Archive for the Kotonoha no Miko Category


Yuri Drama CD: Kotonoha no Miko to Kotodama no Majyo to "Madrigal Halloween"

November 15th, 2006

I had the weirdest sensation upon opening this Drama CD. Staring down at the cover I suddenly thought, “What am I doing? I can’t understand Japanese!”  (o_O) Thankfully, the moment passed and I had no particular trouble understanding this story. ^_^

Kotonoha no Miko to Kotodama no Majyo to: “Madrigal Halloween” is a double dose of adorable Yuri goodness from Fujieda Miyabi, creator of Iono-sama Fanatics, Ameiro Kouchakan Kandan and, obviously, Kotonoha no Miko to Kotodama no Majyo to.

Because this story has a complex history, let me give you enough detail to get by:

Letty is an European witch (the Majyo of the title) who inadvertently rescues Tsumugi (the Miko of the title) from imprisonment at a mountain shrine.

In their journeys, they visit a tea shop known as the Ame-iro Kouchakan, where they meet the owner Seriho, her assistant Sarasa (who has an enormous crush on Seriho) and two regular customers Haru and Hinoko who seem awfully chummy.

This Drama CD follows the events of the first MikoMajyo Drama CD (the one that came in the deluxe manga set), and the Ame-iro Kouchakan Kandan extra comic that came with Yuri Hime 5, in which they do a special menu and performance for Tanabata. This last sentence is relevant, I promise.

(Why is is that, with Yuri Hime-related stories, I’m always running around gathering pieces to put the stories together??? This is as bad as the fractured history of what is now Hatsukoi Shimai!)

The Drama CD begins, not with Letty or Tsumugi, but with Seriho introducing the story in her breathy, little girl voice.

The season is autumn and Halloween is right around the corner. Seriho wants to do a Halloween Special, like they did for Tanabata. (See, I told you it was relevant!) Sarasa suggests that they do a performance and special menu again. Sarasa and she share a moment of extreme breathless adorable closeness, which got *so* breathy I was hard put to understand the words. ^_^

Letty and Tsumugi arrive with the news that they have just moved into this particular neighborhood. Seriho notes that it’s so wonderful that they’re living together in love-love bliss – I think just to make Letty sputter her objections…not to the sentiment itself, but to the way it was put, you know.

Seriho brings up Halloween.  Letty says she doesn’t know anything about it because they don’t celebrate it in her country.  Apparently Fujieda Miyabi does not know that European witches are likely to be pretty well-informed on Halloween. Luckily, Sarasa knows all about it and explains the basics: it’s a holiday associated with monsters and kids in costumes walk around begging for candy. She frightens Seriho with her enthusiastic “Trick or Treat!” and explanation thereof.

The Miko and Witch are asked if they want to help for the Halloween special. Letty passes, but because Tsumugi wants to, she acquiesces. Letty fears, rightfully, that she’ll be a clutz. Thanks fully, Tsumugi is a natural at carrying a tray with glasses. Phew.

Later that day, when they arrive home, Letty apologizes for being such a stick-in-the-mud, but she was, embarrassingly enough, afraid of being uncool in Tsumugi’s eyes. Tsumugi reaffirms for the upmteenth time that Letty will always be cool – and cute – to her. They embrace, Letty takes the stick out of her ass, we smile.

Hinoko and Haru decide that they should all wear costumes for the big day. Tsumugi shows up in her Miko’s clothing, which prompts a way-personal exchange between Tsumugi and Letty, which Hinoko interrupts by sticking wolf ears on Tsumgi. Tsumugi’s cuteness (coupled with her hyper-adorable “growrr! designed to fail utterly at being scary) makes Letty bail before she explodes in public. When Seriho, who is dressing up as a wolfman puts on the ears and growls even more adorably, Sarasa runs after Letty. (Now there’s an image – the two of them outside dunking their heads in a fountain or something, trying to cool off…! ^_^) Haru says she’ll be Frankenstein, Hinoko wants to be a jack-o-lantern. Letty will, of course, be a witch. (When Haru later compliments her on her costume, Letty thinks that it’s just her everyday wear….)

