Archive for the Yuri Manga Category


Yuri Manga: Cutie Honey a GoGo

April 9th, 2007

You really come to understand how inherently unfair the universe is when you learn that the impossibly dull, full of retread passive female sex object plot “complications” Cutey Honey Seed is on Volume 6, and the incredibly excellent, full of powerful females, and lots of yummy Yuri subtext Cutey Honey a GoGo failed to go past Volume 1 (update: This series was finally completed in 2007 in a Cutey Honey a-Gogo, Perfect Volume.) This is especially heinous considering the history of Honey, who was pretty much the first magical heroine who was completely self-sufficient and didn’t need a man to support her.

This particular iteration of the Cutie Honey Mythos comes from 2004, the same year that brought us the most awesome anime Re Cutie Honey AND the live action Cutie Honey movie, both of which were really great. (The movie, btw, is slated to be released here in the US this month. Here’s a link to it on Amazon.)

Well, Cutie Honey aGogo can easily be seen as the manga version of those fine anime and live action stories. While Na-chan’s character design is nothing like Ichikawa Mikako or the look-alike used in the anime, this is the Na-chan *I* would have created, had they asked me. (insert happy, yet slightly evil, laughter here.) In fact, the art was done by Itou Shinpei, the creator of Hyperdolls. I approve 100%.

In this version of the tale Aki Natsuko is a squad leader for the public safety bureau and her subordinates live in fear of her. Her butchy suit-wearing, chain smoking, gun wielding, impatient with everyone around her personality keeps all the guys working for her, in their place. She has her own personal butt boy, Todoroki, who lights her ciggies, gets her coffee, files her reports and is completely incapable of keep up with her on any level.

I think she’s perfect. ^_^

The story begins, as it does in so many of the other Cutie Honey adaptations, as evil Sister Jill and her Panther Claw gang have invaded the city. It is only the timely appearance of Cutie Honey that saves the city from total destruction. (Lots of blood and violence, as usual for a Honey story.) Of all the police and safety officers at the scene, the only one who has the balls to really involve herself is, of course, Aki Natsuko. Machine gun in hand, she throws herself into the mêlée.

When Butterfly Claw has been defeated, Na-chan takes it upon herself to arrest Honey for disturbing the peace. Honey likes this “reckless O-ne-i-san,” as she calls Natsuko. Like Sham-pu’s “Onee-nii-san” in Kashimashi Girl Meets Girl, this form of address recognizes the “two-heart” quality Na-chan has. (In fact, she is later seen in a dress, and seems as comfortable in that as in the suit. But no less muscular and confident. I really like this Na-chan.)

The second time the Panther Claw attacks, Na-chan is all over it. She’s also right there with the handcuffs for Honey, who cheerfully…a little too cheerfully…goes along with her. There’s a great panel as Honey gives Na-chan a very knowing look as the handcuffs lock into place.

After she’s released for the second time, Honey (in disguise) brings Na-chan back to her father’s lab, and all the basics are explained – Honey is an android, the i-system, Sister Jill, etc, etc. Prof. Kisaragi asks Na-chan to befriend Honey and help her become more human. When Na-chan arrives home that night – there’s Honey, who wants to help wash her back in the tub. ^_^ Resigned, Na-chan can only comment on the size of Honey’s breasts. Of course. Because I’d think the same thing, if a *transforming android* was in my bathroom…

…

The end of the volume is the inevitable loss of Honey’s father, and her reliance on Na-chan for comfort and support as she sobs in grief and eat lots of gyuudon. Na-chan, not so good at the softer emotions, is maybe not as kind as she could be but she does her best as the book ends, promising to continue the story in the next volume – which it never did. This is *me* sobbing with grief. I have no doubt at all that this would have been the Yuriest version of the bunch. It was set up perfectly for it. Honey definitely had some interest in Na-chan, and my god, Na-chan is so gay, there is simply no way she would have been able to stop herself. When I write the inevitable fanfic, it will be *this* version I will be working with, you can be sure.

