I just finished all four volumes of Our Dreams at Dusk and I know this series will stay with me forever. The story follows Tasuku, a high school boy who gets outed at school and contemplates suicide. But before he can jump, he meets a mysterious stranger who leads him to her clubhouse: a place that’s a haven for the local LGBT+ community. Tasuku learns to accept himself while learning about the other people around him. He takes a young kid questioning their gender under his wing, he meets lesbians in a committed relationship, he meets a trans man and a completely agender asexual person. But this is a story of relationships, of understanding and of hurting. Some parts are hard to read, when characters use slurs but the hardest is when Tasuku uses them against himself.

This is a beautiful coming-of-age story that explores so many difficult topics: coming out, first gay crushes, how to treat LGBT people around you, how to accept your differences even if you don’t quite understand them. One of the best parts in the series is when Tasuku takes young Misora-san under his wing. Misora is still in junior high, but only feels comfortable in girls clothes, which he only wears at the clubhouse. Tasuku offers to take Misora to a local festival while Misora is wearing a yukata (female outfit) and it starts out fine. But, Tasuku is unknowingly pushing Misora too hard, too fast, and ends up hurting him in the process. Their relationship is sweet and kind and Tasuku even says “I want to be the kind of person I wish was there for me.”

All in all, this is hands-down one of the best manga I’ve ever read.

5/5 glorious gay stars.