Okazu

No News Report This Week

2009-11-21T09:44:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to let you know that there will be no News Report this week. I'm beat.

I'll be back tomorrow with a review. I just need a day or two off to recharge and work on other projects. Instead, I'll leave you this:

This week, we submitted Yuri Monogatari 6 to the Lambda Literary Awards.

YM6 Video Trailer Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yli_kPSVkFs

Yuri Monogatari 6 on Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/bgnvut

Yuri Monogatari 6 on Yuricon Shop: http://tinyurl.com/alcpub - Holiday Sale is still ongoing, so get yourself copy of what is sure to be the winner of the Lammy for Best LGBT Anthology!

New Anime Season Autumn 2009: Shin Koihime Musou

2009-11-19T16:31:00.000-05:00

Quick, name an all-female anime/manga version of the Chinese Epic, Romance of the Three Kingdoms. No, wait - quick, name three.

Last year we were 'treated' to Koihime Musou, one of several gender switch versions of the historical epic Romance. This year we have the debatable pleasure of a sequel, Shin Koihime Musou, currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

The sequel begins with the appearance of the real Ryuubi since, as you may remember from last season the guy we thought was Ryuubi was not. The real Ryuubi is a bit of a ditz, but is, of the entire cast, probably the most sane.

Having thus met the third of their triad, Kanu and Chohi renew their vow of sisterhood, just in case we forget the whole vow under the peach tree thing.

The three, and a few of the others head off to something something which in this case is get Ryuubi's sword back, have adventures and eat - a lot. An inordinate amount of time is spent watching the travelers eat. In the meantime, the story veers off to follow three sisters who turn themselves into pop idols through magic.

There's also a mad dash to squeeze in a bunch of new characters, to round out the cast.

Sei's Yuri quotient has dropped significantly along with her screen time - one of the side effects of too many characters, so older ones are used less effectively.

For Yuri we've got Kakuka who is obsessed with Sousou and frequently has explicit fantasies about her. (Please note: "Perverted" does not apply. Sexual fantasies are not "perverted." They are completely normal. I'm freaking sick and tired of seeing the word "pervert" misused to describe a person having a fantasy. Not having sexual fantasies is far weirder than having them.) I'm really rooting for Kakuka in this. I think she and Sousou would make a fun couple, much better than Sousou and Kanu.

This season is no better or worse than the first season. It's all much of the same - silly things that have nothing to do with the Romance take center stage, while important political things are pushed to the background. Breasts still bounce, clothes are still silly, the writers are clearly hungry and stuff happens.

For what it is, it's fine. I turn my brain off and watch the pretty colors move around the screen. :-)

Ratings:

Art - Meh, but what can you do
Story - It's in there somewhere I'm sure
Characters - There's alot of them
Yuri - Go! Go! Ka-ku-ka!
Loser FanBoys - Are watching this

Overall - 7

I *really* don't remember Guan Yu falling for Liu Bei in the original. But it's such a prevalent theme in these anime/manga/game bastardizations that I'm now beginning to wonder if I was just blind to the obvious. I'm going to have to re-read that and see if I can read between the lines more. :-)

Yuri Manga: Girl Friends, Volume 3

2009-11-18T16:39:00.003-05:00

In Girl Friends, Volume 1 and Volume 2, we followed Mari as she struggles with her increasing interest in and desire for her best friend Akiko.

Mari's conflict largely arises from the fact that she is fairly introverted, and has therefore not had the experience of close friendship with girls her age. She spends a lot of time sure that she's not normal, and A-ko is. She's doing her best to put her feelings aside, if not behind her, and at least recapture the friendship that she and A-ko shared.

In Volume 3, we turn our gaze towards A-ko. She's been Mari's object of desire, but we've never really gotten into her head - until now.

A-ko finds herself thinking way more about Mari than about anything. So much so, that she starts to see a pattern in her obsessing. After Mari's confession and their kiss, it seems almost obvious for Akiko to realize that she has fallen for Mari. But it's a long way from point A to Point B.

But...and this is a big "but"....A-ko still isn't really considering how Mari must be feeling. Now that she's come to realize that she wants to be with Mari, she's not seeing the distance Mari is carefully putting between them. By pressing the issue, A-ko is now causing Mari as much, if not more, stress than before.

I'm not usually a big fan of the "obsessive internal monologue" style of romance writing, but the writing in Girl Friends has consistently rung true. Where introverted Mari is rolling in quiet misery, extroverted Akiko is doing her best to not explode in public, but can't stop herself from leaking around the edges.

There are still about a gazillion hurdles for Mari and A-ko to leap before they can be together. The 100-yard dash to the finish line isn't really even out of the starting blocks, yet. There's no telling how this race will end! Here's hoping that Mari and A-ko are the winning team. :-)

Ratings:

Art - 8
Story - 7
Characters - 8
Yuri - 8
Loser FanBoy - 5

Overall - 8

This is the territory that Milk does best. Just after the confession, before the consummation. I'm very interested to see if we get more than just "happily ever after" - or not.

Yuri Manga: Yuri Hime, Volume 18 (Part 2)

2009-11-16T18:47:00.001-05:00

Volume 18 of Comic Yuri HimeThe second half of Volume 18 of Comic Yuri Hime is what you've all been waiting for - Sarasa and Seriho's first official date, in this chapter of "Ame-iro Kouchakan Kanadan!" Fujieda does what he he does best - he shows them wandering around, shopping, eating and generally doing the kind of stuff my wife and I call "Playing House." You know - the stuff you almost never see female couples doing in Yuri series. Sarasa is wholly unaware that Seriho has an agenda, trying to suss out Sarasa's feelings for her. So used to hiding what she feels, Sarasa has no idea that Seriho thinks that she, Sarasa is, "normal" and the only one in love is Seriho.

Ayumi likes Miki in "Yuri Yuri," but Miki tells her it's gross. They play passive-agressive for a while, until Miki's homophobia turns out to really be sublimated love for Ayumi. Bwah-bwah-bwahhhh.

In "Apple Day Dream" Yuma is marginally less passive-aggressive to Kaoru than usual. And I swear her name has been Mayu this whole time, until now, so either I've been dyslexic this whole time, or it suddenly switched for some reason. Either explanation is probable. :-)

In this chapter of the Nekodome Mansion saga, a younger girl finally gains the courage to tell the older girl she's loved since she was a child know how she feels - just in time to see her married off by her father. But don't worry, they can have their little something on the side, after all, it's a marriage of convenience and they really love each other. Stories like this make me wonder about that age-old double standard for men who are, in most cultures, encouraged to have women on the side, but women aren't supposed to ever cheat. Once again, I really don't get you straight women, putting up with that crap.

Kagura makes cookies and Sukune-'neesan eats them, but still has no idea who Kagura is in "Soulphage," which is failing to appeal to me on any level.

Creo's breasts are suddenly three times larger than ever before in "Creo the Crimson Crises" and frankly, I was so distracted by and distressed by this I have no idea at all what happened. It involved Suoh crying a lot.

There's a little series of reviews about Yuri series that make you cry. I can honestly say that none of the series I'd read in the section made me even a little weepy. :-)

In a surprising turn of events, Hakamada Mera's "Sore ga Kimi ni Naru" pairs unlikely couple Kyou and Amane, the older woman who burst into tears ar seeing Kyou last chapter, over a meal. Kyou is smart enough to see that *something* is up, but Amane really surprises her by coming right out and saying that she was once in love with a girl who looks just like Kyou.

Tae is having an even harder time than before finding her place in Yui's life, now that they've returned to Tokyo in "Mizu-iro Cinema." Yui's busy on shoots and Tae's flailing a bit trying to figure out where to be and what to do. When rooting aimlessly around Yui's apartment, Tae finds a discarded photo of Yui and another girl. She keeps it in order to have a photo of Yui, but perhaps missing the larger implication. Coming home from a day out together, they are both - for different reasons - surprised to find the girl in the photo standing at the door of Yui's apartment building. Here's my new rule for series like this - it can do anything it wants right now, but it *may not* make Tae cry. Or I will be very unhappy with it.

"Himekoi" has a lot of screaming and pages of breast obsession. I note that "Nanako to Misuzu" has left the building. I guess it found a better reception over at Yuri Hime S. "Himekoi" seems to be the replacement "crrrraaazzzyyyy, wacky things and lots of screaming" series.

Adrienne is a cameraman on a shoot for an ero-photo book and finds herself improbably involved with one of the models in "Aka-me Adrienne."

Definitely more good than bad and some interesting things going on in the pages of Yuri Hime these days!

Overall - 9

Yuri Manga: Yuri Hime, Volume 18 (Part 1)

2009-11-15T12:05:00.003-05:00

Volume 18 of Comic Yuri Hime once again has cover art from Eiki Eiki and Zaou Taishi's "Love DNA Double X," series and wow, have they laid the lilies on thick. Literally. The lily flowers practically crowd Sakura and Aoi off the page. In case you love the picture a lot, the extra for this volume is a postcard of the cover image.

The first story begins with a girl recounting her many, all female, loves.

We then break for some advertising and a chat with the Sasamekikoto voice actresses, in which they say the typical things about a Girl's Love story.

