Archive for the Series Category


This Week in Yuri – February 14, 2008

February 14th, 2009

Happy Valentine’s Day! It’s been a decent week for Yuri, we have lots of stuff to be all love-love about, so away we go!

Yuri Manga

Erin is pleased to tell you all that Aoi Hana (Sweet Blue Flowers) Volume 4 will be out in April! (I know you are all loving the scanlations, but allow me to remind you that scans don’t pay bills, so if you *can* please buy the actual manga, so the artist that draws it and the company that publishes it make actual money on it.)

And for your shopping convenience, the Yuricon Shop now has entries for the upcoming Volume 2 of Octave, Yuri Hime Wildrose Volume 3 and Manga no Tskurikata (a story about girl who wants to become a manga artist and, since yuri is so popular now decides to draw that.)

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Yuri Anime

The big news for the week was that Right Stuf has announced the license for Maria Watches Over Us Season 4. I wonder what gewgaw we’ll get with the 4th season? :-) And by the way – Yay! The trailer for the fourth season can be seen here. Not so crucial to them as are actually watching the season, but fun, nonetheless.

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Other Yuri News

y_y-san reports by Twitter that the Girls Love Festival doujinshi event this month was a success and that there are plans for a second GLF event to be held in Japan in September. That makes three such Yuri-specific events that have been held in Japan more than once. Hopefully one day I will be able to actually make one.

Grisznak just wants everyone to enjoy this Yuri-themed AMV that melds the timeless, classic sound of Elvis and the timeless, classic romance of Yumi and Sachiko. :-)

And Sylwia wants all Polish Yuri fans to know that the Comix Grrrlz website is relaunching with a shiny new look, and they plan on adding more Yuri info and materials, and more articles about lesbians in comics. Very cool, I think. I’m always impressed by the Polish Yuri fandom. :-)

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Other News

Follow this blog on your Kindle! If you want to get your Yuri news and reviews hot off the press on your shiny new Kindle Reader, take a look at Kindlefeeder, a nifty way to get your favorite RSS feeds delivered directly to your Kindle.

The Media Blasters store in Secaucus, NJ is officially open! Serge and I stopped by on a lark today and found the store fully functional, full of friends and we weren’t the first customers! Drop by – here’s the map of the location – they are listed as #5 “Rareflix.” And here are directions to the Harmon Cove Outlets. (We talked again about a Yuri Monogatari 6 launch party in April – looks like we’ll be doing that, so keep an eye out for details!)

Also for our NY/NJ/CT area folks, a friend of Rica Takashima’s, Yasushi Tamaki, is offering Japanese language classes in New York City this spring using one of the hottest, most brilliant Japanese manga around. If you’re in the area, give it a try! Here’s the info:

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NEW YORK JAPANESE LANGUAGE SCHOOL
www.ny-japanese.com | [email protected]

Learn Japanese with MANGA!

The New York Japanese language school is offering a SPECIAL CLASS! Learn Japanese and Japanese culture with the newest manga, “Saint Young Men.”

Beginners are welcome!
Please apply by email at [email protected]

Date:Special Course1 (Wednesdays):February 18th, 25th, March 4th &11th
7-8pm (total 4hours)

Special Course2 (Saturdays)February 21st, 1-3pm &February 28th
2-4pm(total 4hours)

Location:CAP2118 W.18th St, 6f l. NYC 10011

Free trial Lesson!

Text Book:Saint Young Men (聖★おにいさん)In this popular comic Christ and Buddha enjoy a comical holiday in Tokyo in the 21st century. This is a hugely comic in Japan which feature the funny adventure of these two friends as they experience Japanese culture on their zany vacation.

Tuition:One Lesson $20/a hour (Including material)

Other Services:The Survival Japanese Class for Beginners
New class starts in March!

Private Lesson in Manhattan

Learn Japanese one-on-one at a coffee shop in Manhattan!

Any questions? Send us email!
NEW YORK JAPANESE LANGUAGE SCHOOL at CAP21(18 W.18th St, 6fl. NYC 10011)
[email protected]





My-Hime Manga, Volume 2 (English)

February 11th, 2009

The cast of characters grows, the battle rages and, unexpectedly, there’s at least one something that we can twist into a Yuri-ish thing in Volume 2 of My HiME.

