Archive for the Yuri Anime Category


Various Yuri Anime

January 15th, 2004

Traces of Yuri

Part 1

In reading around the web, I often come across mentions of series in which there is supposed to be yuri of some kind or other, subtextual or not. About half the time I agree. Here’s a quick overview of two such series, one on either side of the fence:


Popotan:
This is a reasonably inoffensive anime adaptation of a hentai game into about three sisters and their maid who take a lot of baths, show their underwear a lot and play dress up. As you can see, I find it simply fascinating. If any of these the above, breasts and/or lolicon are your particular fetish, then its probably a good choice. Since none of them are mine*, and since I saw only a bare trace of yuri (the youngest sister liking “squishy” things, including her older sister’s breasts
does not, IMHO, count as yuri) then I’ll have to call this one a “not really.”

It just dawned on me that I called a breast/loli/bathing/panty-shot filled anime “inoffensive.” How jaded am I? ^_^;

The plot of Popotan is initially silly, but becomes serious – sisters Ai, Mai and Mii, and their maid, Meah, travel from place to place (and ultimately, we learn, through time itself) to look for someone or thing. To find this someone or thing, they talk to the “Popotan,” their cutesy word for dandelions. (The Japanese word for dandelions is tanpopo and “-tan” as an honorific is a silly name ending, with extra cutesiness. Think Amy-wamie, or Billy-willy.)

In the course of their travels, the sisters run into and become close to several people in different places, but leaving those people becomes increasingly difficult and emotionally draining for them. They move through time and learn that their friendships had far-reaching consequences; some positive, but other outcomes are horribly tragic. Eventually, when they meet the person they were lookig for (a kind of princess of the popotan) they are given a choice – do they wish to continue to travel, or split up and stay in one time and place? Both will mean separation from those they love.

I won’t give away the ending, because while this isn’t high art, it’s not the worst thing in the world to watch, either, if a little manipulative. :-)

Is there yuri? Well, if you squint, or ar desperate to find it, then you can easily make Mai’s friendship with Konami into a yuri relationship. It’s portrayed as shinyuu;  – a very close friendship with bonds that last long after the girls part company. Between they way Mai and Konami connect so deeply, and a few moments of touching closeness (and close touching,) if you really wanted, you could see yuri there. I’m sure there’s a load of doujinshi out there somewhere with the two of them. On the whole, I think there are many series with more yuri than this one.

One last note: Beware – the opening music is horribly sticky. Once you get any of it in your head it won’t go away. It’s weeks later and I’m still singing it.

Ratings: Art – 7 out of 10; Character Designs – 8 out of 10, there’s something for everyone here. Story – 5 out of 10. It has moments, but that’s about it. Music – 5 out of 10. Yuri – 3 out of 10. Overall – 5 out of 10. Not bad for a H-game into anime, but not great, either.

As always, visit Yuricon, voted one of the Top 25 Anime-related sites on the web, for more shoujoai and yuri in anime and manga.





A First Look at Maria-sama ga Miteru Anime

January 12th, 2004

Yuricon makes the Animefringe.com Top 25!

Congratulations to the Yuricon website – we were named #22 in Animefringe.com’s annual Top 25 web poll. Yuricon is the *first* con-related web page to ever be so named. And considering the other ranked sites (Bittorrent, Anime on DVD, Anime News Network…) I think we have a lot to be proud of!

A First Look at Marimite

This past weekend, I screened the first episode of Maria-sama ga Miteru the anime. I’ve been following the manga, and there are some small differences – and again, these are different from the original novels, or so I’m told. That having been said, here’s my first impression:

Marimite is not an action-filled anime. It is quiet and deliberate. The tone is set at the very beginning when our heroine, Yumi, tells us that the girls of Liliian Girls Academy are expected to be neat, speak politely and move slowly. Set within this frame of contemplation and good manners, any extreme – not matter how trivial – seems out of synch. Sudden movements, a raised voice, a firm touch…all these things stand out as being not usual, out of tune with the rest of the school. Because of the focus on deliberate movement, there is a tension in each scene, that can’t really be accounted for by the apparent situation. (The tension feels similar to that of the sketching scene in the Utena movie, when Utena is sketching Anthy in the Tower…Anthy’s movements are *so* deliberate, that they feel symbolic. The eyecatches are also consciously reminiscent of Utena: the theme heavy with violin, and a flower-filled frame. Trust me – its *really* obvious.)

While I have no doubt that the plot will resolve happily, this anime is driven by character, not plot. The plot revolves around manipulation and emotional connection in a girl’s school… in other words, it’s about nothing. :-) The thing that will bring viewers back will be the interaction between the characters, the growth of their relationships, and that tension I mentioned above. Do not expect any great climaxes of action…but do expect a few emotional outbursts. ^_^ This is a truly shoujo series.

As an anime, this series as defintely the love-child of Oniisama E (Brother, Dear Brother) and Utena. Sitting somewhere between the strong flower imagery of Utena and the emotion of the Sorority storyline of Oniisama E, lies the outwardly sedate Marimite. Ultimately, like most classic shoujo, Marimite is about an average girl who, by circumstance or fate, becomes involved with the Great Ones of her school.