Back to Shiroishi explaining to her friend that, yet again, she has fallen for a female classmate - this time the stylish, popular and apparently cold-hearted Midori. Tsubaki is incensed - she confronts Midori only to have the obvious pointed out to her - Tsubaki likes Shiroishi. I'm thinking of calling this plot complication "Crisis in Infinite Schools." What do you think?

Mistue Aoki's "Bankara Otome Gakuen" details the relationship between Yanki girl Shio and her ditzy friend Makiko. Smart, rich Yuka wants Makiko in the worst way - and is willing to kidnap and tie her up to get her. But Shiho saves the day and Makiko gets the girl. I so so so wish this would continue. It's a perfect setup for Shiho to be cool and keep re-winning Makiko over and over. But it was so goofy and condensed, I'm thinking one-shot.

"Love DNA Double XX" does three things. It establishes Aoi and Sakura as friends, introduces Sakura's posse, and gives us a glimpse of the backstory that sets Sakura up as Aoi's enemy and reason she's here at the school - to gain revenge.

Takase-sempai is the object of Mashiro's interest and desire, but is having a hard time wrapping her brain around it in "Sayonara Folklore."

"Delicious Time" was a great "Story A." A girl stops by the bakery every day to get a single mini-croissant. The baker's daughter, finds "mini-cro" fascinating. It's obvious that the girl attends the same school she recently graduated from so, when an opportunity to attend the school festival presents itself, she takes it. Of course they meet up and share their darkest secrets - as the daughter of a baker, the protagonist prefers rice and, Sakura, who is the daughter of a rice dealer, prefers that morning mini-croissant...and, the woman who sells it to her. As a way of expressing her own feelings, the baker creates a rice-bread to celebrate their meeting. Brava! Encore!

The essay and "Para Yuri Hime" remains unread. I have had several weeks of hard labor and simply haven't had time.

The next story is kind of odd and interesting. "Roku Tatami-han Shukai Osore" follows the relationship between a very outgoing, extroverted high school girl and the older shut-in she's seeing. Ito-chan, the shut in, finds herself inevitably pulled outside by Hatoko.

Arare and Kiri have a fight in "Tokimeki Mononoke Gakuen" and as Arare runs after the creature she loves, she finds herself - and Pero - unexpectedly back in our world.

In "Chinchin Puipui" bar Mama Michiko appears to magically transform into a cute, young woman and whisk miserable Kana away on a series of dates. Only, it wasn't that kind of magic at all.

Morishima Akiko continues her new series about adults with "Renai Joshika." It initially appears to be one of "those" series, where everyone in the series is going to be paired up. But, the first story belies that. Hirano falls for Shirohane, but finds out that she's already got a lover. Hirano realizes that her choices are not limited to one gender and that Shirohane is really a good person that she would, potentially, like to be with. She decides that her love battle has just begun.

This is a good place to stop for the day, I think.

I'll do my best to finish this up tomorrow!

Yuri Network News - November 14, 2009

2009-11-14T09:11:00.002-05:00

With the remnants of Ida beating at my house, it's a curl up and read a book kinda day....

Yuri Manga

Let's see...we already mentioned Comic Lily (which mostly has artists that specialize in moe loli Yuri, so my expectations are low to non-existent) and Yuri Shoujo. Have I mentioned yet *another* Yuri anthology, called Shoujo Yuri? Not sure. Well, now I have. As I mention in the comments, I saw a cover, but forgot to save the reference and now can't find it. Oh well. More info when I find it again.

Also not sure if I pointed out that Tsubomi 4 is out. I've been a little disappointed with Tsubomi so far. It's been pretty lackluster, but Yuri Hime took a while to really get going and it's only now shifting into territory I really like, so I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt for a few more volumes. It's just kind of...okay. I finish each volume *really* tired of school girls kind of liking each other a bit.

On a positive note, a series that has a character who actually says out loud that she's a lesbian, and that I *never* expected to see a second volume of, Poor Poor Lips, Volume 2 is a-comin'. I thoroughly enjoyed Volume 1. While I don't expect "progress" to be made in the relationship and the one-joke character of the lead was a tad wearing, overall, it had more depth and was a better series than most 4-koma comics.

***

Snatches of Yuri

Juji wrote in to let you all know that in addition to the Light Novel Dorobo no Meijin, there are a number of other novels by the same author, all with high likelihood of Yuri.

Dorobo no Meijin ~ Side Story: Itaikena Goshujin

Kimi ga Boku wo ~ Doushite Sora ha Aoi nano? and a second volume slated for a release this coming week.

Another novel with likelihood of something that passes for Yuri is Murasaki-iro Qualia, a story about a humanoid robot with pretty purple eyes and a charmingly doofusy personality that makes her the mascot and object of skinship in her middle school class.

Rousoku-hime has been *all* over the Yuri lists these days. I guess the inside must be better than the cover.... In any case, it's about the beautiful daughter of a nobleman, Squa, who is sent to a nunnery with her handmaid, "swarthy" Fleure.

Action Comics, which has brought us both Hakamada Mera's and Morinaga Milk's work, also offers up Pheromone No.5, which looks like it hits a number of popular tropes - private girls school (check), transfer student (check), glasses (check), pervy female Student Council President (check), "funny" sexual harassment (check.) The Amazon reviews were 5 stars and 1 stars. :-)

And Kate Dacey of Mangacritic informed me that translated manga Dragon Sister has a "predatory lesbian." It's on my to-read pile now, thanks to Okazu Hero Martin S. I'll let you know if she is sufficiently predatory for our tastes. :-)

***
And, that's a wrap for this week.

Become a Yuri Network Correspondent by sending me any Yuri-related news you find. Emails go to anilesbocon01 at hotmail dot com. Not to the comments here, please, or they might be forgotten or missed. There's a reason for this madness. This way I know you are a real human, not Anonymous (which I do not encourage - stand by your words with your name!) and I can send you a YNN correspondent's badge.

Thanks to all of you - you make this a great Yuri Network!

Gunsmith Cats Burst, Volume 4 (English)

2009-11-13T20:26:00.001-05:00

What were you doing in 1996?

I was working in an ad agency, studying Martial Arts, and was just about a year away from diving head first over a cliff into the chasm of anime and manga that would ultimately take over my life.

Rally Vincent was already neck-deep in crazy cases as a bounty hunter with her partner May and their researcher Becky. And, in 1996 or so, she met the Evil, Psycho Lesbian mafia donna, Goldie Musso.

13 years later, in Gunsmith Cats Burst Volume 4, Rally is not older, although she is much wiser. And she is doing the same thing she was then - bounty hunting.

In the course of a case, even though she is certain that Goldie is dead, Rally sees her. And in a sense, Goldie's henchman later assures her, Goldie is dead. She has no memory. Dennis begs Rally to help Goldie regain her memory and, after much shooting and many deaths, she does just that. In a close one-on-one fight, Rally breaks through the barriers Goldie's own mind had
erected to awaken her memories.

In the chaos, Rally loses contact with Misty. Although Becky is really concerned about that, for some reason, Rally is less so, sure of the thief's ability to land on her own two feet.

This will all set up the final, fabulous end to Gunsmith Cats Burst.

It was not quite two years ago that I first got my hands on this volume in Japanese. I'm even more thrilled to read it in English, if only because I long for excruciating details of guns and cars. (No, not really. It's just easier than reading kanji, duh.)

And once again I'm thrilled to the point of squealing that you get to watch heads blown off all so Rally can be the most important person in Goldie's life - again. Poor Misty. Hell, poor Dennis.

In any case, this penultimate volume is *exactly* what one looks for from Gunsmith Cats. And the end, when it comes, will be just right this time around. See you once more, in Volume 5. :-)

Ratings:

Art - 8
Characters - 8
Story - 8
Yuri - 3
Loser FanBoy - 5

Overall - 8

These good times brought to you by Okazu Superhero Bruce McF! Thanks for sponsoring today's review and letting us relive the madness all over again.

New Season Anime Fall 2009: To Aru Kagaku no Railgun

2009-11-12T19:05:00.002-05:00

Every week, I save To Aru Kagaku no Railgun for last. Yes, I am definitely the kind of person who saves the best for last. (Sasamekikoto isn't on the same queue as Railgun, in case you wondered that doesn't have the position of honor. It does, on an alternate viewing day.)

I know that Railgun is a side story from To Aru Majutsu, a series about which I know nothing and care not at all. (This does not mean I don't like it, or I am implying in *any* way that liking it is bad. Please don't read meaning into this statement in a tiresome way. Thank you in advance.)

As with most anime, I had no expectations for Railgun. In this case it all worked out and I think that it is really good goofball fun.

In Academia City, where the major industry is education, students are ranked from 1-5 according to their "abilities." These abilities are of the extranormal kind and, in keeping with Arthur C. Clarke's third law, we'll just call it magic and get it over with. :-)

Railgun follows the unlikely friendship of the least powerful and the most powerful in the city. The least powerful is represented by Uiharu Kazari (who is rated at a 1) and her friend Saten Ruiko (rated 0). Uiharu on with Judgement, the city's self-police force with Shirai Kuroko, (who is rated at a 4) and her in/famous, incredibly powerful roommate and object of desire, Misaka Mikoto, one of the city's few Level 5s.

