Archive for the Bruce P Category


Shoujo Seifu – Bergamot Dominions Guest Review by Bruce P

May 3rd, 2016

Bergamot

Welcome to another Guest Review Wednesday, Once again, we have the pleasure of Bruce P’s unique perspective! Settle down and get ready to laugh.

Here’s a geopolitical question you may never have considered: If Scotland does in fact separate from the UK
 will she be able to find a new partner? A really cute one she can cuddle up with and share slippery bath times?

In Volume One of Shoujo Seifu – Bergamot Dominions (ć°‘ć„łæ”żćșœ – ăƒ™ăƒ«ă‚ŹăƒąăƒƒăƒˆïŒŠăƒ‰ăƒŸăƒ‹ă‚Șンă‚ș), Takada Shinichiro tackles this very question. It may not be a question that is keeping Edinburgh cabinet secretaries awake at night, but during the production of this manga the author himself seems to have gone without a quite a lot of sleep. He was driven. Possessed. It took four volumes to cool him down.

So as not to keep anyone in suspense, the short answer is Yes.

The long answer is very long, and involves pixies. Four volumes of pixies.

Nanako is an ordinary Japanese schoolgirl, friendly and cheerful. Always the mark of doom, a guarantee-to-be-dropped-into-some-alternate-world-on-page-10. In Nanako’s case that world turns out to be Bergamot, a sunny Caribbean island. OK, not so bad. She has been magically transported there by a talking cat, a garden gnome, and a pineapple-sized banshee. Going downhill now. Bergamot is this trio’s native island, an oddly dislocated Celtic paradise of green meadows, golden apples, and triple distilled whiskey, but it seems that Oberon, ruler of the neighboring island of Avalon, is bent on conquest. The brute. The native Bergamotians need help, and, reeling from sunstroke, select Nanako. They want her as leader and warlord. Prime criterion seems to be that she might look nice in a uniform.

Bergamot is a sort of perky Disney version of The Island of Doctor Moreau, inhabited by pixies, whistling gophers, happy sprites, winged riceballs, and so on. At first Nanako doesn’t want to play, she’s never been a dictator, and is desperate to escape these freaks. But her mood softens when she sees all these diverse creatures living together happily in peace and harmony. And all so very industrious. Quite a labor pool, the little critters, and gosh, no labor relations boards in sight. Smirking just a little now, Nanako takes charge.

In Government House she is surprised to finally meet another human—Sofia Wallace, from Scotland. The reason Sofia is in Bergamot is because she and Nanako are the central characters, and so—there she is. Government House is a huge edifice with no electricity or running water, but the tiny native servants they’re getting accustomed to ordering around provide excellent meals. Bath time with buckets allows for a bit of slippery service. There will be more.

But government isn’t just a succession of idle hours splashing about in buckets. The two girls work hard on a plan to develop the island’s infrastructure. Factories and bauxite mines fill their girlish dreams.

And then comes the moment of truth, when they actually have to do the job they were abducted for. Avalon attacks with a three-storey amphibious armored motor home filled with ten inch tall black bearded hipsters in pointy hats. As the girls discover, the Bergamot way of warfare is special. First comes the ritual suicide, then the drugs, the losing of the clothes, and finally the transformation into butterfly-winged angels of combat in sequined but otherwise stylish outfits (Sofia’s includes a Keith tartan kilt)


And we haven’t even gotten to the part where it rains girls.

I suppose we must.

So Nanako and her second-in-command Sofia together have successfully defended their new domain. Living in complete isolation as they are on this lush, tropical island, and what with the soft moonlight, the hypnotically fragrant evening breezes, and the triple distilled whiskey, they soon find themselves shedding all mutual inhibitions and tentatively, tremblingly exploring the pros and cons of instituting serfdom. It promises tremendous economic benefits. What more could they possibly wish for? So then yes, it rains girls.

Nine of them drop from the sky, right on top of Nanako. One is Swedish. One is French. Others are from Russia, the US, Taiwan, Germany, Japan, the Czech Republic, and Italy. Girls from all around the world, if you consider the world to be Europe with marginal outliers. The thing has suddenly become Hetalia. Great.

