Archive for the Yuri Manga Category


Koharu and Minato: Happy Life with My Girlfriend, Volume 1

April 20th, 2026

Two women smile at one another holding tapioca teas. One is taller with collar-length black hair that fades into lavender, wearing a fashionable black suit and accessories. The other is shorter, with long light brown hair, casually dressed in a green tee and jeans with her arm around the other woman's waist.Koharu and Minato: Happy Life with My Girlfriend, Volume 1 is a fictionalized version of the lives of two very real women, a team that go by the names Daruma and Hyaluron. This retelling of how they met, fell in love and moved in together, is the first collected volume of an ongoing serialization in Comic Yuri Hime magazine. 

Overall, this is a very cute and sweet slice-of-life story. There are no great (and very few small) conflicts in this tale. Despite that – or, maybe perhaps because of it – I think this is a really important story. Over the years, Comic Yuri Hime has had a few serialized manga featuring lesbian characters, (thank you Morishima Akiko-sensei, inori.-sensei), occasionally living together (thank you Inui Ayu-sensei!) but it’s not a magazine that tends to wave rainbow flags, or display Pride stickers. Manga in the magazine often include lesbian content without explicit or implicit lesbian identity. 

I don’t mean this as a dig against the magazine at all. Sometimes, it’s just not relevant to the story or the setting. Sometimes it might complicate the issue. I do actually like when characters take note of their sexuality in real-world(ish) manga. I am very happy to see a comic essay about a happy lesbian couple running in the only monthly Yuri manga magazine. Even if, in this volume “lesbian” life in Japan isn’t the main focus.
 
Koharu and Minato meet online, then in person, then start dating and fall for each other. Now they live together and despite small disagreements, are living very happily in love. This volume is full of a lot of lovey-dovey moments as the relationship builds.  The art is quite cute, without being overly moe.  In this volume they do not talk very much aboutpolitical issues regarding Japanese same-sex couples.  Here, it is all very charming and low-key. And lesbian. I’m happy with that.

 

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 7
Characters  – As I said in my review of the JP volume, “it’s never not weird to score a person’s perspective on themselves. They both seem very nice. 8”
Service – 0
Yuri – 10 

Overall – 8


Volume 1 just came out this week from Seven Seas! Volume 2 will be out in English this summer. And thank you to Seven Seas for providing the review copy for ANN, where I reviewed this for their Spring Manga Guide.





Comic Yuri Hime, May 2026 (コミック百合姫)

April 19th, 2026

A young woman in lavender-grey outfit seated, another girl in a pale green dress, her face unseen, half hidden by pale green curtains.Comic Yuri Hime, May 2026, (コミック百合姫) begins with a cover showing a young woman in lavender-grey outfit, another girl in a pale green dress, her face unseen, as the rest of these covers have been. As we never see the girl in the background, I’m finding these covers slightly menacing. What’s your impression of Chiriko’s covers?

We start the magazine off with “Genjitsu Sekai (Real) Demo Shiawase ni Shite Kudasai ne?” by Shiborikasuko, a reverse -isekai harem, in which all the characters of a game world have come to our world. A calamity will occur on the night of the meteor show in their game world…will everyone be able to return in time? And will they be able to get back to our world if they do? 

Usamimiki’s “Zangai Shoujo, Kirakirana Sekai no Soko” continues the story of a bunny-eared android and the tinker girl who fixes her in this dystopian world. 

In Touma’s “Kimi no Seinandakara, Sekinin o Totte you ne” both protagonists are feeling their way slowly closer, while navigating the gaps in their knowledge of each other because they met as client and escort.

“Koharu to Minato” gets a center color full spread as they and their dog, visit their friends for an overnight. It’s all fun and games for everyone -even the dog. ^_^

“Muryoku Seijo to Munou Oujo ~ Maryoku Zero de Shoukansareta Seijo no Isekai Kyuukokuki ” by Tamasaki Tama picks up yet again, with Nana stressing out about the upcoming wedding, as she and the Princess have not yet been able to clean up the miasma that besets the villages. 