When Uiharu and Saten are introduced to Mikoto, they - and we - are surprised to find that she's a really nice, down-to-earth person. And this simple fact, and the fact that being Level 1 and 0
in abilities does not mean that Uiharu or Saten is in any other way ineffective, makes this series totally watchable.

Uiharu's special abilities might be low, but her computer skills are aces. Saten is a Level 0, but she has guts and sense. Misaka's only real flaw is her desire to test her incredibly dangerous electrical power against someone in power-to-power combat. Which brings us to Shirai Kuroko, who is indubitably the real star of this series.

Kuroko is an annoying-voiced ojou-sama with a heart of gold and a sincere, if hyperactive, desire for Mikoto. She's a scream. Again, what makes it all work is that for all that she's powerful and rich and all that, she's a nice person. She's friends with Uihara and there's no "buts" at the end of that sentence. Levels of power, money, status, none of that matters to Kuroko. She's a nutball, but in a good way.

So far the anime has been fun. There's a plot developing, with a crazy, amoral, over-stressed, no one understands me-they all have to die bad guy, and I'm content to let it take me wherever it goes. I'm cool with watching Uiharu and her companions keep Academia city safe for students of all levels.

Ratings:

Art - 8
Story - 8
Characters - 9
Yuri - A lopsided 9
Loser FanBoy - 2 One of the bits I love best - the self-satisfied smirk the anime wears when viewers *don't* get panty shots.

Overall - Sold at 8. Don't bother wrapping it up, I'll watch it on the way out.

Drama CD: Maria-sama ga Miteru Rainy Blue

2009-11-11T13:57:00.000-05:00

In case you haven't had a chance to read it yet, drop by Anime News Network's "Chicks on Anime" for a segment with me on Yuri, and the following comments from people about how I don't know anything about it. lol Thanks to those of you who have weighed in with positive feedback! I'm kind of sad that no one thought my line describing the typical Yuri fan as being bipedal, with two front-facing eyes, was funny. :-(

In any case, my thanks to Bamboo and Casey and ANN for hosting that chat!

Now, from fun to misery, as we turn our sights, hopefully for the very last time, to Maria-sama ga Miteru: Rainy Blue. Like the Drama CD before it, there was a little rewriting going on, but ultimately it remains the same uber-depressing story, as Yumi sees her love for Sachiko cast aside in favor of Touko's.

This is not true, of course. Sachiko is dealing with issues of her own and is only barely aware of how badly Yumi is suffering. Not realizing just how bad Yumi is feeling, Minako and Yoshino fan the flames of her unhappiness. In the end, the only one Yumi feels she can turn to is Sei.

As with the every version of this story, for me the lowest point is when Yumi collpases in hysteria in the foyer of her house, railing at the symbolic loss of her umbrella and what feels like the loss of her beloved onee-sama. I was very careful to listen to this part of the Drama CD on the way home in the car, so I didn't ruin my day.

Ueda Kana carries the bulk of this story, but the rest of the cast subtlely adds to the story. In fact, when the cast credits were listed, I was surprised that so many of the cast had had lines. In my mind, it had been Yumi and maybe a few others. In fact, almost everyone had a line or two.

The bonus track was a discussion about "rain." There were a few interesting anecdotes, but nothing that withstood the test of a few really busy weeks. I remember that I wanted to remember them, but, uh, forgot. :-)

The absolute best part of this Drama CD is, we're done. That was it. We've gotten over the hump once more and can finally move into what are, IMHO, some of the best story arcs in the series.

Ratings:

Story - 8
Characters - 8
Yuri - 3
Loser Fan Boy - 1

Overall - 8

Parasol wo Sashite is one of my favorite novels of the series. Can't *wait* to hear it!

Yuri Manga: Ruri-iro Yume

2009-11-09T16:09:00.003-05:00

In Ruri-iro Yume Morishima Akiko gets to realize a dream of hers - one that I happen to share. She is able to draw a series of stories about adult women in relationships with other women.

I've been saying over and over how she's the one Yuri manga creator that consistently pushes at this particularly truculent line in the sand. Most "Yuri" stories lie firmly in a world of schoolgirl crushiness or some equivalent fantasy space. The understanding is that, while the emotions are real - the relationship is ephemeral. Women don't stay with their school days female lovers, it's "playing at" romantic love. Of course they will go on to marry a man and have children, thereby giving up any pretense at a professional life. This would all sound like me being sarcastic, except that it is very much the prevailing attitude in Japan. Women work until they find a man, then sequestor themselves in a life as a domestic caretaker until their kids leave. Everyone knows that's how it goes.

Morishima takes a few quirky looks at lives that don't fall into this stereotypical life plan by first dealing with someone whose dream is, in fact, very stereotypical. Ruri is an OL, a Office Lady. Office Ladies are a kind of mix between an admin, a hostess and a maintenance worker. They do random odd jobs around the office, including copies, serving coffee and changing light bulbs. It is stereotypically a job that a woman would take in order to meet and marry a nice salaryman. (Since she is naturally going to stop working when she gets married, there's no conflict about office romances.)

Ruri has a dream of finding a nice guy, getting married and having a child she names after herself, a hint that this dream is at least a little narcissistic. But she finds herself instead involved with a female co-worker, Mitsukuni. Ruri mentions her dream of a typical life one night at dinner and is *shocked* to be rejected by Mitsukuni. Next week, back in the office, Mitsukuni admits that that dream repulses her - she wants nothing of the sort. Ruri has to decide what she really wants...and ultimately decides that Mitsukuni's love is more important that her childish dream.

I found this story to be rather ironic, myself, since Ruri casts aside the typical dream of a pretty boring, repressive life as if it's childish and unrealistic, instead embracing what is traditionally seen as an "immature" love.

In the next story, although the two women are college students, their love is still an exploration of childhood dreams, in which one is the long-suffering Prince to the other's selfish Princess.

And then there's "Honey & Mustard," which started a new series that's now running in Yuri Hime. This series deals with adult women in adult jobs and a variety of relationships. In my review of this story when it ran in the magazine, I pointed out that it was significant for using the phrase "kocchi no kei," i.e., "one of us," thus for the first time in the pages of Yuri Hime acknowledging that there is an "us." Us, of course, being lesbians. The main characters are women who were once lovers and are now good friends, but no less lovers of women, despite the fact that they have put aside their schoolgirl days.

The next story explores the idea of "alternative family" from a slightly different perspective than usual. Kyou has been in love with Konomi since she was a child. After Konomi's husband died, she took over being Konomi's companion and ultimately became her lover. But there's a gap somewhere in the relationship and it makes Kyou uncomfortable. Ultimately she decides that being Konomi's family means more than being her lover and they start all over again.

A continuation of Eri and Keiko's May-December romance provides some classic Unresolved Sexual Tension and a look at what love means when you're "over-the-hill" by Japanese standards.

And finally, in a side story from Hanjuku Joshi Chitose's older sister Chie goes to Chie's school festival looking for Yuri, but is shocked to find love.

It might not seem like much to you, reading these one at a time, but I know what Morishima-san read as a young woman and I know why this is all an amazing shift to a much more realistic look at lesbian life and love.

In "Story A" a schoolgirl is usually portrayed only in the school setting. She is in love with the idea of another girl and the story ends when they to recognize their mutual interest in one another. Even when she is doing this, Morishima adds layers to it. Chie's search for Yuri was semi-professional, but her feelings for a younger girl totally bowl her over. Kaori and Mitsuki are adult women, "careerwomen" as they say in Japan. They have already acknowledged their love for women and its just another part of their lives. Keiko finds herself dealing more with her age issues than issues about Eri's gender, and Kyo decides a different relationship will bring her closer to Konomi, not further apart. And then there's Ruri, rejecting the childish dream and embracing a reality that is still often shoved into the closet to fulfill other people's expectations.

These are not your usual Yuri stories. That having been said, Morishima's art is *extremely* moe. Even when her characters are 28, they look round cheeked, fresh-faced and cute, as opposed to cool or mature. This is Morishima's style and it fits nicely with Yuri fandom's need to keep Yuri out of the realm of reality and strictly in the realm of fantasy. Imagine the consternation of those 30% of Yuri Hime readers if the magazine didn't just say, "Men Not Allowed" (as it does on the cover in a way that is clearly designed to drawn men to it like flies) but instead had realistically drawn and told stories of lesbian drama. Think about it.

...

It would be hilariously dull.

In any case, Morishima's art is super-duper cute. But her stories are smart, poignant and often very real. And, okay, sometimes her stories are super-duper cute, too. :-)

Ratings:

Art - 8
Story - 8
Characters - 9
Yuri - 9
Lesbian - 7
Loser FanBoy - 7 Loser FanGirl - 7

Overall - 9

Blatant Self-Promotion!

2009-11-08T09:16:00.003-05:00

Got a couple of housekeeping/promotional things I want to bring to your attention today. I'll try and get a review in later, since you haven't had one in a few days.

First, ALC Publishing is holding a Pre-Holiday sale on all 100% Yuri publications. Visit the ALC page on the Yuricon Shop for 30% to 50% off all books. This is for a limited time, so get your holiday orders in today!

