LGBT Comics/Manga News

I’ve been all about Legend of Korra: Turf Wars this week, and this Tumblr post by creator Bryan Konietzko has stoked the flames considerably….we’re getting this beautiful Korrasami figurine! (Bryan, adorably, uses the fan term.) Keep your eyes peeled for pre-order links. (And check out the Nerdist article he links to. There is is again.. “as a couple.” /qvell/)

Via YNN Correspondent Richardson Kilis on Twitter, come news of Bokutachi LGBT (ぼくたちLGBT), a new manga essay collection created by self-identified bisexual creator, Tomimura Kota. You can read chapters here (in Japanese) for free.

Comic Natalie reports on a comic which I think of hitting as some kind of self-referential queerish manga event horizon, Yurizuki-kun to Yurizikizuki-kun, (百合好きくんと百合好き好きくん), about a boy who is a Yuri fanboy and the boy who falls for him. Okay, we’re done now, just give me more lesbian stories please. ^_^;

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Comics News

JK Parkin on Smashpages has news out of San Diego Comic-Con that IDW will be publishing a Jem & The Holograms comic anthology. Comics anthologies are a great way to become familiar with a series. It’s true one sacrifices continuity and story a lot of the time, but anthologies are a great way to get to know the characters’ inner lives (and often fanon tropes about them!)

Speaking of SDCC, Heidi MacDonald has a excellent piece on Comics Beat about how although comics sales are rising, this isn’t translating into comic store sales. In This week’s Bookscan chart is a wake-up call for the comics industry, she  reports the top five bestselling comics in bookstores are as follows:

Anyhow, here are the top five books on the chart for last week:

1. BITCH PLANET, VOLUME 2: PRESIDENT BITCH
2. MY LESBIAN EXPERIENCE WITH LONELINESS
3. WONDER WOMAN VOL. 1: THE LIES
4. WONDER WOMAN VOL. 2: YEAR ONE
5. MARCH: BOOK ONE

and she notes:

…for one thing, it means that Marvel–and DC too! – had better start paying attention to new readers instead of pandering to the dwindling ranks of AARP-card carrying pap-pap Bronze Agers. I mean, I know it’s hard to move beyond  your own viewpoint, but business is business.

So, wow for My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness, Kabi Nagata-sensei and Seven Seas…and look at that, stuff for and by adult women are ruling the sales chart.

Other People’s Opinions

Coupla interesting takes on “our” material these days:

Over at Crunchyroll, Paul Chapman take a slightly precious look at Sweet Blue Flowers, which is back on the Crunchyroll streaming catalog in Delicate Emotions Blossom in “Sweet Blue Flowers”.

And from Autostraddle, Mey offers up a completely different perspective to my own in Drawn to Comics: “My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness” Is an Incredible Examinations of Mental Illness, Sexuality and Shame.

Andy Lee Chaisiri is a Quora-friend of mine. I’ve been sharing around this fun essay all week: 3 timeless lessons from Pokémon on designing enduring worlds from Andy and his brother Richard’s excellent art and pop culture blog, Art-Eater. 

Other News

Crunchyroll is holding their own expo show and, I thought this a fun thing – very out, gay, ice skater Johnny Weir is going to be there, speaking about Yuri on Ice!

Ogata Megumi-san posted a squee-worthy series of tweets this week, in which she showed herself and Katsuki Masako (Michiru’s original voice actress) recording Moon Revenge for the Sailor Moon 25th anniversary. Moon Revenge is from the Sailor Moon R movie and the original recording was by the voice actresses of the 5 Inner Senshi. Having Ogata-san and Katsuki-san  as part of a new recording has me fangirling. It’s a great song, I can’t wait to hear this version!

Know some cool Yuri News you want people to know about? Become a Yuri Network Correspondent by sending me any Yuri-related news you find.Emails go to anilesbocon01 at hotmail dot com. Not to the comments here, please, or they might be forgotten or missed. There’s a reason for this madness. This way I know you are a real human, not Anonymous (which I do not encourage – stand by your words with your name!) and I can send you a YNN correspondent’s badge.