The new girls become Nanako’s cabinet, and each is assigned a ministry. Mercedes (Germany) gets Justice, Priscilla (US) gets propaganda, Tanya (Czech R.) gets finance, and so on. They work hard to turn Bergamot from a Celtic fringe fairyland into a modern civilization. They establish an electrical grid and a water works. Road gangs begin asphalting the island. Finance minister Tanya devises a clever monetary system that allows workers to purchase regulated items in any of the conveniently located company stores. They establish sugar cane plantations, happily dragooning native labor for the fieldwork, and don’t think that this isn’t getting pretty darn close to the sharp edge of uncomfortable. In the meantime the girls continue to shoot themselves (the ritual suicide bit) and fly around fighting. Flying, fighting, and losing clothes will continue in Volume 2.

Ratings:

Art: 5. Average at best, the author is not so good at profiles. But with his Bergamotians he’s got Disney down cold.

Characters: 5. Considering that this is a Hetalia spawn, the girls showcase gratifyingly few blatant national characteristics. Yes, Mercedes (Germany) is severe and strict, and Priscilla (US) is big, blonde and bouncy, and Maria (Russia) is tiny, timid and quiet, but in general not so much.

Story: 5. The developing society angle is peculiar, and interesting because of its peculiarity. If you don’t go in much for actual story in your story. The girls are really quite determined to independently develop many of the ills of modern society.

Yuri: 2. Nanako and Sofia and buckets.

Service: 7. Nanako and Sofia and buckets, and more


Overall: 5. Disappointing. I mean the uniform. Needs epaulets.

Erica here: Bruce you find the best stuff to review!

 





Yuri Manga: Kinoko Ningen no Kekkon  (きぼこäșș間た甐橚) Guest Review by Bruce P.

August 26th, 2015

KNnK1

OMGOMG! We have a Guest Review! Not just any Guest Review, a Guest Review by the incomparable Bruce P.! And not only a review by Bruce, but his 10th review here on Okazu! Settle in, folks, this is going to be a heckuva ride, but you’re in capable hands. Take it away, Bruce!

Heavily discounted, pulled from a dark shelf in the way, way back at Mandarake, Kinoko Ningen no Kekkon  (きぼこäșș間た甐橚) by Murayama Kei had the aura of nasty all over it. From the half-dressed bubble-headed girls clinging to each other on the cover to the title itself—Marriage of the Mushroom People—it promised awful. Really awful. A Yuritetsu for the mycological set. Naturally I snapped it up.

Well, it isn’t awful. I don’t intend to sound disappointed, but in fact, it is actually a ripping good story, in a quirky sort of way, if you can get over the fungus-infected spiders. Definitely in the sub-genre of hobby enthusiast’s manga, written to appeal to anyone who has specific interest in both (a) mushrooms, molds, and allied fungi, and (b) Yuri, and who doesn’t want to have to read two books to get them. But Yuritetsu it assuredly is not.

Ariara and Eriera are getting married. Yes, they are mushrooms, which accounts for their being dressed in filmy mushroom stem annuli. It’s not service, it’s
botanical precision. Their marriage is a very special event in Damp Town. Not because they are both women, there’s nothing unusual about that in a world where the entire population happens to be female, but because it’s a great opportunity for everyone to get happily plastered. And that they do, as A and E head off to their new home and life together. A is a shepherd and E had been a scribe but is now learning the shepherding business, so that they can always be together, out in the fungus fields happily shepherding away. They’re so darn cute as they guide their flock of one-celled amoebas into the abattoir and lustily hack them up into sandwiches.

But their bliss is short-lived, even in mushroom years. Eriera gets sick—it’s root rot—and it’s very bad, and though she lives through it, the operation leaves her disfigured and unable to bear children. Or to father them either, which is the efficient way these things can work in this world. Ariara angrily rejects the clucking advice of sententious townfolk who suggest she should divorce damaged goods. They’re married, they’re in love, they will stay together and that’s that.

Or is it?