Secondly, I've heard from a few people that there's some confusion about the double-underlined words in the body of my blog posts. Like the interstitial ads, these are the omnipresent evil of advertising. Those links and the Google ads aren't Blogger having their way with me. I put them there in order to attempt to monetize this blog. Feel free to enjoy the sponsored content as you roll over them...or not. :-)

Thirdly, there is a new addition to the right-hand sidebar here to which I'd like to draw your attention. Under the header "Be a Hero" you'll see that I've added a Amazon JP Wishlist to the Amazon.com one. This was quite specifically at the request of devoted readers. Shipping from Japan to the US is pretty ridiculous, which is why I didn't have one before now. Amazon JP is in Japanese, but all the buttons are the same shape and size as they are on Amazon.com, so it's not that hard to navigate. When you get to checkout. Then you can switch to English. There'll be a link that asks if you want to see the page in English. You are never obliged or pressured to buy anything ever for Okazu. But, there. At your request, I caved. :-)

Once again, I want to thank all my many Heros and Superheros, my Guest Reviewers, and every single one of my fabulous readers. Your support makes this possible - and I meant that both literally and figuratively. Thank you for the comments, the Diggs, the RTs and the friendship. As we head into a season of holidays, friends and family, I want to let you know, you are more than just my Yuri Network, you're a family to me. Thank you.

Yuri Network News - November 7, 2009

2009-11-07T10:20:00.000-05:00

Yuri Drama CDs

Katherine H. is first out of the gate with news for the DCD crowd (which I believe consists of me and her. lol) She wants you to know that there is a Canaan DJCD, which means it is an original recording from the web radio show, not a recycled storyline from the anime.

And, she tells us, there's a Sasamekikoto Drama CD, as well. Also an original story (according to the Amazon JP write up, anyway.)

But wait, there's more! (Katherine says in the spirit of early holiday shopping) there's the Aoi Hana "Sweet Blue Radio CD", as well. So your stockings can be filled with all sorts of Yuri goodies this holiday season.

And one more from me. There is a Maria-sama ga Miteru Premium CD up for pre-order. It's also an "Original recording" which could be the actresses talking, one of the un-recorded stories, or a live event and we'll never know until we buy it and listen. :-)

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Yuri Anime

Media Blasters has announced that they've acquired Ikkitousen GG, so fans of Kanu can watch her love for Ryuubi be turned into a dumb gag. :-) And in case Ikkitousen is too high-faluting' for you, they are also licensing Queen's Blade.

Mai Hime is due out in Blue Ray format in Japan, and to reward you for spending the money, there will be four new service-filled shorts that will make a mockery of the price that fans paid for such a sophisticated video set up. Or so I imagine. :-)

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Yuri Manga

A pile of Ichijinsha's Yuri cell phone manga collections are slated to hit the shelves any day!

Gokujou Drops Volume 3, can you believe it? What's left? The girl got the girl and we've run out of upperclassman to sexually harass her. I'm gonna guess there's a basement apartment in the dorm we didn't know about or something. lol

Yukemuri Sanctuary is surely going to involve bathing.

Otome Senshi Lovely 5! is, I'm thinking, pretty self explanatory.

I don't know what Honey Quartet is about, but as it's a one of the cell phone manga, there's likely to be sex. That'll sell, regardless of anything else. lol

And, last up for this month's releases, we also have Sora-iro Girlfriend.

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Other News

As Simon Jones (blog frequently NSFW) so beautifully put it, here is an article about why people in $4000 suits are starting to look at manga as an advertising tactic. Why am I linking it here? Because understanding the business side of this whole industry is way more important than remembering the name of the third girl on the left in Episode 8 of whatever series.

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Become a Yuri Network Correspondent by sending me any Yuri-related news you find. Emails go to anilesbocon01 at hotmail dot com. Not to the comments here, please, or they might be forgotten or missed. There's a reason for this madness. This way I know you are a real human, not Anonymous (which I do not encourage - stand by your words with your name!) and I can send you a YNN correspondent's badge.

Thanks to all of you - you make this a great Yuri Network!

Manga Readers Read Badly, Anime Watchers Watch Badly

2009-11-06T15:32:00.002-05:00

I'm on my way to present at an event tonight, so don't have time for a review, but I wanted to share something I've been thinking for a while...and open it up for discussion.

When I was a kid comics readers were also book readers. Voracious book readers. Kids who read comics read pretty much anything that had words on it and for ages every comic fan I knew read way above their "appropriate" age level. We were the only kids not surprised in sex ed class, because we'd all been reading books for adults for so long that it wasn't a shock to the system how that all worked.

I can't help but notice that many manga and anime fans these days seem to be...pretty bad readers. They don't get literary or artistic references. In fact, if it's not games, they often miss that anything all was referenced. They haven't read classics in mostly any genre. If it wasn't a movie, they've never heard of it.

I'm not saying every reader of manga is a bad reader or every watcher of anime is a bad watcher, but based on comments here and on forums Internet-wide and in fansubs, where references are often missed in herds, some folks really need to crack open a book without pictures from time to time.

So, here's the discussion part.

If you were going to suggest *two* novels for a manga reader to read to extend their understanding of the world they inhabit, which novels would it be? It can be any genre, history, myth, sci-fi, non-fiction, anything. If you are suggesting a book like Romance of the Three Kingdoms, it might be helpful to suggest an edition or ISBN, as well.

My two suggestions are:

Summer of the Ubume, by Natsuhiko Kyogoku, recently translated by Vertical. It covers a *lot* of ground through Japanese religion, mysticism, the world of Yokai and science. All very useful information if you want to understand tons of references in anime and manga. And there was, gods help us, an anime based on the next book of the series, Mouryou no Hako. Yes, it's that author.

My second suggestion may seem totally off the wall, but trust me there's a reason I'm suggesting it. If you haven't already read One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenitsyn, I beg you to do it now. It's a brilliant tale of human nature. Which is *exactly* what manga and anime fans seem to lack - a critical understanding of human nature. Not only does a little dose of Stalinist Russsia make you realize how wonderful your life is, Solzhenitsyn is simply a great writer.

I'll take the best and most cogent comments (suggestions with commentary on why it's a good choice) and move them to the body of the post with links for easier access.

And let me remind you that classic literature is often found for *free* in your local library. So you don't really have an excuse to not at least try a book or two.

So..let's have 'em - what do you think people ought to read in order to be better readers of manga and watchers of anime?

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WOW! What fantastic suggestions! Here are a few that are either extremely popular, or just amazing, "You really ought to read this" kind of books. I'll break them down into a few categories for ease of understanding the motivation behind the suggestion. But don't limit yourself to these - read all the comments and read all the books. I've added a few to my own to-read list, in fact. And please remember, you can find almost all of these and the ones suggested in the comments at your local library - for FREE.

Japanese Literature

Kwaidan - A must-read for understanding of Japanese spirits and monsters, known as yokai.
Summer of the Ubume - a must-read for psychology meets yokai
Tale of Genji - Aside from being the oldest novel, it's the oldest josei work. You're read this a million times even if you've never read it once - it's about a pretty boy, the women he treats like crap and his clothes.

Russian Literature

Crime and Punishment - As Kate mentions, many Japanese manga artists went through a "Russian" phase. This book is a classic of psychology.
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich - because this lesson of managing expectations is timeless.

There are no new plots

Shakespeare - He did it all.
Decameron - Boccacio did it all first.

Classic Girl's Literature

Anne of Green Gables - intense friendship between girls, echoed by practically every schoolgirl story ever. Got your souer right here.

Little Women - Classic, classic, classic. And mentioned in every third school play.

Little House on the... - no one mentioned this, but this, along with Little Women *defined* American girls' literature for a century, in the same way Hana Monogatari defined Japanese girl's lit.

Human nature

1984 and Animal Farm - These two brutal, ham-handed allegories on politics make sense every day in every place on the planet.

Tale of Two Cities - Deception, love, self-sacrifice and giving one up for the team maps perfectly to just about any anime or manga.

and in a category by itself;

Just READ this already

Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking Glass - These stories have been ripped, stomped, shredded, parodied in too many anime or manga series to count. It has instantly recognizable visual imagery and is, after the Bible and Shakespeare, the third most quoted book in the *world*. If you haven't read the original, you've missed.

Read. It make you a better person and a better fan!

New Anime Fall 2009 Season: Kämpfer

2009-11-05T20:27:00.001-05:00

Kämpfer is either an incredibly silly anime with no redeeming value whatsoever or a surprisingly intelligent critical look at "magical girl" tropes in seinen anime.

As a silly anime, it's the story of Senou Natsuru, a a stereotypically nice but sort of dorky guy who, for plot purposes, suddenly changes into a girl in order to fight for her life. Natsuru is one of those characters who asks the wrong questions badly, so gets useless information in return. Several episodes into the series he still has basically no clue why he's fighting. Natsuru as a boy is nice, ineffective and stutter-y. As a girl, Natsuru is *exactly* the same, except she now has magic powers. Natsuru's neighbor and friend, Sakura, is uninterested in Natsuru as a guy, but when she is saved by female Natsuru, she falls head over heels. ("And the moral of that story," said the Duchess, "is that women will always fall for magic competence over ineffectual niceness." To which Alice replied, "Nonsense! The moral of the story is that Sakura is a lesbian.")