While handing out flyers, Letty runs into shrine guardian Isuzu who is INCENSED that Tsumugi-sama is being put to work. Letty assures her that it was Tsumugi’s choice. Isuzu says that Kinu-sama, the mountain god Tsumugi used to serve, has been whining for three months solid about wanting to go back to the tea shop. She grudgingly agrees to come by tomorrow.

The next day is Halloween – we’re all ready to go. Flyers have been distributed, Haru has advertised the event on her website, Hinoko has invited everyone who would listen only…

…a typhoon is coming.

Seriho insists that they be ready to go anyway, even though it’s supposed to be record-breaking rain and winds.

The next day as Isuzu and Kinu walk to the shop in a torrential downpour, Isuzu asks why, as a god, Kinu-sama doesn’t just stop the storm. Kinu says that there’s an agreement between gods that means she can’t interfere in matters not covered under her bailiwick.

BUT, Letty has no compunction about such things. After an emotional scene with a worried Tsumugi, she says that this is “her work” and flies off into the storm to clear it up and save Halloween.

Which, accompanied by cool sound effects and nice heroic background music, she does. The end is a pun – she turns the rain (ame) into candy (ame)  – and, now that I think about it, it’s a triple pun, since the cafe is “ame-iro”, amber – so Haru and Hinoko find themselves pelted with chocolate-covered marshmallows. ^_^

Tsumugi and Letty have, for them, a romantic reunion. Seriho suddenly thanks Letty – not knowing that it was indeed she who saved the day. When asked why she thanked her, Seriho comments that Letty’s cape makes her look like a black teruterubouzu. (A little ghostie charm that supposedly brings good weather.)

Seriho once again makes Sarasa speechless, Letty and Tsumugi continue to be rabu-rabu and Hinoko asks, coyly, if Haru loves her. When Haru blows a gasket, she says she’s only kidding – and she probably is.  ^_^

Isuzu and mountain god Kinu-sama arrive, all dolled up and ready to help out at the cafe for the day. To Letty’s intense distress, Seriho puts the wolf ears on her (Letty.) “Now say “growr,” says Seriho, just before Letty screams.

Sarasa ties the story up with some affectionate discussion of this happy little cafe and the wonderful friendship and love inside it. The end. ^_^

The final track is a quickie by the voice actresses with intros and brief discussions of how much fun it was to make this CD.

The one extra with this CD is a short comic in the credits booklet, by creator Fujieda Miyabi-sensei.

Like most Fujieda stories, the Yuri here is of the cute, snuggly variety. But Sarasa overheating in front of Seriho, and Letty and Tsumugi’s obvious affection is sweet and…well, sweet. :-) Ame-iro, indeed.

Ratings:

Characters – 8
Story – 7
Music/Foley – 7
Yuri – 7
Service – 1

Overall – 8

I’ve had this CD a week and already listened to it twice. ^_^

2013 Note: Without question, this is the one Drama CD I have listened to the most often of all of them I own. It never fails to make my smile. ^_^





Yuri Manga:Ameriro Koucha Kandan stories

September 5th, 2006

I’m cheating today. This is not a collection of manga I’m writing about, it’s two different stories in four different places, and two are cameos, which all happen to star the same characters. Because it *will* be a new series starting in the next Comic Yuri Hime magazine  I thought it would be fun to tell you the story as it exists currently.

The story in question tells of the women of the Ameiro Kouchakan Kandan (飴色紅茶館歓談). It begins in the book pictured above, [es] Eternal Sisters 2 anthology. On the cover are the two principles of the story, Seriho (left) and Sarasa (right.) In the ES collection, we meet Seriho who is the owner of the Ameiro Kouchakan, (loosely, the Amber Tea Pavilion.) Sarasa is a local high school student who spends an inordinate amount of time at the cafe, and asks, quite cutely if she can just work there. But Sarasa’s motive is not money – she’s in love with Seriho. Seriho reciprocates the emotion, and Sarasa comes to work at the cafe. In this story we also meet regular customers Haru – who runs some kind of freaky fortune website, and her friend/partner in mischief Hinoko. Hinoko is the obligatory goth-loli girl that one always finds in Fujieda Miyabi’s work.