In Volume 1, as you may remember Tate, the least interesting character since Tenchi learned that a peaceful life will never be his, with his magical ability to call disaster and calamity from the heavens down upon himself and everyone around him. By which I mean he’s the most important person in the story.

After formally introducing Nao, Mikoto and Akane, an inexplicable duel pops up between Natsuki and Haruka in which they are each meant to represent their own team of HiMEs but is, in some more nefarious way, the by-product of Chairwoman Mashiro’s meddling. Nagi appears, has his name spelled two different ways, is waved over everyone’s head as a threat, then disappears. And finally, with a lot of sound and fury, Midori arrives.

(Thanks god for Akane, who remains the closest to a normal human. It’s good to know that at least one HiME isn’t completely broken.)

Shizuru’s affection for Natsuki is set on the back burner of the story, taken out only to provide a light Yuri coating to the two panels they spend in each other’s company.

But the big fight between Haruka and Natsuki offers a pleasant dollop of implied Yuri, when it quickly becomes a battle between Natsuki and Mai, who can’t play nice and share Tate, and Haruka and her own beloved key and another HiME in her own right, Yukino. Since we’ve already seen some less-than-subtle sexual implication about HiMEs and keys, we can draw our own conclusion about Haruka and Yukino. I’m sure you all know what my conclusion is. ^_^

In a few places in this volume, I found myself completely befuddled by either the story or the translation of the story but, after a moment, when I realized that I really honestly don’t care at *all* what the story itself is, it was a fine volume. Good luck if you do actually care what’s going on. My takeaway was that the writer didn’t really know what was going on, either and was making it up as he went along. ^_^ (My wife says, “Good for him for filling a book with derivative fluff!”)

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 6
Characters – 6
Yuri – 3
Service – 5

Overall – 6

Many thanks to today’s sponsor and brand new Okazu Hero, Katherine H.! Your heroic efforts will be eternally memorialized on the Okazu Hero Roll – and email me for your very own Okazu Hero Badge!





Yuri Manga: Maka-Maka, Volume 2 (English)

February 6th, 2009

makamaka2In Volume 2 of Maka-Maka, Jun and Nene continue on their happy adventure together having intimate contact in public places, and becoming closer on emotional level.

Nene and Jun are happiest together, although they both have boyfriends. These, we are told repeatedly, suck as lovers. (We can probably take for granted that they suck as human beings, as well.) But that’s okay, because they have each other. And in between getting fondled at a restaurant or in a clothes store changing room, Nene is letting Jun touch even more intimate parts of her emotional life. Jun, very much the tachi of this couple acts, from time to time like she takes Nene for granted, but she also opens up to the other woman in a way she would probably never do with a boyfriend.

We learn about their respective childhoods, their first time with a man, their hopes and dreams, their fears and weaknesses.

But mostly, we watch them have sex. ^_^

Depending on your particular set of turn-ons, very hot sex.

As with the first volume, the reproduction is top notch. Color covers, protective obis that hide secret covers on both sides (hint: in the shower, they’re nekkid) double-sided insert poster and excellent reproduction of the internal color pages – all reproduced beautifully – with metallic inks on the cover even. The translation is smooth, makes perfect sense and gives each character a voice of her own. Phew.

Interestingly, Maka-Maka was listed on the manga.about.com poll for best josei series. I spoke to Deb about it because it is not really josei at all. It was drawn by a man, for a men’s magazine as an adult comic for men. You know – the whole lesbian sex/male gaze thing. But let’s face it, the distinctions of genre that are absolutely rigid in Japan (god help you as an adult male buying a magazine for young women, or vice versa) fail completely when manga reaches the market here. At least half the people who bought this book were women, likely more than half. It’s being sold as a “Yuri” manga here, not an “adult manga for men,” which makes me think that if the western manga market survives this economy, I *strongly* recommend rethinking the whole shoujo/shounen/josei/seinen genre scheme completely. I think western publishers should focus on subject genre (scifi/fantasy/mecha/guns/romance/sex) and age appropriateness, which is bollocks but necessary here. In any case, I agree with Deb – list it on the josei list because here in the west, at least, it’s a manga as much for woman as it for men.

The end of this volume is particularly Yuri-fan friendly, as Nene and Jun make a very public statement about Sex. Life. And Communication.