As a surprisingly intelligent critical look at tropes of the guy's version of magical girl anime, we are introduced to a man who is a better woman than he is a man, but really not that great of a woman. He transforms into a magical fighter then given *no* reason to fight; he is pursued by the women around him as both a man and a woman, but is incapable of following through with any of them in any form. There are "cute" magical mascots in the form of eviscerated and mangled stuffed animals - I'll come back to them later - and, in what I consider a piece d'resistance - he is subjected to all the stereotypical service dress-up scenes after which he sighs, "I feel as I've just had my humanity stripped from me." Yes, Natsuru, you have. Just as all the other girl characters who've been put through that nonsense have.

The real reason any sane person would watch this anime is the "Entrails Animals." These evil and unpleasant little mascot creatures are voiced by popular voice actresses - with a 4th wall crushing recognition of each other's voices. Not *just* popular voice actresses, but VAs that have themselves built up a following voicing characters in exactly the kind of anime of which this series is a meta-comment.

I'd like to give Kämpfer the benefit of the doubt and assume that it is consciously written as a poke at the genre. I'd like to, but I can't. It's probably just a really silly series. ("And the moral of that story, said the Duchess, "is that you can't compare gender-switching comedy anime to a critical reading of societal norms." Alice nodded solemnly. "I think that's the only sense I've ever heard from you.")

Ratings:

Art - 8
Story - 4
Characters - 5
Yuri - 7
Loser FanBoy - 36

Overall - 7

Taisho Yakyuu Musume Manga, Volume 1

2009-11-04T10:00:00.000-05:00

Once again it is my great pleasure to welcome back George R., with another timely review, so I can get a few chores done. :-) As it happens, thanks to another Okazu Superhero, Bruce P., I am currently reading this very volume, so I may have some comments at the bottom. In the meantime, George, the room is all yours....

Seeing Taisho Yakyuu Musume from this summer's anime lineup prompted me to look at its appearance in other media. This show followed the now-common path of starting as a light novel series, then branching out to both manga and anime adaptations. I'll talk about Volume 1 of the manga here, as I still need to get the novels. In this case, the manga adaptation is done by Shimpei Itoh, a well-established mangaka, though not one known for Yuri.

I think the manga works well on its own, though it is interesting to see how it differs from the anime. For instance, several girls end up playing different positions, which makes me wonder where the novels originally assigned them.

The art is unquestionably Shimpei Itoh's style. This differs from the anime, but is just fine in its own right. In fact, the art and humor remind me of his 1999 manga, Shoujo Tantei (Girl Detective), which was also set in the Taisho era, but has no Yuri. I think Itoh-sensei's girls are a bit less moe than those of the anime, or at least Koume and Noe are.

It also follows Itoh-sensei's story-telling style including a healthy dose of physical comedy and over-the-top humor. Somehow I doubt the novels include Noe experimenting with small rockets for military use (unsuccessfully) or suggesting they make bats from aluminum (accompanied by an illustration of an aluminum-armored tank from the '70s). Those just seem his style. A couple bath scenes give us a little humor and also a chance to see the characters modelling their birthday suits. I wonder why the Japanese seem to have a fascination with spring-based resistance training harnesses. I've seen these in multiple shows. These appear a couple times here, though only played for humor.

The first volume of the manga covers introducing the characters and assembling the team. Baseball doesn't even come up until the second chapter where we get Akiko's motivation and her request to form the team.

Koume is still the sweet girl who happily follows and supports her friends through their adventures. Her mother seems to have no problem with her and baseball, wishing her a fun time and even letting her wear a western school uniform.

Akiko is the same rich daughter who is chauffeured to school, so naturally she is called Ojou. Noe is more of a ringleader here, taking Akiko's baseball idea and running with it. She is the only one, other than Anna-sensei, who starts knowing anything about baseball.

We are given a closer look at some of the supporting characters. Shizuka is possessive of her twin sister Tomoe, and they both seem equally athletically competent. Their dad is a well-known doll-maker, and some call the twins living dolls he made. Tomoe likes Koume's friendliness and warmth and hopes that becoming friends will warm the heart under her (and maybe Shizuka's) cool porcelain skin.

Tamaki and Yuki are childhood friends. Tama-chan takes care of all the cooking at home as her mother is busy being a newspaper reporter. This may be a bit anachronistic for Japan of this era, but I find it hard to argue with women having independent careers like she and Anna-sensei do. However, Tama-chan certainly wishes her mother was a bit more responsible at home, which may be the source of Tama-chan's attitude. Yuki is her same responsible, caring self, supplying her
friends with advice and equipment among other things.

Saburo comes off well as Koume's fiancee, even taking her out for a date to watch a practice baseball game. When he finds she knows little of the game, he happily explains it to her.

What Yuri is here requires goggles to see. Mine needed a higher setting for the manga than the anime. We are treated to displays of both akogare and shinyuu in the different relationships among the girls. Kome and Akiko vary between the two. Tama-chan and Yuki have the comfortable ease of shinyuu, whereas Tomoe's feelings for Koume are definitely akogare, as are those of Tomoe's fanclub.

Ratings:

Art - 7
Story - 6
Characters - 8
Yuri - 1
Loser Fanboy - 4

Overall - 6

In all, I found this an amusing manga. Though it never made me fall off the couch laughing, it did bring many a grin to my face. I will admit to preferring the anime. Perhaps because it seemed better at keeping the feel of the Taisho era: some of Itoh-sensei's humor jars my mind out of the era. Or perhaps seeing the anime first left me naturally biased in its favor.

Erica here. The art style is distinctively Itoh's and, as a result, everyone is a bit over the top. Akiko's fiancée's rant about women in the home was three pages long and done at high volume, as opposed to his quiet, old-fashioned confusion as to why on earth women would want more from the anime.

I disagree that baseball is not mentioned until the second chapter - and, oddly, it seems that you're not alone in thinking this, George. In the first chapter, the baseball team is *already* formed, Koume's mother asks her if it's fun to play baseball, and she waxes rhapsodic about how much fun practice and games are. The rest of the story is a flashback to how the team was formed. I'm guessing that, since Itoh's specialty is not sports manga, they skipped trying to show any of that. :-) So we can understand that Koume and the others are, in fact, *already* playing ball, even if we don't see it. Which we don't. :-)

The other thing I wanted to add was that the anime, surprisingly, added a great deal of dignity to the story. By pulling back from over-the-top antics and rants, the issue of feminism was handled really, shockingly, well. Considering the dehumanization of women into object d'fetish so often in anime, it was just that much better handled than I could have possibly expected. Where the anime was a comedy-drama, with an emphasis on "sports drama," this manga is definitely "comedy." Fun, art times funny, but firmly in the "wackiness ensues" side of comedy. It is Itoh, after all. :-)

Well thank you, as always, George for a great review!

Yuri Manga: Manga no Tsukirikata, Volume 2

2009-11-03T17:36:00.000-05:00

In Volume 2 of Manga no Tsukurikata, it's been a year and Morishita and Kawaguchi are still going out. They haven't moved past the occasional hand-holding, but hey, that's okay Kawaguchi's manga is progressing, so...yay?

Kawaguchi's plan appears to be working; by going out with Morishita, she has stimulated her creativity and her new manga series has debuted. She is thankful, she is kind, she gives Morishita a one-year anniversary present. Morishita is appreciative, but this prolonged strain on her one-sided feelings is starting to show. She has a crisis of faith about her own manga, and about her relationship with Kawaguchi.

I can't blame Morishita - in a year, they still aren't calling each other by their given names, a sign that they haven't truly moved into any kind of intimate relationship at all. Kawaguchi is supportive and encouraging - everything a sempai ought to be, but still, is failing at the lover part.

For my part as a reader, I'm having a hard time understanding this manga. ("Understanding" as in, "why the heck am I reading this?") It's so barely Yuri that it's almost unfair to give it that label, but it *is* Yuri. Morishita's feelings are real. I'm having a lot of trouble coping with Kawaguchi's attitude - a year is a loooooong time to string someone along when you don't really love them. Her affection for the younger woman is undeniable, but that's it - it's affection. Like a sister, a friend, a sempai for her beloved kouhai. It's annoying to watch Morishita hanging on the hook with no worm in sight.

And then there's the real plot. The real plot has nothing whatsoever to do with any real or imagined relationship - it's a meta-story about drawing a Yuri manga. Here I am, the mangaka says to us in each chapter, flailing around trying to write a Yuri manga when I don't really "get" the whole thing. Which is exactly what the series feels like - a Yuri manga written by someone who doesn't "get" the whole thing.

The issue of honesty that I brought up in Volume 1 is not addressed at all in Volume 2, and I feel like the mangaka has abdicated authority on the story, The potential is slipping away as chapter after chapter of not hardly anything glides by. As a story of a woman drawing manga, it's not bad, but there's this whole issue of her completely fake relationship in the way of my enjoying it. It's not just Morishita who is being cheated out of a good experience, it's the reader, as well.