The second “chapter” of this story takes was published in the extra comic inserted in the August 2006 volume of Yuri Hime. In this little omake, we are given character profiles in which we learn that Seriho, despite her youthful looks is 25, and Sarasa is 17. Huh. How ’bout that.

Tanabata is fast approaching and Seriho wants to something extra special for the cafe. They come up with a special blend of tea that they pour in a long stream (evocative of the milky way, which features in the Tanabata story.) Haru and Hinoko join the staff for the day and the four women have a successful and lively day full of customers. To thank them for their assistance Seriho offer to treate everyone for dinner. Haru and Hinoko leave first, while the others remain. Seriho tells Sarasa that, long before today, she had planned to close the cafe. Sarasa reacts strongly, protesting that people – she – loves the cafe. Seriho and Sarasa have an emotional scene, but Sarasa is successful and the cafe remains open. Phew.

The third appearance of the ladies of the Ameiro Kouchakan is Kotonoha no Miko to Kotodma no Majyo to manga. In this volume, Letty, having newly freed Tsumugi from her confinement in the shrine, takes the miko to her favorite watering hole. The big scandal here was when Tsumugi – assumably unfamiliar with ways of the outside world – expresses her love for Letty firmly and loudly. Poor Seriho almost dies of embarrassment…

And the fourth, but not at all final, appearance of the Ameriro Kouchakan is the MikoMajyo Drama CD (the one packaged with the manga in the deluxe set), in which Letty and Tsumugi once again visit, this time accompanied by the errant mountain god who has run away. Shrine guardian Isuzu is forced to drag the wayward deity back to her shrine bodily. Tsumugi’s request for Letty to open up and say “ahhh” forces Letty to confront her inner femme, and inspires Hinoko to fluster cool Haru by doing the same.

Now, to be honest – these four appearances are the ones I have, or have noticed. I have no doubt that somewhere along the line there’s some crossover with Fujieda’s other series, especially the ones I’m less familar with.

But what does exist is cute enough that I though it warranted a mention. And I bet that, once the story begins running in Yuri Hime we’ll get a collection that includes both of the first two chapters.

Here’s hoping, anyway.

No ratings, since it’s not *yet* a collection, but overall – even more adorable Yuri from Fujieda Miyabi!

BTW – Happy Birthday me. Older, as my mother says, but not at all wiser. If you’re moved to send a present, buy a book from ALC Publishing or t-shirt or mug or something from the Yuricon Shop. That’s all the present I need. ^_^





Drama CD: Kotonoha no Miko to Kotodama no Majyo to

August 11th, 2006

When you purchase the deluxe edition of Fujieda Miyabi’s Kotonoha no Miko to Kotodama no Majyo to, it comes with a Drama CD. As I promised in my review of the MikoMajyo manga, today I will be reviewing the Drama CD. Let me begin by summing up with “Squeeee!” ^_^

The CD begins with Letty the witch (Nabatame Hitomi/ Hanazono Shizuma from Strawberry Panic) and Tsumugi the miko (Nota Mamiko/Toudo Shimako from Maria-sama ga Miteru) walking along. Tsumugi’s outside world skills are still a little rough, so when Letty asks her to stay put for a second, Tsumugi finds herself swept up in the waves of people walking by, becoming separated from Letty. Letty comes running to the rescue, thanks to their red string of fate. Tsumugi asks to get a drink of something, so Letty gives her some money and *she* promises to stay put until Tsumugi comes back.

Unbeknowst to her, Letty is being watched…this time the mysterious watcher is not Isuzu, as in the manga, but the god of the shrine herself! And she’s still wearing Tsumugi’s body and voice. (Since now Isuzu is her main squeeze, everyone’s happy with the choice. Except Letty…). Kami-sama jumps Letty and pretends to be a *very* daring Tsumugi when she openly propositions her to spend some time getting to know each other better – at a hotel. Letty’s about to cave when the real Tsumugi returns. She’s pleased as punch to see the god she served for so long, and naive – or confident- enouigh to not be bothered by the fact that she and Letty seem to be awfully close. Kami-sama takes being busted with good grace and decides to accompany her former miko and her girlfriend for some refreshments.