/mutter/Stupid dorky otaku who like sex dolls better than women with balls. You suck. It’s *your* fault that stupid Cutey Honey Seed is doing better than Cutie Honey a GoGo did. I blame each and every one of you personally./mutter/

Ratings:

Art – 7 (I did tell you it was Itou Shinpei? I like his art)
Story – 7 – the same story as always
Characters – 9 (Honey and Na-chan 4tW!)
Yuri – 4 with lots of potential
Service – 7 – please, this is Honey, we’re talking about. Hell, this is Nagai Go we’re talking about.

Dear Mr. Nagai – Please, oh please, make more Cutie Honey a Gogo!





Yuri Manga: Sakura no Kiwa, Volume 3

April 3rd, 2007

Will someone please explain to me why I like Sakura no Kiwa? It has none of the things I enjoy in manga (a short list) and many of the things that enrage and annoy me (a much, much longer list.) So what the heck is it with this series that I don’t hate it!?

Anyway, Sakura no Kiwa, Volume 3 starts off with a lot of kisses. To recap Volume 1 and Volume 2, Sasa Sakura is living with her crazy cat lady aunt Takako, two neighboring girls, Ichiko and Futako, and Takako’s 14 cats. Over the last two volumes, Futako has rearranged Sakura’s boundaries so that she sleeps with Sakura, gets her to help her in the bath, and gets kisses for just about everything. As a classmate comments, Sakura’s looking an awful lot like a wife these days. In addition, Sakura gets to cook for the entire clan, be responsible for feeding the cats and generally be mommy.

The first chapters cover the fact that Futa-chan gets kisses from Sakura for just about everything, something Takako thinks is a little weird. Sakura insists that it’s nothing, its not like they are in love and they don’t do it outside the house. Okay. At the same time, the many, many cherry trees are blossoming beautifully, surrounding Takako’s house (which is just below a shrine on a hill) with sakura blossoms. When a classmate suggests a flower-viewing, they’re all up for it. The classmate, Morita, shows up, and they are eventually joined by another classmate Mitsukuni-kun, who is positively obssessed with Takako’s 14 cats. When Futako comes home from school she greets Sakura with, of course, a kiss. Sakura is at that moment be-aproned, making tamagoyaki for the gang. Morita naturally comments that they look like a married couple. Belatedly, Sakura is mortified for kissing Futako in front of everyone. At school the next day she keeps waiting for the rumors and whispers, but there aren’t any. When she asks Mori-chan about it, she’s told that everyone’s known about them kissing for months and months. She turns to some random schoolmate passing by and says, “Sakura and Futako kiss. Did you know?” and the classmate’s like “Yeah, I know. Everyone knows.” and keeps walking. ^_^

Sakura’s had it with Takako’s giant, unstable piles of books everywhere. She demands that her aunt clean up. Along with being a crazy cat lady, we know learn that Takako’s got an OCD, as well, because she can’t throw *anything* out. Sakura spends the week tying up and tossing books. In the end she gets muscles in her arms and a backache for her efforts. You just know Takako will buy more books a second later.

Futako becomes obsessed with the idea of eating a stray piece of rice off Sakura’s face, and spends a chapter staring intently at Sakura eats her meals. Sakura insists that this is where she crosses the line, darn it! She will NOT have that. By the time Futako gets a chance to do it, her boundaries have been pushed back one more step….Mori-chan’s like, “So, I guess your heart is prepared for it now, huh?” I sometimes wonder if Morita thinks that Sakura is an idiot….

Next up – the household is consumed by the mystery of how the cats are getting up onto the roof! There is a turret on the house, but no one knows how to get into it except, apparently, the cats. After the great turret hunt, it turns out that there’s stairs up to the top in Takako’s closet that she’s partially blocked off with books. The turret has a window pane missing, hence, cats in and out.

