Yuri Manga

Winter 2022 is looking pretty great for Yuri! We’ll start with a bunch from Seven Seas.

Our Teachers Are Dating!, Volume 4 brings this series to it’s warm and fuzzy and sexy conclusion.

At last! We are getting a Ohsawa Yayoi in English, yahoo! This winter will see Hello Melancholic!, Volume 1 on your shelves. I genuinely adored this school band drama. Those of you who loved 2DK, GPen, Mezamashitokei will be pleased at Ohsawa-sensei’s new short story collection 2DK, GPen After-Time (2DK、Gペン、アフタータイム。) which is hitting shelves in Japan in October.

5 Second Before a Witch Falls in Love, is also hitting shelves and devices in February.

Don’t miss Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon, Volume 2. Asahi and Hinako are starting to get a clue. ^_^

The conclusion of A White Rose in Bloom, Volume 2 was nothing I could have ever, ever expected. Definitely a terrific story by master of school manga, Nakamura Asumiko.

Even If It Was Just Once, I Regret It, Volume 1, is the first volume of a series I haven’t read at all, but I’m told develops interestingly. The premise of a woman giving her body to her female landlord in lieu of rent is not my ideal, but I’m will to give it a try.

And GUNBRED x SISTERS, Volume 1 is the bounty hunter x Vampire Yuri somebody has been waiting for. ^_^

Yen Press is giving us the dramatic fourth volume of Cocoon, Entwined in December.

Don’t miss Otherside Picnic, the manga, Volume 1, which is out from Square Enix this week. I’m reading my copy as soon as I’m done writing the report! ^_^

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Via Yuri Navi, Mikanuji’s Fuzuroi no Renri, Volume 5 (不揃いの連理) has hit JP shelves this week. I’m enjoying this goofy ensemble cast of office workers, yanki girls, school girls and others. It’s random and fun. Also via Yuri Navi, Mikanuji-sensei has a new series running in Young Ace UP called Sempai, Oishii Desuka? (先輩、美味しいですか？). You can see sample pages of this in Japanese on Yuri Navi or read the first chapter on Young Ace UP on Webace.

Mermaid x human Yuri story, Watashi o Tabetai, Hito de Nashi, Volume 2 (私を喰べたい、ひとでなし ) is available. I’ve got V1 on the to-read pile, but I’m way behind.

Tamifull’s college-life romance and sex drama, Tsukiatte Agettemo Iikana, Volume 7 (付き合ってあげてもいいかな) hit Japanese bookshelves this week. For the very first time, I’m really interested in where this is going, as the story is nowhere near where it began.

Via Comic Natalie, Toshita no Sempai (年下の先輩) is a “timeslip ero-comedy” Yuri manga about a woman who meets her old sempai as an adult, then travels through time to meet her sempai as a young woman again. Sample chapters are free online in Japanese on Yanmaga Web.

One last via Comic Natalie, Look Back (ルックバック) is a Jump comics one-shot manga about two young women brought together by their desire to create manga.

Yuri Light Novel

One more item from Yuri Navi, a voiced light novel preview, Kotozaki-san ga Miteru,” (琴崎さんがみてる) for you to enjoy on Youtube! Volume 1 is available for pre-order now and will be shipping in October.

I just finished Girls Kingdom, Volume 4 and I am going to seriously suggest you read it. Check back tomorrow and I’ll tell you why in my review. The series is loopy, but…trust me.

Yuri Anime

Retrocrush TV added Stellvia this month and if you missed it the first time, I recommend it highly. It did a lot of good things and changed a few tropes up for savant-character anime, which was the style at the time. They also have Princess Nine, for girl sports anime fans, who don’t mind having their hearts crushed. Rafael Antonia Pineda has the details on ANN.

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Yuri Manga

The Bloom Into You Anthology, Volume 1 is hitting shelves this month from Seven Seas. This was a great addition to any Bloom Into You fan’s collection.

Via YuriMother, I Love Yuri and Got Body Swapped With a Fujoshi!, Volume 4 is out on digital devices. Let me know if this is indeed a “thrilling final volume.”  ^_^

Ajiichi’s school life drama, Failed Princesses, Volume 4 is on shelves now! Should you wish to be lightly spoiled, I have reviewed this book in Japanese here on Okazu.

Otherside Picnic, Volume 1 manga from Square Enix is on shelves now! I really liked the art when I read volume 1 in Japanese. Gonna have to grab a copy of this. Square Enix doesn’t participate on Bookwalker, but you can get this in digital through Kindle, or print at Amazon, RightStuf or a retailer near you.