Ratings:

Art - 7
Story - 6
Characters - 6
Yuri - 3
Loser FanBoy - 1

Overall - 6

Best chapter of this volume was when Kawaguchi's fan/assistant arrives and spends the entire chapter cluelessly dissing Morishita's art, not realizing she's a popular mangaka in her own right.

Click Manhwa, Volume 4 (English)

2009-11-02T17:12:00.002-05:00

There are two crucial qualities for a "Love Comedy" (as opposed to a 'romantic comedy,' which is something else entirely.)

First, there ought to be Love. Almost without exception, both Japanese manga and Korean manhwa fail at this part. (I don't know if Chinese manhua does, since I have read very little of it, but I suspect so.) Instead of characters who love one another, they are filled with characters who barely tolerate each other and are, from time to to time actively violent both verbally and physically. This, we are meant to understand is because they *care deeply* about one another.

It's not that this is particularly unrealistic. There are many couples who show their love by sniping incessantly at one another. But it's less fun than a barrel of monkeys for people caught on the sidelines. (I'm saying this with complete awareness that my wife and I have a strong tendency to be that kind of couple.)

Translated to a story, it makes the characters really unlikable. If you don't like him, we think, why not just walk away? Love is not some overwhelming magnetic force that means you *have* to stay with her.

The second thing a Love Comedy needs is Comedy. This is also something that manga and manhwa are pretty slipshod on. Flipping up a girl's skirt is neither romantic nor funny, for instance. "Accidentally" grabbing a girl's breast is simply not as hilarious as manga editors seem to think. And manic-depression in the form of denial, even when you call it tsundere isn't really all that charmingly fun.

The problem with Click, Volume 4 is that it completely fails to have much Love or much Comedy.

There is *some* love. Joonha is "in love with" her idea of Jinhoo, but it's not Love. It's more like an obsession, or an itch. They would even make an okay couple since Jinhoo knows from years of experience what an ass Joonha is, but Joonha's gender change is as much an obstacle to their being together as her original gender was.

Since we all know men and women absolutely, positively cannot be friends without sexual feelings for one another, a perfectly good friendship between perfectly good equals is ruined by Taehyun's feelings for Joonha. On the one hand, it's exhausting, on the other, Taehyun's interest in Joonha is pretty much the only honest affection there is in the story.

And then there's Heewon. She has no Love in her, for Joonha, for herself, for anyone. She's wounded and angry and lashing out. And as a joke, she's tired. Her verbal and physical abuse of everyone around her is exhausting, and the fact that Taehyun's ~~lackey~~ friend is a perfect partner for her dominatrix side isn't really satisfying on any level.

Every one of these characters has gobs of talent and money and not an ounce of Love or Comedy in them. It makes for a constipated read, something you watch like a train wreck, waiting for the inevitable crash.

However, I can't find it in my heart to hate these characters. They, like Jessica Rabbit, were drawn this way. I can't *quite* stop reading this series until Heewon gives up Joonha for good and then everyone will be tucked neatly in proper little heterosexual boxes, except for the Jinhoo x Joonha thing, which will be strung along as a fake BL story as long as the author can manage.

Ratings:

Art - 6
Story - 6
Characters - 6
Yuri - .5
Loser FanBoy - 1

Overall - 6

Thanks kindly to the sponsor of today's review, Dan P. I feel bad for you, my heroes, that better stuff is not being translated, but your support is nonetheless very much appreciated!

Oh, and a Love Comedy that does work? Strawberry Shake Sweet. Funny, and actually about love.

Yuri Drama CD: Blue Drop, Enemies Side

2009-11-01T19:12:00.001-05:00

What you've all been waiting for! (Admit it, you were...) A Blue Drop Drama CD that deals with everyone's favorite half-alien lesbian, Yui and her on-again, off-again, wish-I-could-love-you-but-have-to-kill-you relationship with Misato-sensei right out of the first volume of the Blue Drop manga.

Having recently slogged through a number of near-identical stories by Yoshitomi Akihito, it was instantly apparent that the stories in this Drama CD are probably his strongest ever. Yui is a sloppy drunk, a letch and a goof, but she's honest and gentle and cares. Misato is also a letch (because being an alien means you're not just lesbian, you're a carnivorous consumer of women with no self-control) who is actually quite sympathetic.

Their story centers around Shouko who has been injected by Misato's serum and is (temporarily) an Issejin. The resistance makes themselves odious, the humans aligned with the aliens make themselves moreso and it's left to Yui to protect Shouko from pretty much everyone.

In between the story, we learn dribs and drabs about the alien invasion, why the water is not safe for humans and other backstory stuff - and we learn about the poignant, unresolvable relationship between Misato and Yui.

If you are a fan of the first manga volume and have even the most basic Japanese skills, you will definitely want to get this DCD. If you have little Japanese, this is not the series you want to be practicing with - there is a lot of fake/technical and military terms. But, if you're familiar with the manga and can understand a basic school-day conversation, you'll be able to make it through those conversations with some little difficulty.

I was surprised at how...sloppy...Yui sounds. She sounds like she's faking about 80% of what we hear, which totally works for the character. The story between her and Misato desperately needs a sequel. Something after all that rebellion stuff is resolved.

And it nicely whetted my appetite for the upcoming Blue Drop TV series release. :-)

Ratings:

Art - 7
Story - 7
Characters - 7
Yuri - 6
Loser FanBoy - 6

Overall - 7

There's an extra comic that's a continuation of the extra from the previous DCD about a girl whose Isseijin sempai has introduced her to tradtional Japanese bondage, starting something she can't control. lol

Yuri Network News - October 31, 2009

2009-10-31T11:33:00.001-04:00

Happy Halloween!

Yuri Anime

According to Anime News Network, Pre Cure Fresh anime is being made into an Online Game, which mimics the "anime's world of Clover Town, and users (primarily children) can create their own avatars to experience life there and interact with Love Momozono, Miki Aono, Inori Yamabuki, and the other anime characters."

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Yuri Manga

From Sylwia, we get a link to a Polish lesbian comic book anthology - this anthology contains nine stories and one pin-up, all about lesbian love, life, coming out and other things. All the authors are from Poland. The official relase date will be 20th of November. We're looking forward to seeing it, Sylwia!

And finally, there's a link for Rakuen Le Paradis - and at least a few of the stories are Yuri. I'm so hoping it's a cut above Tsubomi, that's for sure.

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Other News

Anime News Network also reports that the 5 actresses that voiced the "Inner Senshi" of Sailor Moon, will be reuniting for an event to celebrate the DVD box release. How I wish I could be there....

Writers Residence did an interview with me as an editor, about query letters and rejection and all that kind of reality stuff.

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Snatches of Yuri

In case you haven't had a chance to wallow in Amano Kozue's newest Yuri Goggle-busting manga full of women who are affectionate, but not romantic,
Amanchu!, Volume 1 is out and ready for you to enjoy.

Gakko No Sensei - I'm super lazy today, but I'm pretty sure this is about a girl who likes her teacher. I could be wrong, but I'm too lazy to actually read the description. Update: I was indeed wrong! Wai tells us that it's about three girls who *become* school teachers and it is indeed Yuri. Thanks Wai!

Bamora has high school girls on the cover. I'm guessing at least one likes the other.

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That's a wrap for the week!

Become a Yuri Network Correspondent by sending me any Yuri-related news you find. Emails go to anilesbocon01 at hotmail dot com. Not to the comments here, please, or they might be forgotten or missed. There's a reason for this madness. This way I know you are a real human, not Anonymous (which I do not encourage - stand by your words with your name!) and I can send you a YNN correspondent's badge.

Thanks to all of you - you make this a great Yuri Network!

Yuri Manga: Hinagiku Junshin Jogakuen, Volume 1

2009-10-30T10:00:00.015-04:00

Hinagiku Junshin Jogakuen, Volume 1 is the story of Ami, a smart, beautiful, elegant, rich girl who collides in the hall with sweatpants-wearing, geeky-looking Yui and falls madly in love. It comes as a great shock, therefore, to find that Yui has been in her class all the time.

Yui is smart, she is definitely a geek, and she works very hard at a part-time job, but that none of that explains the incessant slamming into people. Nor does it explain why other people slam into Ami, too. Nor does it explain why, after Yui and Ami become friends, and Yui affects Ami's life by introducing her to rice balls and to the world of part-time jobs so she makes her own friends and money, why the manga suddenly explodes into a few final chapters about things like bathing suits, cosplay and aliens. I kept waiting for Dondi and shady underworld figures to show up just to complete the "wtf" factor.

The basic plot of the first 4/5 of this volume go like this: Yui slams into Ami, with an onigiri in her mouth. Yui *loves* onigiri. Ami spends a LOT of time in this volume obsessing about rice balls - wondering what they are, trying them for the first time, trying to make them, having her cook make them, all in an attempt to get closer to Yui. Of course, if Ami just *asked* if she and Yui could be friends, it's obvious that Yui would be glad to comply.

When Ami takes over for Yui at her part-time job selling fried things at a convenience store in what was really the top couple of chapters, a whole new world of relating to people opens up for Ami. She never really gets her wish to get closer to Yui the way she'd like, but she gets something more important - self-reliance.

