The second half of Yuri Hime 4 begins with the first issue of the new Hatsukoi Shimai arc. This was the arc I was waiting for – the one based on the Koi Shimai 2 Drama CD.

All the girls at the school are blown away when a hunky young woman arrives on motorcycle and asks for the staff room. They are wowed by her boyish charm and her openly seductive teasing – and even more wowed when it turns out that Hiiragi Touko has arrived to be a substitute teacher! Touko-sensei, for some reason, really rubs Akiho the wrong way and her bad feeling doesn’t get any better when Touko-sensei neatly inserts herself into Chika’s personal space at every possible turn.

One of the things I really enjoyed about this chapter was that it did not follow the Drama CD word for word, but elaborated a bit on some of the interpersonal relationships that have already been established. So we get to see Chika and Haruna have a quiet, romantic, moment together, something we never really had on the CD. We get to see Teshigawara yell at Chika – and hear the rest of the class teasing her about her ongoing issues with Chika. Touko, for her part, is smooth and sexy and pretty plausible, so that was cool. And Akiho’s instant dislike for Touko was a perfect prelude to her later involvement with the teacher. I was really happy with this chapter.

Following closely on the heels of such happiness came Morishima Akiko’s Yuri life illustrated column with 4 pages of eye-bugging “WTF? Is there really such a thing?” Spring has arrived and Akiko’s editor decides to take her out for a Yuri-ful adventure. (Bear in mind kids – this is all real. Akiko is a real person, her editor ditto, and she’s about to go to real places.) They start with “Imoutoke Cafe Nagomi” in which all the waitresses address you as onee-sama and act like your adorable little sister. Cafe Nagomi is in Akihabara – the address and phone is printed on the bottom of the page. Then, off to my beloved Ikebukuro section of town and “Maid Refloxology” at (I SWEAR I am not making this up!) M@IFOOT. It is exactly what it sounds like – a reflexology bar where maid-outfit wearing massage therapists rub your feet. I laughed for a solid ten minutes at the name “M@IFOOT.” Brilliant! Then, off to B:Lily-Rose, also in Ikebukuro. Take a deep breath. Sit down. Relax. At B:Lily-Rose, the hosts are women in suits, roleplaying Boy’s Love couples. The women in suit jackets are seme/tachi/butch/tops and the ones in vests are uke/neko/femme/bottoms. How very wrong is this? I am STILL laughing at the idea. Akiko-sensei, once again, I am insanely jealous. I really ought to write her and tell her so. ^_^

“Tsuki ni Onegai o” is the newest chapter in Morinaga Milk’s continuing saga of Hitomi and Nana. This one is from Hitomi’s point of view. She and Nana, now second-years at school, are desperately squeezing in time together at night after school and clubs and before dinner. Hitomi coments that she’d like them both to be grown up, so they could live together. Nana blushes, but does not protest. They’ve both matured and it’s obvious. Nana goes back to school and randomly asks Abe (her classmate and the protagonist of an earlier chapter herself) how old one had to be to be considered “grown up.” Hitomi finds herself the object of open akogare/admiration/desire from one of the new first-years on the basketball team. Hitomi wrestles with trying to find balance bewteen her desire to be part of a team and her desire to be with Nana. She has a little crisis, worrying that her limited time with Nana will drive her away. In the end, she is a happy young lady and decides that she can have it all.

In this issue’s “Nami to Misuzu” funny things happen. I don’t know what they are, because I find this particular series a tad tooth-grinding. If I ever read it, I’ll rewrite this summary.

I’m going to break this into three parts because I’m pressed for time. I’ll finish this issue up tomorrow, promise! (Yes, yes, Simoun!)