I read “Understanding Dating Clubs Through Manga.” I found it very interesting, but do they usually put this much effort into everything, from selecting a partner to arranging the venue?

Maezawa from Shacho-shitsu here. I’ll answer this too. > Do you usually put this much effort into everything from choosing a partner to arranging the location? Most members browse the member site themselves, look for women they like, and make an offer. In those cases, the staff don’t do much beyond arranging the meeting. But if someone says things like: “I’m looking for someone like this,” or “This is my situation—what do you think I should do?” then things can sometimes play out like they do in this manga. Of course, when someone asks us for advice, we search enthusiastically. In the manga, the man is a complainer. This isn’t exactly the same as in the manga, but I’ve actually had a man tell me, “The woman I went on a date with this time lied about her weight by 3 kilos—or maybe that was the number, I’ve forgotten by now（笑）—so give me back the setting fee.” And he wasn’t just casually saying it. He was completely serious and kept insisting. Email got us nowhere, so I called him, but he still wouldn’t back down. Even after talking for several dozen minutes, I still didn’t agree to a refund, so in the end he even threatened me, saying, “I’ll post about this online.” People who make threats seem to love posting things online... Anyone who thinks, “There’s no way men like that exist,” simply doesn’t know enough about the service industry.（笑） Very rarely, even a membership-based service gets a complainer slipping through. If all they said was, “This woman was awful. I want my money back,” then we could respond with something like: “We can’t issue a refund, but we can introduce you to another great woman. Would you be willing to go on a date with her?” But...

This is Kobayashi from the Tokyo branch. Absolutely! I’d be happy to help in any way I can♪

I’m Taro, a male member. https://universe-club.jp/column/manga This one? I can’t believe anyone actually takes this stuff seriously. Or is it some kind of smear campaign where a competitor gets people to say, “They exaggerate everything like this,” to damage their reputation? Other companies use the same tactic, don’t they? Compared with those, this is actually pretty fair—or rather, fairly realistic. Speaking from my own experience, the staff are generally enthusiastic and really dedicated. They’re also generally young, in many ways. So if you’re an older male member, you need to accept that and think for yourself. It’s a matter of attitude. You can’t build a good relationship with a woman by leaving everything to someone else. Also, you should read the manga aimed at women as well—including all the recruitment pages for women. You’ll understand what kind of expectations women are being given. Don’t just laugh from a man’s perspective and say, “No male member like this even exists, lol.” Think about how to interact with women who have absorbed those expectations. If you can look at the situation from the other person’s perspective, your success rate will definitely improve. The manga is one way to do that. In short, don’t expect the staff to support you—think for yourself, you idiot.

I’m Kazu, a male member. https://universe-club.jp/column/manga This is the manga, right? I read it a long time ago, but I didn’t remember much of it, so I went back and reread it. Episode 4, panel 2: the woman’s recommendations If you’re a Black member, the concierge service will handle this for you. Panel 3: the meeting place and restaurant They know which meeting places and restaurants are commonly used, so they can recommend them to you. But normally, like in panel 9, I think men research these things themselves. When I had just joined, they told me about a commonly used meeting place. I only used it for my first offer, though... They can also recommend restaurants, but after making a few offers, you’ll probably find places that suit you. I think it’s better to search for restaurants yourself using sites like Tabelog. The latter half of episode 5. It’s unlikely that a date would be arranged on the same day as the interview. However, while interviewing a woman, a staff member may suddenly think, “She might be a good match for that male member,” and contact you before her profile page has even been created. This probably doesn’t happen often unless the man has made a fairly large number of offers, because otherwise the staff won’t remember him. That said, up through episode 3, that male member is extremely selfish and unlikeable, so whether the staff would want to go out of their way to help him is... questionable. Staff members are people too, so I think you’ll get better results by asking normally rather than making demanding requests. Also, no matter how you look at it, the staff are other people—not you. I don’t think you should completely leave your choice of partner up to them. You’re better off putting in the effort to choose for yourself. That said, I met the woman I’m closest to thanks to a recommendation from a staff member. If you register as a Black member, communicate well with the staff, and make at least one offer whenever they recommend someone, your experience may unfold much like the manga. One last thing: the punchline in episode 3 about missing the last train. I doubt they would work that much overtime. It seems to be quite a decent company.