Archive for the Yuri Manga Category


Yuri Manga: Sakura no Kiwa, Volume 2

July 24th, 2006

I can tell that this is a really charming little series, because this *particular* volume includes a lot of situations that are really annoying…but I liked it anyway. ^_^

Sakura no Kiwa, you may remember, from my review of SnK Volume 1, is manga series about three girls and fourteen cats.

Sakura’s parents have gone off to Brazil, leaving her with her dopey Aunt Takako, who has fourteen cats. Two of the neighboring girls who go to the same school as Sakura, Iichiko and her sister Futako become friendly with Sakura. When we left them all, Takako was away in Europe and Ii-chan and Fu-chan were living with Sakura.

Volume 2 begins with an embarrassing situation – someone notices that Sakura has what looks awfully like a hickey on her neck. She denies this, of course, assuming it was a scratch from one of the cats. Until Futako drops by and comments that, oh, by the way, it *is* a “kiss mark”. Sakura’s a little peeved, but doesn’t manage to find a way to stop Futako from doing it.

Futako’s main defense against Sakura, it seems, is to be oblivious, and just do what she wants. Sakura’s too easy-going…as nearly EVERY SINGLE girl in the school points out. They follow it up by asking how she managed to tame Futako, who never showed any interest in anyone before Sakura showed up. Technically they ask her how she spoils Futako, and she answers cluelessly that she makes her pancakes…a comment which spawns multiple puzzling offers of pancackes when Futako shows up at school the next day.

Sakura stresses about “spoiling” Futako, but comes to the conclusion that she’s pretty much exactly like one of the cats. Iichiko spends much of the rest of the book amusing herself by organizing the cats into mental categories, to one of which she assigns Futako every time.

One month comes with a crisis – they are significantly short on their monthly food allowance. Sakura panics, worrying that the cats, and they, will not have enough food…but more importantly, she worries where the money went. When it turns out that Aunt Takako spent it on books and, oh, sorry, forgot to tell them, Sakura is justifiably upset. Luckily both she and Futako are popular. All their friends and admirirers offer supplements to their bare lunches and they make it through the month.

Back at school, one of the teachers asks Futako to run for student council president. She had been in middle school – and when high school started, everyone still called her President for some time. So it’s no surprise that she wins easily. It’s also no surprise that she’s instantly even *more* popular at school. This begins to worry Sakura, who is lonely at the lack of Futako during summer vacation. But once school starts again, Futako seems to hang (quite literally) on Sakura even more closely than ever before.

Once the weather cools down, Takako comes back from Europe, and obediently Futako and Iichiko move out. And instantly, Sakura becomes lonely. It takes her a while to admit it, but eventually she petitions her aunt to allow Futako to come back. Takako is willing, and so, the book ends with Iichiko and Futako moving back into the house and we live happily ever after, with “To Be Continued in the Third Volume” kisses. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 7
Characters – 8
Yuri – 7
Service – 0

Overall – 7

Denial, passive-agressive behavior, lack of communication, way too many cats…yup, sounds like lesbians to me. And yet, I like it. Go figure.





Yuri Manga: Yuri Monogatari News

July 17th, 2006

I wanted to share some very good things about the past and upcoming Yuri Monogatari anthologies with you all.

As of this evening, Yuri Monogatari 2 (seen here) is sold out. The last 14 books will be shipped this week. Yay! Boo hoo.

I want to thank everyone who bought a copy, enjoyed it, suggested it to your friends, etc. We’ve come a LONG way in quality and value since then and your support was – and is – greatly appreciated. ^_^

Moving forward, I wanted to give you a teensy clue as to some of the contents of the upcoming Yuri Monogatari 4, which I’m working on right now.

ALC Publishing is pleased to announce not only the return of well-known mangaka Akiko Morishima (of “Yuri Life” in Yuri Hime and the Girlish doujinshi circle) as well as brand new Rica ‘tte Kanji!? stories from Rica Takashima. Yay! Of course, we’ll also have the great stories you’ve come to expect from Beth Malone, Kristina Kolhi and Althea Keaton, as well as some fun new first timers, including a new artist from Poland. :-) Also, a special comic drawn by our own Kelli Nicely and written by me as a tribute to Rica Takashima. ^_^





Yuri Manga: Kashimashi Girl Meets Girl, Volume 3

June 30th, 2006

I’ve been following the manga of Kashimashi Girl Meets Girl with great interest, because the anime ended in a way I had not anticipated. So I am twice as curious now to see where the manga is heading.

