In U-temo’s Yuri fantasy, Yuri-Ota ni Yuri ha Gohattodesu!, Volume 1 (百合オタに百合はご法度です!), Yuri is the law by which Yuri otaku Watanabe Fuyu lives. When she transfers to a private girl’s school, she is primed for a school life saturated with Yuri. So, why, Watanabe wants to know, is she sitting behind the only gal in this dang school? Yoshioka Ririka, is a rusty nail of a gal in this garden of beautiful lilies…according to Watanabe, who resents everything about Yoshioka, from her curled hair to her selfies to her offers to get tapioca drinks. Instead, Watanabe follows the stars of the school to see them enact Yuri tropes in real life.

In case you haven’t grasped the idea, this is a comedy. Watanabe gets her otaku on by watching rosaries being presented, love umbrellas being shared and has “humorous” reactions to Yoshioka’s simple overtures of friendship.

Despite this goofy-yet-annoying premise, this volume was kind of fun. Yoshioka being a fish out of water, who doesn’t know she’s in a pond at all is not played for laughs. Watanabe’s reactions are, as one might expect, completely off the page, but even she starts to see how decent Yoshioka is.

The climax of the book comes as the best sœur couple is thrown – and throws the school into – chaos over the school play. Yoshioka is there to step into cool upperclassman Akira’s role, as a kindness. She asks Watanabe to practice dancing with her and whose heart could remain unmelted after that? Watanabe manages to patch up the rift between Akira and her little sister, Nagomi and in doing so violates her own rule of being in the shadows, as just another Yuri otaku. Now, she’s famous.

This kind of book is always amusing to fans of the genre who recognize the tropes of ‘S’ aesthetic Yuri, but even if you don’t, Watanabe gives you the rundown on them enough to know “this” is a trope. In every case, the narrative shies away from making the characters or situations too annoying or cringe-y. Watanabe comes the closest to being unlikable, but by the end of the volume, is just one of us. ^_^

U-temo’s art is goofy, which fits the tone of the story.

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 7
Characters – 8
Service – 100% pure school girl Yuri tropes is a kind of service
Yuri – Kinda? It’s tropey as heck, but there aren’t any actual couples….yet.

Overall – 8

If this one gets licensed, I’ll be glad to recommend it as a primer on Yuri tropes and as a goofy comedy. ^_^ You can read sample chapters right now in Japanese on Web Action.