Archive for the Artists Category


Liberty, Volume 2 (リバティ)

August 19th, 2022

In Volume 1  Liz, the emotionally fragile singer for a band Liberty. And we met Maki, who is  is managing  the Liberty account for her company. Liz is a real handful, too, as she tends to use sex as a weapon.  Despite that, Maki has fallen for Liz. And sometimes, she thinks Liz returns the feeling. However, every time they get a little closer, something sets Liz off again, leaving Maki unsure of what she is to the singer.

Liberty, Volume 2 (リバティ) begins with another of the things that sets Liz off. Only this time it wasn’t a thing, it was a person. The very fashionable and sexy Sumire who works for Liberty’s newest sponsor. It’s immediately obvious to us, the reader, that there is some history between Liz and Sumire.  Unable to say no to Sumire, Liz finds herself seduced, possibly coerced…and more possibly that this is how they always have been since they met in school. Liz is ashamed of herself and unwilling to talk to Maki, who is feeling left out. All of this brings up an unwelcome memory for Maki as well.

We have hit pure Jondalar Syndrome* here, my friends. One honest conversation would end this manga. So, of course, that ain’t gonna happen.

*Jondalar Syndrome is named after one of the characters from The Mammoth Hunters (one of the Clan of the Cave Bear series.) Had he and Ayla ever just discussed anything at all, the book would have ended instantly. It was a nightmare for me, a Virgo (which has a lot of mythological tie-ins to communication), with a fetish for good communication practices between people. Made me so angry I named a bad plot device after it, for when two people just do not have the conversation they need to have as a plot driver.

Since this manga is about the drama – and about giving Liz makeovers – and it is drawn by queen of manipulative drama and mopey leads Momono Moto, I’m cool with it. But, I follow the author, Kitta Izumi on Twitter and she’s vehement about being one’s authentic self in public, so I’m hoping that we’ll get to a better place for both Maki and Liz.

I love the art in this manga, I think this is Momono-sensei’s best work to date. It’s super stylish, which suits the world in which it is set. And I love that Maki has a good friend who will realtalk her when everyone else around is either ignoring her or…what? I’m sure Maki doesn’t yet know what her role is in this story, but by the end of the volume, she may be getting there. I’ll wait on tenterhooks to see how things develops.

Ratings:

Art – 9
Story – 7 we’re in a bit of a holding pattern in this volume
Characters – In the real world, we’d all gently suggest Liz speak to a therapist. For the story, she’s a walking plot complication
Service – Not really. Both the sex appeal and the sex are adult and mature.
Yuri – 10 Yuri all the way down

Overall – 8

While I wait, I have Volume 22 of Galette magazine to read, and Volume 23 will be debuting at Comitia next month!





白と黒~Black & White~, Volume 2

August 11th, 2022

In Volume 1, we met Shirakawa Junko and Kuroda Kayo two high-spec, elites in an international sales department, who are natural enemies. They don’t just fight…in fact, they don’t fight at all. Their battle is in the world of reputation. Who among their colleagues loves them best, who respects them the most. They go for the throat in business…and in bed. This hate-hate relationship consumes them both.

In Volume 2 of 白と黒~Black & White~ by Sal Jiang, both Kuroda and Shirakawa find themselves facing a new, unwelcome problem. They may not actually hate one another! Certainly, the people around them are sure that the two of them are close. And they are…physically, at any rate. HR has housed them in the company dorm as neighbors.  Shirakawa befriends Hashimoto, another lesbian in the ranks, who has just been surprise promoted in HR. It’s easy for Shirakawa to get Hashimoto as a confidant, but when Hashimoto asks her to say exactly what Kuroda is to her, Shirawkawa has no answer.

Kuroda is gung-ho when the entire sales department visits Singapore. So gung-ho, that she oversteps her authority and makes a deal she had no right to make. Kuroda, who had been taken under the wing of an established exec, Sakakibara, was feeling pretty chuffed, but now she’s in a tizzy. Reprimanded, she apologizes for making Sakakibara look bad.  Kuroda is also asked what Shirakawa is to her and she also has no answer.