This volume of manga is silly and repetitive. It's a sit-com in which the "sit" is Yui slamming into Ami. But despite that, it has some genuine charm. And just about the time you think it's time for the story to progress a bit - Aliens. Cosplay. Bathing Suits. The usual.

Ratings:

Art - 7 4-koma cute, you know the type
Story - 5 I'm being generous. There actually isn't any story
Characters - 7 There is some character development, instead of a story
Yuri - 4
Loser FanBoy - None, until the final chapters, then 5

Overall - 6

I wish the author had had the opportunity or balls to move the story forward. I would have liked to see Yui clue in a tad. But, should you be willing to wait it out, there is a Volume 2 out and who knows, onigiri might lead to love after all.

Lesbian Novel: Songs From the Other Side of the Wall

2009-10-28T16:20:00.005-04:00

Today falls under the "now for something completely different" category. But first, let me tell you a story.

When I first started writing Yuri fanfiction, I was pretty much one of a handful of women writing in the genre and, as far as I can remember (which isn't very far,) I was *the* out lesbian doing so. So, I got a lot of emails from people - women who were happy to see stories by a woman, not some nerdy teen boy, etc and also from guys who wanted my feedback. Many of these guys wrote to me to tell me how other people said "they wrote women well." I almost invariably disagreed, because any writer who sees his or her characters as "men" or "women" is probably too caught up in gender roles to write anyone well.

So, when recently I received a message on Facebook from Dan Holloway asking me to read and possibly review his lesbian novel, Songs From the Other Side of the Wall, I cringed. Years of reading sad attempts at "realistic" lesbians written by men made me reluctant to read this. I told Dan that I would read the book with one upfront condition - if I hated it, I would not review it, because no one would gain from me skewering it. If I did not hate it, I *might* review it, but no promises. Dan was totally cool with that. And he never once said he "wrote women well," so I had some hope.

Songs From the Other Side of the Wall is a *very* good book.

6 pages into it, I was really, really enjoying it. The main character was likable, real and yes, I would have her over for lunch.

The story follows Szandrine, (don't roll your eyes - there's a reason for her name,) a young Hungarian musician, after the loss of a dear online friend and his sister, with whom Szandrine had fallen in love at first sight.

Dan's writing is convincing - Szandrine is mature for her 17 years, but still 17. Her poetry, songs and writing ring absolutely dead-on true for her personality and age.

The story travels in intent, and often location, all over Europe, which I quite liked. But above all what holds this book together is Szandrine; her loves, her likes and dislikes, her quirks and even her stupid skinny jeans. lol

It's a rather complicated story, and not perfect - there about three handwaves too many to be perfect. There was one instance - one in the entire book - where the author's voice overshadows the character's - easily ignorable. And honestly, I didn't love the ending. I didn't like where it had been going, and I wasn't thrilled with where it ended up, but I never once thought about stopping reading. Overall, a great read. Thank you Dan, for being brave and sending me this book. And for writing women well. :-)

Ratings:

Story - 8 Good story, but too many handwaves
Characters - 9 Very real people
Lesbian - 10
Loser Anything - .5, because chances are without pictures, they couldn't follow it.

Overall - 8

Now, here's the best part - you can read this book too. For free. Dan is offering his book as a free PDF download on his website. If you like it, I ask one thing from you - when it becomes available in print - buy it. The hard copy I received is a softcover trade book of decent quality. Definitely worth a buy.

In the meantime, I hope you enjoy Songs as much as I did.

Anti-Yuri Manga: Maria Holic, Volume 1 (English)

2009-10-27T13:51:00.006-04:00

I want you all to know that I REALLY tried. I took a deep breath, smiled and prepared to do my very very best to approach Maria Holic Volume 1, with an open and cheerful mind. It is absolutely obvious that Maria Holic is meant to be read as broad parody of Yuri tropes. (Yes, yes, pun intended.) What it is, however, is broad and crude.

Kanako is attending a very elite all-girl's school where she hopes to become closer to the memory of her late mother who was a student there, and to find a soulmate, because she is attracted to women. Kanako is portrayed as a typical "onnazuki," a person who likes women, but is too hapless and hopeless to get a girlfriend. Kanako falls for practically every girl she sees, which is both cute and sad at the same time.

Because this is not a romance, but a "comedy," Kanako immediately falls into the clutches of physically cute, but emotionally sadistic Mariya, who is really a boy cross-dressing for reasons not yet mentioned. (I know they will be. I'm reviewing *Volume 1*.)

Kanako blunders around the school both befriending and be-enemying various characters, and generally making a fool of herself for our "entertainment." The people around her act in ways that make no sense, except that they are meant to be exceedingly broad parodies of typical Yuri tropes, and so act like those tropes unrestrained by sense or sensibility.

I want you to know that I did my best to not read more into this manga than was warranted. I will *not* rant about how Maria Holic is not only anti-Yuri but anti-woman. I squelched that pretty hard as I sat there gritting my teeth, feeling more and more cranky as I read.

I will not talk about how a feminist reading of this volume made me want to grab up my friends Mr. Knife and Mr, Hot Tar and take them trick-or-treating with me, because that would be me being ridiculous and you'd all take me seriously.

What I will say is this - I found the anti-lesbian "humor" painful. At one point, Mariya calls Kanako "lesbo girl" and it really, really upset me. It was meant to be hurtful to Kanako. We're supposed to find humor in her reaction to this. But, when in a single panel she pleaded with her dead mother, "why is everyone picking on me?" I lost it and started to cry. If you found that line funny, I hate you. It's as simple as that.

When I reviewed the Mariaholic anime, I said that the anime was, at it's core, about the emotional torture of a young lesbian. I can see that the manga is not quite that - it's colder, more dispassionate. Where Sasamekikoto plays with typical Yuri tropes in a goofy way, drawing on their faces, if you will, Maria Holic is more mean about it - flipping up skirts and then saying *we* overreacted.

Ratings:

Overall - For me, it's in negative numbers. Too many tears, too many nosebleeds, too much pain.

The very worst thing about this series is knowing that, instead of finding love in a healthy relationship, Kanako will be fall prey to Stockholm Syndrome, and Mariya - who is loathesome - will become progressively more sympathetic until we can justify what will clearly be an unhealthy, unequal, unreasonable relationship. Once again, it is Mariya on the cover, not Kanako. And that says everything there is to say about this series.

Thanks to Okazu Superhero Dan P. for sponsoring today's review!

Interview with Yuri Manga Artist Morishima Akiko

2009-10-25T13:19:00.003-04:00

As anyone who is paying the least little bit of attention to the Yuri manga scene will know, right now one of the most prolific and popular Yuri manga artists is Morishima Akiko-sensei. Not only is she drawing for Yuri Hime (both magazines and the cell phone comics) she always has projects with other publishers and her own work as well.

Morishima-sensei has been a staple of the Yuri scene for many years, starting with her own circle, Girlish, and she's also drawn (straight) shoujo manga for a number of publishers. She does design and art for her website and her blogs about her work and her life.

I had the pleasure of meeting Morishima-sensei at Yuricon 2005 in Tokyo, where she was one of our guests. She interviewed me briefly at the time, so I felt that it was more than fair I got her back on that. lol This summer, Morishima-sensei released the third and fourth collected volumes she's done with Ichinjisha. She very graciously took time out of her schedule to talk a little bit with us here. Please give an enthusiastic Okazu welcome to Morishima Akiko-sensei!

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Q1: Please Tell Us About Yourself
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I am a Japanese woman who won't stop loving Girls and Yuri.
Both my hobby and my work is manga.

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Q2: How did you become a mangaka? Was it a childhood dream?
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It all started when my 4-panel comics were adopted by lesbian magazine Anise.

Although, to my regret, Anise suspended publication, I continued with a public sequel on the Web, so it might become serialized in a 4-panel magazine.

My childhood dream was to become a company employee with a steady income and a steady life.
But, you need a plan, not a dream. Perhaps, one day I might possibly grow up. (smile)

Although I liked drawing, I didn't think I had the talent to become a professional...
I am the most surprised at my current life. I'm very grateful for this happiness.

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Q3: Which artists are your role models?
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Japanese musician Yuki.
Her music and her self are both very cute, yet very tough, and her way of thinking is totally flexible.

I always think that I want to draw such an attractive heroine.

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Q4: If you were not a mangaka, what kind of work would you be doing?
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I went to school to study architectural design.
Even now, I love looking at buildings.
I also enjoy drawing doujinshi and working on my website.

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Q5: What were your motivations for creating Yuri Manga?
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While right now the number of Yuri manga is growing, just a little while ago there were hardly any stories of women in love to read.
So, thinking "If there's nothing to read, then I'm going to have to draw if for myself," was the primary motive.

Because it takes a lot of time to draw a manga, it is very difficult to do it as a hobby. Therefore I am very happy that I can draw as my work.

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Q6.1: Please tell us a little bit about your process.
How long does a chapter take to draw?
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In a busy month, working by myself and including dialogue, I can do about 30 pages. If an assistant is helping, 40-50 pages.