One of those little ‘Honey, maybe I should have told you this before the wedding
’ items that Eriera just never got around to mentioning, was that as a child she had attracted the affectionate interest of a very important person indeed, a member of the royal family—the young Princess #3. The all-powerful Fungal Queen and her three princesses are dangerous, arrogant, and psychotic, enthusiasts of strict legal interpretation when it suits them, and of arbitrary capital punishment when it doesn’t. Exactly the type you want to hear is carrying a torch for your wife. Princess #3 arranges to have E kidnapped and brought to her, because she’s a princess and can do what she wants, and have fun doing it. Her minions oblige, leaving A behind in a bloody heap.

That’s their mistake. Because Ariara gets up, wipes the blood from her eyes, and sets out to bring Eriera back. And throughout the entire rest of the book there is nothing that can stop her. Slime-mold guards riding tarantulas she brushes aside. Sheer cliffs she scales with one arm behind her back. Rings of magic fire she leaps through, mighty sword Nothung in hand
well, you get the idea. She actually is impressive. Very impressive. And she wins. She brings Eriera home.

There was never a doubt. Not for someone so focused that she can abruptly coldcock the muscular young woman who has helped them to escape the princess’s castle tower, on the basis that three’s a crowd.

There is a curious epilogue in which Ritsu from K-On! rides in on a tarantula, which seems a rather natural fit, at that, and winds up with a cute girlfriend. It’s not Mio, but that may be for the best. They look very happy together.

The art is pleasant enough, though hardly stellar. It’s somewhat sketchy, and occasionally a little obscure. There is a scene in which Ariara takes a rifle-wielding guard hostage. She does so by threatening her with what might be a banana. If so, it’s an effective banana.

Yuri is the natural backdrop in the world depicted, and the framework for the main couple’s story, but it is not the point of the story. Only one character actively engages in a little Yuri frolicking: the insouciant Princess #2, who doesn’t appear much, but when she does is considerably more interested in fiddling with her cute handmaiden than in overseeing the provincial merchants’ production inventory valuation lists (imagine).

Ratings:

Art: 6. Somewhat rough and ready, but fair enough to support the story. Not hesitant to depict all ages—young, old, and very old—quite naturally. The muscular characters (the scribes, who are stone masons as well) are very muscular indeed. And the different fungal species are well drawn. If you want to consider that a plus.

Story: 8. A fun little yarn. The plot does occasionally slow down at some long-winded legalistic discussions about things like boundary marker disputes and fishing rights.

Characters: 8. Good; bad; ugly; Ritsu. An interesting mix. The royal family are wonderfully psychotic. Ariara is a standout hero.

Yuri: 9. It’s everywhere, as framework, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

Service: 5. The filmy fronds (on young, old, and really old alike). Nothing more.

Overall: 7. Or 8. I’m going to give it 8, possibly because I was expecting such a tiny number here.


and so Ariara has scaled the royal castle tower and is frantically kicking butt to rescue Eriera, when E helpfully states that violence is never a solution. And then she says it again. At which point A replies, in effect, Oh for Chrissake
it can’t be helped.

They’re married all right.

Erica here: Holy….what the heck did I just read? (◎_◎)
Well, if, after this review you are motivated to check this out, the first chapter is online on Poco2.  
Happy 10th review and thanks, as always!





Yuri Manga: Yuritetsu Volumes 2-4 (ゆりお぀~ç§ç«‹ç™Ÿćˆăƒ¶ć’Čć„łć­é«˜é‰„é“éƒš) Guest Review by Bruce P

April 1st, 2015

Yuritetsu2Wahoooo! It’s Guest Review Wednesday and we have a Guest Review! Fresh from the keyboard of the always stellar Bruce P, today he looks at three manga at once (presumably because the idea of reviewing them each individually was soul crushing.) Take it away, Bruce!  

***

“Make a remark,” said the Red Queen: “it’s ridiculous to leave all the conversation to the pudding!”

And there really is no other reason for a review of Yuritetsu ~ Shiritsu Yurigasaki Joshikou Tetsudobu Volume 2, Volume 3  and Volume 4 (ゆりお぀~ç§ç«‹ç™Ÿćˆăƒ¶ć’Čć„łć­é«˜é‰„é“éƒš) by Matsuyama Seiji. The review of Volume 1 should have been quite enough. But in the face of good taste Yuritetsu has thrived, even making some minor noise out in the real world. I would hate to leave the final word to a pudding. A response is called for. Here it is:

Eww.