I can’t tell you why exactly, but for whatever reason I like the English adaptation better than the original. Frank, you did a fabulous job. If there were an adult manga award, I’d give it to Media Blasters for Maka-Maka. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 8
Characters – 9
Story – 9
Yuri – 9
Service – 9

Overall – 9

When I read this volume originally, I remember being turned off by the excess of bodily fluids, but reading it this time, it didn’t strike me that way at all. No idea why.

And let me once again thank Media Blasters for the first copy of this book off the printer. It doesn’t mean I’ll give you a better review, but you do get a bigger smile of thanks!





Yuri Manga: Gunsmith Cats Burst, Volume 5

February 4th, 2009

Finally, the ending that Gunsmith Cats always deserved.

**Warning: This review is one big spoiler, so don’t read it if you don’t want to know how the series ends.**

In Volume 4 of GSC Burst, we were treated to the return of Goldie Musou, Mafia boss and one of my personal favorite Evil Psycho Lesbians. After many gunshots, chases, hand grenades and other typical mayhem, Goldie regained her memory, which had been lost (a decade ago our time) after she had had her own drug administered to her in large, brain-killing quantities.

In Volume 5, some time has passed and Rally is wrapping up a few things, as she prepares to close Gunsmith Cats and leave Chicago. May and Ken are just returning from a honeymoon in Japan. Loli fans will be pleased to wallow in a chapter where May tries on many stereotypical cosplay outfits, as long as they don’t think about why she has them in the first place.

Rally hasn’t heard from Misty – except through a short, tense message from Roy, in which the former thief expressed her desire to not see Rally for a while. While out in town, Rally accidentally sees Misty, who consents to at least talk to her. Misty explains that she’s living with Goldie now. Rally’s asbolutely horrified, sure that Misty is being brainwashed, but she says no, it’s honestly her own choice.

We see that Misty, Goldie and Goldie’s maid – with whom Misty had struck up a pretty friendly sort of relationship in Volume 4 – are living together in a cheerful threesome. Misty’s big issue is her concern that Goldie might be using her as a replacement for Rally. Despite Goldie’s insistence that Misty is Misty, her fears are confirmed when she finds a secret room in Goldie’s mansion that is clearly a shrine to the bounty hunter.

Becky obtains some information that leads her to believe that Goldie is selling a powerful new drug. Rally and May decide to rescue Misty, despite the former thief showing up and telling them flat out that that she does not need – or want – to be rescued. A lot of running around goes on – utimately we learn that yes, Goldie is selling a new drug, it is not terribly harmful and may actually be beneficial and honest-to-god, Misty is with Goldie by choice. (There’s also some Bean Bandit stuff going on through all this, but he bores me, so I am skipping it. Here’s the synopsis: Bean drives, car chase, guns, someone throwing up, bad guys lose, Bean’s chin remains pointy.)

May consults with the madam at her former brothel, who explains that Misty is an adult and they should butt out. May thinks back on everything she knows about Misty and realizes that they’ve know since the beginning that she’s a lesbian, and if you think about it, this really is none of their business.

Rally gives up trying to rescue Misty, who calls and asks if Rally will meet her. They go out to dinner, where Misty says that she was worried about Goldie’s feelings. Rally asks, aren’t you doing the same thing – using Goldie as a replacement for me? Misty agrees that she is, and has come to a place of balance with herself about it. She really, honestly loved Rally and wanted her, but Rally was never interested. So, she has Goldie and she’s pretty happy with that – after all, Goldie is a powerful leader, filthy rich and a good lover. And, she admits, she’s a thief, from a long line of criminals. Being at Goldie’s side isn’t a bad fit for her.

As she and Rally part, Misty asks for one favor, which Rally correctly guesses is a goodbye kiss. (It is made very plain in this book that Rally, despite what most fans have assumed, has never been clueless about Misty’s feelings.) She and Misty kiss for three pages – Rally even goes so far as to grope her ass a bit (maybe just getting a better grip? ^_^) It was a hell of a goodbye kiss. They part with a wave and a wish for the best.

The epilogue shows us Goldie, still a Mafia don, and Misty, living together. May and Ken with a child, Roy moved up to a nice position in a pleasant part of town; Becky has switched her info skills to the more lucrative world of finance and nothing at all changes with Bean.

