Yuri Manga

Taifu Comics has announced that the Kase-san series will getting a French release in May with Kase-san & les belles-du-jour! Check that link for a few sample pages in French. ^_^

From Yuri Navi, we have news of Shimura Takako-sensei’s newest series, a Yuri series running in Kiss magazine called “Otona ni Nattemo” (おとなになっても). I’m more surprised that is running Kiss than anything else.

Uzu’s Leonhart is a Yuri webcomic that tells the story of a young woman who wants to meet the player behind the dashing paladin who always saves her in an online game, and finds that her prince is a woman! Sample pages can be found on Yuri Navi, or you can read the current chapter on Takeshobo’s MangaLife Storia site. (In Japanese.)

After it celebrated a successful Kickstarter, Seven Seas has licensed Mira Ong Chua’s Yuri Graphic Novel,  ROADQUEEN: Eternal Roadtrip to Love! That’s pretty fabulous.

New on the Yuricon Store:

Doku Yuri Otome Douwa (毒百合乙女童話) is a “little pervy poison Yuri maiden story.”

The popularity of My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness did not teach the publishers the lesson we has hoped and instead of more authentic stories about lesbians dealing with life, we’re seeing more stories about lesbian sex workers. BariKyari to Shinsou (バリキャリと新卒) is about a lesbian sex worker who finds a client of hers is her boss, when she takes up an office job.

In Teiji ni Ageretara (定時にあがれたら), Mizuki becomes acquainted with Yukawa while eating lunch. One day she finds a sticky note in her coat pocket.

Fuzoroi Renri (不揃いの連理) is about a  broken-hearted office lady and a younger woman who find each other, despite the many things that ought to keep them apart.

And Satsumaage’s Douseiseikatsu Watashi o Sukittekoto Desho (同棲生活 わたしを好きってことでしょ) has a sequel, Douseiseikatsu 2 Watashi dake ga Tokubetsunara ii no ni (同棲生活2 わたしだけが特別ならいいのに).

Shigoto no ato ha Koishiyou (仕事の後は恋しよう) is another office romance, this one from East Press, so I hope for some actual lesbian identity. Fingers crossed.

The Lilies Anthology is once again open for submissions. You have until June 15th to get those stories in.

Looking for a comic with queer witches and contemporary social commentary? Listen to Kirsten Thompson talk about Hexed!

Yuri Events

Barcuch College in NYC is running a special event on Prewar manga and LGBTQ manga on April 18th with speakers Andrea Horbinski and Anne Ishii.

Kase-san series creator Takashima Hiromi-sensei  will be a featured guest at Toronto Comic Arts Festival on May 11-12 at the Toronto Public Reference Library. I’ll be interviewing her (!) and doing a presentation on 100 Years of Yuri. I will also be curating an exhibit of items from my personal collection. It’s going to be a fantastic event and just a little even queerer than usual. ^_^(And it’s always a little queer. ^_^)

I also hope you’ll consider spending a week with me in Tokyo on the 100 Years of Yuri Tour! Okazu Patrons get $100 off the deposit, everyone who signs up will get a specially-designed Tour t-shirt (I just saw the final image this week. it looks brilliant!) We’ll be visiting locations of Yuri importance, great Yuri shopping and loads of fun stuff!

Other News

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood has been envisioned as a graphic novel, by Renee Nault from Bedside Press. You can read some sample pages on The Mary Sue.

On the good news side, YNN correspondent Roberto R. points us to Republica, where there is an article about a female couple, one Italian Navy Lt. Commander, and the other a marshal who have been bonded in a civil union in Italy. Do check out those smiling faces. ^_^

Check our the Twitter hashtag “Koito Yuu Matsuri” (#小糸侑生誕祭2019) for fun pictures of of Touko and Yuu from Bloom Into You.

We’ll wrap up today’s report with this Atlas Obscura article on Yoshiya Nobuko which manages to discuss her work and life without mentioning Yuri once. ^_^

Do you have questions about Yuri? Write in and ask and I’ll do my best to address them on the Okazu YNN Podcast, Become a YNN Correspondent by reporting any Yuri-related news with your name and an email I can reply to!