Summer is the time to make great memories – unless you’re Sakura, taking care of a household full of lazy jerks. No sea or mountains for her. She cooks meals, then lays around. We have a short sidetrack into Ichiko’s plans for the future – her family is too poor for a private school, so the national exam is where’s she’s headed. They bust her about not studying, although she insists she does. We also learn that the division of labor isn’t *entirely* uneven – Ichiko and Futako do the housekeeping and laundry, while Sakura does the cooking. Takako does nothing except whine and make a mess, but it is her house they’ve all invaded, so…. Several times during this volume she’s asked what she did before Sakura came over -the answer is, she relied a lot on Ichiko and Futako’s mother. They all go to the shrine festival, so Takemoto can draw them in yukata, and we get a one-page pool visit for the required bathing suit picture. (But with low service level – it’s more for fun than service.)

It’s school trip time. Most of the class is headed for Hokkaido, the remainder to Hokuriku. Sakura and Futako are in a group with one of the Student Council members, Enomoto, who is interested to see if the rumors about Sakura spoiling Futako are true (they are, of course, and she’s mightily impressed. In the end, she joins in and uses Sakura’s lap as a pillow. Predictably, Sakura doesn’t stop her.) And, bizarrely, they are also joined by cat-crazy Mitsukuni-kun, who isn’t sharing a room with them, at least. That leaves a four-person room for the three girls. Sadly for both groups, two typhoons bring a week of rain, soaking them at every turn.

Before they left for the trip, Sakura told Ichiko and Takako to take care of themselves and the cats properly. Ichiko protests that she doesn’t know how to cook, Futako always did that, and Takako says she doesn’t because her older sister, Sakura’s mother, always did that. Sakura and Futako leave, but they’re worried about the two women – and the cats. Ichiko thinks about going home, but her mother says no way – Takako lets you live there free, so stay there and take care of her, darnit!

The last chapter is from Ichiko and Takako’s perspective and, indeed, they are both incompetent at cleaning and cooking. Many instant noodles are consumed. Ichiko’s mom reluctantly feeds them, ragging that as two grown women they should be able to take care of themseleves. Grrr. After a few days, they develop a schedule – Ichiko studying in the morning and then going to school, Takako sleeping in, then waking up and doing her work at night, when Ichiko’s asleep. After a few days, they attempt to sort of straighten up, but as expected, when Sakura and Futako come home, the place is a pit and everyone’s starving.

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 7
Characters – 8
Yuri – 7
Service – 1
Crazy Cat Ladies – 10

Overall – 7

So…can someone tell me why I like this series? Cats, passive-aggressive lesbians, and OCDs. Seriously…





Yuri Manga: Zettai Roman

March 23rd, 2007

Just in time for the next wave of manga collected from series that run in Comic Yuri Hime, I’m reviewing the last of the first wave of manga collected from series that run in Comic Yuri Hime, Mucchiri Mooney’s Zettai Roman.

And how I wish I could say that I liked it.

But I didn’t.

I didn’t realize how much I didn’t care for the stories that are collected in this volume, until I started reading and suddenly realized that we’d been following *one* couple in all the Yuri Hime issues! Seriously, I’d never even noticed that this was a series….

Reading it all at once, it was a little better to get a bead on why I didn’t care for it (and why all the Japanese language Yuri blogs are giving it top ratings.)

Let’s go over the story quickly…easy enough to do, since there isn’t much of a story.

Cool, beautiful, (long, straight) black-haired Tsubaki stalks pursues keeps asking cute, bubbly blonde(ish) Aoi out, until she gives in. Tsubaki confines Aoi in a storage room in the gym, confronts her in her home and generally does things that, if she were a guy, would have had the police there in *seconds*, but hey, since it’s two girls, it’s GREAT! (Or so the Japanese Yuri blogs say.) It falls directly under my umbrella of “not good” Yuri.

We are, of course, led to believe that Tsubaki is only persevering to make Aoi aware of her true feelings, and she *does* give in and even become jealous of a possible rival, but I got tired of the tropes (and the non-consensual issues) pretty fast. There’s only so many face faults Aoi can do before we’ve seen her whole repetoire.

The fact that they are the stereotypical black-haired beauty and blonde cutey was the only fun touch, IMHO. Because it definitely has the feeling of having been done on purpose.