Both women are driven and, now, jealous, and neither will give in. Where can Kuroda and Shirakawa even go from here?

There’s less overt violence in this volume, with one exception, but still, Shirakawa and Kuroda are a “yikes” couple in every way. Their loathing of each other is Shakespearean in scale…love would not help. But jealousy? That’s right in their wheelhouse. Two terrible people being terrible, but only to each other and only in a way that hurts no one else. This is perfection. I love this manga so much. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 10
Characters – 10
Service – 7 Not a lot of nudity, but a lot of sex and violence
Yuri – 7 Above, and now, jealousy!

Overall – 10

Best manga since GUNJO for best worst couple. I mean, just look at that cover! ^_^

You too will be able to enjoy this manga in English when Black & White Tough Love at the Office comes out in October from Seven Seas!





I’m in Love With the Villainess, Volume 5

August 4th, 2022

“What if you had the chance to remake the entire world in order to save the person you love…and learned that the world was never what it seemed?” is what I said when I reviewed Watashi no Oshi ha Akuyaku Reijou. Volume 5 (私の推しは悪役令嬢。) in Japanese. And, now, you have had the chance to read I’m in Love With the Villainess, Volume 5 and can, I hope, understand what I meant. ^_^ I’m still trying to avoid spoilers, as best I can. ^_^

The Nur arc comes to a crashing, sword-waving, magic-using, epic ending, that has shockingly little to do with Nur and Bauer at all. Because Volume 5 is about the Demon Queen and the truth of the world. Basically, if you primarily read isekai, you are probably mostly unprepared for just about anything here, until it all settles down.

As I re-read this volume I am fascinated by the scope of this story, which has implications far beyond this narrative. Will future volumes of the upcoming She’s So Cheeky For A Commoner (which I have reviewed in Japanese, as Heimin no Kuse ni Namaika, Volume 1)  – and any series will come after –  let these petals fall and be dispersed, or will they float around reminded us over and over of what, exactly, is going on? I look forward to finding out. There was a great deal of territory covered in this volume and repeated visits in future volumes might help to reify it.

Even more broadly, this series does all sorts of interesting things with the concept of “another world.” Like the Locked Tomb series, it is simultaneously both fantasy and science fiction and some new hybrid child of those genres and isekai. AND it contains that single important question that fills so much classic science fiction anime – what does it mean to be human?

Despite all this, this novel never pretends to be be meaningful in that pretentious literary way of very serious men writing about humanity. It is a human look at the power of community. Once again, I must quote myself here, when I wrote, “If you are familiar with Doctor Who, you will entirely understand how everything in this book works…and how it must work. ^_^ This leads to the only criticism, if you can even call it that, I have. Because of that specific narrative structure, there was no way to give it a punchy ending, which was perfectly okay. It ended as it had to…and then didn’t end for a few more post-epilogue shorts. When you like your characters, it’s hard to let go, I understand completely. ^_^ ”

What I mean to say here is that this ending was the right ending for this book. ^_^ This series ends where it must, with home and family. I have said this about a dozen times recently, but I’ll repeat it – this is what I am looking for these days in the books I read. Future-building with hope…hopepunk, as Ada Palmer calls, it. Stories in which communities come together to build a better tomorrow. The fact that the leaders of this particular community are queer women is delicious icing on this sweet and satisfying narrative cake.

Ratings:

Art – 9
Story – 9
Characters – 10
Service – Very little, for perfectly good reasons.
Yuri – 10
Queer – 10

Overall – 10

This…was a very good book. I hope you’ll all read it. If you have read it, do let me know what you think in the comments!