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

Yuri Manga

Viz announced the license for A Tropical Fish Yearns for Snow, with a projected Autumn 2019 release. I’ve reviewed the first four volumes in Japanese. This is good news as it is the first Yuri Viz has picked up since Sweet Blue Flowers and I’m glad to see them still in the game. 

From Comic Natalie, YuriSkebu (百合スケブ) is about a young woman who draws her fantasy Yuri pair-ups in a sketchbook, running in Comic Ryu magazine. You can read a sample here (in Japanese.) It looks cute.

Akili, who you may remember from Stretch, has a new manga called Vampires. Read a sample (in Japanese) on Sunday GX online.

Hannah Blumereich’s Full Court Crush, about “Gentle high school dingdongs find love” is available as a PDF for what you want to pay.

We have a couple of new items on the Yuricon Store:

Hero-san to Moto Onna Kanbu-san (ヒーローさんと元女幹部さん) about a superhero and the evil mastermind she loves.

Ikemen sugi desu Shiki-sempai! (イケメンすぎです紫葵先パイ!) which is a fun little school romance from Comic Yuri Hime, about a girl i  love with her too-cool-for-her-shirt sempai.

Hisakawa Haru’s Yurikon, Volume 2 (ゆりこん) was cute, but I wish it hadn’t had to end. ^_^

Maid Yuri and possibly creepy faux-historical Sayonara Rose Garden (さよならローズガーデン) which is on my to-read pile. 

And Ichayarafushikanai Yuri Anthology Comic (いちゃらぶしかない百合アンソロジーコミック) which centers on stories in which the characters talk things over. ^_^ I think they finally found *my* fetish.

Also from Comic Natalie, Yoshitomi Akihito is promoting his new book Lilystem (リリィシステム) at the Yuriten event.

Yuri Events

Speaking of the Yuriten, the Tokyo show is wrapping up on the 24th, and the exhibition will re-open on the 30th in Osaka!

I’ll be updating my speaking schedule shortly, but do not miss me at  Toronto Comic Arts Festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada for May 11 &12 for a 100 years of Yuri celebration! TCAF is always an excellent event and this year will be Yuriful!

I once again invite you all to join us for the 100th anniversary of Yuri Tour of Tokyo. This will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

If you are in or near Michigan State University on Friday March 29, they are hosting two interesting talk events! Jennifer Robertson on Gendering Robots: Robo-Sexism & Retro-Tech in Japan  and  Roundtable on Pedagogical Approaches to Sexual Minorities in Curriculum Development.  If you do go, let us know how it was!

Yuri Anime

YNN has the news that bottom-feeder magazine Champion Trap manga Fragtime is gettting an anime and I am once again angry at the unfairness of the anime gods. Women don’t upskirt each other. It’s sexual assault, not sexy.

Other News

Check out the new 100th anniversary banner we have on the top of Okazu! Thanks to our endlessly talented webmistress Lissa! I’ve decided that they are named Natsuki and Kaoru, which will make perfect sense if you’ve been reading Okazu long enough. ^_^

Komatsu-san has the news that in celebration of Yuru Yuri‘s 10th anniversary, fans can get a special series art T-card from entertainment retail chain Tsutaya with other extras. 

HBO is going to show the BBC series about cross-dressing 18th century lesbian Anne Lister, Gentleman Jack. You will want to watch the trailer. ^_^

Do you have questions about Yuri? Write in and ask and I’ll do my best to address them on the Okazu YNN Podcast, Become a YNN Correspondent by reporting any Yuri-related news with your name and an email I can reply to!

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

Yuri Anime

From Senior YNN Correspondent Verso S, we have the news that Japanese subscription satellite channel Wowow will be  broadcasting the TV debut of Asagao to Kase-san at 11:45 on March 29! Another great piece of news for this series that has accomplished so much.

Sailor Moon Super S The Movie is now out, with its moments of Haruka  and Michiru wonderfulness as the Senshi  battle a threat from outer space. The music isn’t as epic as “Moon Revenge,” but any moment we can intrude on Haruka and Michiru on a date is a good moment. ^_^

YNN Correspondent Eric P wants to let you know that ANN’s Mitch and Steven covered an under-the-radar Yuri anime called Mysteria Friends. High production value and tits, so if that’s your boom, you ought to like it. ^_^

Speaking of high production value, I watched Liz and the Blue Bird yesterday thanks to Verso,  (I plan on watching it again today before I review it tomorrow) and you could argue that it is a Yuri story, if you were so inclined. It certainly was an interesting and thought-provoking story. The US release is out from Eleven Arts and I think its worth a watch. 

