The issues I had in regards to the September 2014 Comic Yuri Hime have, to some extent, passed. As usual, I have partially adapted to the new world order and partially the magazine has backed off. As a result, I can talk more coherently about Comic Yuri Hime, November 2014 (コミック百合姫2014年11月号).

There’s still a shift toward fetishtry that is unappealing to me. “Fat girls” (who are not fat), “sisters (who are not sisters), “Mean girls” (who are not mean), “idols,”  etc. On the one hand it’s clear that the girl meets girl scenario is played out and the magazine is looking for hooks, but on the other hand, it’s equally clear that the editorial direction is shifting back to pandering.

The first third of this volume passed without anything of real note. The above fetish pieces, and Yuri Hime‘s featured, but still not-terribly interesting to me series, and a couple of Story As.

As we hit the middle third of the magazine, my interest grew. Takemiya Jin’s “Chou Chou Nan Nan” has been cute, but unremarkable. I do like the fact that she’s focusing this chapter on the one girl who can see what is going on and lays it all on the table. ^_^

The second chapter of “Yuri Joshi” was so meta that it hurt. Saori meets her “onee-sama” to confess that she’s really upset about the discontinuation of Pure Yuri Anthology Hirari and how she’s relieved that the “Kase-san” series is continuing online. The mention of that series specifically made me immediately wonder if Ichijinsha is in negotiation for it. If not, there’s always online. ^_^

As much as I adore Amano Shuninta’s work, I’m creeped out by “Ayame 14.” I find myself not reading it to give the poor girl some privacy. I really am not that interested in puberty. Ick.

Kuzushiro has 4 stories in this volume. He’s taking over and frankly, I don’t really mind. “Hara-san ha bitch” and “Nikochau” are about girls who does not live down to expectations and no surprise at *all* I really enjoy “Love Desu,” about two young women who alternately fight to the death, then have a passionate love affair. Yeah, well. I’m still – almost amazingly – enjoying “Inugami-san to Nekoyama-san.” Apparently Kuzushiro-sensei gets me. ^_^

Ohsawa Yayoi’s back! Yay! “Spice Girls” was a weird twist on a  customer girl meets shopgirl story, and her art  just sort of settles me down. Cute, finite, cute.

The last third of the volume are stories that have been published in collections that I have already or am about to review. It made for a weird deja vu feeling as I read.

Shifting the mass of pages away from Yuri Danshi and Yuru Yuri (neither of which are Yuri, really) to Kuzushiro-sensei’s work (which mostly is) was a massive relief. “Yuri Joshi” is an exploration of Yuri tropes through the eyes of a female character, which, while still not a Yuri story, is less grating to me. Sexist? Probably. Oh well, I prefer girls to guys, it should hardly come as a shock to anyone.

The upshot was that the stuff I disliked was dispersed more and there was generally more to like.

Ratings:

Overall – 7

I have the January 2015 volume here to read already. The thing that sticks in my craw, is that moe is not showing any signs of being less popular. Surely a decade is long enough for fetuses in frilly dresses? When will I get pretty, sexy adults back in my Yuri?