Lastly, and I feel kind of bad about this…I really just don’t like the art.

Ratings:

Art – 4
Story – 4
Characters – 4
Yuri – 8
Service – (basing this solely on the Japanese fandom response) – 8

Overall – 4

Of all the Yuri Hime collections, by far and away, the weakest. But if you’re a yuri FanBoy/Girl, have little discrimination or, like myself, need to get every damn Yuri thing out there, because that’s what you do, enjoy! ^_^

 





Yuri Manga: Read or Dream, Volume 3 (English)

March 19th, 2007

The fantastic and wacky happenings in Read or Dream, Volume 3 have not been altered from when I originally reviewed the Japanese edition, so please click that link for an overview of plot, character, and random references to Betty Davis…and now that I look at it, Kojak, as well. ^_^

So, as the story hasn’t changed, let’s focus on the reproduction to English. In this and this alone, the volume takes a pretty bad hit. The original has a dust jacket, underneath which is a short story on the cover of the book proper. As there is no dust jacket in this version, that story is reproduced in the book in black and white. Not deadly, but…the lack of color pages means, no cool Paper Sisters mini-poster page, which I very much like, and more importantly, the lovely color reproductions of the novel covers are turned into a totally skanky black and white page which is hard to see. It sort of killed the joke, too. I liked it better when we were allowed to make the connection ourselves between those shockingly shoujo novel covers and the ROD The TV anime series.

Let me try to explain why I feel so strongly about what is, in reality, one stupid color page.

In the anime, the one single thing that fills the entirely of the first 13 episodes is that Yomiko is NOT there. Her absence is a constant presence, if you will.

In the manga, in *this* volume particularly, there is also a person whose non-existence sort of fills up the empty spaces. That person is famous author Sumiregawa Nenene. In this volume, the fact that the beginning of the anime is reproduced almost exactly, but that the author is NOT Nenene pretty much shapes the whole story – and the story to come in the next volume.

So the color page with those novels by Nishizono Haruhi instantly brings to mind the fact that she was the author that debuted right after Nenene, won the same award as Nenene, and constantly pops up in the anime to be a thorn in Nenene’s grumpy side. Those covers also bring up memories of Haruhi’s irritating little sister pimping her sister’s books in Anita and Hisa’s class. In other words, those novel covers are memory markers. They provide a link to key moments and people in the anime. And those novel covers are reproduced in the *beginning* of this volume of manga, where they can ping those memories before you even start reading what will turn out to be a cool alternate universe reading of those very same situations and characters.

In the English edition, those novels are reduced to a comment that these are some novel covers drawn for the anime by the artist for this manga and placed in the back of the book. Thus losing every bit of tension, of anticipation, of memory that they stimulated.

I am just about 100% sure that no one but me cares, but I really think Viz blew it on that. That color page may not have been intended to be the stimulant it was…but I like to think that Japanese artists, writers and publishers *are* that intelligent. Sadly, Viz was not. Boo on them.

Ratings:
Story – 8
Characters – 8
Art – 8
Yuri – 4
Service – 7 (lots of ass shots…what’s with *that*? Maggie in a suit.)

Overall – 7 (one point off the original score for Viz missing a great opportunity to up the quality of their reproduction and get the point of that page.)

This and Volume 4 make great reading. I really enjoyed the direction the story takes here, and I don’t think it gets weaker in the next volume. Another enjoyable afternoon read.





Yuri Manga: Scape-God

March 17th, 2007

I wasn’t going to review anything today. In fact, I was supposed to be on the way to my sister’s wedding. But the universe decided to cover my immediate area with snow and ice and instead, I am here at an ungodly early hour writing about crap.

So, first, although she will likely never see this, let me wish my sister and her husband a life of joy together. I hope they have as much fun playing house as I do with my wife.

Secondly, since I’m pretty much ready to destroy the world myself after a series of really wretched weeks, I think Scape-God suits my mood perfectly.