Yuri Manga

Couple of new items on the Yuricon Store, where we are rapidly approaching 1000 Yuri items!

Mochi Au Lait’s Rental Shop Onee-san wo Rental no Suru Hanashi (レンタルショップでお姉さんをレンタルする話) looks fun. I sincerely hope it actually is.

Yuino Chiri’s werewolf feudal fantasy Scarlet, Volume 1, (スカーレット) is violent and bloody, but hey, Yuri werewolves and vampires, oh my.

Itoshi Koishi, Volume 1 (いとしこいし) by Takemiya Jin is sweet as cream. ^_^

I have no idea yet what to make of Watagiri Saya’s  Sunami Yuko to Yurina Hitobito (須波優子と百合な人びと). I presume its a comedy, but that’s always a questionable premise for me. ^_^;

And here’s today’s important thing of note: You may recall that My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness‘ Japanese title is Sabishi-sugi Rezu Fuzoku ni Ikimashita Report (さびしすぎてレズ風俗に行きましたレポ).  Well, this week I see that Ichijinsha, publisher of Comic Yuri Hime in an all out race to put out as many Yuri anthologies as Kadokawa, has listed Lesbian Fuzoku Anthology (レズ風俗アンソロジー) No contributors listed yet, but one Pixiv creator is talking about being part of it. Based on that one creator’s comics, it appears to be a collection of stories about not-queer women having a “lesbian experience,” with a sex worker not about the lesbian experience of life.  I’ll let you know as I get more info. 

Speaking of things happening in Yuri – the pre-order for Yen Press’ English edition of  Kurukuruhime’s Yuri Life – about the daily life of a cute happily coupled couple – is up for pre-order!

Seven Seas weighs in with Naoko Kodama’s I Married My Best Friend to Shut My Parents Up which is slated for a July release and the preorders for all four volumes of Our Dreams at Dusk: Shimanami Tasogare! (Volume 1 May 2019 | Volume 2 July 2019 | Volume 3 September 2019 |  Volume 4 December 2019). 

These two rivalries (Ichijinsha/Kadokawa and their English localizers Seven Seas/Yen Press) are going to be something to watch…and also the market reaction to this veritable flood of Yuri manga. I take a look at this major moment in Yuri’s development as a genre – and the trend in Japan that spawned it – on this week’s Okazu YNN Podcast! 

LGBTQ Comics

Sparkler Monthly ran a successful kickstarter for Yuri comic Before You Go and now they are releasing the ebook for LGBTQ comic For Peace by Alexis Cooke about Bebe and Lillian, who meet on a forum for truckers.

Kickstarter Watch 

The third Dates! An Anthology of Queer Historical Fiction kickstarter from Margins Publishing is live. If you enjoyed the first two volumes (which I totally did: Volume 1 and Volume 2 reviews here) this third one looks to be just as much fun. 

Do you have questions about Yuri? Write in and ask and I’ll do my best to address them on the Okazu YNN Podcast, Become a YNN Correspondent by reporting any Yuri-related news with your name and an email I can reply to!

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

Yuri Manga

Yuri Anthology ・LiLium (百合アンソロジー・LiLium has opened a crowdfunding campaign and with 17 days left, is at 81%. Good for them!

Slice-of-life Comic Yuri Hime manga Tsurezure Biyori  ( 徒然日和 ) got a Volume 2 in February.

Comic Natalie reports that “Meijrobana Saku,” Nakamura Asumiko’s Yuri story in Rakuen Le Paradis is getting a “real start” in Volume 29 I have no idea what that means, but the volume is sitting here waiting to be read, so hopefully, I’ll find out. ^_^ Denpa Books has released Nakamura-sensei’s book Maiden Railways, which includes a Yuri story, this week in English.

Rental Shop no Oneesan wo Rental Suru Hanashi (レンタルショップでお姉さんをレンタルする話) looks interesting, but Mochi Au Lait has disappointed me before.

Comic Natalie notes that the final chapter of Anoko ni Kiss to Shirayuri wo hit Japanese shelves in Comic Alive this week. The story of slacker genius Kurozawa Yurine and over achiever Shiramine Ayaka wraps up after 5 years. 