You might notice that this also effectively described Volume 1.

Which is not to say that Volumes 2-4 are just more servings of the same goo. The author has made a number of significant changes. Though calling anything in this manga significant seems kind of silly.

Yuritetsu3High school girls Elsie, Lacie, Tillie, and Peanut are still doing what members of the Yuritetsu (Yurigasaki Girl’s High School Railway Club) do best: looking like four-year-olds, acting like three-year-olds, and providing railway maps and information for train fans. Train fans who don’t much care where their maps and information come from, provided they come from girls who occasionally take their clothes off. Elsie, Lacie, and Tillie continue fighting over Peanut, while Peanut continues displaying no reason why they should actually want to. Maybe it’s a pheromone thing. It’s certainly not an intellect thing.

The big difference from the first volume is that the girls no longer do their interpersonal squirming in isolation from the rest of the world. Quite the contrary: in their travels they now encounter an astonishing assortment of other ambulatory pumpkin seeds—friends, relatives, and acquaintances, starting with their new traveling companion, the club’s faculty advisor Konomi-Sensei. She looks five, giving her the best of it, though she doesn’t act that mature. As a teacher, she’s just happy not to live in New Jersey, or in any number of places where they insist on background checks; at Yurigasaki she can squirm against Peanut all she wants. Pheromones, ick.

AYuritetsu4rtistically Yuritetsu isn’t so much a mess as a collage, which makes it sound intentional.  Stylistically different (but equally embarrassing) crossover characters from the small world of train-themed manga randomly drop out of the blue for a little inbreeding. Among these artistic inconsistencies are several creepy crossovers from one of the author’s own titles, Tetsuko na Sanshimai, about three sisters who travel around on trains (well, when you specialize, you specialize). One of these sisters is definitely not drawn as a Yuritetsu –style four year old, and in fact does not even constitute a structural possibility. As Elsie (or is it Tillie? Dopey?) says when they first meet: “Oneesan! Your boobs—and your camera lens—are huge!!” The art might be questionable, but the sophistication of the dialogue makes the series sparkle.

And here’s the peculiar real world part. In the final chapter the girls visit the Yuri Kogen Railway, a tiny line in the mountains south of Akita. In a clever bit of marketing, or desperation (it’s a very tiny line), the Yuri Kogen last year decorated an operating railcar in a Yuritetsu illustration scheme. All pink and yellow and oversized bubbleheads. Looks like desperation to me. The Yuritetsu railcar has actually been out there, trundling Peanut and her pals, along with confused Yuritetsu fans wondering why all the car-side characters seem so fully clothed, back and forth through the daffodils.

If there’s a special hell for railway motormen, it probably looks like this.

Toy maker Tomytec has jumped into the act with a scale model:

Yuritetsu Car

The item above was obtained for research purposes. Just being thorough.

As for the Yuri: the characters in Yuritetsu remind me of nothing so much as those tiny, rather pointless insects that form hyperactive clouds over water on summer afternoons. Among the little bugs in these mating swarms there may well be some rudimentary Yuri flirtations going on (who knows?), but it wouldn’t warrant a four volume treatment and a specially decorated swamp boat.

Ratings:

Art: 5.  Well, the train illustrations are still pretty good.
Characters: 2. Dropping in some doofus ex machina characters hasn’t helped this number at all.
Story: 2.  Starts low, falls through a hole at the bit with the strawberry.
Yuri: 2.  Don’t ask about the strawberry.
Service: 10.  No really, don’t.

Overall: 3. Somewhere between eww and ick.

It’s been a lot of fun, chewing these four volumes up. But now of course I will have to make a trip to Akita. For research purposes.

Erica here: As long as I don’t have to be seen near that train, I’m in.

Thank you for yet another fantastic review of a book I wouldn’t touch with a 15 meter pole.  This seemed like a perfect April 1 review. If you buy these books, the joke is clearly on you. ^_^





Maria-sama ga Miteru Anniversary Exhibit Report by Bruce P.