In a nutshell, Volume 3 of Kashimashi adds two major plot points. One good, one hopelessly dumb,

The scenes that ended the last volume and begin this one, were where the anime and manga parted ways. In some ways I prefer the anime – in others the manga. Both have distinct strengths and weaknesses.

This volume begins as Tomari and Hazumu head off together on a date, something which causes Yasuna to collapse with anxiety. (I’m only half exaggerating when I say this.) Hazumu rushes off to be at Yasuna’s side, with Tomari in tow. Tomari and Yasuna make the hardest decision of their young lives and manage to make it a real triangle of a relationship. I know I’m not alone in hoping that the three of them just manage to work it out, because the alternative options are bleak for at least one of them and probably two.

That was the good plot complication. The bad one was that Hazumu, having been brought back from the dead to destroy her friends’ lives with uncontrollable desire for her is now burning through her life energy. In a month’s time, she’ll be gone. Dead. For*ever*.

Are we worried? Speaking for myself…no. Not really.

It’s a bit exhausting watching everyone go through all this grief and misery, knowing that it will likely be wasted (coughMaiHimecough) but on the other hand, it might make everyone more willing to take life by the horns and have some massive fun *now*, because there may not be a tomorrow. I say this, knowing full well that many chapters have gone by and nothing has actually happened, but I hold out hope that Yasuna and Tomari realize that if Hazumu is going to die soon then they’d better get her in bed *now.* But, then, I also fantasize that Yasuna and Tomari lose Hazumu and hook up with each other. I doubt my wishes are seriously in consideration over at the plot planning committee meetings.

The one thing I really don’t like about this volume is a chapter with the lonely birthday gambit. You know, suddenly no one will hang out with the main character and she thinks they all hate her. She follows them around as they shop and have fun without her, leaving her miserable. At last she schleps home only to find that Surprise! it’s been a secret party thing and they were shopping for her! Yay. I REALLY dislike that particular plot and it doesn’t get any better the more times I see it.

On the back cover of this volume is an odd picture of Ayuki and Asuta looking awfully cuddly. Odd, because Ayuki appears to be in love with Hazumu through most of the first several volumes, and odder because she’s actually in love with…oh, heh, that’d be spoiling. ^_^ You’ll just have to wait until Volume 4, won’t you?

Ratings:

Art – 8
Characters – 7
Story – 7
Yuri – 9
Service – 3 (So far of the volumes, this has the least service by a fair amount)

Overall – 8

A good read, less nasty service, and the possibiltiy of a not entrely implausible or squicky threesome. Probably some of the strongest chapters so far – and a few of the very very very weakest.





Yuri Manga: Maya’s Funeral Procession / Maya no Souretsu

June 27th, 2006

Oh, the humanity!

This collected volume of works by Ichijou Yukari, titled after one of the stories, Maya no Souretsu, (Maya’s Funeral Procession,) is the most wonderful collection of over-the-top obsession and melodrama. I don’t know why I like it, as I tend to shy away from “tales of dark obsession” (as novels are almost inevitably described on their inside covers) but I’ll chalk it up to the fact that these stories are SOOOOOOOO melodramatic that it would take a harder person than even me to hate them.

All three of the stories in this collection were originally published in the bad old days of 1972 – a particularly loathsome year for me. I was forced into consciousness of an outside world by several traumatic personal and world events, and have never really forgiven that year for it all. But unbeknownst to my seven-year-old self, a mangaka named Ichijou Yukari was writing about people for whom my personal issues would have been laughable – I can just about hear the hysterical, mentally unhinged laughter now. And it makes me smile.

The first story of the collection, “Little Brother” (“Otouto”) is the story of an unhealthy obsessive love by an older sister for her little brother. Need I mention that tragedy awaits them both? Actually, it doesn’t. Sylvia and Bjorn sort of wander off into the sunset together. I have no idea if they are happy, though.