Finally! Kitta Izumi and Momono Moto’s Liberty (リバティ), from Galette will be released at the end of April. I cannot wait. It’s been one of my favorite stories.

Aoi Hana/Sweet Blue Flowers creator Shimura Takako will have a new Yuri series beginning this month in Kiss magazine according to Yuri Navi. ANN has details.

Legend of Korra: Ruins of the Empire Part One is slated for a May release. And Legend of Korra: Turf Wars has now been collected into a Library Edition.

Yuri Events/Goods

Yuriten goods are now up for you to browse. There’s no shop yet, but at least you’ll get a good idea of what will be for sale at the event! The Yuriten Event will be hitting 5 cities from March to May, check the event details for the one nearest you.

Comic Cune magazine has announced that February 27 is the beginning of their Yuri Meguri Fair, with special items at various store’s Yuribu. The Animate in Osaka has an announcement of their own about the Yuri Meguri.

Fans of Ikuhara Kunihiko’s work will want to be in Tokyo in late April for Kunihiko Ikuhara Exhibition: The Desire to Connect Us and The Survival Strategy of the Revolution” at Space 634 in the Tokyo Solamachi shopping mall. Check out ANN for details.

Yuri Game

Mangagamer announces the license of the Yuri game Lily Cycle Rainbow Stage. This series follows 15 girls in various relationships. Lilycle Rainbow Stage!!! also features voice actresses you may know. From the press release: 

Juri Kimura (Miyamori in Shirobako), MAO (Flip Flappers, Keijo), Haruka Terui (Yuki Yuna is a Hero, Brave Witches), Shiori Mikami (Attack on Titan, Yuru Yuri), Azumi Asakura (iDOLM@STER, High School DxD), Maaya Uchida (iDOLM@STER, Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches, Love Chunibyou & Other Delusions), Aya Uchida (Love Live!, Danganronpa 2, Kemono Friends), Rumi Okubo (Astolfo in Fate/Apocrypha, Chinatsu in Yuru Yuri), Aya Suzaki (Kill la Kill, Tamako Market).

To be honest, I have not followed this series at all. Everything about them is geared towards a segment of the audience I do not inhabit. After listening to a few samples at Animate over the years, I’ve just given them a pass. But we’ll see if an English-language release can convince me to give them a try. ^_^

Other News

I received a press release last week that was so spectacular in and of itself, I want to share it with you. That aside, the news it announces is exciting, as well. ComiXology has launched a new Originals line comic, Delver by Spike Trotman, M.K. Reed and Clive Hawken. Here is the opener for this press release. I actually tweeted to Chip to let him know how fabulous I thought this was.

“Special Note: Many of you know Spike Trotman as the woman who raised $1 million dollars for comic book projects on Kickstarter, though sadly her prodigious business skills have overshadowed her prodigious artistic talent. We’re excited to release Delver #1 today to help alleviate that problem. Spike is a “once-in-a-generation” talent, be it on the business side or on the creative side. She’s joined here by the also immensely talented MK Reed and Clive Hawken, delivering a very unique fantasy book that is nothing like what you’ve read before. As always, I’m excited to see how fans react… and excited to have another creator-owned comic series debut from comiXology Originals.

– Chip Mosher, Head of Content, comiXology Originals.”

Global BOOKWALKER has launched new simulpub storefront and adds simulpubs from Kodansha Comics to their lineup.

Leah Holmes posted this fantastic look back at Anime Babes, an early UK women’s anime fan group that had a lasting impact:  Artefacts of Geek Days Past: Anime Babes.

Do you have questions about Yuri? Write in and ask and I’ll do my best to address them on the Okazu YNN Podcast! Become a YNN Correspondent by reporting any Yuri-related news with your name and an email I can reply to!

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

Yuri Events

The Yuriten returns! Yuriten 2019, with main illustration visual by Nakatani Nio, main photo visual by Takahashi Minori, is holding their Yuri exhibition and popup shop in 5 cities: Tokyo from March 16-24, Osaka from March 30- April 7, Sendai from April 13- April 21, Nagoya from April 27-May 6 and Fukuoka, details TBD.  31 creators have committed so far. I won’t be able to make it this time (unless the world conspires for me to be there,) so if you have a chance to attend, please do let me know. We’d love a report.