Now that Haru’s voice is being heard and appreciated, Yuu is feeling like she might lose her, in Kashikaze’s “Kimi ga Hoeru Tame no Uta o” and now that Yuu’s mother has made an appearance, their success is more important than ever.

I absolutely loved “Girls Live In Live House” by Moriguchi Ryou. This one-shot follows two co-workers who get to learn about each other’s truest selves when they mosh at live shows. It was adorable.

Now that we are in a musical mood, Kujou takes the stage in “Inkyo Gal Demo Ikigaritai!” which was really nice to see. ^_^

Comic essays, letters, anime promos and many other series fills another great volume of Comic Yuri Hime!

Ratings: 

Overall – 8

The June issue is out now in Japan.





Rainbows After Storms, Volume 6

April 17th, 2026

Two girls in the same sailor-style school uniform of white blouse, dark blue skirt and red tie, in a church. One sits, as the other kneels in front of her, they hold hands looking deeply into one another's eyes.As Volume 6 of Rainbows After Storms opens, the school trip looms large. Or, it would do, if Chidori and Nanoha hadn’t had a fight that leaked into their public lives just before it. 

So, while planning group activities and buying cute underwear for the sleepover together with their friends, the two are conspicuously not speaking. Even when their friends point it out, they just patch it up a little. Until the final day of the trip, when their friends are very clear that they have ruined the trip for themselves, each other and for everyone. That, finally gets them to talk about the problem. 

The problem is, in a word, Mai. Nanoha’s former basketball team kouhai has managed to accidentally on purpose sow discord. This will have to be addressed, but first, Nanoha and Chidori are going to have to patch things up. Which they do. Spoilers, but the cover kind of gives it all away. ^_^

We are halfway through this series and Nanoha and Chidori have just expressed their feelings out loud. Are things are going to get hot and heavy from here on out? No, but that is not why you are reading this series. It’s a gentle, slow, coming together of two girls in love and that’s pretty much it. But it is cute. ^_^

As I said of the Japanese volume, sometimes it’s just nice to read something nice. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 7
Characters – 8
Yuri – 6
Service – 2 

Overall – 7

Volume 7 is up already out and up on the Yuricon Store!





Unnie ‘tte Yondemo Ii Desuka?, Volume 1 (オンニって呼んでもいいですか？)

April 16th, 2026

A woman with dark blunt-cut hair in a K-pop idol "uniform" style outfit in white and gold that shows well cut abs, and a taller woman with long, blonde hair in casual clothes, gaping as the idol whispers to her.Cheers for Hanakage Alt! Not only is this book her big debut in manga, she has created something I have longed for – a book that is centered in reality, but leans into queer joy. Unnie ‘tte Yondemo Ii Desuka?, Volume 1 (オンニって呼んでもいいですか？) is a story of fandom, love winning the day and changing the world. It is absolutely delightful. 

Natsuki is a K-Pop super fan. She has poured her heart and soul into being the fan of Sora, the lead of LUXION. But two years ago, Sora left the group without a farewell. No graduation, no message. Nothing. And Natsuki has not been able to move on. Even her junior at work, another K-Pop fan, thinks it’s time for her to find someone new to stan. 

Natsuki isn’t entirely alone in the world. She has her best friend Kaede, the woman who introduced her to K-Pop. One day, wile hanging with Kaede, Natsuki’s junior colleague wanders in, with a boyfriend she met on a new app for fans.  The colleague becomes a bit pushy, asking Natsuki some personal questions about her sexuality, but in the end, Natsuki is persuaded to just try the app. 

She gets a hit almost right away and when she meets Haneuil, she cannot believe just *how much like Sora* her new friend is. She’s a dead ringer. 

… because we are not stupid, we can see that Haneuil is Sora. This is not a spoiler. It is really that obvious. ^_^ It’s also only half the story. The other half is why Sora left and what did become of Sora when she walked away from LUXION and, of course, what she and Natsuki become to one another. This main plot is cute, and a little bit silly since, as I said, Haneuil’s real identity is so obvious. 

