Yuri Manga: Comic Yuri Hime September 2018 (コミック百合姫2018年9月号)

August 14th, 2018

It’s not often that I’m actually excited about any particular issue of a magazine. This month has been an exception – not once, but twice. First the heavily Yuri-focused 27th volume of Rakuen Le Paradis, and today, Comic Yuri Hime for September 2018 (コミック百合姫2018年9月号). 

I’ve noted that there are any number of series running in this magazine recently that appeal to me. Of them Hisona’s “Goodbye Dystopia” and Hamuro Kei’s “Tsurezure Biyori” – despite, or perhaps because of  -their lack of structure are two of my favorite series. In fact, I’m find the plotless wanderings through life in several series to be unusually appealing these days. 

“Yuri-kkon, Girl’s Wedding Omnibus” by Hisakawa Haru continues to be a lot of fun. This issue follows two rival girl idol group centers who are, in reality, a couple. When work calls upon them to create a feud, they break down and reveal the truth on TV in a kiss. The lead-in to the next chapter is cagier than usual, as we can only tell an important businesswoman is listening to the report of the duet’s new single, “Happy Marriage.”

And then we hit what may well be the most pivotal chapter in all of Comic Yuri Hime‘s history. Ohsawa Yayoi’s “2DK, GPen, Mezamashitokei” is not the magazine’s longest-running series, Yuru Yuri wins on longevity. Citrus, which will wrap up  with the release of it’s 10th volume, is also running ahead of it as a narrative series. But “2DK, GPen, Mezamashitokei” is the longest-running narrative about adults we’ve ever had in Yuri manga. I have long said it that although it probably not be a great anime, it would make an excellent live-action drama. In this chapter, we learn that Kaede’s manga has been tagged as a drama. Do I think these two unrelated things are related? Nope. Do I have a feeling about this? Nope. Am I squeeing silently with all digits crossed? Yes, yes I am. 8 volumes in to this series, I kind of don’t want it to ever end, and want a three-season TV drama out of it. Nanami and Kaede drive me crazy in the best way.

“Ma cherie” by sakanaya takes a look at the personas we create and how we can hurt ourselves with them. In “Goodbye Dystopia” Masaki has no idea where Asami is taking her, but she’s starting to think about the life – and companions – Asami has before she arrived.

Omg, “Hayama-sensei to Terano-sensei ha Tsukiatte Iru” by Ohi Pikachi is just the most ridiculously adorable story about two teachers going out! 

Ameno’s “Takane no Hana ha Usotsuki desu” comes to a sweet conclusion that bends one’s ability to believe, but that’s okay. ^_^

A great issue and the next volume sees the return of Takemiya Jin-sensei, so I’m already ready for the October issue, baby!

Ratings:

Overall – 9

Fingers and toes crossed, pleaseohplease Yuri gods, give us a live-action drama for “2DK, GPen, Mezamashitokei”!

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Yuri Manga: Korede Wakattayo! (これでわかってよ!)

August 13th, 2018

Over the last 16 years we’ve gone through a lot of changes together, you and I. Today marks the end of an era here on Okazu. It’s not the first time, either. Obviously, almost 20 years ago, when we started this journey, I used to review just about everything and anything with any possible Yuri, because just there just wasn’t all that much. That’s changed radically and now, I’m in the happy position of struggling to keep up with all the new Yuri coming out.

As 2015 began, I gave up reviewing Yuri porn anthologies, because they were almost all really dreadful, written by and for people with limited understanding of female bodies and no understanding of or interest in of women’s interior lives. And, along with them, I gave up reviewing things that I considered just generally terrible on the principle that it’s true that you may wish to know why a thing is terrible, but I don’t wish to subject myself to it for your benefit. Now I’ve outsourced that to my guest reviewers (^_^) 

And, with today’s review I’ve decided I’m no longer reviewing “Story A”s in which nothing particular happens and there’s no defining or unique characteristic. That doesn’t mean I’ll no longer review Yuri that is “Story A,” just that its got to have something more than merely “there is a girl, she likes a girl, the other girl likes her back, the end.” And I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with that and if you love those kinds of stories, and use legit means to buy them and would like to see some reviews on Okazu, then go ahead and submit your reviews! But I’m drowning in Yuri (yay!) and want to talk about the great stuff that I’m reading. As a result, I’ve got less time for stuff like today’s manga. 

In Mamoto’s  Korede Wakattayo! (これでわかってよ!), the volume is split into two mini-series. “Ai Irenai Futari” follows two high school girls who are always bickering, but are a couple. They share school days and beach days and enjoy their time together, even as they argue constantly. 

