Archive for the Yuri Manga Category


Spoil Me Plzzz, Hinamori-san! Volumes 2 and 3

May 9th, 2025

by Luce, Okazu Staff Writer

It’s Luce, back with a double review, which brings us to the end of this little series – were we spoiled, or was it more spoiled milk? 

In volume one, we met Hinamori Ichigo, a girl who has looked up to the seemingly prefect Suo Yaya… Only to become Suo’s outlet for her crushing desire for validation and praise! Honestly, this girl is a mess, but what can she do? Ichigo is weak for a pretty girl… Even if they’re kind of pathetic at times.

In Spoil Me Plzzz, Hinamori-san! volume two, Ichigo and Suo go on a ‘date’ – to get some clothes for Suo, whose fashion sense is… non-existent. We meet Kujo Hitomi, the girl who is always second place in their year, angry that she’s always losing out to Suo. Turns out… she needs some praise, too. Finally, after some competition between her and Suo, all three girls end up starring in the film club’s movie – and it’s a romance!

I honestly started to wonder how Suo functions at all with how many things she’s shown to be useless at. It was just too over the top with Suo’s inability to do things. How has she done readings in class if she’s that bad? How is she top of the grade when she’s… like this? Have they never done swimming lessons in physical education? I guess she studies, and I know book smarts aren’t necessarily people smarts, but in the second volume, the gap felt too wide to be the same person. Ichigo makes a good point at the start that kindness gone too far is more like self-sacrifice, and I preferred the vignettes that focused on those kind of issues rather than ‘actually I’m terrible at reading things out loud’. I feel like a more interesting ending might have been that she was putting some of it on for an excuse to spend more time with Ichigo – which would have worked out, seeing as Suo is pretty awkward.

I guess that’s the issue with gag manga – you have to stick to the gag, more or less. Them walking home in the rain and Suo getting drenched protecting Ichigo, only to complain about it? Yeah, makes sense. Her being horrific at reading a text out loud? Too much. I’m probably taking it too seriously, but comedy only works when it toes the line to a degree. It has to be funny within the realms of the universe, not make you question it. Suo having zero fashion sense made sense for her character. I suppose my issue is that it didn’t grow up from the gag very much. I never felt much like there was anything much behind the characters, even towards the end, it felt quite superficial.

All in all, the second volume was easily the weakest. I really wondered where we were going with Kujo – namely, I’m not bothered about love triangles, especially when there is so little thought in them. And I’m really not fond on the uber competitive always-in-second character… Particularly when I can see no evidence that the character in first had done anything for it! You gotta do a bit more than just have a character say they’ll be studying for me to think they’re smart, especially to the point of being first in the year. Particularly when they shown to be pretty useless at a lot of things.

The third, and final, volume balances things out a bit more. We get what could potentially be considered a part of Suo’s inciting incident for her need for perfection, but it didn’t really hit enough for the level she’s at. The ending was pretty cute, and very true to the series, but it also just kind of fizzled out. I wonder that it might have been cancelled.

Overall, I enjoyed it to a degree, but it’s not really a recommendation – if you like silly Yuri, this might be for you, but there are probably better ones out there.

 

Story: 4

Art: 6

Yuri: 7

Service: 5, of course there’s a pool scene, and nobody ever wears anything other than a bikini (a personal gripe of mine, YMMV)

Overall: 5

 

A bit of a swing and a miss, for me. Or a hit, an out and a weak hit. I suppose. At least it was short!





Oshi ga Budokan Ittekuretara Shinu, Volume 10, (推しが武道館いってくれたら死ぬ)

May 8th, 2025

A girl with long reddish hair in two ponytails, wearing a a pink dirndl-style dress with petticoats and long black boots. She runs away from us, but looks back over her shoulder at us, sadly.Volume 9 left me weak with relief as Eripyo and Maina actually had a conversation. But as we look at the cover of Oshi ga Budokan Ittekuretara Shinu, Volume 10, (推しが武道館いってくれたら死ぬ), we can see that this volume will be different. All previous volumes portrayed Cham Jam or another idol group. This volume only has Reo. And we know why… Reo is retiring.

This whole volume focuses on the ripples in the water when the well-liked and talented lead of a small-time idol group retires. Reo is not the only one whose life will change. Of course the entire group now will be different with only 6 members – they no longer have a center position! Every member of Cham Jam has to reconcile their personal and professional feelings about Reo and decide if the group is strong enough to continue.

And then there are the fans. Kumasa has been very vocal about how his fandom for Reo changed his life for the better. If she retires, what will he have to look forward to? The volume gets very deep into this because for all three of our resident fans, the group is secondary to the passion they have for their favorite, specifically.