Hanakage-sensei does some other things with this story that I think are praiseworthy. The first discussion of Natsuki’s potential asexual identity is rude as fuck, but at the same time, it feels real, as well as really intrusive, This kouhai, trying to “help” her sempai is just steamrolling over her. Later Kaede will also discuss her own sexual identity and be very honest about being aro/ace. In between there are some other conversations about Sora being a lesbian.

And our favorite queer Yuri cafe, where Hanakage-sensei held a series of signings of this very book(we have an event report coming soon!) makes an appearance. ^_^

But, even aside from discussion of sexual identity, the end of this book is 100% queer joy. 

I have recently found myself longing for stories that don’t just show bias. Yes, we know society is broken. I am hoping for more authors who will imagine a world that is not broken. I believe from the bottom of my heart that we don’t need more stories about how awful and isolating it is to be queer (which, every generation will create for themselves anyway,)  but we do desperately need a lot more stories where we push back against these stupid fucking limitations and break  through to queerness being accepted. 

Let’s just think about it. If a K-pop singer is best known for business Yuri on stage and hints and teases fans that they are gay and everyone talks about how they must be, what kind of nonsense keeps that person from coming out for real? Does that make *any* sense? This manga takes management being homophobic and ends by stomping it down flat. As it should be.  The end of this one-volume manga is made of the purest queer and K-Pop joy. ^_^ It’s adorable. 

Again, congrats to Hanakage Alt-sensei and to us for this mashup of two great things – Yuri and K-Pop- that do, in fact, go great together.

Ratings: 

Art – 8
Story – 7 Silly, and fun
Characters – 8
Yuri/Lesbian – 9
Service – Eh, not really

Overall – 8

For some of Hanakage Alt’s work in English, check out Manga Mavericks’ Store where they are carrying the Red Strings’ translations! This book would make a great licensing suggestion next time you’re talking to companies that have Kadokawa contacts, like Yen Press.)

 





Yamada to Kase-san, Volume 5 (山田と加瀬さん。)

April 9th, 2026

Two young woman stand before background of colorful cat face silhouettes, cups and toothbrushes. The taller, with dark brown hair wears a brown bear sweat jacket with ears on the hood. The short woman with collar-length blonde hair, wears pink and white stripes sweater and a white cat ear Alice band, as they hold toothbrushes and bathroom cups.There are several extraordinary things about Yamada to Kase-san, Volume 5 (山田と加瀬さん。)  that I want to call out. 

First, this series has been one the most persistent works I have ever read. It “should” have ended several times; when Pure Yuri Anthology Hirari was cancelled after a respectable 4 years and when the initial series ended on Web Hirari. Instead of becoming an interesting relic of Yuri history,  Takashima Hiromi-sensei kept drawing.

The Kase-san series moved to the online edition of Wings and then to the print edition of Shinsokan’s flagship magazine. It’s even been the cover series. Kase-san and Yamada graduated, moved to Tokyo are going to college…and now they are living together! This volume makes Takashima-sensei’s 10th volume of the series.  All of this is just…amazing. Not miraculous, though. I believe that Takashima-sensei just works hard at the series and keeps it thriving.

In Volume 5, we turn to Yamada who is living her best life…a little too hard. In her desire to buy beautiful things for her . and Kase-san, she is pushing herself to her limits. This choice ends up hurting Kase-san unintentionally. Thankfully, Yamada realizes that her failure to prioritize her time in the right ways is her own fault and they make up, agreeing to prioritize their time together. It’s almost nice to be annoyed by Yamada for something other than low self-esteem. ^_^

Kase-san and Yamada are entirely relatable than in this volume and there’s no sign of the jealousy from previous volumes, just the small day-to-day adjustments we make as a couple. 

Ratings: 

Art – 9
Story – 9
Character – 9 
Service – eh, 2?
Yuri – 10

Overall – 9

So congratulations to Takashima-sensei for this 10th volume of the Kase-san series, which still bears the Hirari comics imprint – which is the last notable thing I wanted to point out. ^_^ Still carrying the Hirari torch, 12 years later. How incredible is that?