January 11th, 2015

mgsmeventIt is my very great pleasure to welcome back Guest Reviewer, all-around amazing Okazu and Yuricon supporter and great friend Bruce P! This time he has made it to Asagaya Anime Street for the Maria-sama ga Miteru Anniversary Event and were are delighted to have him tell us all about it. Thank you Bruce, the floor is yours…

I was pleased that a trip to Japan I had planned for Christmas this year coincided with a Maria-sama ga Miteru special event in Tokyo, in Asagaya Anime Street, appropriately located close to the heart of Marimite country. The event was in conjunction with the 10th anniversary of the anime, and was coupled with the release of the Blu-Ray edition of the complete series. I just had to see what it was all about.

Asagaya was a happy, bustling place when I arrived late afternoon on Christmas day. Shoppers were everywhere, as can be seen in this covered mall, which managed to contrive a Magritte Empire of Light kind of lighting effect. No doubt to make the experience more fun. And possibly to disorient you into more readily opening your wallet.

mgsme1

However, for reasons probably related to storefront rental costs, Asagaya Anime Street is not located in this heavy cash flow area. It’s hidden away in a slightly sad and depressing site under the Chuo railway line elevated tracks. Definitely not prime real estate. To find it I had to work my way along and under the tracks, through tiny streets and alleys and girders, like Gene Hackman in The French Connection chasing the el train. Though he got to wreck a Pontiac. I had to walk.

But the walk was a great opportunity to take in the local sights, like this display of grimy, broken eggshells in front of a rice shop. Apparently all the surrealists were in town. An eye-catch for a rubbish disposal center.

mgsme2

Finally, in the gloom under the tracks, there it was.

mgsme3

 

Asagaya Anime Street consists of about 15 small shops selling anime related items of one sort or another. It actually seemed to be a worthwhile attempt to transform a deserted waste area under the tracks into a retail space, though the crowds were somewhat lacking. It took some effort to find, but of course that’s just what anime fans are willing to do.

 mgsme4

 

The Marimite event was in the GoFaLABO (Gallery of Fantastic Art Laboratory) CafĂ© and Gallery Space. Yes the place was small, and located in a relatively deserted spot under the tracks. And it rattled with every passing train. And the retail item shelves were mostly empty. But the thing is this – the event itself was downright fabulous. GoFaLABO consists of a small retail space with cafĂ© counter, plus an event area containing five cafĂ© tables. The event area was hung with about 60 beautiful framed copies of all the Marimite hanken illustrations used for the series. In addition, episodes of the series were being shown at one end of the space, which you could watch as you lingered over Marimite-themed tea and pastries, surrounded by all that gorgeous art. There were four people doing this when I entered, two guys at one table, and a guy and an exquisitely Lolita-outfitted girl at another. As I lingered myself, another guy dropped in and settled himself at a fourth table. Photography was not permitted inside the cafĂ©, which was unfortunate, but not unexpected.

What surprised me most about the experience was that, when concentrated in one place and viewed as a whole, the official Marimite images demonstrated a striking, powerful, almost single-minded obsession with Yuri (Yuri in implication, Yuri in fact, and (mostly) Yuri in fan enticement) that was really not fully representative of the multi-faceted story itself. But I’m not complaining. The images were beautiful, they were Yuri, and there were 60 of them. More tea, please.

 mgsme5

 

Eventually I had to leave to head back to Ikebukuro. There were two extremely lovely Christmas/winter themed prints of Yumi and Sachiko for sale that I would have liked very much (one at least was new to this event), but they were only available for pre-order. I did purchase all the goods that were currently available, except for the Blu-Ray series: two lidded drinking cups, a coffee mug, and a calendar.

mgsme6

I’m so glad I had the opportunity to experience the GoFaLABO Marimite event. It was superb, an emerald under the tracks. And with all those cups and mugs my dehydration worries are a thing of the past. If you have the opportunity to visit GoFaLABO in Asagaya Anime Street while the Marimite event is still taking place (through January 25th), please do so. If you’ve made it this far in this report, you’ll just love it.

Well, except maybe for Ana, you freakin’ tough Marine. Ganbatte, CO!

Erica here: Ganbatte seconded. And of course I’m insanely jealous.  I thank you again for the lovely calendar! 

Thank you once more for your time and effort on our behalf! I’m glad you enjoyed the show. 