And then…Reo retires. I was kind of surprised, honestly. Right up to the very end, I was just sure something would bring her back. Once again, good opportunities were missed by the management company. Who better to add to the management team than the former lead? But, no. And then they miss the opportunity of centering Maki and Sorane as a lead *pair.* Gosh this management team is a bunch of dipshits. It would have enraged Aya for lulz, as an added benefit. But no one asks me. ^_^; When the management announces who will join the front row all hell breaks loose, not. It’s an insane choice for the business, but it’s brilliant for the story.

I just picked up Volume 11 (spoilers on the cover!) in Japanese and kinda want to see what’s going to happen and also want to bash something heavy into my head because reading this manga is my equivalent of a hair shirt. ^_^;

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 9
Character – 9, except Motoi who is still awful. Thank heavens for his sister Rena, who, even in abstensia, is twice the man he is.
Service – 0
Yuri – Idol/fan lives are complicated.

Overall – 9

If My Favorite Pop Idol Made It to the Budokan, I Would Die, Volumes 1-10 are available in English now from Tokyopop and Volume 11 is on the way this month, if you too want to marvel at the ineptitude of Cham Jam’s management in this dark comedy about provincial idols groups.





Galette, No. 31 (ガレット)

May 5th, 2025

On a background of pale blue, with light streaming from above, two women walk by. One with bluish hair walks away without a glance, the woman behind her, with light brown hair, in a black sleeveless blouse, glances back to look at us. Art by pen. We’ve made it to Galette, No. 31 (ガレット)!

Although I thought I was supporting Galette on Pixiv Fanbox, for some reason during the multiple kerfuffles with non-Japanese credit cards, I did not receive issues No. 31 and 32 by PDF. Luckily, Galette is also available on Bookwalker JP, so my current collection is now a higgeldy-piggely mismosh of this magazine in print, PDF and on Bookwalker. Luckily, all I want is to be able to read it and don’t really care what format I have! ^_^ I am a lousy collector and always forget to obsess about complete sets.

This issue does something very important. I was kind of waiting for this to happen, because the story as it existed was wearing on me. Honestly, in Morinaga Milk’s “Watashi no Kawaii Neko-chan,” Yuna has to change. She may well just have circadian rhythms that don’t work with Reina’s and that may be possible to work around, but not if she refuses to even admit there is a problem. In the final pages, after another chapter of watching Reina struggle alone, Yuna *finally* takes a step to figure out if there is a real problem. PHEW. I was really losing interesting in this story, as it just churned over and over the same unresolved issue every chapter.

Nakata Nui’s “Otome no Shinden” is, thus far, a creepy lesbian doll story in which the doll seems the most normal character.

Yukino-sensei is forced to deal with her complicated emotions about Tsukino-sensei in Yorita Miyuki’s “Hokenshitsu no Ano Onna”. Is it time that Yukino-sensei forgets the bias she’s carried all these years?

Once again, I adore the chapter of “Watashi ha Kimi no Kami da yo” by aneido, in which this apparently silly story of a grifter trying to scam a religious cult’s accountant, begins to take on more complexity. Our grifter is falling for her mark, and her partner can see it. Also, the mousy little mark is definitely not naive, and turns out to be quite gay. Will this be the end for our grifter or the beginning of something new?

A fun little one-shot from Hakamada Mera follows a cast of maids at a maid cafe, who end up picking character names from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, adding a maid cafe to the many reinterpretaions of the great heroes of ancient China. Do I love this? Of course I do. ^_^

The second half of this issue makes space for “repeats” of “Himitsu no Recipe” by Morinaga Milk and early chapters of  “Kanojo no Kuchizuke Kansensuru Libido” which Yorita Miyuki has recently published in English in two successful kickstarters. This followed by news of Yorita-sensei’s new kickstarter, which will bring the Kanojo no Kuchizuke Kansensuru Libido Short Movie (彼女のくちづけ感染するリビドー ショートムービー), reviewed here on Okazu in February, out with English subtitles. I’m looking forward to that, as I enjoyed the 3-part movie and would love for it to get a wider audience.

This is followed by the second part of an ongoing prose story in which a young woman meets an older one. Then 140-character tales, a report of the 4-creator exhibition, “Shoujo to Shoujo Yuri Sakka Yon-nin Ten” (link goes to the official account on X).  And of course the discussion pages., an add for Galette, No. 32, which I just finished up. Finally, we get an illustrated 140 character tale by Azuki Kuranbo, a very cute little story about two adults, one of whom likes melon cream sodas, illustrated by mina.