 





Hello, Melancholic!, Volume 2

July 29th, 2022

Hello, Melancholic!, Volume 2 is, quite possibly, my favorite single volume of a school life Yuri story ever. ^_^

Minato faces her greatest challenge – performing with the band in public. We understood that she was traumatized by her former bandmates. But here, she is in the unenviable position of facing them down once again. Not only does she rise to the occasion, she excels! Minato, bolstered by Hibiki, Chika, Sachiko and Emma, faces down the fears of her previous self and moves past them.

For that alone, I loved this book. It’s not enough to know what’s held us back – we also have to keep moving forward. Minato takes a whopping huge step forward when she takes control of the audience. It won’t fix all her self-esteem issues, but it puts her in a much better place from which to address the rest.

From there on, this becomes a much more conventional Yuri romance story, but now, here, we’re open to it. The Minato that was terrified of standing out could never have been a partner to anyone, but the Minato that can confidently stand on the stage, can. And so we turn our attention to Chika and Sachiko and find out that there’s a whole lot we don’t know about them.

There’s still a lot for Minato and Hibiki to work through. As I said of this volume in Japanese, “I cannot tell you why, exactly, I want Minato to be happy – although there are a lot of superficially obvious reasons that I might feel that way – but I really want Minato to be happy. If Hibiki can make her happy, I’m all in for them. But I also know that there’s a lot standing between them before they get there…among them Minato herself. She’s a walking bundle of insecurity and hesitation. Ohsawa Yayoi’s come so far in the last few years – Minato’s expressions are really something. ^_^” 

That said, as we get ready for Volume 3 to come out in November, we are right there with them, ready to lend our good wishes. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 9
Story – 9 More conflict in this volume is a good thing, as Minato becomes less passive
Characters – 9
Service – 1
Yuri – 9

Overall – 9

Another fantastic effort from Margaret Ngo, Marykate Jasper, Mo Harrison, H. Qi, Leighhanna DeRouen, B.Lillian Martin, Jenn Grunigen, and everyone on the Seven Seas team! This manga makes me cheer, every time. ^_^





Kaketa Tsuki to Donuts, Volume 4 (欠けた月とドーナッツ)

July 28th, 2022

Let’s start with the most important thing in Kaketa Tsuki to Donuts, Volume 4 (欠けた月とドーナッツ) – this was the perfect, most exactly correct ending to this series that we could have hoped for. ^_^  I don’t want to spoil this in the least, but I have to say that some of the aro/ace representation that other series teased (and disappointed all of us in the process) is solidly presented here. It’s all handled with a lovely human warmth that suited the characters and the tone of the story.

How we get to the this perfect ending gives us the first few bits of real conflict we’ve had in the series. These, too, are wholly within the main theme of “being human is difficult, and communication is scary, but it’s better for everyone than not communicating.” Fuuka laid out her feelings for Asahi in Volume 3 now, she tells, Hinako, it’s your turn. Easily said, but both Hinako and Asahi have some hurdles they need to get past before they are free to address their feelings. 

Hinako’s mother comes to visit, and Hinako finally tells her something of importance. They have what may have been the only real conversation they’d had to that point. It lifts the burden Hinako has been carrying all these years of being the kind of person her mother wants her to be. This scene held a lot of resonance for me. As I typed this, it dawned on me that I was about the same age as Hinako, too, when I finally shed the last of my parents’ expectations.

Asahi’s burden is a different one, as she’s assumed it for Subaru…who has been clear that she’s ready to carry her own life now. Subaru and Fuuka team up to give Asahi the space to work through her own issues on her own without them to lean on. I’ll leave the catalyst for her revelation a mystery for now, because it was utterly cute and…us. ^_^

And then we get the exactly right ending for this series. ^_^

Watching the art and storytelling develop during this series has been a pleasure. Watching Shio-sensei stick the landing…priceless.

Ratings:

Art – 9
Story – 10
Character – 10
Service – 0
Yuri – 10

Overall – 10

I can’t wait for you all to read this! We’ll be getting Doughnuts Under A Crescent Moon, Volume 4 in February of 2023.

This makes 4 volumes in one week of women building found families and I am just over the moon. With or without doughnuts. ^_^