Via Yuri Navi, we have news of Mao to Yuri, a harem love comedy interactive Yuri manga. Demons and Humans have been fighting and to heal the scars, the Demon Ruler (female) will have to take a human wife. It’s like Gay Bachelorette, the Isekai. ^_^ You can read the first 3 chapters in Japanese on NicoNico.

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Yuri Light Novel

Girls Kingdom, Volume 4 has arrived on your digital device from J-Novel Club and, we are assured by reviewer Sean Gaffney, that it is worth reading.

Brazil’s NewPOP Editora announces the Portuguese-language version of inori-sensei’s series, Me Apaixonei pela Vilã! Pre-orders are going strong, as it was #1 in Graphic Novels category on Amazon BR as I write this. Just to be clear, this is Volume 1 of the Light Novel, not the manga.

Yuri Visual Novel

Yuri Navi has details, summary and voice cast of Watashi-tachi no Marriage ①  (私たちマリアージュ①) a new Yuri VN coming to Steam next Spring. It appears to be a mystical fantasy involving the zodiac, a goddess and a corporate spy at a private girls’ school.

Yuri Anime

Funimation is, for the first time, streaming Burst Angel anime. I implore you to watch this so you will understand my joke about Sei-who-is-not-named-Beth. The story makes little sense, but I have retconned it in my head to having been fun enough with a fair dollop of service. I do have two killer figurines of Jo and Meg from it. Check out Alex Mateo’s article on ANN for more details!

Other News

This week, Twitter was aflame with the images of the new Aquatope of White Sand figurine by FNEX, available for pre-orders “soon,” at the Akihabara GAMERS store, which, naturally, has a Aquatope display and special goods through September 12. It is quite beautiful with, stunning detail. Check out the Hobby Japan article for closeup visuals. YNN Correspondent Megan points out Kukuru’s baby book among the coral and I also see Fuuka’s suitcase and a microphone.

The Shinjuku Marui will host a Futaribeya pop-up shop from Sept 24 – October 8. Yuri Navi reports that it will feature goods with series art by creator Yukiko. Since the art is the Yuriest thing about the series, this seems like fun. ^_^

I’m posting this because I have a theory and this news sort of bears it out. Go Nagai is launching a new manga – he’s taking on Tezuka’s Barbara. I’ve always said that if Tezuka is the God of Manga, then Nagai is Manga’s Creepy Uncle. But, privately, I have always felt that what Nagai was actually doing was taking every genre/idea Tezuka did and trying to one-up him. ^_^ Anyway, check out Alex Mateo’s article on ANN and decide for yourself.

Speaking of Tezuka, Megan D, the Renaissance Josei, has written this fantastic article about The Story of Animerama, Tezuka’s visionary project that effectively destroyed MushiPro and created works that wouldn’t be appreciate for another 40 years, like Belladonna of Sadness, which is streaming on TubiTV. I highly recommend this for your afternoon reading.

Via YNN Correspondents Patricia and Megan, Gengoroh Tagame’s most recent serialized manga, Bokura no Shikisai (僕らの色彩), has been licensed by Pantheon as Our Colors, as a three-in-one volume, available next spring.

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Welcome to an edition of Okazu that transcends time and geography!  We have some really exciting news this week.

Yuri Manga

Starting, as always with new Yuri manga on the Yuricon Store. The store is the largest catalog of Yuri media and goods on the internets – if you’re looking for the newest volume or an older volume to fill in your collection; for anime,manga,  LNs, drama CDs and other media, you can search by creator, title, publisher, in Japanese and English. It’s a damn good resource, if I do say so myself. ^_^

School Zone Girls, Volume 2, a juvenile delinquent school life comedy is on shelves now from Seven Seas.

Don’t miss Cocoon, Entwined, Volume 3, as this school romance becomes more and more complicated out now from Yen Press.

Crowd-funded, creator-owned Galette, No. 19 (ガレット)  is out. One more and they make the big 5 year mark! You can of course get this as a print volume from Japan, but you can also get it as a digital magazine in Japanese on Bookwalker and Amazon US Kindle!

I haven’t read this yet, but love the cover, Anemone ga Netsu wo Obiru, Volume 1 (アネモネが熱を帯びる) is a school life drama by Sakuragi Ren.

Comic Natalie hosted a 4-way conversation about Kaijuu-iro no Shima (かいじゅう色の島) between Yuri manga artist Mochi Au Lait, Animate Yuribu Editor Saigusa Kensuke, SF magazine editor Mizoguchi Rikimaru and Yuri Navi’s Furippe.

