In volume 2 of Don’t Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro, the unorthodox relationship between the introverted, unnamed Senpai and aggressive sophomore Nagatoro continues! We have Senpai having his nipples poked by Nagatoro; we have Senpai attempting to actually talk back when Nagatoro calls him names; we even have Senpai get an opportunity to tickle Nagatoro after she tickles him to near death. (Spoiler: he couldn’t do it…for a legit reason!)
But nothing could prepare Senpai when he is isekai’d away into another world, and meets a Nagatoro look-a-like named Nekotoro…
That was one of the few funnier chapters in this volume. This actually kicked off volume 2, where he ended up dreaming that he was kicking butt with Nekotoro in a fantasy world, only to soon find out he still can’t escape being tricked and bullied by her. So yeah, she’s in his brain 24/7, and this even comes to a head later on when he ends up drawing Nagatoro as Nekotoro when he’s supposed to be studying for a test and fails to make sure she doesn’t see it. And just like that, more teasing ensues!
The one standout chapter that makes me think there’s more to Nagatoro’s interactions with Senpai than it seems is when he sits with her during lunch. She’s with her friends who also make fun of him, but in two instances she makes sure she’s the only one who can pet his head. Then after his manhood was insulted, Nagatoro was pissed. This then leads to the only other funny moment where Senpai denies the two are in a relationship. No really, that’s it. Nothing about the insults or backing up Nagatoro, that was it. It was genuinely baffling, which is what made me chuckle when her friends reacted to that. But in general, it certainly implies Nagatoro knows something good about him.
But that’s about it for interesting chapters, which means at this point, the entire concept is not my thing. Each of them — mostly short, as this volume does include a few side stories — just aren’t interesting in the slightest. Each moment has me trying to figure out why Nagatoro using an ear-puncher on Senpai or why Senpai isn’t getting upset when Nagatoro “compliments” him is funny. So after two volumes, I can figure out this isn’t for me.
The art does continue to be worth a look, and the expressions for all the characters are drawn really well. But I can’t help but think that there needs to be at least a reason why Nagatoro is doing this to him. Or why Senpai just can’t finally stand up for himself. But none of this is explained yet, and assuming why or if it will be explained later when it’s just not making me laugh consistently now isn’t good enough for me.