Yuri Essay

I wrote a short essay for Mary Robinette Kowal’s blog this week, and I’m really pleased with how it came out. ^_^ I hope you’ll take a look at My Favorite Bit: Erica Friedman Talks About BY YOUR SIDE: THE FIRST 100 YEARS OF YURI ANIME AND MANGA

While I am on the topic, I want to thank everyone who has picked up the book so far! If you haven’t yet gotten your copy, it’s available on just about every platform possible and at bookstores near you. I hope you’ll all consider recommending it, dropping a review on Amazon or Goodreads and letting folks know about it. ^_^

Yuri Manga

From Seven Seas, we have Hello, Melancholic!, Volume 2 coming our way this week(!) along with Superwomen in Love! Honey Trap and Rapid Rabbit, Vol. 4 and semelparous, Volume 3  which already hit shelves this month.

Yen Press announced the cover reveal for The Executioner and Her Way of Life, Vol. 5: The Promised Land.

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Via YNN Correspondent and Guest Reviewer, Mariko S, we have a suggestion for a Twitter comic: Ki ni Natteru Hito ga Otoko Ja Nakatta (気になってる人が男じゃなかった) by Arai Sumiko, handle @agu_knzm. I love the art. 

Ano Hanagasaku Oka de, Kimi to Mata Deaetara (あの花が咲く丘で、君とまた出会えたら) is a comicalization of an time slip idea that got it’s start on TikTok, apparently. A girl bored with her life, runs away from home, but sees something unusual while she hides out overnight…. Check it out in Japanese on Comic Walker!

Wakeatte Shachou Reijou ni Hirowaremashita (ワケあって社長令嬢に拾われました) is Akili’s newest, after Still Sick. An OL who has failed to make anything of her life suddenly finds favor with the company president’s daughter. It looks, honestly, like it’s “comedy” of how bad the OL keeps messing up, but there’s a sample chapter in Japanese up on Bookwalker for you to check it out.

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Yuri Light Novel

Seven Seas announced the license of Heimin no Kuse ni Namaikina, as She’s So Cheeky for a Commoner, Adrian Hazra has the details at ANN. I’ve reviewed the first volume of this series and was so impressed. Usually the “story from the other person’s perspective” doesn’t add much to the narrative and it’s overused in isekai…but wow, was this a great book.

Yuri Visual Novels

From Studio Élan the demo for Lock and Key: A Magical Girl Mystery is now playable on Steam & itch.io!

 
Other News

On a completely argh note, I’ve had to pull back even further on Pixiv Fanbox. Apparently once I asked to close the paid backing account, they realized I write reviews and wanted me to pull all the cover art off the links. So going forward, the Pixiv Fanbox for Okazu will only cover Okazu and Yuricon news, like YNN.

If you’d like to support Yuri journalism and research, Patreon and Ko-Fi are the ways we currently have  \active to accept subscriptions and tips. Your support goes straight to paying for Guest Reviews, folks helping with videos, site maintenance, managing the Yuricon Store and directly supporting other Yuri creators. Just $5/month makes a huge impact! Become part of the Okazu family!

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Yuri Events

I’ll be presenting “The First 100 Years of Lesbian-themed Anime and Manga” at Flame Con, August 20-21 in New York City. Looking forward very much to returning to Flame Con. ^_^

If you’d like me to come to a con near you – please tell the con to invite me. There’s only a couple cons I won’t at least try to get to, if I’m invited. ^_^

2023 will be the 20th anniversary of Yuricon. Would you be interested in a virtual convention? Let me know in the comments!

Bookwalker JP ran a “Yuri Day” on July 1, and Watashi no Yuri ha Oshigoto desu! is running a giveaway to celebrate that and the upcoming anime. Through July 9, follow the official WataYuri anime account, like and retweet the promotional post and you are entered to win an official book card. Wonder Parlour in Ikebukuro, Tokyo is running a collaboration Cafe through July 10! ^_^ (I’m smiling through my tears here. I wish I could be there.) Check out the pictures!