Which takes them to the Ameiro Koucha Kandan…again. (I *told* you that you’d be hearing alot about this place!) The god introduces herself as Tsumugi’s twin older sister, Kinu. Letty splutters adorably through this brazen lie. The proprietor of the the cafe, Seriho (Nogami Yukana/Yukishiro Honoko from Futari ha PreCure, Nakanotani Mina from Air Master) and her employee Sarasa (Mizuki Nana/ Fate Testarossa from Lyrical Nanoha, Shinobu from Shinobuden/Ninja Nonsense) are immediately charmed by Kinu-oneesama, while Letty is clearly trying to keep herself from leaping across the table and strangling the mountain god. Just as their cake arrives, however, Isuzu (Watanabe Akeno/Fuho from I Me My Strawberry Egg) crashes in and drags the god back to the shrine.

This leaves Letty and Tsumugi with an extra piece of cake to share. Letty tells Tsumugi to say “ah” and feeds her. When Tsumugi attempts to return the favor, Letty falls apart. She explains that it’s not really her nature to be the one fed – or pursued – and um, she tends to do the feeding, and the pursuing, you know. Tsumugi thinks that Letty’s butchiness is adorable, but proceeds to feed her anyway. ^_^ Isuzu pops back in to remind Letty to take care of Tsumugi, then runs off after her own, infinitely more difficult, girl.

Impressed by Tsumugi and Letty feeding each other, the two friends and regular customers of the Ameiro Koucha, computer whiz Haru (Asakawa Yuu/Sakaki-san from Azumanga Daioh) and goth-loli loli Hinoka (Koyama Kimiko) decide to feed each other too, thuse giving the cafe that special yuri love-love feeling all-around. (Wait until I get a chance to discuss the women of the Ameiro Koucha Kandan in detail….)

The last track is once again Letty and Tsumugi walking together. Tsumugi is, as always, glad to be with Letty anywhere, doing anything. Letty manages to pull her butchy self together, mentioning that the god, that is, Kinu, had sort of propositioned her…and wouldn’t it be nice, really, if the two of them went somewhere to become a little closer. Tsumugi agrees happily. The conversation devloves into excruciatingly sweet nothings, and Letty ends it all by saying that she is looking forward to being together with Tsumugi, wherever, forever.

Ratings:

Story – 7
Characters – 8
Voice Acting – 7
Yuri – 8
Service – 1 on principle

This is yet another goofy grin-inducing thing from Fujieda Miyabi. Totally worth getting the deluxe version on MikoMajyo for…and yet another terrific way to practice those Japanese listening skills!

I’m told the bundled manga and Drama CD are sold out. BUT, when I’ve had that happen, I just keep the order around in my Amazon JP inbox, because it often comes back in a second shipment. Don’t give up, just yet. :-)

It looks like there’ll be an upcoming full-length Drama CD for this series. Here’s a link to buy the CD “Magrigal Halloween”: MikoMajyo Drama CD You can be sure that I’ll be getting it.





Yuri Manga: Kotonoha no Miko to Kotodama no Majyo to

August 9th, 2006

From the creator of Iono-sama Fanatics, comes an equally adorable, equally yuri-riffic series, Kotonoha no Miko to Kotodama no Majyo to, by Fujieda Miyabi. (Transliteration supplied on the book itself.)

MikoMajyo, as Fujieda refers to it in his afterword, ran in Yuri Shimai, then Yuri Hime magazines, and has now been collected into a single volume. There are two versions – the manga only and the deluxe version which comes with a Drama CD. If you know anything about me, you’ll be able to guess that I bought the deluxe version. A review of the Drama CD will be forthcoming. ^_^

As with the other Yuri Hime Comics volumes, I’m going to review this story as if we have never read it before. Some of you may have not…although you absolutely should.

