Archive for the Yuri Manga Category


Yuri Manga: Transistor Ni Venus, Volume 5

August 27th, 2005

Transistor ni Venus 5I know you were all wondering, as was I, where agent April Enus gained her obvious skill in kissing, as chronicled in Transistor Ni Venus. Well, your wait is ovah! In Volume 5 of this delightful action/pin-up fusion we, at long last, learn Enus’ secret.

We could have never guessed the truth in a million years.

The year is 2264, April Enus is only 16, a young, but highly promising agent-in-training for whatever planet she agents for. (I haven’t really bothered to translate the name, because, really, who cares? Call it the People’s Republic of Zod, or whatever you wish.)

Her skills are rapidly increasing…but, to her shame, she’s a loser at kissing. All the other agents say so, and one by one, all the pretty girls leave her and kiss other agents, ’cause she sucks at it.

Luckily for Enus, she is given the task of minding a powerful seer, Atakui. Atakui steals a bit from one of my friend Sparkle’s Sailor Moon fanfics, and gets a jolt upon meeting Enus. I’m sure you can see what’s coming a mile away. Atakui certainly could.

There’s some adventure and spies and attacks and stuff, but really, we all want to know what’s going to happen with Enus’ sucky kissing, right? Which is good, because that’s really the plot. Oh, and Enus gets blown up a few times, too. But really, the important bit is when she begs Atakui to help her become a better kisser. Which the seer does. The two women hold a ritual to ask the Goddess for her blessing. (Don’t be a dork and ask which goddess, okay? Venus, obviously….) And lo and behold! The Goddess bestows this precious blessing on Enus! Yay! Now she is not only a good kisser – she is the BEST kisser in the universe!

There was some spy stuff happening too, but no one was paying attention. ;-)

Ratings:
Art – 8
Characters – 9
Story – 8
Yuri – 9

Overall – 9

Transistor ni Venus is a ridiculous, silly piece of fluff, but it never fails to make me smile.





Yuri Manga: Ichigo Mashimaro, Volume 2

August 9th, 2005

I’m woman enough to admit when I’m defeated. And there is no doubt in my mind that Ichigo Mashimaro has won by a knockout.

I originally caved back in May, when I reviewed Volume 1 of the manga, but now I’m full blown moe-geeking at the utter cuteness and wacky humor of this story. Look, Ma, I’m a genuine otaku now!

Volume 2 is more of the same nothing that is usual for Ichigo Mashimaro. Miu and Nobue treat everyone – especially each other – with unusual cruelty that somehow manages to be adorable even as its being eviler than just about anything else I’ve ever seen. And that, in a nutshell, is what has got me hooked. I just adore psychotic women. lol

So, in Volume 2, we are introduced to the last of our main cast, the European doll-like Ana, who hails from Cornwall, but has about as much English as the average Japanese elementary school student. In other words – almost none. Watching as Ana tries desperately to pretend to not know Japanese or any of the right customs is just plain hysterical.

The rest of this volume is taken up with several fanservice-y shorts, a bath episode, a Christmas episode, a running gag about a local vending machine that serves up random objects and other goofball stuff that’s funnier than it has a right to be.

And, at last, there’s a hint of the yuri that I just haven’t seen until now. Okay, its true that Nobue hugs Ana when she meets her, but she is drunk at the time. And she clearly thinks of Matsuri as a pet, not as a girl. After reading Volume 2 (and 3, but that’s a later review) I’m sticking with the Miu x Nobue combo. Miu has it bad for Nobue and frankly, I can see Nobue being okay with that. Remember, manga Nobue is 16…not so huge and uncomfortable a gap between that and Miu’s 12. I’m pretty sure we *all* had crushes on older women at that age. (In retrospect, mine was probably my babysitter, Biz Ann.) So, yeah.