This “sci-fi yuri violence action divine romance” begins with two things.  An introduction to the existence of “Extraneous” beings; gods and demiurges and other creatures that inhabit the universe – and who wouldn’t mind destroying all humans, and; a confession of love from one girl to another. The recipient is very apologetic and gentle as she says that she’s honored, but has to refuse – she likes a guy. The confessor walks away from school, disappointed, and walks right into an attack by the “extraneous” god Anubis, and his hordes of vicious dogs.

The girl is knocked over in the ensuing rush and finds that she’s just too scared to move. As an ugly death becomes closer, a ram-horned girl pops up and in a stunning display of power takes out Anubis with a giant sword to the chest.

The human girl, Makihara Midori thanks the creature and, in return offers a place to stay, eat and get refreshed. The creature has no name, but Midori dubs her Hitsuji on account of the horns. Hitsuji immediately makes herself at home with Midori.

Almost immediately new extraneous beings pop up, this time bearing with them the head (sans body) of the girl Midori confessed to earlier.

Midori, who is not particularly convinced that humans *should* be saved, decides that if Hitsuji is determined to save them, they ought to make a buck doing it. So she opens the website “Hitsujiya” and offers Hitsuji’s powers for sale.

In the US, Hitsujiya piques the interest of the President and his three closest advisors. They send operative Blake Newman to gather info. What she finds, mostly, is that both Midori and Hitsuji are slobs, and crappy neighbors. On her last night in Japan, forced to listen to the two of them argue – again – about there being no food, she brings over some stew and offers to share. As it hadn’t escaped Midori’s notice that her neighbor is a hot American blonde, she decides to help herself to a little souvenir of some sex with Blake. The next day, Blake is a little regretful, but glad to be going home, when a plane comes crashing into the terminal of the airport with an “extraneous” on it. She calls Midori, and Hitsuji comes to a very public rescue.

The next two years are filled with fame and fortune for Midori and Hitsuji…and their top employee, Blake Newman. Life is a fun-filled romp of adventure and money, until one day it all comes to a crashing end. The US government took Blake’s info and has crafted a creature that looks like Hitsuji, if she looked 20, not 10, and has all the same abilities. She is the “anti-extraneous” and she takes on Hitsuji in every way, from battling extraneous deities to photo shoots and album recording.

When all the extraneous beings have been eradicated by Hitsuji and Hitsuji, the US version turns on the other, announcing that there’s only one extraneous to go. The battle is cataclysmic, but our Hitsuji prevails.

With no reason to stay, Hitsuji tells Midori that it’s been fun, and they part – but not before Hitsuji give Midori a bottle of godhead to drink, so she can have Hitsuji’s child. Hitsuji also leaves behind her big-ass sword, which Midori carts off as a memento.

Meanwhile, back in the US, the President’s advisors are all chuffed that their mission to remove all extraneous has worked and that both Hitsuji are gone. At which they reveal themselves as the deities Bastet, Nike and Valkyrie. Joke’s on the President, now, isn’t it?

The final chapter takes place 17 years later. Yo, Midori and Hitsuji’s kid (get it?) is gorgeous, princely and is ready to take on the world. And so she will. Her three closest friends reveal themselves as Bastet, Nike and Valkyrie, and Yo wakes up as the ultimate god. She brainwashes the entire plant to be her sheep (get it?) and ultimately commands all the humans to die. Which they begin to do. Until her loving mother drives her father’s big-ass sword through her chest.

They part tearfully, and the manga ends as Hitsuji returns the world to normal and joins Midori for more who-knows-what-adventure.

This is not great literature, by any count, but it’s not as trashy as it starts off. The author clearly had no idea if it was going to continue from chapter to chapter, but once the plot gets started, it was actually quite good. The end was a bit reset-y, but totally palatable.

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 6
Characters – 8
Yuri – 7
Service – 7 (non-consensual sex, lolicon, bathing, gratuitous breasts)
Violence – 9

Overall – 8

The violence quotient is quite high, so if large gouts of blood and beheading don’t appeal, you might want to skip it, same if bathing loli scenes, or random drunken misbehaving desperate lesbians bother you. But then, if that’s true, why are you reading Okazu? ^_^