Yuri Manga

Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon, Volume 3 is out now from Seven Seas! This is a must-read manga for a lot of reasons I cannot yet tell you without spoilers. Let me say that this series does right something that Bloom Into You did not.

Syrup: A Yuri Anthology, Volume 4 is now out in English from Seven Seas, as well.

tMnR’s If Could Reach You ends with Volume 7, which was released late last month. If you enjoyed this series, I’d love to have a wrap-up review for Okazu. Drop me a line!

Yuri Espoir, Volume 2 is up on the Yuricon Store, out now from Tokyopop.

Catch These Hands, Volume 2, out from Yen is also on the Store.  ^_^

Yamada to Kase-san, Volume 3 (山田と加瀬さん。) came out last month. More love-love adventures with Kase-san and Yamada, as they build lives separately and together.

Watashi o Tabetai, Hito de Nashi, Volume 4 (私を喰べたい、ひとでなし) What relationship do these two girls have beyond predator and prey? I love this series.

Usio Shio has a second series that I really like, also in Comic Yuri Hime. In Onna Tomodachi to Kekkonshitemita, Volume 2 (女ともだちと結婚してみた。) Kurumi and Ruriko negotiate their marriage and their friendship. Is it time for new rules?

Via Bookwalker, you can now vote in the NEXT Manga Awards in English! This contest is sponsored by NicoNico and DaVinci magazine….I point this out because we’ve mentioned DaVinci many times here on Okazu. It’s very Yuri and lesbian supportive for a mainstream women’s magazine.  There are several excellent Yuri manga listed this year, including several of my personal favorites. Yuri choices include I’m in Love With the Villainess, The Skirt Rings at the Landing, The Summer You Were There and Futari Escape in print manga and The Moon on a Rainy Night and  She Loves to Cook, She Loves to Eat in the Web Manga category – both of these I think are outstanding.

Bookwalker is also running a free Volume 1 sale that includes My Idol Sits the Next Desk Over!, Volume 1. This sale runs through July 28.

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The July issue of Ultra Jump magazine features Kimi no sei da (全部君のせいだ) a Yuri cosplay comedy by merryhachi. I like using Bookwalker JP for this kind of thing. Not gonna get the book in print just to read a short and see if I like it. ^_^

Shoyateruko has written a sequel to a earlier story about two college students. Stella ☆ Record (ステラ☆レコード) follows “True Feeelings as Ritsuko and Kyouko try to understand each other, now that they have been honest about the feelings for one another. This is running in Young King Ours GH August issue.

Yuri Light Novels

I’m in Love With the Villainess, Volume 5 is poised to hit shelves. The digital edition is heading your way at the end of July, and the print will follow in September!

The Executioner and Her Way of Life, Volume 5 is slated for a September release as well.

J-Novel Club announced the license of webnovel Yuri Tama: From Third Wheel to Trifecta: at Anime Expo. Rafael Antonio Pineda has details.

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Yuri Live Action

ANN’s Alex Mateo has the extraordinary news that If My Favorite Pop Idol Made it to the Budokan, I Would Die, is getting a live-action drama!

Yuri Visual Novel

Studio Élan announced that the demo for Lock and Key: A Magical Girl Mystery, will be publicly available next Friday, July 8th on Steam & itch.io.

Yuri Doujinshi and Webcomics

Lilyka is running a summer sale – 20% off all Yuri doujinshi!

Webtoon Kiss it Goodbye is crowdfunding a print collection! Ticcytx’s Yuri webtoon follows two school girls in Japan in a slice-of-life series.

Other News

For Pride Month, YuriMother did a deep dive into the complex and complicated X-Gender, by Asuka Miyazaki, out now from Seven Seas.

Not Yuri, but tangentially of interest, Yen Press announced omnibus volumes of K-On! and a sequel, K-ON! Shuffle at Anime Expo this weekend. Adriana Hazra has the details.