The final chapter traces a cold that begins with Chika, but ends up being Miu’s. In her eternal desire to gain Nobue’s attention, Miu demands that Nobue see if she has a fever (she doesn’t….but she will.) As she lifts her face to Nobue, Nobue leans over and kisses Miu on the lips. A little surprisingly, Miu freaks. They then go on to play doctor, in a way that I’m pretty sure I never did as a kid. But I digress. Oh, and the best gag of the chapter is Chika sneezing messily on her older sister. Twice. It’s infantile, and gross, but really, really funny.

Ratings:
Art – 8
Story – 10
Characters – 10
Yuri – 5

For sheer bizarro wacky humor and psycho babydyke-in-training Miu, this manga is a serious win.





Yuri Manga: Transistor ni Venus, Volume 4

August 5th, 2005

Transistor ni Venus, Volume 4 is one long gag about smoking. Or, more accurately, about how unsexy smoking is.

Enus is assigned to guide and protect Mag, a 21-year old who looks significantly younger, and a professor who happens to be one of the ferret-like sentient race that inhabits the Transistor universe. As usual, they are followed, attacked and generally harrassed by other spies trying to gain the information Mag and the Professor have, but Enus always comes through and saves them. The gag begins when Enus wants to collect an appropriate reward from Mag…who is fine with a little sex, but wants to have a ciggy first. The Professor joins her. Enus goes to sleep infused with second-hand smoke and an attitude.

About halfway through the book, Enus loses Mag and the professor, but picks up Tes, from whom she gets a few kisses, but is almost immediately interrupted by the arrival of rival spy Kara, who promptly steals Tes. We regain Mag and the Professor and the smoking club has now grown by two.

The whole story ends with a big kissfest, but Enus goes to bed alone. I imagine the others are outside for a cigarette break.

As with all the other Transistor volumes, this one is good, wholesome fun trash. The emphasis is on comedy, with a little light yuri.

While I was reading this volume, I showed it and the artbook to a friend who has no interest in anime and she perked right up! “Why didn’t you TELL me about this?” she asked when, of course, I’d been telling her for years.

If you know a lesbian who thinks all this yuri is crap, show her this series – I bet she pays a little more attention. ;-) Partially its the art – the artbook in particularl looks like pin-up art more than manga art. A couple of the pictures would make nice tattoos. ^_^

So the yuri quotient is a little lower in this volume than the others (which I have reviewed previously, use the search feature up top on the left to find the entries) but is still a fun read.

Once again, many thanks to Touko_no_doriru-san for opening my eyes to this wonderful series!





Yuri Manga: Transistor ni Venus, Volume 1

July 19th, 2005


I have two gentlemen to thank for this review – Touko_no_doriru-san, for opening my eyes to this series in general and Mr. Brent Adkins, who has very genourously donated this particular volume to the cause. (The cause being, of course, my enjoyment of yuri. lol) Thank you, kind sirs!

So, in Volume 1 of Transistor ni Venus, we are introduced to April Enus, expert in espionage, theft, derring-do and cosplay. Apparently in the year 2269, these are all crucial skills. :-) Intrigue, adventure and sleeping with pretty girls is raison d’etre for the lovely Enus, so of course I approve.

The first volume also introduces us to Mariaana, Enus’ sometimes partner in work and frequent partner in bed. I had no *idea* Mariaana was another agent! In the next several volumes she goes soft. She’s way cooler as a tough agent who manages to resist Enus’ charms for several whole chapters.

Oh, and there’s a story where Enus has to be a maid to do something or other…I kind of lost the thread of the story while watching her seduce the other maids. :-)

Ratings:
Art – 6
Story – 7
Characters – 8
Yuri – 9

Overall – 8

Not as wonderful as Volume 2, or as funny as Volume 3, Volume 1 of Transistor ni Venus is a charming exploration of several random fetishes. There’s sure to be one you find appealing. :-)





Yuri Manga: Amazoness no Matsuei

July 18th, 2005

Time for another hugely obscure manga review! I found this series at Book-Off, where all bad manga series go to die. ^_^

The cover of Amazoness no Matsuei (Amazoness’ Descendants) states, in English, ” ‘I have the reason to fight for!’ This is the success story of Amazoness Akari searching for her own answer in the world of women’s professional wrestling.” And that’s just exactly what this short two-part manga series is about.