In “Donkan Shoujo to Inu” a hardworking, misanthropist is worn down by a cute. cheerful girl. The two of them share dates to the aquarium, ice cream, pastries and classwork.

These two shorts add up to a nice, if otherwise unremarkable, volume. If I had to guess, I’d say that these are several doujinshi collected into a single volume. 

There’s nothing bad about this volume, the art is decent, the characters are nice, as for as they are developed, which isn’t far. There isn’t anything that makes this volume stand out, either. 

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 6
Characters – 6
Yuri – 5
Service – 3 Manifesting mostly as bizarre body angles

Overall – 6

There’s so much excellent work hitting shelves now, unless something is either terrible enough to be funny (or appealing) I’m culling the herd of nice, but not compelling, Yuri. 

 

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Summer Reading: Provenance, by Ann Leckie

August 12th, 2018

Last winter I told you about the Imperial Radch series ( Ancillary Justice, Ancillary Sword and Ancillary Mercy) by Ann Leckie. I told you that the series was brilliant and I stand by that. As a result, I was really looking forward to her next novel, Provenance.

Provenance was not a brilliant exercise in world-building like the trilogy Instead, it was an energetic and entertaining caper story set in the same universe, but in a complete different part, wholly removed from the intense politics of the trilogy. MInd you, it had it’s own intense politics. ^_^

Ingray is a young woman who is driven by ambition and obligation to take extraordinary risks and prove herself a worthy successor to her adoptive mother, a powerful politician on her world. To impress her mother and get a leg up over her brother, her mother’s natural son, Ingray plans on breaking one of their world’s most inafamous criminals out of jail, using him to recover “lost” property that he was accused of stealing and establishing herself as a hero and a force to be reckoned with.

It all goes wrong from the very beginning. The ship she hires to transport her “cargo” refuses to let them board, her cargo tells her that she’s sprung the wrong guy and her brother’s own scheme to gain their mother’s attention threatens to destroy hers. 

I haven’t had this much fun reading a book in ages. ^_^

The Garseddai world is rather far from the center of the Radchaai Imperium, where the Ancillary books took place. On this world, status is conveyed by “vestiges” – the physical remnants of important events – the provenance of the title is the history of the world and its government, as represented by these artifacts. Ingray’s desire to return treasured vestiges turns out to be a caper novel on a global scale. From spider mecha to spacewalks, from alien ambassadors to media clickbait, from a most satisfying conclusion (except for the shoes) to a surprising and pleasant relationship between Ingray and another young woman, this book has some of everything that I could have possibly wanted. 

The books also continues Leckie’s tradition of annoying alt-right readers. In the Imperial Radch series, she cemented her place on anti-diversity lists by defaulting to “she” as a standard pronoun. In Provenance, the entire world uses “e/em” and other ungendered language defaults. (Other than the lack of a consonant, which makes it occasionally awkward in spoken English when a word ends with a vowel, I quite like it.)

Ratings: 

Overall – 9

If you like caper stories (and who doesn’t?) I heartily recommend Provenance with no reservations. It was a load of fun in every way.

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Yuri Network News – (百合ネットワークニュース) – August 11, 2018

August 11th, 2018

Yuri Anime

Senior YNN Correspondent Verso S took some time to catch us up on the Asagao to Kase-san OVA news this week. We were both convinced that the end of July would see the end of the run, but new theaters were added this week! Verso writes in with: “Inside Japan, starting this Saturday, August 10, the short film will be screened for two weeks in three theatres of a cinema chain, Korona Cinema World. This chain did not originally pick up the OVA upon first release. Screenings in all other cinemas on the original list have ended. The three Korona cinemas are located in Handa city (Aichi Prefecture), Ogaki (Gifu Prefecture) and Fukui city (Fukui).” I’m fascinated by the longevity of this theater run.

Komatsu-san on Crunchyroll reports that Tonari no Kyuuketsuki-san, a Yuri-ish anime (painfully translated, probably for copyright reasons, as Ms. Vampire Who Lives in my Neighborhood) based on a  manga which is running in Cune, has a Promotional Video available for you to view.

Enjoy Yuri manga and anime reviews and news! Get special sneak peeks at upcoming research and book chapters! Be part of the Yuri network – support Okazu on Patreon. Even $2/month can make a huge difference to us to bringing you all the best in Yuri!

LGBTQ Manga

Also from YNN Correspondent Verso S, is news that the HMV in Shibuya is going all out for the release of Shimanami Tasogare (しまなみ誰そ彼), Volume 4. Check out the pictures on their Twitter account and read their newsletter! Also…look at that cover, will you? ^_^

 

Yuri Manga

Risou to Koi ~Otona Yuri Omnibus (理想と恋 ～大人百合オムニバス～) is an online comic on Comic Walker. You can read a chapter for free (in Japanese).