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

Yuri Manga

It is always a good day on Okazu when I can announce another new collection by Takemiya Jin-sensei. And, as she’s a monster workaholic, today is a very good day. ^_^ Mabushisa no Mukou Soku (まぶしさの向こう側), will be out this week, with collected shorts from Comic Yuri Hime. 

Also from Comic Yuri Hime, the first collected volume of Watashi no Yuri ha Oshigoto Desu!  (私の百合はお仕事です! ) hits shelves next month. Along with being behind reading the magazine, I will get to add that I’m also behind on adding the manga to the Yuricon Store, yay! (;_;) I’ll do my best to keep up, I promise!

ANN Reports that the Sakura Trick manga will end with the October issue of Mangatime Kirara Miracle magazine.

Volume 2 of After Hours (アフターアワーズ) will be hitting shelves this week in Japan, and to celebrate, Comic Natalie reports that they are doing an open call for illustrations. The application ticket will be attached to the book’s obi at retail outlets. Look for Volume 2 in English later this year from Viz.

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Fannisness

Via YNN Correspondent and fellow Uranus/Neptune fan Maria S, please enjoy this video by and of Pamela Calvo singing both parts of a Spanish-language version of Eternal Eternity! It’s really quite wonderful and I grinned through the whole thing. :-D

I’ve been binge re-watching Steven Universe again, because it heals the holes the daily news burns in my soul. It’s a bit old, but I discovered that in 2016, there was a Steven Universe musical panel at San Diego Comic Con and I spent a full couple of hours watching and rewatching live performances from it. I want to share this one with you especially. It’s not just that it’s a hoot to hear the voice actors singing, but this one was remixed with images of the audience singing along and clips of animation. I’m going to be really honest, when Pearl sings, “We were amazed to find your beauty and your worth. We will protect your earth…and we will protect you” and I see all those lovely otaku, I get really weepy and angry at the shitty situation we’re in right now. If we don’t protect this Earth, Pearl won’t be there to do it and I want these happy otaku to have a safe and beautiful home.  It made me start calling my Congressmen again. It sucks, but it’s up to us. Call, write, fax, whatever, however, but get out there and contact your congresspeople.

Anyway, here is the live version of We Are the Crystal Gems, Full Version, from SDCC 2016. (And check out Michaela Dietz (Amethyst) and Zach Callison (Steven) videoing it it on their phones. ^_^ 

LGBTQ Comics

WOOHOO! The folks who brought us Power & Magic, now announce IMMORTAL SOULS (The Next Queer Witch Comics Anthology)! You’ve still got time on this Kickstarter, but don’t miss your chance to back this book if you can.

Lesbian website Gachirezu (gachirezu in Japanese is similar to flesbian in English, like not”real” lesbian. It’s meant as a joke, kind like Okazu is) now has a page for serialized lesbian webcomics in Japanese with links to their artists on Twitter.

Via Senior YNN Correspondent Louis P, comes this great link on Comicosity, 40 LGBTQ Webcomics to Know and Love.

From Funari on Twitter, we have Raison d’Etre,  a “self-discovery fantasy-ish comic with queer characters.” 

Last week Prism Comics held the very first ever Prism Comics Awards at the Queer Comic Expo. Thanks to Rob McMonigal for covering this on his blog Panel Patter.

Know some cool Yuri News you want people to know about? Become a Yuri Network Correspondent by sending me any Yuri-related news you find.Emails go to anilesbocon01 at hotmail dot com. Not to the comments here, please, or they might be forgotten or missed. There’s a reason for this madness. This way I know you are a real human, not Anonymous (which I do not encourage – stand by your words with your name!) and I can send you a YNN correspondent’s badge.

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

Yuri Manga

Kuzushiro’s girl-falls-for-sister-in-law series Ani no Yome to Kurashiteimasu (兄の嫁と暮らしています。) is going to Volume 3 which will hit shelves at the end of July. Toribaku-sempai Nani Kakeru? (鳥獏先輩なに賭ける?) by Kuzushiro hits shelves in late July.

