(c)2025 Tokyopop
Desert Butterflies long to catch
Story and Art: Kaede Yunami
Publisher: tokyopop (print & digital)
Imprint: Lovelove
Translation: Christine Dashiell
Retouching and Lettering: A Vibrant Publishing Studio
Publication date: July 22, 2025
Rating: Mature 18+ (Uncensored)
Genre: Manga, Boy Love, Mature Romance
Seth is the Lord of the prosperous desert country. He cares his people deeply and often ventures out to see them out of his safe palace. Seth is also willing to sacrifice his body to make a deal that enriches his country. Seth’s bodyguard Kyle, who has been staying with Seth for ten years, takes his job seriously and often inserts himself into Seth’s business in the name of “protection.” He prevents Seth from making a suspicious deal, protects him from his carelessness as he travels outside the castle, and has a great secret desire for Seth. All of this comes to mind on a fateful night when Seth is about to visit guests for a potentially dangerous deal. Kyle stops Seth and essentially says to him, “If you sleep with someone, why don’t you sleep with me?” This launches a turbulent relationship between the two. Do you really want to catch this desert butterfly?
(c)2025 Tokyopop
That’s what makes me a little confused about this manga. Seth shows all sorts of feelings towards Kyle – suffering, annoying, teasing – but he wants to have sex with Kyle and refuses (gives him anyway). It’s a bit of a roller coaster, but Kyle is much more obvious and consistent about his feelings. We don’t know Seth’s true opinion on Kyle until we confess to him towards the end of the book. It’s sweet, but I hope things get clearer sooner. Given the title of the manga, I think Seth saw this all as a simple pursuit and quietly gave birth to Kyle, saying, “I want you to be caught.” I didn’t get that at all from the story.
I like the basic premise of a bodyguard who loves the people he should protect. We know that when Seth rescues him on the street, he has been caring for Seth since he was a boy. This begins Kyle’s devotion and ultimately love for Seth. Kyle was a bit annoyed with Seth and wanted to see more of this instead of being dominated in bed.
And Seth’s response to Kyle’s sexual advances is not necessarily positive:
(c)2025 Tokyopop
Therefore, the actual romance between them does not always look like a romance. Such a conflict is persuasive to readers who prefer to travel between relationships, but in this comic, things felt unstable.
Overall, I wanted more. There are several scenes where the mysterious man makes Seth attend the ball to meet an associate who is interested in him, but we never know about the mysterious man or potential partner as Kyle stops everything. But I wanted to learn more about these characters and get a better idea of stakeholders.
I really enjoyed the scene where Seth goes out on the street to visit his people, but there is a scene after he is invited and attacked, which returns to Kyle’s old life. It was hoped more to resolve quickly and learn more about the attacker’s history, especially with Kyle. We get a taste, but that’s not enough.
And while there are plenty of sex scenes, the payoff scenes showing mutual adoration and respect will not come long after. I wanted to see more of that and the dubious dalliance between the two leads. However, the sex scenes are beautiful.
Honestly, I like this manga, but I want to like it more. There are so many interesting setups and ideas here, but they are not resolved or delved into very quickly. It’s like hoping for a full course meal, but you just get the dessert.
Aside from the issues I have with the story, the art is lovely. Seth is a beautiful man and I love his outfit. It reminds me of some of the things I saw at the Omega Palace. And I’m a sucker for men with long hair.
(c)2025 Tokyopop
Art is elegant, from landscapes and architecture to depicting lead and background characters. His face is expressive, especially Seth’s, and the appearance of his disgust and desire is well depicted. I was definitely able to continue watching these characters over 200 pages of the manga.
My final verdict: It’s a good BL manga that longs for a desert butterfly to be caught. It has a gorgeous, solid relationship motif: the Lord and the bodyguard. The comics are funny, but it just doesn’t go deep enough to satisfy you. I’m happy with the ultimate ending of the manga, but I want more. So I hope this actually gets a sequel to close things out. All I can do is what I want.
Desert Butterfly is available in print and digitally by Tokyopop and other online books and comic retailers.
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