Read on Renta!: Double Beastly Trouble by yanase seno
Japanese title: ダブルドッグバディ・Double Dog Buddy
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That’s right. We’re talking, once more, about what’s building up to be a masterpiece by author Yanase Seno (stylized in lower case), “Double Beastly Trouble”: the tale of two beast-men joining the military so as to reach the top… and to harass a deeply troubled young man. We’re not too many chapters in so far, be it in Japan or our English release, and yet it’s already sucked me in with its multi-dimensional characters, the developing mysteries around their relationships, and the unassumingly delicate world-building that promises so much more to come.
If my prior mini-rant on this fantastic story left a lot to be desired, come with me to delve even deeper into this tale of military power struggles and hot, but also adorable nekomimi (‘cat’, in this case, ‘beast-eared’) men.
A place to belong
‘Larga’ are an anthropomorphic beast species that, due to their uncontrollable, uh, bestial nature are incapable of coexisting with humans and therefore either languish in the margins of society or are being exploited for such purposes as underground fighting rings. The story begins with an ambush on one such place, led by Vice Captain Ewan Gwenthia of the National Security Forces. While the two champion larga, black-haired Zazie and white-haired Seto, are not so eager to be “rescued” from this habitat where they’ve always reigned on top, after seemingly taking a liking to Ewan, they’re eager… to become his dogs. So begins Ewan’s struggle to contain the two unruly beasts, and their efforts to adapt to a life alongside humans.
This world might seem simple enough at first glance, given that it’s quite limited within the confines of the military structure and what little we know of the largas. What I’m here for, though, is the way that Seno uses this straightforward world-structure to weave its more intricate parts into political machinations and powerplays, as well as to give its main character unbelievable depth, seemingly without even trying.
While Ewan’s squad knows just how capable their leader is, his higher-ranked step-brother, Moran, the son of his adoptive father, is determined to undermine Ewan’s position at every chance he gets—including erasing Ewan’s name from any records regarding the underground ring bust. As such, he’s being set up to be our main villain, and you cannot convince me that he’s not going to be the cause of much agony and conspiracy in future chapters.
And then there’s Ewan’s relationship with Zazie and Seto, which acts as a vehicle for Ewan’s development and to explore his role in the military, the love and trust of his squad, the unfairness of the world towards both Ewan and the larga alike. The two “dogs” kickstart a chain of events that will surely lead to Ewan escaping the murk he’s been in so far. Slowly, their relationship transforms beyond the impulsive, often dub-con/non-con sexual behavior of the beastial duo, who come to sympathize with Ewan as fellow outcasts and feel the need to support him, in order to reign on top together.
Having mentioned the ero, I’d be remiss not to expand on the aforementioned non-con/dub-con, which you’ll find some of our readers have also pointed out in the Community Tags. The foundations of this ménage à trois are set on a tug-of-war between Ewan and the larga duo, with the latter seeking to overpower him and the former unable to surrender, with his status and pride at stake; though the largas reluctantly obey him as his “dogs”, the line between military subservience and physical dominance is extremely thin. Easily bored, they have nothing better to do than “play” with him… and Ewan, painfully aware from prior experience that he cannot overpower a larga and needing to placate them in some way, gives in to their appetites. If anything, he seems to have always put up with the whole world “violating” him, so it might not feel any different to him—but when the larga notice this defeated side of him, they can’t help but be intrigued, as their nature is to survive by fighting back, rather than by curling into a ball and soundlessly accepting it all. It’s this spark of curiosity that lets them realize he’s a fellow outcast trampled by everyone around him. His weaker side brings out an urge to defend and nurture him; likewise, a better understanding of the larga and their past allows Ewan to accept and treat them fairly, which in turn lets the usually on-guard largas open up to him… and gives us adorable fluff like this super fluffy scene with Seto.
All my expectations rest with this guy over here
Since chapter 1, there have been repeated hints that Ewan’s had prior run-ins with a larga before, one that left a bite mark on his palm (which, if Zazie and Seto’s reaction is anything to go by, is likely a mark of ownership) and that created in him a deep discomfort and unease around these humanoid beasts that might be aptly described as trauma. The source of it all is revealed with the first appearance of the military larga known as Agiro; even then, however, he and his relationship with Ewan remain as mysterious as ever.
All we know about him is that he was under the elder Gwenthia’s command, before then being passed down to Moran by succession. But, though the two are supposed to be partners, the wild-haired larga seems to be only tentatively and begrudgingly following Moran’s orders—we have enough reasons to suspect that he’d have preferred being partnered with Ewan; his feelings towards him seem to run deeper than he lets show, considering the physical (and emotional) mark he left on him. Ewan’s feelings about him are unclear, too; despite his claim that his adoptive father’s larga never liked him, a flashback shows Agiro offering a huddled-up, little Ewan a blanket—a caring memory that belies Ewan’s impression of him and leaves him feeling visibly conflicted.