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Yuri Studio

Okazu Patrons now have access to our newest video, the final entry in our Gateway Yuri Anime review. Part 3 covers 2010-present. Become a patron and get access today! Part 1 and Part 2 are available on Yuri Studio for you to enjoy.

Yuri Light Novel

Watashi no Oshi ha Akuyaku Reijou., Volume 5 (私の推しは悪役令嬢。) landed on Kindle this week and you are very lucky I took precious reading time away to do this news report. ^_^ I’ve carefully steered clear of spoilers for this final volume of the Nur arc.

Live-action

I’ve been really interested in Yuri outside Japan recently, I’ve bookmarked a Chinese GL webnovel I want to try to work through (致女神（娱乐圈GL)) and I was absolutely beside myself when BL scholar and gentleman Thomas Baudinette looped me into the news that an upcoming BL series in Thailand, Secret Crush on You was going to have a separate Yuri storyline. I detailed as much of the information as I had on Thai Yuri novel GAP ทฤษฎีสีชมพู being adapted into a live-action story, ทฤษฎีสีชมพู GAP The Series in a post on Friday, Thai Yuri Novel Adapted Into Live-Action: Pink Theory GAP, The Series.

WELL, since then, Thomas let me know about another BL series that includes a GL storyline: “The final of the 7 episodes titled “Remember.” The official trailer of 7 Project can be found on Youtube. Cool, huh?

Yuri Anthologies

Super fab news from queer manga artist Mutsumi Natsuo, a person whose work I was introduced to for our video, Are There Queer Creators Creating Yuri?. Mutsumi-sensei announced the second volume of a “butchy lesbian” anthology, called Boyish², being crowdfunded now. I backed it, and Mutsumi-sensei told me that an English-language digital version is being planned. Woot! Of course I’ll keep you in the loop when that happens.

Thousands of Books announced an upcoming Taiwanese Showa Yuri collection, Kitan Hana Monogatari (綺譚花物語). This is also being crowdfunded in Japan…I’ve backed it, as I love Showa and Taisho period pieces and I’m excited about/for the Taiwanese Yuri fandom.

Yuri Visual Novels

Via Yuri Anime News, “Taiwanese studios Narrator and Storia recently announced on Steam plans for a character image refurbish for their Yuri visual novel” Lingua Fleur: Lily.

Via Yuri Navi, we have a new Yuri VN, Watashitachi no Marriage ①. Watch the official Twitter account for updates.

LGBTQ Comics

Out Magazine offers up 18 New & Upcoming Queer Comics We Love by Mey Rude.

Queer manga artist Rica Takashima tells me that she’s got a table at AnimeNYC artist’s alley, and she’ll be selling her self-published comics, including her “Rica ‘tte Kanj!?” stories. Rica’s been working hard on the cover art for By Your Side: The First 100 Year of Yuri Anime and Manga, and let me tell you…it looks amazing. Okazu Patrons were able to see a teeeny little piece of the cover and even that looks awesome. I would like to attend AnimeNYC, but think the arc of COVID will keep me away.

AV Club has this terrific article in which writer Willow Maclay and artist Cressa Beer discuss the intersection of anime fandom and transfeminine identity, from Sailor Moon to Neon Genesis Evangelion: “Anime was a safe space”: On magical girls, damaged villains, and trans adolescence.

Other News

I haven’t done this in a while, but there are a couple of global same-sex marriage news items that I want to round up this week.

Marriage for All Japan announced this week that both Saga and Mie Prefectures are starting prefecture wide same-sex partnership programs. They join Osaka, Ibaraki, and Gunma prefectures and about 100 other individual principalities.

In Mexico, Yucatán’s Congress has passed SSM, making 22 of 32 states in that country in which same-sex unions are legal.

The Church in Wales is going to take up the issue of blessing same-sex unions in Welsh churches and I kind of think it’s likely to pass.

Thanks to our Okazu Patrons who make the YNN weekly report possible! Support us on Patreon to help us give Guest Reviewers a raise and to help us support Yuri creators!

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Thanks very much to every one who came to last week’s Yuricon anniversary event and thank you all for your patience as I made my way through this busy month. Here is a gigantic news report as your reward!

Yuri Events

Sailor Moon fans, here’s a chance you don’t get that often – the Nogizaka 46 Sailor Moon Live-Action Musical is streaming online from the 20th through August 26th. Tickets are available on Japan 2.5D Stage Play World online now along with a couple of other anime stage plays!