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Q6.2: (Please tell us a little bit about your process.)
How many assistants work with you? What is the first step, what is the final step?
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I have two assistants.

First the frame borders and the backgrounds are drawn, then small things are added.
First I do the panel layout, and last the screentones are added, both of which I do. I do most of the drawing myself during this time.

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Q7: What has been the reaction in Japan to Hanjuku Joshi, Rakuen no Jouken and Ruri-iro Yume?
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"I get the feeling that this is familiar and real, but also a dream, too," is often the impression, I am told. To me, this feeling is a basic of shoujo manga, an especially likable quality, so that makes me happy. More than being popular, I want to feel my manga has continuous support from the people who like it.

The reaction to Hanjuku Joshi has come in three kinds:

People who feel that it's a standard Yuri setting, with a flavor that is sweet and fluffy.
People who feel that it's sympathetic to the romance within sex between women.
Or, people who enjoy both these.

I would like the reader to enjoy it freely, for their own reasons.

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Q8: You got your start with doujinshi. How does it feel to be a leader in this new wave of Yuri manga popularity?
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Nono, I'm no kind of leader!

I'm just a servant, a servant of Yuri Manga (smile)
I work with pleasure for the Yuri Manga of tomorrow!

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Q10: What question do you have for overseas fans?
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I am always impressed at the zeal of overseas fans, sometimes they have more information than Japanese fans. Everyone, how do you acquire all your information on Japanese books and DVDs?

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Q11: What message do you have for overseas fans?
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I would think that Yuri Manga is something that is strongly Japanese, a particular cultural convention of Japan. So, I am very glad and interested that overseas fans understand it. The word "Yuri" has reached people from far away countries, hasn't it? Please continue your support and consideration of Japanese Yuri.

***

Thank you so much Morishima-sensei for your time and all your hard work creating beautiful Yuri for us to read.

Readers, let's show our support for Morishima-sensei's hard work by buying Hanjuku Joshi, Ruri-iro Yume and Rakuen no Jouken. Remember, it's nice for you to read a scan, but that doesn't help the artist at *all*. Without the artists, you wouldn't have anything to read. So please, join the majority of readers here at Okazu by paying for your entertainment and supporting artists like Morishima-sensei for their creation of great Yuri!

Yuri Network News - October 24, 2008

2009-10-24T10:02:00.000-04:00

There is getting to be *so* much Yuri news, that I'm thinking about developing a form, to standardize formatting... :-)

Yuri Manga

Bruce P has written me with what well may be the piece of news that is the *most* interesting to me. He tells us that the Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou (Yokohama Shopping Log) manga is being reprinted in Japan. Why is this interesting to us? Because Kodansha USA is finally up and running...and they've started with two old classics, Akira and Ghost in the Shell. (Interestingly, they've reprinted Dark Horse's editions, and in the case of the latter title, used the censored version, so no gratuitous lesbian sex for Americans from Kodansha.) I'm not saying that YKK being reprinted in Japan has any direct bearing on Kodansha USA...just that now would be an exceptionally good time for them to consider it.

In any case, Bruce P. says, "the first two volumes will be released on 10/23. This is great news since many of the original volumes are no longer available through Amazon.co.jp. Now if only they would reprint the art book." Here are links to the reprinted Volume 1 and Volume 2.

Shelia was the first of several to point out that Nakamura Chin, creator of Gunjo, has a short story collection out called Chinman. If you love her art, as I do, I hope you'll support her work.

Also, Sheila and Erin both mentioned that there is yet *another* Yuri anthology planned, called Comic Lily, while the publisher who put out Sakuraike's work's new anthology has changed it's name to Yuri Shoujo - and it appears to be planned for a November 19 release at Comitia, so not necessarily a bookstore release. We'll see.

Waaahhh. Such drama over a title.

Here are some recent and upcoming manga releases:
Comic Yuri Hime Magazine

Gokujou Drops 3 by Mikuni H.

Otome Senshi Lovely 5 by Jonouchi Nene

Honey Quartet by Tokoro Kemeko

Also on December 4th Mori Natsuko will be releasing a new novel called Futari no Hitori Asobi.

And Yuri Hime Wildrose 4 is due out in December.

***

Yuri Anime

George and I are on the same page, wanting to let you know about some Yuri anime this season. Kampfer is not going to win any awards, but there is a strain of Yuri running through it, as a country might say there's a strain of virus running through it. :-)

Also no less ridiculous, but somehow more fun, To Aru Kagaku no Railgun has a major Yuri character, played for laughs and pathos.

Also, George and several others noted that first episode of Hidamari Sketch x365 Tokubetsuhen aired last week.

I also want to say - when are we gong to see a Yuri anime from Ichijinsha? They were the one who unleashed Loveless on the world. I think it's time for them to provide us with the same kind of virality. Here's today's question - which Ichinjinsha (Yuri Hime, Yuri Hime S, Comic YH) series would *you* like to see as an anime?

***

Other News

This past Wednesday, I had the pleasure of moderating a Queer Manga Panel at NYU as part of their Pride month. The panelists were Ivan Velez Jr., June Kim, Hiroki Otsuka and the always fabulous Mari Morimoto. One of the attendees, James Leung, did a great write-up of the panel, so I'll let him tell you all about it on his blog, Random Access Information.

And last, but very much not at *all* least, I want to draw your attention to an amazing piece of investigative reporting by YNN correspondent Bruce McF. This is not Yuri, but it is *huge*. Because of some interesting circumstances, Bruce began to look at where pirated streaming anime was served from and he uncovered the fact that the largest percentage of illegally streaming anime in America is served from properties owned by Rupert Murdoch. Go read the article - it's absolutely fascinating.
Rupert Murdoch is the Biggest Pirate of the US Anime Market.

***

Well, we began with a Bruce and we ended with a Bruce. That's a wrap for the week!

Become a Yuri Network Correspondent by sending me any Yuri-related news you find. Emails go to anilesbocon01 at hotmail dot com. Not to the comments here, please, or they might be forgotten or missed. There's a reason for this madness. This way I know you are a real human, not Anonymous (which I do not encourage - stand by your words with your name!) and I can send you a YNN correspondent's badge.

Thanks to all of you - you make this a great Yuri Network!

Yuri Anime: Sasamekikoto (English)

2009-10-23T19:43:00.000-04:00

What an amazing year. Not only have we had a ton of Yuri in anime in general, we had the delightful and lovely Aoi Hana and now...unbelievably, in English, for free, legally streamed to our computers, the Yuri comedy-drama Sasamekikoto. It's like a dream state. lol

In short, Sasamekikoto, the "thing that is whispered," is a story about Murasame Sumika who is in love with her best friend, Kazama Ushio. It's a hopeless love because, despite the fact that Ushio loudly proclaims that she likes girls, she only likes cute, petite girls. Tall, athletic, hypercompetent Sumi just isn't cute and frilly, the way Ushio likes them. May I just editorialize for a moment and say Ushio's an *idiot.* Sumi is perfect.

The first few episodes start off on a dour note, with Sumika pining away for an oblivious Ushio, who appears to fall for a new girl each week. The first few episodes follow the manga pretty closely, so I don't expect too much change as the story goes on.

Sasamekikoto is surprisingly richly animated, well voiced by a mostly-new cast and is an interesting take on a variety of Yuri tropes. Best friend, one-sided love, cross-dressing, and more to come. (For all full breakdown of all the tropes, check out my review of Volume 2 of the manga.) Although the story is decidedly melodramatic, it has pretty steep ups and downs of comedy and drama to manage, which it does pretty well.

The only real negative I can muster for Sasamekikoto is that I suddenly realized - I don't like Ushio. lol Sumi beating the crap out of the bag in karate made me realize that I really *like* Sumi and want to slap Ushio. It's a sign of a good story that I'm feeling anything at all about any of the characters, so bravo for the anime producers.

And bravo for Crunchyroll, who continue to invest in Yuri! They've told me that they have a genuine interest in building up the Yaoi and Yuri audiences, and I'm very excited to see that they are putting their money where their mouth is. Now we, the Yuri-viewing audience, needs to do the same.

I know, I know, the licensing doesn't cover huge swatches of the planet. Trust me - if they could get those covered, they would. But for those of us in the US and Oceania - here it is, Yuri. For Free. In English. One hour after it airs in Japan. Support this please, because the better their numbers are - the more they will get. It's really *that* simple.

For the price of a sandwich a month, you get good Yuri like Sasamekikoto and Aoi Hana and really stupid Yuri like Koihime Musou and not Yuri, but really, like it needs to be any more weird than it is, like Book of Bantorra. (What? You're not watching it? Oh, you should be...it's absolutely dreadful. Laughably, hilariously so. And Paku Romi as Hamutz Meseta. There are no other reasons needed to watch this.)

Watch Sasamekikoto and collect the whole set of Yuri Tropes!

Ratings:

Art - 8, with a few obvious cost-saving measures
Story - 7
Characters - 7, but they will get better
Yuri - 8
Loser FanBoy - 2

Overall - 7.5

Teenaged girls with wildly roller coastering emotions? Ridiculous.

Joshibu ahoy!

...

I like Tomoe and Miyako best, if anyone cares.