Whatever happens, I think it’ll be an interesting ride. ^_^

For more conversation, art scans and info about Marimite, and other Yuri anime and manga, join us at the Yuricon Mailing List.





Maria-sama ga Miteru: The Most Eagerly Anticipated Yuri Anime/Manga of 2004

December 30th, 2003

Maria-sama ga Miteru (Virgin Mary Watches Over Us) based on the novels by Konno Oyuki, has Japanese lesbians hopping with excitement and anticipation. Marimite, as it is called in Japan, is actually a series of 12 novels written about girls who attend Lillian Girls’ Academy, a Catholic school at, roughly, the beginning of the 20th century. Similar in its flowery, talcum-scented feel to Yoshiya Nobuko’s TwoVirgins in the Attic, Marimite is a fairly straightforward story about love between girls. In other words, almost ten years after Sailor Moon brought us Uranus and Neptune and five years after Anthy and Utena, the new yuri poster children for the 21st century will be Sachiko and Yumi, from Marimite. How do I know this? Because for decades, Sachiko and Yumi have been an insanely popular doujinshi pairing in Japan…and that was before the anime and manga were even created.

Here’s a *very* basic overview of the plot:

Lillian Academy’s Student Council is call the Mountain Lily Council. (Note the ubiquitous lily imagery…) They all live in a house called the Lily Mansion. The Council is composed of three girls, each of whom takes a flower title: Rosa Gigantea (white); Rosa Chinensis (red); Rosa Foetida (yellow).

Each Rosa can take a junior, referred to as “Rosa XXX En Bouton.” Each En Bouton is allowed to pick a junior, referred to as “Rosa XXX En Bouton Petite Soeur.” The usual pattern is a senior student as Rosa, a second-year student as En Bouton and a first-year student as Petite Soeur.” You can see this easily on the character chart on the Mariamite anime site. The procedure for asking someone to be your junior is to very formally address them with, “Please accept my rosary.” Not surprisingly, this leads to a very romantic/adoration-filled relationship between each girl on the Council.

The Rosa Foetida is Torii Eriiko, her En Bouton is Hasekura Rei. Rei is ultra-cool and unflappable and she finds Yumi (the heroine) adorable. Her Petite Soeur is Shimatsu Yoshino, a very sweet and shy-type girl.

The Rosa Gigantea is Satou Sei – another uber-cool character, with a
great personality. The En Bouton for Gigantea is a first-year, a very perceptive and forthright (despite her delicate appearance) girl named Toudo Shimako. There is no Petite Soeur in this hierarchy, because Shimako is a first-year student.

The Rosa Chinensis is Mizuno Youko – she seems like a really solid person, with a teeny bit of a mischievous nature. Her En Bouton is Ogasawara Sachiko, a moody and mysterious girl. Sachiko does not like many things – including men, ginkgoes and sakura. She is reticent about herself, and in many ways distant, but determined in her desire to have Yumi as her Petite Soeur.

The heroine of the story, Fukuzawa Yumi, is a cute first-year student at Lillian Academy. She has always admired Sachiko but, when Sachiko asks her to become her little sister, Yumi declines. When pressed for a reason, she herself isn’t sure, but she knows that something is not right. As the story progresses, she realizes that her feelings for Sachiko are deeper than admiration but…

The plot of this story has no major conflicts – it’s a warm, fuzzy look at a developing relationship, a complex and romantic courting ritual and a hothouse environment designed to create intense, romantic relationships between girls. Just *exactly* what yuri fans need. :-)

The official Marimite website has some lovely art – and its minimialism gives you an idea of the feel of the story. :-) The official anime site, as mentioned above, has a nice character chart and will, eventually, have some other features. And, lastly, here’s an anime trailer that gives you a really wonderful idea of what we’re in for!

All in all, I’m thinking this is going to be 10 out of 10 for pure “S”. For more news, manga synopses, and lots of enthusiasm join the Yuricon Mailing List and share the excitement!





Yuri Anime: ROD The TV

December 4th, 2003

By far and away, the standout anime on Japanese TV this season has got to be R.O.D. The TV.

R.O.D. (this time it stands for Read or Dream) is the television anime sequel to Read or Die, the three-episode OVA. Amazingly, R.O.D. the TV is a melding of the OVA, the Light Novels and original R.O.D. manga story-lines  -something that seems unlikely considering how unrelated they were, but is executed in the most astonishingly competent way.

ROD the TV begins four years after the OVA. Yomiko Readman, aka The Paper, has been missing for the past four years. Sumiregawa Nenene, the author that Yomiko so admired in the original R.O.D. manga, has fallen into a slump, at least in part because of Yomiko’s absence. Where in the original manga Nenene was a hyperactive, over-achieving and slightly callous young author, the 20-year old Nenene is far more mature, and more than a little melancholy.