From Yuri Hime @Pixiv, we have Tsuki to Koi ha Ochireba Kakeru (月と恋は満ちれば欠ける。) by Tokumutsumu. You can read the first 4 chapters of that on Pixiv (in Japanese.)

Catcher in the Rhyme, Volume 2 (キャッチャー・イン・ザ・ライム) hit shelves at the end of June and I can’t wait to read it (even though the rap is often beyond my ability to read. ^_^;)

Matuzaki Natsumi is another jousei manga artist with a Yuri story set in school, this one from Feel Comics. Lullaby for Girl (ララバイ・フォー・ガール ) goes on sale next month. 

 

Live-Action News

YNN Correspondent Stacy L tell us “Jacques Demy’s very rarely seen (outside of Japan) 1979 live-action adaptation of Rose of Versailles, Lady Oscar, was released on blu-ray this year.” Read a review of it on Mondo-Digital. 

 

Other News

Unrelated at all whatsoever to Yuri, the Satoshi Kon film Perfect Blue will be receiving a theater release in the US. I bring this up because we’re seeing more and more theaters picking up anime movies now and there seem to be two routes: 1) Major chains in small towns and 2) Art theaters. I believe the second one would work well for a Kase-san release, so I’m just going to hope like heck that Pony Canyon will consider bringing the OVA to the US for limited theatrical run, although realistically, these do better for older movies with established audiences – Evangelion, Sailor Moon, etc.

I do also recommend Perfect Blue, with some trigger warnings for rape and violence. There is no rape in the movie, but there is still a rape warning. It’s an amazing movie, fwiw. Check out the Fathom Events page for other anime movie nights at a theater near you. 

From Twitter, Morishima Akiko-sensei’s Comiket booth info includes a LINE stamp. How fun! Check out the QR code on this Yomuco tweet.

Harvey Awards nominees are out and the field is pretty diverse with some great queer-friendly content up for awards.

Queers & Comics 2019 is calling for panelists! Submit your application by September 30, 2018.

Become a YNN Correspondent by reporting any Yuri-related news to anilesbocon01 at hotmail dot com with your name and an email I can reply to!  No YNN Podcast this week, while our audio engineer is out on vacation and I’m off to go picnic! Check in next week for a new episode!

Thanks to all of you – you make this a great Yuri Network!

Posted in Yuri Network News | 2 Comments »


Rakuen Le Paradis Magazine, Volume 27 (楽園 Le Paradis)

August 9th, 2018

Rakuen Le Paradis, Volume 27 (楽園 Le Paradis) is a banner issue for Yuri fans. We have 5 “Girls Love” (publisher’s term) stories by 5 different artists, several of them popular mainstream josei manga artists. 

Nakamura Asamiko continues “Mejirobana no Saku,” (メジロバナの咲く), in which odball Ruby confronts school star Steph, trying to get her involved with fundraising for a Christmas tree at the school. Rumors about the two of them are flying, but neither of them care. Nonetheless, Ruby is struggling with her sincere feelings for the aloof upperclassman.

Kazuma Kowo’s Junsui Luminscence  (純水ルミネッセンス) takes a look once again at Nanao and her affair with the school doctor, as she contemplates marriage. 

In Harumi Chihiro’s  “Hasu no Hana,” (蓮の花)  Karin lashes out at another student because she cannot express her feelings about Okayama. She finally does, shocking her classmates, but Okayama doesn’t care.

Shigisawa Kaya’s (whose collection Kimi Dake Ni, (君だけが光) includes other Yuri,) continues “Praparat” (プレパラート) ) which looks at an artist who confronts her feelings about her muse.

Unita Yumi’s “Moko”  (モコ) follows a student who admits to her male classmate that she’s in love with the girl he wants to go out with. Only…she was  standing there and heard it all.

It’s all schoolgirls, but not all Story A. These stories have the kind of nuance one expects from these artists, in this magazine. I’m fascinated that almost none of the creators have a Yuri background, although both Shigisawa and Harumi have included Yuri in previous stories for the magazine, and Kazuma-sensei originated Junsui Adolescence in Comic Yuri Hime. More importantly, I am interested as heck in what we might see in days to come. This magazine has previously featured work by Takemiya Jin, Hayashiya Shizuru and Nishi UKO, as well, and I’m hopeful that we’ll see more in the future.

Ratings:

Overall – 9

No, seriously, this magazine is once again a must-get for fans of Yuri manga. For the third time. ^_^

Posted in Magazines, Rakuen Le Paradis, Yuri Manga | 2 Comments »