Nishi Akane’s girl-gamer story Itsuka Minoreba (いつかみのれば) Volume 1 has been out since May, but I missed putting that here. My apologies. tMnR’s version of the girl-falls-for-sister-in-law story,  Tatoe to dokanu keda toshitemo (たとえとどかぬ糸だとしても) is also available.

Momono Moto’s Yuunagi Mabrette Perfect Volume (夕凪マーブレット完全版)  collects a number of this Yuri artist’s doujinshi.

I don’t actually know what this is about (hah! as if it’s about anything) but Comic Natalie reports that Fujyoko to Yuriko (ふじょ子とユリ子) is a new love series running in Mangatime Kirara Karat magazine.

Also from Comic Natalie, Dengeki Daioh will be running a new (by which I mean ultra-derivative) Yuri manga,  Ryuu no Shoujo ha Koi wo suru (籠の少女は恋をする). 

Last one from Comic Natalie, a bunch of girl pop idols sat down to talk about Hirao Auri’s pop idol x otaku Yuri love story, Oshi ga Budokan Ittekuretara Shinu推しが武道館いってくれたら死ぬ.  (Volume 1 and Volume 2 have been reviewed here on Okazu, Volume 3 is out now.) What a fun idea!

Yuri-ish News

None of this is specifically Yuri, but these series always have a home here on Okazu. 

Kodansha has piled on a few exciting announcements regarding Card Captor Sakura. According to Crunchyroll News, the new Clear Card arc will, be getting a digital release on Comixology. In addition, the print volume will be available in November 2017.

Kodansha also announced the Sailor Moon Eternal Edition, an English-language translation of the 20th anniversary 10-volume set of the Sailor Moon manga with the new cover art with metallic ink and “holographic” images, French flaps (which I am of two minds on, as they reproduce bookcover flaps but for, like, no actual reason) and a larger trim. These are absolutely gorgeous. I have actually stored all the other versions of the Japanese manga and have only these out on my shelves, they are so pretty.

Nozomi/RightStuf has officially announced a 20th anniversary Collector’s Blu-Ray edition of the Revolutionary Girl Utena anime, which will hit shelves in December 2017.

ANN Reports that Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Reflection will be getting theater screenings in the United States. 

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LGBTQ Events

Yurithon is coming! I will be a Special Guest and will be paneling myself dry. Do stop by August 4-6 in Montreal, Canada and hang out with me in my many panels. (So many panels….)

Flamecon has put together a special exhibitor Twitter list. More than 175 exhibitors’ Twitter accounts, so you can see just how silly/smart/fascinating/enraging all those folks are. ^_^ 

Other News

Kotaku has a relatively insightful (if, strikingly obvious to some folks,) discussion of the problems scanlators face when they decide that the work they do is work and deserves to be paid, in Manga Pirates Are Having Trouble Going Legit. If you think about it, it’s a bit like a gang who, after trashing your store repeatedly, turns around and asks you to hire them legitimately as security. No one is going to trust people who destroyed their business. 

Know some cool Yuri News you want people to know about? Become a Yuri Network Correspondent by sending me any Yuri-related news you find.Emails go to anilesbocon01 at hotmail dot com. Not to the comments here, please, or they might be forgotten or missed. There’s a reason for this madness. This way I know you are a real human, not Anonymous (which I do not encourage – stand by your words with your name!) and I can send you a YNN correspondent’s badge.

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

Yuri Anime

Pony Canyon has announced that they will be selling the Asagao to Kase-san / Kase-san and Morning Glories animation DVD at their table at Anime Expo in Los Angeles, CA this weekend! The official Twitter account thanked everyone for their support and says that they hope to be able to do more animation for the series. Stay focused and keep supporting this series.  (If someone picks me up a copy of the DVD, I’ll be glad to pay for it and the shipping. Let me know if you’re there.)

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Citrus and NTR: Netsuzou Trap anime are moving forward and will be streaming this summer on various services. 

Kat Callahan wrote a lovely hopeful article on Anime NOW! on NTR that expresses hope that it will exceed it’s own description.  I wish I could tell her it would.