Rally packs her bag and heads off to parts unknown to work on her shooting/people hunting skills, maybe to return to Chicago one day.

The End.

I could not have asked for better.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Characters – 9
Story – 9
Yuri – 6
Service – 5

Overall – 9

I think we can safely put the period on this series. But my hat’s off to Sonoda for allowing us a glimpse of what we’ve always known about Rally and for Misty and Goldie together as an actual lesbian couple.

Here’s a toast to the recovery of the economy and to Dark Horse eventually putting out Volumes 4 and 5 in English.

And thanks to Nettogrof for pointing out that the flag that was puzzling me in the manga is the flag of the City of Chicago.





Maria-sama ga Miteru New Year’s Eve Event Report

February 1st, 2009

Today’s post is a report from Bruce Pregger, a long-time Yuricon staffer, one of my best lackeys and a very good friend. We’ve been in the habit of visiting Japan at New Year’s with him, for Comiket and shrine visits. This year he had to go by himself – which makes this a very good time to thank him from the bottom of my heart for all the crap he picked up and lugged home for me. I love every single thing. Bruce – you’ll find yourself (somewhat belatedly) on the Okazu Superhero roll.

On New Year’s Eve this past year, there was a Maria-sama ga Miteru event held at movie theaters country-wide. Happily for all of us, Bruce was able to go. Here is his report:

As I was about to leave on a holiday trip to Tokyo, Erica informed me about a Maria-sama ga Miteru New Year’s Eve Special Event, taking place in connection with the start of the fourth season. The event was going to be held at all Warner-Mycal Cinemas throughout Japan. It was something I knew I had to try to see. As luck would have it one of these cinemas was in the suburban town of Tobu-Nerima, a relatively easy train ride from my Ikebukuro hotel. So on New Year’s Eve I headed out through the blue holiday lights to see how Yumi and Sachiko would fare in a Warner Brothers setting. The cinema was on the top floor of a department store, along with five or six restaurants, just one floor up from the smiling tofu furniture. The event ticket was 1300 yen, a little over $14. Next to the theater there was a concession area selling mostly Warner Brothers character goods, but in the center was a kiosk stocked with all kinds of Marimite items. It was a breathtaking sight. Up until then I had found dreadfully few Marimite goods anywhere in Tokyo. So I happily piled armfuls of the stuff onto the counter. To her credit the woman behind the register reacted calmly, as though hyperventilating American Marimite fans show up in Tobu-Nerima all the time.

After cheerfully taking all my money she inquired whether I had gotten my cup. Cup? She led me around to the the drink counter, where my ticket entitled me to a limited edition Marimite New Year’s Eve Special Event lidded drink cup. The lids came in yellow and red. I don’t know what happened to the white ones. On entering the theater I was handed a pair of 3-D glasses. The special event was getting more special by the minute.

The theater was about half full, maybe 150 people, approximately 80% male, every one clutching a pink cup. The theater manager came out and welcomed us to the event. The first part of the show was the premier of the new season’s first episode. It was great seeing it on the big screen, though the opening was startling – the song bright and snappy, Yumi and friends hopping in and out of magic portals, white sailor collars fluttering wildly…. But the episode itself was back down to earth. And the ending credits were exceptionally charming. Next came a video greeting from Kana Ueda and Miki Ito, the voice actresses for Yumi and Sachiko, who asked us to put on our glasses as they mugged in 3-D for the camera. Then came the final presentation. This was a long music video made from clips of the first two seasons that had been fully three-dimensionalized. It followed the three rose families in turn, with music from the series. It was wild. The audience was simultaneously brushing away a tear and ducking out-thrust rosaries. And I have to state that Sei is every bit as fun in three dimensions as in two. It was wonderful, and at the end I thought some applause would be appropriate, but the audience enjoyed it all in silence. When the lights came on the manager reappeared, thanking us for attending, and urging us to purchase even more items at the concession stand. It was all a tremendous amount of fun, and a great way to end the year.

Erica again: Bruce, no doubt the waves of jealousy and envy will batter you appropriately. But thank you so very, very much for my teen-weeny little mascot figurines and the towels and the report! Next year in Tokyo.

Before I forget, today was the Girls Love doujinshi event in Japan. I’ll see if I can’t find a report on it to share. ^_^