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Queer Manga Studies

I want to start by thanking everyone who has bought By Your Side: The First 100 Years of Yuri Anime and Manga so far. To celebrate Pride Month, we’re doing an offer – send me your receipt for a digital version of the ebook and get a digital bookplate! This offer is good until the end of June. If you’ve enjoyed By Your Side, please feel free to review it at Amazon or Goodreads – your reviews can make a difference!

My series for queer book store Giovanni’s Room has finished up. Week 1, I talked about Yaoi manga. Week 2 I gave some time to Yuri manga and on Week 3, I talked about the rise of Queer manga!

I spoke with the Castle Talk Podcast this week about my book. Jason was very lovely to speak with. ^_^

If you have written anything about Yuri, please let me know! I’d love to add your work to the Yuricon Essays page!

Cayla Coats has an interview with Gaku Keito, creator of Boys Run the Riot, over on Crunchyroll News!

One more me thing – we have a new video out on Yuri Studio – Sports in Yuri Anime & Manga.  Don’t forget to check that out and please, give it a like and follow the channel on YouTube! Kind comments are helpful, as well.

Yuri Events

As I write this, Melonbooks is sponsoring a virtual event, called Yurisakiannaiijou. Check out the list of participating circles for new doujinshi groups to follow and books to pick up on Booth.pm

Speaking of BL, Yuri and Queer manga, I’ll be presenting The “Secret” History of Yaoi and Yuri at FujoCon, tomorrow Sunday June 26, 2022 at 1:30 PM Eastern US Time. Check the schedule for loads of other panels in lots of time zones! Registration is free.

Girls Love Fest is returning to the Tokyo area on July 10, 2022.

I’ll be presenting The First 100 Years of Lesbian-themed Japanese Animation and Comics at Flamecon, August 20-21 in New York City!

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Yuri Manga

Bookwalker is running a Yuri sale through the end of today. Grab some Yuri manga for up to 40% coin back!

Bunch of new stuff on the Yuricon Store!

Catch These Hands, Volume 2 will be hitting your shelves this week, out from Yen Press.

Yuri Espoir, Volume 2 is slated for an autumn release from Tokyopop.

Yamada to Kase-san, Volume 3 (山田と加瀬さん。) by Takahashima Hiromi, hit shelves this week in Japan! Enjoy this promotional video on YouTube.

Galette, No.22 (ガレット) is out now, also in Japan.

Usui Shio’s ongoing drama, Onna Tomodachi to Kekkonshitemita, Volume 2 (女ともだちと結婚してみた。) is out and very thought-provoking.

Watashi no Oshi ha Akuyaku Reijou., Volume 4 ( 私の推しは悪役令嬢。) of the manga takes us to the end of the first LN volume.

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Other News

Congratulations to the United Workers of Seven Seas! The company has heard the public outcry and is voluntarily recognizing the union!

And congratulations to the Yuri Cafe Anchor staff on the Shinjuku store’s 2nd anniversary!

Birdie Wing Virtual Museum by HTC VIVE is live. I took a walk around. It’s a big space filled with the key visuals and episode teasers. You get to choose an avatar for walking around, but there’s no golf games or interactive stuff. It’s fun to see, if you have a few moments.

Art Tribune on Facebook has news and images from a Rose of Versailles collaboration with brand Max & Co. The images of the art is great, but you can’t see the clothes all that well. ^_^

Historian Yoshie Akiko takes a look at the assumptions that women never ruled Japan in Challenging the Myth of the Male Emperor: New Light on the Society of Ancient Japan on Nippon.com.

Avatar News announces three new Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra movies. Coming in 2024. 2025 and 2026, we’re getting movies focused on Kiyoshi, Zuko and Korra, respectively.

Thanks to our Okazu Patrons who make the YNN weekly report possible! Support us on Patreon or Ko-Fi to help us give Guest Reviewers a raise and to help us support Yuri creators!