Flamecon starts today as a virtual con. Admission is free, but you’ll need to register. Donation and VP packages are also available.

Yuri Light Novels

The fifth Watashi no Oshi ga Akuyaku Reijou. (私の推しは悪役令嬢。) noveI is now available for pre-order in Japanese, on US Kindle, and of course on JP Kindle. The cover is boss.

(Speaking of inori’s series, I played through fa- created I’m in Love with the Villainess visual short, Revolution Lily!? ~Claire’s Birthday Party by wataoshi. It was sweet (and short!) ^_^ Queued up for my next break is Revolution Lily? ~Desert Island where can’t escape without ?? by the same team. ^_^)

Otherside Picnic, Volume 5 has just released and Otherside Picnic, Volume 6 is on the way next month!

And, for something lighter, Girls Kingdom, Volume 4 is headed our way at the end of this month.

Not sure what you’re in the mood for? Bookwalker Global is doing another Coin Boost Promotion with a number of Yuri titles included. So pre-order these and get extra coins!

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Yuri Manga

New licensing announcements from Yen Press! They have licensed Watashi no Kobushi wo Uketomete as Catch These Hands!, a post-girl gang life romance. And they’ve gotten Mizuno and Chayama, the two volume Romeo & Juliet story by Nishio Yuhta, creator of After Hours.

We have some new items up on the Yuricon Store!

Superwomen in Love! Honey Trap and Rapid Rabbit, Volume 2 is out now from Seven Seas.

Also from Seven Seas, the My Next Life as a Villainess Side Story: Girls Patch.

Even Though We’re Adults, Volume 3, Shimura Takako’s new and very excellent series.

Makoto Hagino’s A Tropical Fish Yearns for Snow, Volume 8, is still a lovely girl-meets-girl story.

Monologue Woven For You, Volume 1 is a full-color story about two women who meet and change each other’ life.

Galette No. 19 (ガレット) is available in print and digitally, with new chapters by Morinaga Milk and Morita Miyuki among others!

Ookami no Kawa o Kabutta Hitsuji Hime (狼の皮をかぶった羊姫) is an animal-ear Yuri manga about a wolf butler who falls in love with the Princess of the the land of sheep.

Via YuriMother, we have some fascinating news. Kadokawa’s Bookwalker platform is launching a new infinite scroll, Webtoon-style format. Among the titles being launched on the service is Nakatani Nio’s Yagate Kimi ni Naru (やがて君になる).

Comic Yuri Hime on Pixiv has a new manga, Yandere Meruko-chan Loves Senpai (ヤンデレめる子ちゃんはせんぱいがお好き), you can read a sample in JP on Pixiv.

Via YNN Correspondent Megan on Twitter,” A new LGBT+ manga out in Japan today,” Kikon Starters, (既婚ステータスだけいただきます！)…”about a lesbian couple and a gay couple that enter into fake hetero marriages so they can stay closeted to their families, the 4 of them end up living together in a flatshare.” I remember the Mist magazine version of this… ^_^

Yuri Doujinshi

Lilyka has a new interview with their Arabic translator, Jamila, as part of their “Yuri Save the World” project.

They also have a new title, The Gathering of Love by Toriniwa.

Lilyka also has an artbook collection now, Ｌ∴Ｋ∴Ｒ：La Lilio kaj la Rozo Illustration Book / Shirahime Lilio (White Princess) & Kuro’oujo Rozo (Black Princess) and an interview with the creator.

Yuri Anime

I’m super excited to have Stellvia: The Complete TV Series from Diskotek up on the Yuricon Store.It’s a solid scifi school story.

Other News

ICYMI, this week I published a fanfic that kind of got away me, from as a novella on Amazon Kindle. For a brief moment, it was the #1 Bestseller in its category, so that was fun. ^_^ You can get A/CI Case File: An Inside Job for only $2.99 if you want to see what series it started as a fanfic of. ^_^

We have new Yuri research on the Yuricon Essays page! Tales of lilies and girls’ love. The depiction of female/ female relationships in yuri manga – by Marta Fanasca, from Tracing Pathways 雲路 Interdisciplinary Studies on Modern and Contemporary East Asia, Firenze University Press, 2021.

Here’s something fun to enjoy, an original song about “enemies to lovers,” on Youtube  Vices & Virtues by Reinaeiry.