My personal theory is that Agiro could always see more potential in Ewan than his brother and, seeing how the world wanted to keep him down, he decided that tough love was the best approach to make him stronger and encourage him—that’s, after all, the way of the largas, who fiercely fight back against that same world that tries to hold them down, too. Of course, this might be just a theory—A GAME THEORY—that’s especially biased because “scary-looking guy puts this poor baby through some limit-experience sort of pain, but turns out it was out of love all along, to urge him to fix his sad life” is a fiction trope I love to see written well… and, so far, if this is really the direction that Yanase Seno is taking Agiro and Ewan’s connection, it’s as exceptional as a Michelin-star gourmet meal.👌😙❤
(Tiny note: I have a suspicion that Zazie and Agiro are being set up as each other’s foil, as Zazie’s the one to encourage Ewan to stand up for himself, similar to Agiro chastising him to get to the same conclusion. Be it Zazie’s more alert personality compared to Seto, he’s also the one that seems to square up to Agiro the most. What do you guys think?🤔 That aside, I started the manga as Team Zazie but now I’m probably Team Agiro more than anything lol)
How to deal with your inferiority complex
The above could pretty much be the alternate title of this manga, as Ewan and Moran offer two different takes on how people deal with feelings of inferiority—an excellent choice, for our protagonist and antagonist to be mirror images of each other. And let me tell you, I have a soft spot for characters stricken by an inferiority complex (looking at you, Mello 🍫), but it gets even better when you get two characters dealing with it in completely different ways.
Both hunger for acknowledgement, but their reasons for it are polar opposites—Ewan feared he’d be thrown to the curb otherwise, and Moran could feel Ewan, with his drive to succeed, breathing down his neck. The irony is that, despite receiving the recognition Ewan craves, Moran can’t rest in his laurels and is instead laser-focused on thwarting Ewan’s road to even a smidgeon of success. Rather than focusing on his achievements, he’s dogged (heh🐶) by the truth that he’s not as skilled as his adoptive brother and that, without nepotism, he’d be nothing compared to Ewan.
The drive behind all the political intrigue isn’t just powerplay—it’s deeply personal. Growing close to the larga, Ewan doesn’t just want recognition for his efforts anymore, but also to create a world in which Zazie and Seto will be accepted and will be able to live in peace. Moran, for his part, obsesses over defeating his adoptive brother once and for all.
yanase seno’s best
Anyone familiar with Yanase Seno’s “Geminis Craving Love” knows that they’ve already proved themselves as the Threesome Extraordinaire, the Masterchef of the Sandwich, the Ultimate 3P Connoisseur. Naturally, the ménage à trois action in “Double Beastly Trouble” doesn’t disappoint. Anytime the beastly duo decides to toy with Ewan, we’re promised hot scenes that involve simultaneous action from both parties, a teasing, cooperative dynamic that works so well with Zazie’s older bro vibe and Seto’s more childish attitude. Their personality differences don’t come into play just during, uh, “play”, but also when it comes to their overall interactions with Ewan. As Zazie starts warming up to him but Seto seems incapable of following through, who knows what could happen there.
Of course, I’d be blind to not mention Yanase Seno’s delicate and impactful art. It’s crisp, clean; the ultimate proof that great art doesn’t need superfluous embellishment. Just hone the key elements of what makes manga great and you’ve got a masterpiece, a.k.a. Yanase Seno’s artwork. The EXPRESSIONS. Just look at everyone’s faces. I’d give all my money, my kidney and every single piece of manga merch I own to be able to draw expressions as perfect and, well, expressive as that. Their OOMPH! is so good I’m losing my vocabulary over here. Camera angles, direction, pacing, screentones, every element is fantastic beyond words, but seriously, THE FACIAL EXPRESSIONS. The characters don’t even need to speak sometimes, because their faces convey even the subtlest of emotions. Think back to the speechless flashback of Agiro wrapping Ewan in a blanket—there’s no need for Ewan to vocalize his inner conflict about Agiro’s kindness, because his frown and hooded eyes say it all.
(Also, I just noticed it while writing this, but in a later chapter, Ewan assumes that very same posture that we see in the flashback, curled up, with a blanket around him, and hugging that rod-like thing. I can’t help but wonder if there’s some significance there…)
🐶🐺🐶🐺🐶🐺🐶🐺
Something I’d like to add about Yanase Seno is that, published original work aside, they’ve been also active on their pixiv and with doujinshi creation and, let me tell you, finding out that an artist I admire so much is into the same series and even the same characters as I am, made my heart skip a beat. I can certainly declare that they’re one of my favorite artists that I’ve found since joining Renta! and I’ll follow them forever🤩 Now excuse me, I need to go track down their multiple, sold-out Fate doujinshi at every second-hand store in Japan, while waiting for more larga shenanigans and intrigue in the next update of “Double Beastly Trouble”.
rentaBLog 