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Yuri Manga

Viz Media has announced that Mierie Hieranashi’s The Girl Who Can’t Get a Girlfriend will be released in Spring 2023. I’m super excited for that.

Global Bookwalker is running a Yuri Festival 2022, notes YNN Correspondent High on Lullabies. Up to 40% coin back plus bonus items! Think I’m gonna run over to Bookwalker and grab me some of these titles as soon as I’m done here. ^_^

New items up on the Yuricon Store!

My Next Life as a Villainess Side Story: Girls Patch, follows Catarina’s harem from this goofy love comedy.

Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon, Volume 3 hits shelves in English this month!

Namekawa-san Won’t Take a Licking!, Volume 1 is a screwball comedy, all wackiness ensues and weird facial expressions.

I Can’t Believe I Slept With You!, Volume 2 hit shelves this week.

The JK to Tomodachi no Okan (JKとともだちのオカン) is about a young woman who likes older women, and has developed a crush on her schoolmate’s mother.

Comic Yuri Hime, August 2022 (コミック百合姫2022年8月号) hit Japanese shelves this weekend.

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Yuri Manga Online

Via Comic Natalie, Irona Onna no ko ro Kiss o Shiteritara, Yuri Kiss ni Mezameshiteshimaimashita (色んな女の子とキスをしていたら、百合キスに目覚めてしまいました…。) is the story of a girl who saves girls with a kiss, This series begins in the July issue of Mangatime Kirara Forward. (Link to the Bookwalker listing, where you can check out some of the comic in the sample pages.

Also via Comic Natalie, Dakaretai Onna (抱かれたい女) Volume 1 is available in Japanese about the relationship of a college student and an older woman. There is a editorial warning on Amazon Japan that male characters will appear in this volume.

Koi to Yobu ni wa Aosugiru (恋と呼ぶには青すぎる) follow a young woman working at an izakaya who falls for a career woman, who is a looking for love in the wrong places. Check out Yuri Navi for sample pages.

Web Action presents Jihanki (自販機), a sweet little short by Kohinata Iroha.

Via Yuri Navi we have the first chapter of Hikizan Totoroji,”Kajikamu Yubisaki” (かじかむ指先) in full, in Japanese.

Yuri Doujinshi

Oshima Tomo and Oshiwa Towa (creator of High School Girls from ancient times when Comics One and Dr. Master existed.) work together on doujinshi all the time. Lilyka has picked one one of their least odd ones, After School 1. I am fairly certain I picked this up at a doujinshi event in the past. ^_^

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Yuri Essays

We’ve added 2 news essays to the Yuricon Essays page, as well as organized the Yuri Studio listings!:

Revolutionary Girl Utena – by Helen McCarthy. Historical perspective of Revolutionary Girl Utena, looking at roots in post-World War 2 thought, Takarazuka and feminist themes of this gateway Yuri series.

The Origins of Shōjo Manga – A pictorial history of the origins of girls’ manga on Google Arts and Culture by the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

Yuri Light Novel

Otherside Picnic, Volume 7 had been reviewed here -it was great and is Yurier than ever. It’s now up on the Yuricon Store.

Watashi no Oshi ha Akuyaku Reijou -Revolution-, Volume 2 (私の推しは悪役令嬢。-Revolution-) the second volume of inori’s isekai light novel series is out now in print in Japanese from Ichijinsha! According to the obi, 200,000 copies of this series are in print – a noteworthy achievement for inori-sensei and Hanagata-sensei.

Yuri Visual Novels

Noodletub Games is at it again, with an adorable Yuri Visual Novel on Kickstarter – Good Luck Baby! is “An adventure/mystery yuri visual novel about falling in love, saving the world, and finding your place within it.” It’s already passed the original goal, with almost a month to go, so take a look!

Other News

Thanks to YNN Correspondents Ivan and David who noted Katie Gill’s article on Tor.com, Sailor Moon at 30: Looking Back at the Iconic Series.