The story begins with European witch Letty, complete with broom and big pointy hat, arriving at a small shrine in Japan that is hidden away by a magic barrier. Letty penetrates the barrier without difficulty and finds that a lone priestess, Tsumugi, tends the shrine. Something about Tsumugi’s plight moves Letty and she takes it upon herself to free the miko from the magical ties that bind her to the shrine. Tsumugi finds herself immediately attracted to Letty and tells her so unhesitatingly. Letty is loathe to free the miko and leave her without normal life skills, so she agrees to take Tsumugi with her. To save Tsumugi from getting lost, Letty conjures up a magical string to connect them. Tsumugi says her favorite color is red, so they are bound by a red thread of fate…and how embarrassed is Letty to find out what that means in Japan! But Tsumugi isn’t fazed – she feels an instant connection with Letty, Letty’s pronouncement that the kiss they shared was just so the magic could work notwithstanding.

The first order of the day is to get refreshments. They just happen to stop at a cafe which you will hear alot more about in the upcoming days – the Ameiro Koucha Pavilion. (The characters from this story were originated for [es]Eternal Sisters 2 and will be the main focus of the new series from Fujieda-sensei for upcoming Yuri Hime issues.) Tsumugi embarrasses the bejeebus out of Letty by happily, loudly and publicly saying that she likes the witch. Letty rationalizes it as a comment from a child, since Tsumugi is essentially a babe in the woods when it comes to personal interaction.

Miko and witch head over to what I can only guess must be a cross-over with another Fujieda series. At a stab, I bet it’s the crowd from Twinkle Saber Nova, Fujieda’s other ongoing manga series. I haven’t read it, yet. (9/5/06 note: Wrong. The designers are all from Alice Quartet, yet *another* original series Fujieda does. It dawned on me when I was going through my Drama CDs and found the first Alice Quartet volume. I had forgotten about this series entirely… it’s about five – yes, I know – clothing designers. Hence Letty and Tsumugi coming to their shop to get clothes.) In any case, Letty and Tsumugi trade in witch and miko costumes for regular street clothes and proceed to go out for a walk. Despite Letty’s reticence, Tsumugi continues to press her case for liking Letty, until Letty is forced to admit that maybe her feelings are not like a child’s. Tsumugi confides she has very little memory of her past. We see that they are being followed by a mysterious someone, even as they are growing closer.

While they are out in a boat on a lake a mysterious wave soaks them. The mysterious someone mysteriously communicates that she’s found Tsumugi and will watch her until she can get her back to the shrine. Mysteriously.

The two women find themselves in a hotel, where Tsumugi once again makes a strong case for her feelings. Letty thaws enough to allow them to share a bed platonically, even giving Tsumugi a good night kiss. (From my perspective, at this point, Letty’s just playing hard to get – I’ve never in my entire life rolled over on someone like that to give them an innocent, chaste goodnight kiss. But…more on that later in the Drama CD review. ^_^)

The next morning Tsumugi seems to have developed a nagging cough. Throughout the day, her condition worsens, until the mysterious someone arrives and blames it on Letty! Turns out that the mysterious someone is a servant of the shrine, Suzushiro Isuzu. Isuzu tells Letty that Tsumugi’s well-being requires her being at the shrine, and Letty having released her is what is killing her. Tsumugi regains consciousness and tells Letty her unhappy story – in order to save her life, her mother gave her to the god of the shrine as a servant. While she eventually got used to it, as a child the abandonment weighed heavily on her.

Letty is determined to save Tsumugi from this fate, and decides to have it out with the shrine’s god. In a magical handwave, she is once again the witch and hops on her broom to save the woman she loves. Tsumugi comments that she never expected her knight on a horse to be a witch on a broom. Isuzu is shocked, but a little impressed with Letty’s skills.

I won’t give away the ending, which you already know if you’ve read my reviews of Yuri Hime anyway, but trust me – the girl gets the girl. ^_^ And she does it with some style, too!

Ratings:
Art – 8
Story – 8
Characters – 8
Yuri – 8
Service – 1 on principle

Overall – 8

Once again, Fujieda Miyabi-sensei comes through with an original work that doesn’t at all read like every other yuri manga ever. It is unrelentingly cute without ever getting cloying. The ending is solid – and cute – with a great lead-in to the Drama CD!

A definite must-have for Yuri manga fans.