but I feel the medium sorely lacks depictions of what I would call daily intimacy the soft tender moments we share with loved ones that are but momentary interactions of mere minutes. Such interactions are not long enough to warrant entire chapters. Theyre not dramatic enough to keep readers glued to the page and purchasing physicals. As such theyre an essential part of real romance that is often left out of manga and anime both for the sake of brevity and for the sake of focus. Mangaka need to keep their readers coming back they need to maintain their serialization and they need to constantly build towards that next climax or arc. 222220https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1198256768095092847/1198290826871177246/IMG7772.png?ex=65be5e4cis=65abe94chm=c4fead3429673c8da7b800f0e228e9bd89db9b67cd16f924db273bd41b85b89d Veil successfully escapes from this mould by way of Ikumi Fukudas strict focus and immense talent for depicting the otherwise undepictable. From the first chapter Fukuda sets a clear tone of shortform chapters involving minimal dialogue with a focus on capturing moments rather than telling an overarching story. The shortform nature limits Fukudas ability to introduce and build sidecharacters which simultaneously works in Veils favour by ensuring the subjectmatter of each chapter is hyperfocused on Emma and Aleksander. There is no need for mindnumbing love triangles comedicrelief goofballs or childhood best friends as there is no need to build drama or incite shipping wars. If you read the first few chapters of Veil you know what the manga is about Him Her and Their relationship. 450https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1198239407224922172/1198239841314422875/IMG7633.png?ex=65be2ed0is=65abb9d0hm=3a433b0f15d6f82a7684becc89f2a7b851fe4f0527561784b76cf3b76288a212 This is not to say that the manga is stagnant. Their relationship evolves at a slow natural pace as they grow more comfortable with each other through the passage of time. We are not shown every stage of this evolution rather we are offered glimpses into moments of intimacy. No chapter stands out as that chapter and no moment is that moment though there are some callbacks to previous chapters which help each chapter feel connected amidst the episodic structure. Fukuda also recalls in one of their afterwords that the amount of dialogue and text in the manga is slowly increasing. As a result later chapters feature more of Emma and Aleksanders witty banter and playful teasing which assists in developing them and their relationship. Nevertheless the primary focus of the artistic direction remains on the moments of intimacy the point of contact between their bodies their wandering gazes and their emotive expressions. Dialogue is used to amplify these interactions and carry us through the moment rather than deliver exposition. Perspective shots are often used to great effect to help us fill the shoes of either character during one of these moments. The use of a black screen for Emmas perspective reinforces the readers appreciation for how these moments play out for her through spoken word touch and smell. 450https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1198239407224922172/1198256525718863892/IMG7700.png?ex=65be3e5ais=65abc95ahm=ca06837bc1bc19a249e2503646202ad35af3e6eea6443568177a9cd26af57706 These interactions are complemented by the Monologue pages which offer an indepth view of the characters or objects perspective on a special moment. This is an important element that supplants Veils need for thinkbubble exposition in a way that is both artistically and contextually superior. The Monologues work in a manner akin to a traditional romance novel relying on flowery language and emotive language conventions to enable readers to envision and appreciate all aspects of the moment. Despite my experience being through a translation of the original Japanese wording I felt these Monologues retained their poetic literary beauty and succeeded in metaphorically breaking down the moments of intimacy to each sensation touch and thought. 22000https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1198257055614652496/1198257425497739314/IMG7703.png?ex=65be3f30is=65abca30hm=ff9d5639ef62a69094177f4767e11b674c1eebf26ebd004ee27b9ccd051b581b Veils art style is a striking departure from the norm owed to its initial conception as a twitter project. The linework is sketchy yet controlled and deliberate. A highlight of Fukudas style and their use of colour is the shading focal points of panels are often coloured with rich dark tones which contrasts beautifully with the otherwise muted shades of beige that fill the rest of the scene. It is wellsuited for the nature of the manga and in my opinion more effective in this context than traditional black and white would have been. Colour is most often used for the characters and their outfits which helps them stand out amongst the environment and serves to show how their relationship metaphorically colours their worlds. 450https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1198239407224922172/1198240049171550278/IMG7652.png?ex=65be2f01is=65abba01hm=5ccca148a268d59ababaef58e8037fbd4371e40e275031066dc0fe6cfa0ce557=format=webpquality=losslesswidth=476height=675 Veils chapters feature many extra pages dedicated to rough sketches extra onepage scenes and beautiful spreads drawn in various different art styles. Fukuda uses these as a chance to flex their artistic prowess and also express their love for the story and their artwork as a whole. I found that these pages heightened my appreciation and love for the manga as a piece of art and made the characters feel more alive. 450https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1198256768095092847/1198288001613172876/IMG7771.png?ex=65be5baais=65abe6aahm=48ca92ed0ed8cd69161517230a59c2cfe73ea25bd800d19fe79eb9e265b17184 With regard to the characters themselves neither Aleksander nor Emma have a complex backstory overarching goal or meaningful motivation. They exist as two complementary individuals entwined in a love affair that unfolds away from the prying eyes of the public. Where other romance manga build main characters as central figures in their respective worlds by virtue of their relationships and connections with the supporting cast Veil mostly separates the characters from their role in society and their other relationships. Instead we are shown the characters as they are to each other. This adds an element of secrecy to the moments like the intimacy is an inside joke shared only between the two of them. This is reinforced not only by the lack of side characters but by the lack of background characters as well. This secrecy is a core part of reallife intimacy the mannerisms jokes and ultimately love that may be surfacelevel visible to spectators but ultimately cannot truly be known by any other than the participants. Consequently if the focus of a story is this intimacy a spectator may as well not exist. 450https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1198239407224922172/1198256645332017172/IMG7722.png?ex=65be3e76is=65abc976hm=1c047eb0bc553d2ee7514624dc1d9b9f5997787058359b2e8b8f5ec4682df6ee Personaltywise Aleksander and Emma fill a common relationship dynamic of the stoic gruff man and the feminine beauty. I found the banter and interactions that originate from this pairing to be humorous and heartwarming as they usually are. The incorporation of Emmas condition adds an extra layer to this trope introducing the need for Aleksander to be extra considerate. Aleksanders attempts to learn and understand her world and accommodate her are beautifully sincere and the pinnacle of intimacy attempting to understand one another. These efforts are furthered by the masterfully written dialogue that flows completely naturally at no times does it feel forced stiff or as if trying to say to the reader: hey theyre in love get it? Instead the dialogue represents the characters flustered and shy approach towards defining their relationship often dancing around outright expressions of love without ever truly landing on them. This does nothing to detract from the sincere love and romance conveyed through their interactions however but instead adds a cute and endearing element to the relationship. 450https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1198239407224922172/1198256585273770005/IMG7709.png?ex=65be3e68is=65abc968hm=0e83668ea878d302844ffea7c54a7ece0b4031ff02ff481592afa9def84e24be=format=webpquality=losslesswidth=476height=675 22000https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1198256768095092847/1198287314770726942/IMG7620.png?ex=65be5b06is=65abe606hm=064bf191fec5fe62b8f679b03fbd50598ce9fa4673e1085ce109b22eaee3ce5d All in all Im very excited to continue reading Veil and look forward to seeing what soft tender moments of intimacy Fukuda choses to depict next. I understand that this style of manga may not be for everybody but I highly recommend anyone with an interest in romance give it a try