The first event on my calendar is Toronto Comic Arts Festival where, fingers crossed, I will be doing a talk on 100 years of Yuri! Details TBD for this, also.

Yuri Manga

We have a bunch of new stuff on the Yuricon Store including two Galette items, Fuwafuwa・Futshika・Yumemitai, Volume 1 (ふわふわ・ふたしか・夢みたい) by Hakamada Mera and Ame to Kimi no Mukou (雨と君の向こう) by Momono Moto.

Tamafuru’s Tsukiatte Agetemo Iikana, Volume 1 (付き合ってあげてもいいかな) was popular enough that it sold out on Amazon almost immediately and had to be reordered. I made sure to pick it up while in Japan and expect to see a licensing announcement for it soon, because it’s a dead center hit for the current zeitgeist of adult women Yuri romance.

Dekisokonai no Hime-tachi (できそこないの姫君たち) is Ajiichi’s not-typical school life romance story about two classmates who don’t like each other particularly.

The Lillium Yuri Anthology is in planning stages and has announced the first set of contributors on their Twitter account. The anthology will include a contribution by the Kase-san series creator Takahashi Hiromi.

LGBTQ Comics

Lion Forge’s Summit, Volume 1 stars Valentina “Val” Resnick-Baker, the sole survivor of The Event space mission, who is now haunted by the loss of her teammates and her girlfriend Kay. Advertisted as STEMinist book, it is on shelves now. (Dear writers, not all adult lesbians have lost their lovers before the book begins. Try to find a new plot. Tx. Sincerely, adult lesbians without a dead lover. ^_^)

Yuri Anime

YNN Corespondent Mudakun has written in with  two items of note. Despite its problematic nature, Mudakun writes that in ENDRO, “what at first looked like random Yuri teasing (the un-named colleague repeatedly trying to get the diminutive demon lord – retired, now a teacher – drunk) becomes the core of a new arc in ep5 when the princess of the realm makes her appearance and decides that even if Hero is a pink-haired bubbleheaded girl, she is going to marry her Hero.”

And, as a second season has been announced, Mudakun is making a plea in support of Miss Kobyashi’s Dragon Maid. 

Yuri Game

Jinrui no Minasama is a survival game that Comic Natalie had filed under their Yuri category. One of the characters, Isana certainly seems to hang on another, Erina in many scenes. ANN has some specifics.

Live-Action News

Another Comic Natalie item that ANN has a report on, Kimi to, Tzuredure is a live-action 3-part Yuri anthology following relationships between women at three different ages. This will get a theatrical release in March in Japan.

Here’s the trailer from Pony Canyon.

In every single store I visited with a Yuri section, was a Yuri photo collection called Yuri Sekai Hikareau Futari wo Kakutame no Pose Shuu (百合世界 惹かれ合うふたりを描くためのポーズ集 ), which is meant to be used as a reference guide for people drawing Yuri. People might use it for that, too. ^_^;  The funny thing was that I learned about this because the models followed me on Twitter, then I followed them and found the link to this book. It was in every Yuribu and Yuri corner in Tokyo. The cover illustration is by Fly, who also has an artbook, Maguerite, in the stores that I decided could be shipped to me rather than lugging it home.

Other News

Via YNN Correspondent Christian LeBlanc, we have news of the Canno Avatar generator, on which you can render yourself as a student at Seiran Academy. I can never use these, since gray hair is never an option. ^_^ (That’s why my avatar on Twitter is through the Boulet image generator, Le Bouletmaton. He was thoughtful enough to include both gray hair and cyncism.)

YNN Correspondent Ben W writes in to let us know about ANN’s report of an upcoming Rose of Versailles-inspired game for Nintendo Switch, Shiritsu Verbara Gakuen. One of you with a Switch will have to report back, I’m not buying a Switch just to try this out. ^_^;

ANN reports that 50 top Japanese voice actors have worked on a compilation of advice for prospective seiyuu, The Way of the Voice Actor. It’s in Japanese, but I might pick it ups just to see what everyone has to say after decades in what is not a forgiving or kind industry.

Do you have questions about Yuri? Write in and ask and I’ll do my best to address them on the Okazu YNN Podcast! Become a YNN Correspondent by reporting any Yuri-related news with your name and an email I can reply to!

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