Overall – 9

A very chunky volume, even with the re-plays of earlier stories. No. 32 is next and, yes, to confirm that one says in the back that “Liberty” continues in No. 33, which I have here in print, once again, so I am doubly motivated to get caught up. ^_^

I am still amazed that I am able to enjoy both a major publisher-run monthly Yuri manga magazine and a creator-owned, crowd-funded quarterly Yuri manga magazine that will in a matter of days be launching a Kickstarter for a third English-issue, after two successful EN issue Kickstarters. That’s just amazing. ^_^

 





Comic Yuri Hime May 2025 / コミック百合姫2025年5月号

May 1st, 2025

Two young girls in different school uniforms run across a reflective gym floor on a sunny day. They hold hands, smiling and laughing.Comic Yuri Hime, May 2025 (コミック百合姫2025年5月号) cover by hechima shows our unnamed protagonists on March 23rd, 2018 11:40:52 GMT 1900/ 12 years old as they ask each other “So, any plans after this?” in English.

I find myself somehow comforted by the underlying narrative in Ashida Kawozu’s “Chou Fuka Uchuu Yori Ai o Komete” is about finding one’s self – and using that self to help others find themselves.

Likewise, I am enjoying Tamasaki Tama’s “Muryoku Seijo to Munou Oujo ~ Maryoku Zero de Shoukansareta Seijo no Isekai Kyuukokuki” very much and look forward to seeing what  is the source of the country’s miasma. It’s not all that surprising to me that a story of collaborations being stronger than a person alone is appealing to me. ^_^

Asahi Tetra’s “Magic Hour” is a story in which a girl falls in love with another girl’s vibe and finds she is loved in return. Not original, but cute nonetheless.

No clue how sheepD’s “Kanaria ha Kiraboshi no Yume o Miru” can resolve, but for the moment, Ayano’s fiance seems like he might not be a terrible person. Is there hope for her rescue Tsubaki from a life of prostitution?

Isana and Hime are drawing closer to understanding what happened to their world, when they run into the sister Isana is looking for…but she is not who Isana hoped to find, in “Garan no Hime,” by Korose.

Koharu and Minato investigate same-sex partnerships…and find that the paperwork is a bit more complicated than they expected, but it’s still important for them to be recognized as a couple in “Koharu to Minato.”

As always, there are many stories and  columns I read but have not mentioned and others I did not read.  And, as always, I am glad that there are both. ^_^A solid, but not outstanding issue.

Ratings:

Overall – 7

The June issue is on JP shelves now and waiting for me at the bookstore. ^_^





The Anemone Feels the Heat, Volume 1

April 28th, 2025

With hair and flowers swirling around them, a blonde girl with medium-length hair and a long, dark-haired girl embrace one another. The Anemone Feels the Heat, Volume 1 is a story of missed chances and opportunities gained.

Nagisa, who might have passed quietly through life at an elite high school, misses her chance to do so, due to an act of human kindness and has to accept a place at a local school. She is committed to bettering herself, but finds that she may have missed that chance, as well. Mashiro is a girl who has little chance to do anything, as she is usually ill. She’s happy to be in Nagisa’s class, but Nagisa sees her as a burden she didn’t want, holding her down.

Mashiro is trying to not lean too much on Nagisa, but circumstances are not in her favor. All she can do is appreciate the other girl…and learn to care about her own health a little bit more. She’s never thought about making opportunities for herself, but Nagisa encourages her to do so. Nagisa’s existence opens up chances for Mashiro, to live, to enjoy things – chances she never expected to have.

Very much despite her stated intentions, Nagisa finds herself wanting to help Mashiro. When she and Mashiro hug in the infirmary, something in Nagisa…changes. Grows? She’s missed her chance to become one kind of person, but has an opportunity to become someone else, someone she never expected to be. She was convinced she didn’t like Mashiro, but now…she thinks she likes her.

The final chapters lighten this all up a bit, as Nagisa explores the boundaries of hugging with her friends – who are super happy to help out, which takes Nagisa a step forward to looking Mashiro in the face. Baby steps, but welcome ones.

Ren Sakuragi’s art is strong enough to give the characters some flavor, but here at Volume 1 it is not apparently obvious if the narrative itself will develop any depth. That said, the fact that this series is thus far 8 volumes in Japan indicates that it does. ^_^ Mei Amaki’s translation is quite smooth, and yeah, I get why Yen has Rebecca Sze doing subtitle-style sound effects, I will always hope for a smoother reading experience.

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 7
Characters – 7
Service – 2 Hugs, I guess?
Yuri – 2 Hugs, I guess?

Overall – 7, with some room for growth.

Overall, a solid opening to this hopeful schoolgirl Yuri story. Here’s hoping it builds into something bigger.