Latonya Pennington has a round up of How LGBTQ+ stories have evolved and flourished in manga: An in-depth look at the history of LGBTQ+ manga  for The Popverse.

On ANN, Nicholas Dupree & Monique Thomas want us to Celebrate Pride with Kase-san!

I continued my LGBTQ_ manga series for queer bookstore Giovanni’s Room. Part 1 was about Yaoi manga and this week, Part 2 is about Yuri Manga! Next week I cover Queer manga. ^_^ Please enjoy the custom header images we made for the articles. ^_^

Last, but not least, I was extremely pleased to chat with Heather Rose Jones over at the Lesbian Historic Motif Podcast about By Your Side and more! I’ve been listening to this podcast since the early spring to catch up to current episodes. It’s a cool podcast if you have an interest in queer women in history.

Thanks to our Okazu Patrons and Supporters who make the YNN weekly report possible! Support us on Patreon to help us give Guest Reviewers a raise and to help us support Yuri creators!

Become a YNN Correspondent: Contact Us with any Yuri-related news you want to share and be part of the Yuri Network. ^_^

Yuri Manga

We’re starting with some new stuff up on the Yuricon Store!

To begin with, the first volume of the Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou Deluxe Edition is hitting shelves in English in August! Waaahh~~~ This is the gentlest post-apocalyptic tale ever. Get ready to sip coffee and watch the grass move in the wind with the android Alpha, as humanity slowly dies out. I cannot believe we’re actually getting this manga. It’s one of my favorites, just for the sheer beauty of the waving grass and fading lights.

Coming in July is another manga I absolutely love, Hello, Melancholic!, Volume 2. Not only is this a lovely band story by Ohsawa Yayoi, but this volume is where things really begin to happen.

I cannot express to you how much I have a clear idea of how I want the arc that begins in Watashi no Yuri ha Oshigoto Desu!, Volume 10 (私の百合はお仕事です) to end. We got into this story because of the cute Yuri concept cafe idea…we are now waiting for divine retribution, no joke. What an amazing series this has been.

Excellent news! Kodansha is putting Princess Knight back into print in an omnibus volume. I gave my first set of these from Vertical to my library. I’ll be thrilled to have a new copy on my shelves. Adriana Hazra has the scoop on ANN.

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Yuri Anime

ANN’s Crystalyn Hodkins shares that there is a second trailer for the upcoming My Master Has No Tail anime, about a tanuki who learns rakugo. It’s a charming little story, honestly.

I’m going to remind you all that you really should be watching Birdie Wing on Crunchyroll. It’s the best sports anime I have ever watched. When the series is over, I will write a long, long, long, post about it.

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Other News

This month I got to do something fun and  and a little different for Pride Month. Queer Bookstore Giovanni’s Room in Philadelphia is hosting a three-part series on manga by me. To begin with, I wrote about Boy’s Love, i.e., Yaoi Manga, hoping to encourage queer folks to pick up some good manga. Next week, it’ll be Yuri’s turn. ^_^

Also in time for Pride Month, Yen Press released I Want To Be A Wall, about an asexual woman in a marriage of convenience with a gay man. This is getting some good reviews for ace representation.

The Speculative Fiction Showcase gave my book, By Your Side: The First 100 Years of Yuri Anime and Manga some space on their blog!

Via Ramos Rise on Facebook, one of the voice actors from the Serial Experiments Lain (my most recent reviews of Disk 1 and Disk 2 are from 2013, but I think it stands the test of time and deserve some serious thought) anime has a video of him DJing a set “Cyberia Layer X”  that suits nicely with the anime. Check it out for some tunes.

Thanks to our Okazu Patrons who make the YNN weekly report possible! Support us on Patreon or Pixiv Fanbox to help us give Guest Reviewers a raise and to help us support Yuri creators!

Become a YNN Correspondent: Contact Us with any Yuri-related news you want to share and be part of the Yuri Network. ^_^