In case any of you want a glimpse of the kinds of sweets they were selling, I’ve stolen borrowed two pictures from YNN Correspondent and friend Jackie S. to give you an idea. ^_^

Jackie1

Jackie2

This event will have had  a number of Okazu readers visit. We should do a travel special. ^_^





34-sai Mushoku-san Manga Vols. 1-4 (34æ­łç„Ąè·ă•ă‚“) Guest Review by Bruce P.

April 2nd, 2014

34-saiIt’s Guest Review Wednesday once again on Okazu and I couldn’t be happier…but that’s because I’ve already read today’s review and I can’t stop laughing. Once again it is my sincere pleasure to welcome back Okazu Superhero, longtime friend, traveling companion and amazing Guest Reviewer Bruce P Yaaaayyy!   

I picked up a copy of 34-sai Mushoku-san (The Unemployed 34-Year Old), (34æ­łç„Ąè·ă•ă‚“) Volume 1, by Ikeda Takashi, with the not unreasonable thought that the author of Sasameki Koto might have included some Yuri along the way. I was wrong; four volumes later, and there hasn’t been a hint of Yuri. Instead what we are given is a viciously drawn-out interior monologue of boredom, hopelessness, and personal failure. It’s cruel, peculiar, glacial, and grindingly depressing. Plus it makes me laugh. What a great manga.

The protagonist, who is never named, is a 34-year old woman who lives alone in an apartment and who has lost her job. The first chapter starts right off with a gag–she wakes up and can’t find her glasses (they’re on top of her head). The jokes continue. She doesn’t get up in time to take out the recycling. Her vacuum cleaner falls over. And then it falls over again. What we have here is a wacky slice-of-life story, as our madcap heroine searches for love and employment in the big city! Except
she doesn’t actually ever do any searching for love, or for employment, and as the same jokes begin to repeat, and repeat, it becomes clear that they are not jokes at all. They are symptoms, and despite her best excuses she is a woman in serious trouble.

Though able to deal marginally with others, even if there aren’t many others she ever deals with, at home she lives in a state of almost total paralysis. She cannot pull herself out of her futon until late afternoon, or up from under the kotatsu – Yui from K-ON! all grown up when it is no longer cute. You get the sense that losing the job may not have had much to do with the economy after all. She’s isolated from her family (including a daughter) and has only one acquaintance, a woman she meets occasionally for dinner and who is blatantly drawn with eyes always shut. Her only real companion is her apartment. She just swirls slowly, sleepily around in the drain of her well-vacuumed world. And if that doesn’t make you want to shell out for the multi-volume set, be assured that in Volume 2 she takes dramatic steps to change her life, by contemplating possibly taking dramatic steps to change her life. Contemplation of these steps continues in Volume 3 and Volume 4.

It sounds grimmer than kidneys on toast. Why read it?

(1) Asymmetric though she is, her character is strikingly realistic, and in more spots than are comfortable I can see, in her, a reflection of some of my own unlovely edges. This is both disturbing, and of value when I’m trying to get out of bed in the morning.

(2) It’s beautifully and brilliantly drawn, which nicely counters the subject; some chapters contain no words at all, but are simply picture plays as she bleakly and languorously contemplates her empty life. It’s like mime, in two dimensions, though not as depressing.

(3) Ikeda-sensei has a nice comic touch, and it really is quite funny. Even if laughing at all the pratfalls feels somehow misdirected, like appreciating the Hindenburg disaster on account of it being all bright and sparkly.

(4) Nothing has changed in four volumes. I’m still waiting for the thing to happen.

***

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***

Ratings:

Art: 9. Brilliant. Just brilliant.

Story: 5. Not so much a story as a slowly deteriorating situation. I’m betting on something happening; it eventually did in the classic gently-paced series Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou when Kokone reappeared. My suggestion is to add robots.

Character: 18. She’s not honestly sympathetic, but credit for every year over the age of 16.

Yuri: 0. Unfortunate, but ideally Yuri requires a second character.

Service: 2. A few sponge bath scenes, if you’re desperate enough.

Overall: 8. 34-sai Mushoku-san will not be to everyone’s taste. However, I have never been a fan of action series, and with this one I hit the jackpot.