Romance One-Shots

 I often like reading various manga one-shots, some of which involve various romantic couples. They come in many varieties, whether original or based off a popular series; het, yuri or yaoi; tame or explicit; and heartwarming or depressing. That said, they do have a variety of pros and cons, mainly because of their brevity.

Pros

Many of these manga one-shots are short enough to read in a few minutes, free of charge. While some people may have to put serious thought into whether they're willing to pay hard-earned money for a manga volume, it's easy enough to take a quick look at a doujin. Since one-shots require a minimal time investment and a nonexistent monetary investment, you're unlikely to feel as though either was a wawste.

Like with other fan or amateur projects that are published online rather than in commercial publications, they don't have to deal with various barriers to being published. In many cases, publishers may be hesitant to publish a one-shot that deals with potentially controversial or disturbing subject matter (to say nothing of fan fiction), but such a concept may find a small but dedicated fan following online.

Romance one-shots can also generally avoid pacing problems associated with long-running romance manga if done well. The limited page space has to be used well, so there's no time for artificially drawing out the story. This isn't to say that one-shot writers can't end up wasting time, but most competent ones will be forced to pace their work well.

Cons

Unfortunately, the brevity of romance one-shots can also be a downside.

For original one-shots, there is barely any time to establish the characters being paired together, much less develop them. Skilled artists can accomplish a lot in a short time, but often, the main characters can come off as rather flat, with only a few discernable personality traits, and any other characters can seem extraneous to the overall plot.

While romance one-shots can avoid overly slow pacing, they can also come off as rather rushed, with the main characters often going from being strangers, if not actively hating each other, to falling in love in no more than a couple dozen pages(albeit possibly days or even months in in-universe time). This can result in rather contrived developments, as well as a potentially disappointing resolution.

Alternatively, the one shot can end with a more ambiguous outcome, or simply focus on a small moment in a relationship rather than attempting a romance arc. This can avoid the aforementioned problems, but can potentially seem unsatisfying to people who wanted a more definite conclusion.

Conclusion

Romantic one-shots are a bit like a small snack between meals. They're fun from time to time, and demand less effort, but are no substitute for a home-cooked meal. They can be fun for amateurs to make, but professionals should set their sights on more ambitious projects. As such, quality one-shots are worth your time, but a well-written series is worth your time and money.

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