Akari is a kid who wants to be the women’s wrestling champion. She’s got the stuff, so we watch her work hard and practice and move up the ranks, facing ever tougher opponents, but always triumphing. Eventually she falls in love with a blind guy, and in the end, not only does she become a champion, the guy gets his sight back! Happy endings all around! ^_^

Seriously, its a gentle romance with action – no real high drama that lasts too long, some fun fights and, in the tradition of all fighting stories, Akari becomes friends with all her defeated opponents, including the hugely gay current world champion Kanzaki Yuu. (Pictured on the right-hand cover – the bishounen looking character. Yes, that’s meant to be a girl.)

In the beginning, Yuu is someone to admire and attain the level of. But early on, after seeing Akari seriously injure her opponent in a rough match, Yuu becomes mightily interested in Akari, and asks to room with the newcomer. Yuu does put the moves on Akari, but is soundly rejected. Yuu subsequently behaves, but starts to genuinely fall in love with Akari, even as Akari is falling in love with her blind boyfriend – and moving up the ranks as a wrestler.

In the second volume two things come to a head with Yuu. First, Yuu had made Akari promise not to get involved with any guy, because it would take away from her training. Yuu learns that Akari has reneged on this promise and is both upset for Akari and jealous about her. Akari and Yuu fight and Akari moves out.

Secondly, a reporter takes a picture of Akari with a male wrestler that, taken out of context, looks like they are intimate. (In fact, its a very innocent picture and I really don’t get the fuss, but, okay…) Yuu sleeps with the female reporter in order to suppress the picture. When Yuu rejects the reporter because she’s not Akari, the reporter not only releases the picture, but she tells Akari that she and Yuu slept together. She goes on to leak the obvious information that Yuu is in love with Akari, which Akari cannot believe.

And here’s where the series begins to suck because, of course, Yuu and Akari have to face one another in the ring for the championship. Obviously. In the end, Akari wins, obviously, and they finally have it out about the whole situation, obviously. Yuu forgives Akari for falling in love with a guy. And Akari, hugging Yuu in front of the audience, tells Yuu that she doesn’t believe Yuu is a lesbian and she’s not in love with her, right? Because they are like sisters to one another.

Yuu can only hold Akari and grunt noncommittally. I really felt for Yuu there. Not only can’t she admit she loves Akari, Akari won’t even see that Yuu is a lesbian. A decidedly unsatisfactory ending for Yuu all the way around. Yuu just happened to be written in the “bleak period” for lesbians in manga between the early shoujo of the 70’s and 80’s and the Sailor Moon renaissance of the 90’s. Poor Yuu.

One of the high points of the manga is that Akari’s opponents are drawn realistically – sometimes really masculine, sometimes crazy, sometimes in costume, etc. It’s obvious that the mangaka spent time researching actual women’s wrestling. One of the psycho crazy opponents, who turns out to be a real nice gal out of the ring and one of the butchiest women Akari fights (and who has a female companion all the time) ends up as a good friend. So there’s a nice real-feel to the characters and situations.

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 8
Characters – 8
Yuri – 7
Overall – 7

Disclaimer: Despite the fact that I reviewed this manga, and that Japanese women’s professional wrestling has appeared in both my fanfic and original fiction and that my cousin is a professional wrestler in Japan, that I actually have a favorite fighter in the GAEA league of Japanese professional female wrestling, I am not in any way obsessed with wrestling, professional, female or not. I have never even seen a bout and have no desire to do so. My research into Tiger Mask and Thunder Liger was purely professional and the fact that Ogata Megumi did a death metal version of Tiger Mask’s theme has affected me in no way whatsoever. :-D