Since the Age of Keisuke Kinoshita and Yasujiro Ozu: The Journey of Japan’s Queer Films is a fascinating article, from Japanese Film Festival Plus.

Seven Seas has announced a collaboration with Hiveworks, “the charming, full-color LGBT+ graphic novel LIFE OF MELODY by Mari Costa.”

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Yuri Events

There are a double handful of spaces left for the 20th Anniversary Yuricon Community Event. I hope you will join James Welker, Verena Maser and myself for an event celebrating you, the global Yuri fandom – in one week, on August 14, at 8AM Eastern US time on zoom.

Yuri Studio

We have a new video up on Yuri Studio. Following S02 E03 Gateway Yuri Anime Part 1: The 1990s, in which we looked at anime that had a powerful impact on developing what we now think of as the Yuri fandom, in Yuri Studio S02 E04 Gateway Yuri Anime, Part 2: The 2000s  we talk about the anime that helped a new Yuri fandom grow and evolve! Please do not forget to like this video on Youtube and subscribe to the channel. It is a huge help.

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Yuri Manga

Out now from Seven Seas, we have the conclusion of Days of Love at Seagull Villa, Volume 3 and Doughnuts Under A Crescent Moon, Volume 2!

Coming next winter from Seven Seas, we are getting Monologue Woven For You, a full-color Yuri manga that has been on my to-read pile for months. I’d better get to it!

Shizuku is directly involved in Kaori’s trauma, but wants sincerely make it up to Kaori in Volume 1 of Kimi to Tsuzuru Utakata, (君と綴るうたかた). Complicating matters, Kaori is Shizuku’s favorite author!

In Doukyuusei no Oshi Sakka ni Yuri Mousou ga Bareta Kekka (同級生の推し作家に百合妄想がバレた結果) a classmate finds her classmate is the writer of her favorite Yuri novel! Which is like the same plot as above without trauma.

The Manga Park app has sample pages of a new occult Yuri comedy up for free in Japanese. Occultken ha Sonzashinai!! (オカルト研は存在しない!!) is also coming to Japanese shelves as a collected Volume 1 later this month.

Yuri Anime

The historical fantasy Yuri manga Uchi no Shishou ha Shippo ga Nai, about a Tanuki who learns Rakugo from a Kitsune woman is getting an anime adaptation! ANN’s Egan Loo has casting details and Alex Mateo has the rest of the story. I reviewed volume 1 of the manga here last winter.

Adrian Hazra on ANN has the news that Retrocrush has picked up Revolutionary Girl Utena Movie – The Adolescence of Utena for streaming.

Yuri Doujinshi

This news item was a whole story in 4 panels: Lilyka has licensed a new doujinshi (Yay!) call Hakuba Run. It’s an action adventure story! (YAY!) I’ll just go over and read that synopsis….(What the ever-loving fuck? What did I just even read?) I won’t spoil…go read that synopsis for yourself. It’s an adventure, for sure.

Yuri Light Novels

Seven Seas tweeted that Roll Over and Die: I Will Fight For An Ordinary Life With My Love and My Cursed Sword, Volume 4 is on shelves. It’s been a pretty violent series, even so, let me suggest you read Sean Gaffney’s review before picking this one up. 

Other News

Hayate x Blade Fans! Hayashiya-sensei has put together another round of limited shirts on her webstore. Some of the Black Group characters are available and Nagi and her shinyuu.

AkiYanagi on Twitter wants us to know that Yahoo News JP announced that  Takarazuka will be making an appearance at the Olympics closing ceremony, with a Rose of Versailles performance.

Among a number of other anime/manga homages at the Pandemic Games, the Uzbekistan rhythmic gymnastics team performed their routine to Sailor Moon theme Moonlight Densetsu.

Princess Weekes has news on The Mary Sue that Renee O’Connor and Lucy Lawless will be teaming up for some episodes in Lawless’ new series. It’s heart-warming to know that they are still out there, enjoying their fandom enjoying them. ^_^

The Journal of Anime and Manga Studies is a relatively new open-access peer-reviewed academic journal about anime and manga studies. This journal is hungry for your submissions and is a fantastic resource for independent scholars. You can find them on Twitter, where they retweeted this discussion by Billy Tringali on the Importance of LGBTQ+ Representation in Anime.

JAMS also shared ANN CEO and Publisher Christopher MacDonald’s editorial about How Much Does It Cost to License Anime? This was a direct response to the AnimeTube debacle of a Kickstarter that expected to license anime for bout $4 an episode, so was probably only 100000x off projection.

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