The series begins as Nenene visits Hong Kong to be present for the opening of a movie based on one of her novels. Because there is some concern for her safety, she is assigned three rather scattered young women as her “bodyguards.” In an action-filled and very well-crafted episode, these three sisters turn out to be paper users, just like the missing Yomiko. The first episode looks and sounds like a James Bond movie (a feeling accentuated by the three sisters being named after three popular female HK action movie actresses.)

In the end, the three sisters, quiet, butchy Maggie, flighty Michelle and cynical Anita return to Japan with Nenene to be her bodyguards. At which point the truly most amazing transformation occurs – the entire anime shifts gears.

It took me a while to figure out what was going on. From high-powered, intense action in the first episode, the second appears to be written by a completely different group altogether. Then, bizarrely, so does the third…and the fourth episodes…at which point I realized just what was going on. The episodes switch back and forth between shounen and shoujo style writing. In the shounen episodes, we follow the efforts of the three sisters, as they battle vampires, adventurers and opportunists to retrieve rare books for the mysterious company “Dokusensha.” In the shoujo episodes, we follow the sisters and their relationship with Nenene,and Japan in general. Each of these episodes reads like a different kind of book – one a romance, one a suspense novel, etc…

Somewhere about episode eight I realized that this series is, by far and away, the most finely crafted anime I’d ever seen, in terms of writing. As we learn that Dokusensha isn’t what it seems, we are reintroduced to some old friends, Joker and Wendy, who may not be our friends this time, and introduced to new ones like Junior, a mysterious young boy who shares the phasing ability Nancy, aka Miss Deep, had in the OVA. And all through this, every episode is filled with the spirit of Yomiko who affects this series so strongly by her absence, that one is literally on the edge of one’s seat every time. Even the use of music is breathtaking in this series.

So, where’s the Yuri, you ask? Everywhere. Nenene claims she is not “in love” with Yomiko, but her behavior belies the fact. It’s obvious to anyone who has ever had an absent lover that she is, in fact, very in love with Yomiko. But that’s not all – the three sisters have very ambiguous sexuality, but their sensuality is obvious. Nenene picks on butchy Maggie constantly in ways that one could consider Yuri fan service.

But the real relationship in the series is left for Anita, the youngest of the sisters. In the beginning, Anita seems asif she’ll be no more than another annoying young girl character, but its not long before the viewer comes to realize that she is, in fact, the star of the series…R.O.D. is, quite literally, all about her. Anita is enrolled in a local school and almost immediately she and Shiishi Hisami
become friends. Their relationship is very real and very sweet and fills at least one entire episode with smiles and nods for us Yuri fans.

But here’s the kicker…the series is only half over.

So far, the first 13 episodes of ROD the TV have been *amazing*. So catch up, with the rest of us and sit down with your popcorn to find out just what this brilliant team of writers will do for the second half!

Ratingss:
Animation – uneven
Music – 9
Character – 10
Story – 10
Yuri – 7

Overall – 12 ;-)

Watch the best new series this season. Then join the Yuricon Mailing List and rant and rave about it with us. :-)





Yuri Anime: Stellvia of the Universe

November 4th, 2003

If you haven’t yet seen Stellvia of the Universe…you should. It’s a space opera, plain and simple, with some of the typical cliches of the genre: threat from outer space, humans bonding together to confront the universal foe, young boy and girl become heroes, etc., etc. However, this hardly describes the complexity, not only of the characters in Stellvia, but also the plot.

The initial plot is resolved by episode 10, leaving the viewer with the feeling that either something big is going to happen, or that the writers were even lazier than usual. Luckily, the former is true. A second plot structure develops which is completely *unlike* the first, and focuses on how humanity is as likely to be divisive as it is to unite at the advent of a threat.

Despite the decent plot of Stellvia, the show’s strength lies in its characters, most of whom are fleshed out enough to be genuinely satisfying. While the lead character is a bit weepy, she’s delightfully free of whining. Her friends are in many ways more realistic and three-dimensional than she is, and almost all of the characters are better than the lead male who is dopey and unrealistically gifted by turns. The *real* strength of the story is in the byplay between the secondary characters and the relationships that form between them. All of the dialogue is amazingly age-appropriate. The teenaged characters actually *sound* like teenagers…even their disagreements are rendered realistically.

At the heart of Stellvia is not one love story, but four. There’s little doubt that the lead male and female will get together, but an unlikely relationship between two of their friends is rendered exceptionally well. There’s a romance between an “older” (i.e., adult) couple, which I found goofy, but charming, and lastly, a lesbian romance which is painful and fascinating. From my perspective, it was obvious, but at the end, Stellvia offers us one of the most delightful “coming out” scenes ever, as it’s done on an open radio channel in front of the whole world – quite literally. It’ll have you grinning like a moron, trust me.

One last added benefit, Stellvia actually *ends*! With a resolution that makes sense and everything… and an epilogue that ties together all the threads. So on that note alone, this series stands out above others.

Ratings:

Art, Stellvia scores only a 6 – I found the main characters drawn to look much too young for their ages

Story, though, scores a 9.

Yuri- this is not a hot lesbo sex story, but the relationship between the two women is as present and accounted for as any other. I’ll give it an 8.

Overall – 8 out of 10 , mostly because of the great ending.