Secondly, we follow the poignant trials and tribulations of two lovers in war-torn Spain of the 30s in “Christina’s Blue Sky” (“Kurisuchiina no Aoi Sora”.) I imagine that no one will be surprised to find that I have not managed to actually *read* this story yet. My brain absolutely refuses to process anything at all that includes the Spanish Civil War. I blame Hemingway.

At last, we find ourselves facing the pulp gothic horror Yuri romance mystery soap opera that is “Maya’s Funeral Procession” (Maya no Souretsu”). More adjectives welcome, feel free to suggest some.

We meet, blonde, petite Resine, erm, no, I mean, Himeko, wait, no, uh, this time it’s Reina. Reina is the spoiled, yet neglected, daughter of a rich jeweler. Her family visits their summer house where she meets and is instantly wowed by Sachiko, no, it’s Simone…no Chikane… Yes, Maya, like Simone before her and so many stately brunettes after her, falls for the cute, ditzy blonde girl who practically falls into her arms.

(Let me remind you all that this average blonde and stately brunette is not a recent stereotype for yuri couples. It began right at the beginning in 1971, with Simone and Resine in Shiroi Heya no Futari and we haven’t been able to shake it since.)

Aside from the fact that their love is forbidden on the grounds of it being lesbian and all, it would be fine if there weren’t also about 72,000 secrets getting in the way. Reina’s family history is filled with murder and corruption, while Maya’s life is consumed with revenge for same. So of course, Reina and Maya fall madly and passionately in love, cocking up both Maya’s revenge o’matic scheme and Reina’s conveniently advantageous pre-arranged marriage to Generic Nice Guy (TM).

Happy ending? Imagine me laughing in a mentally unbalanced, yet slightly infectious way, in response. This manga ends in horrible tragedy, and Reina unhappily marries the poor bastard who will never ever be able to make her happy because he is not Maya.

And yet, I love it.

Maybe because it’s short, maybe because it’s early, OTT miserable Yuri, with so 70’s art, or maybe because it’s in a foreign language and I’m an absolute sucker for pop music and tragedy in foreign languages. Whatever it is, I adore this story for the hand-to-the-forehead drama. Percy Bysshe, eat your heart out.

Ratings:

Art – classic, yet not terribly good. 6
Characters – Crazy older sister, creepy stepmom – this manga won the lottery on gothic horror stereotypes. 8
Story – Page-turning soap opera trash. 8
Yuri – Tragic, but more kisses than the 80’s not-quite-tragic-but-not-quite-happy Yuri ever got. 8
Service – Can’t think of any service. How nice. 0

Ultimately, I probably like it because it reads very similarly to the lesbian pulp novels that I adore so much – high drama, sex and tragedy, all rolled up into a big ball o’pulpy goodness. If you can’t stand a story without a happy ending, avoid this manga. If you can handle a large spoonful of overdone gothic horror with Yuri romance, it’s a must have. I strongly suggest you buy the actual book itself, so you can show the world outside your head that you do, in fact, support Yuri.





Yuri Manga: Saigo no Seifuku

June 21st, 2006

Sometimes, I wish I wasn’t so much of a hard ass. Not often, but sometimes. In this particular case, I’m torn. Some part of me would like to like Saigo no Seifukfu, and the rest of me just can’t get past thinking, “bleah.”

Saigo no Seifuku, The Last School Uniform, is about a bunch of young women at a…gasp!…girl’s school. The story focuses on several of the girls who share a dorm and, in the case of the one of the stories, a room. It’s all small crushes and small dramas and small jealousies. If the girls were older, I’d probably care more. There’s nothing here squicky or icky, and the crushes *are* crushes, not just friendship or admiration.

But for me the killer problem is the art. I simply can’t find anything appealing about it. Hanakada Mera certainly draws better than I ever will, but the huge heads and lack of depth in character design just puts me off.

Ratings:

Art – 2
Characters – 5
Story – 5
Yuri – 5

Overall – 5

I just don’t really think the art in Saigo no Seifuku is cute at all. The setup really isn’t that different from Aoi Hana, but the art just puts me off.