I’m going to take a moment to once again explain my position on these two series. Citrus and NTR  are not, in my opinion, Yuri. They are anime that use lesbianism as a fetish in relationship to manipulation (and in the case of Citrus, mental illness) for the sole purpose of sexual stimulation. The editor in chief of Comic Yuri Hime promotes what he likes and he likes this stuff, therefore this is what they invest in. It is not the kind of Yuri I want to read or watch. I will allow a guest review of the Citrus anime, but Okazu will never host any review of NTR. It is absolutely vile and I’m repulsed by everything about it.

Crunchyroll will be streaming A Centaur’s Life this summer.

If you’re looking for something classic and less manipulative, Sailor Moon S Part 1 and Part 2 are now available!   Not Yuri, but still Sailor Moon-related, ANN reports that Sailor Moon Crystal Season 4 will be released as a two-part movie, rather than a streamed TV series. 

LGBTQ News

The crowdfunding sensation queer WoC romance comic Bingo Love is now avaialable for pre-order! I’m looking forward to this book so hard, I upgraded my backer level. ^_^ Cannot wait.

Germany now officially has marriage equality! Very exciting for our LGBTQ friends there.

Check out this fabulous animated version of Johnny Cash’s Long Black Veil, by Jenny Owens Young and Isabella Rotman. Give them a thumbs up for their efforts then check out Isabella’s queer-friendly comics!

Signature Move, a movie about two female professional wrestlers who fall in love, is making the film festival rounds this summer. It’s been picked up by Amazon Video, so stay on the look out for it to hit in 2018. ^_^

Last bit of news this week – I’m very excited for Elizabeth Beier‘s announcement of her comic collection The Big Book of Bisexual Trials and Errors with Northwest Press. Yay for Elizabeth! Her work is brilliant. Please consider backing this project on Kickstarter.

Know some cool Yuri News you want people to know about? Become a Yuri Network Correspondent by sending me any Yuri-related news you find.Emails go to anilesbocon01 at hotmail dot com. Not to the comments here, please, or they might be forgotten or missed. There’s a reason for this madness. This way I know you are a real human, not Anonymous (which I do not encourage – stand by your words with your name!) and I can send you a YNN correspondent’s badge.

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

Yuri Manga

Some new Yuri manga up on the Yuricon Store!

Volume 4 of Nakatani Nio’s Yagate Kimi ni Naru, will hit shelves later this month.  Bloom Into You, Volume 3 in English will be a September release.

The much-anticipated new volume of the Kase-san series, Apron to Kase-san. ( エプロンと加瀬さん。), is slated for a July release. If you’re interested in the deluxe version packaged with the animation clip, that also will be hitting shelves in July.

 Eclair blanche – Anata ni Hibiku Yuri Anthology the sequel to the first Eclair anthology, comes out this week.

August will see the release of MURCIÉLAGO, Volume 3 in English.

Read the first chapter of Kimashika Ruri’s To Aru Kekkon about a same-sex marriage! It’s really cute and I definitely want to read the full volume in Japanese.

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LGBTQ News

The ground-breaking documentary Queer Japan has released another new promotional clip! They can still use help with their post-processing, so if you have a buck or two extra and want to help, please go visit their GoFundMe.

Sailor Moon News

The Sailor Moon R Movie is now available on DVD and Blu-ray. This has no Yuri (though there is a good case for a BL plot) but it has Moon Revenge which makes the thing fully worth watching. ^_^

Resistance News

Look, I want to be honest here. The most radicalized, violent group of people in the world: rich, white, nominally Christian men, are about commit an act of terrorism against the American people that may not be something we’ll recover from in my lifetime.

But. Resistance is NEVER futile. Get involved in local activism. Run for office.  Donate your time or money to causes you care about. Keep fighting.

Know some cool Yuri News you want people to know about? Become a Yuri Network Correspondent by sending me any Yuri-related news you find.Emails go to anilesbocon01 at hotmail dot com. Not to the comments here, please, or they might be forgotten or missed. There’s a reason for this madness. This way I know you are a real human, not Anonymous (which I do not encourage – stand by your words with your name!) and I can send you a YNN correspondent’s badge.

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