I spent a lot of time riding trains this week, which meant some time to check different series out. So, here are some quick impressions of series that I found/caught up on:

• Gokumama: The Story of a Yakuza Who Became a Mom

This was my favorite of all the series I found this past week. It is about a yakuza boss that is shot and killed, but then wakes up again, in the body of a woman that is actively in labor, delivering a child. It has been a really touching, heartfelt series about the trials and tribulations of being a single mom in Japan. That means both the administrative side (procedure for getting a family registry) as well as the physiological (there are whole chapters about the difficulties of breastfeeding for instance). I have enjoyed this series a lot so far.

• That is Needed for a Villainous Aristocrat

A story about somebody reincarnated as the villain in a fantasy novel. I have actually enjoyed it a lot. He really tries to embrace playing the villain role while at the same time using that to shield those around him from having to go through the horrors that he has to deal with in the shadows. It’s been a bit of an interesting take on things.

• The Demon King’s Educator

Got a couple chapters into this one and I’m not sure I will continue. Basically a human commoner is kicked out of a teaching position at a school for nobility despite being incredibly capable. So, he is instead recruited to become the private tutor for the daughters of the Demon King. It is a setup that seems like it has potential, but it feels like this is an adaptation that is going way too fast. Problems are presented and solved all in the same chapter and there isn’t too much of a through line. If the story sounds interesting, I would just recommend finding the LN instead if it is available.

• Cute Girl I Saw at the Station Today

I am a couple chapters into this one as well and I have been enjoying it. Basic premise is that a salaryman that is really into cosmetics/fashion is stuck having to repress that kind of stuff because, well, he is a middle-aged man that wears a suit to work all the time. So, he ends up admiring a girl he sees frequently at the train station that is able to indulge in and wear all the stuff that he likes so much. There are zero stakes to this series, just small little vignettes for the most part. There is a nice twist though that I will leave for the reader to discover.