Yuri Meguri 2018, Part 3

April 29th, 2018

After yesterday’s Yuriten, it was time to shift into high gear and go shopping. I don’t have much time left here, so today was a frantic hike around various stores. 

I started at Tokyo Station with a visit to Character Street, where I yet again threw an unreasonable amount of money on Sailor Moon and Utena goods. I forgot to tell you this – many of the goods out now are Outers-focused, and so I’ve been picking up extras for the upcoming set of Lucky Boxes.  The picture on the left is some guy in a Nameko head outside the Nameko store on Character Street doing a “signing.” People were lined up for his autograph and everything.


I went back to Akihabara, primarily because it was Sunday and I have never managed to make Akihabara on Sunday. Lots of people, but nothing else exciting was happening at least while I was there. I got a copy of Wings magazine, in which a new Kase-san chapter debuted, “Yamada to Kase-san.” I’m really glad to be able to get this issue, if for no other reason than to see Yamada’s name in the title. ^_^ The station had one of those Gashapon cities that were popular in every station when I was here last, and I found some fun ones there to throw a few bucks away at. Then it was back to Ueno to pick up something at Yamashiroya at the wife’s request. I had taken the long way around to Tokyo station so as I made my way back on the Yamanote, I’d complete a circuit. Just because. :-)

Back in Ikebukuro, I hit up Book-Off and managed to find not one of the books I was looking for. Do you remember Shitsurakuen? I read the first volume in 2009 (and did not like it one bit), managed to catch pieces of it here and there in the magazine. I know how it ended, but have never had a chance to read it. I also refuse to pay a cent to find out. ^_^ I keep going to Book-Off, hoping they have the end so I can just read the last few pages, but they never have it.  They have increasing numbers of Volume 1, every time I go. (^_^); Oh well. Nor did they have any of the other books on my list, and the series they had, they had the wrong volumes, boo. :-( Its always a crapshoot with Book-Off anyway. It’s just fun to look through the shelves.

Then it was down to the Animate Yuribu once more just to see what was there. The current issue of Dengeki Mao has Nettaigyou ha Yuki ni Kogareru on the cover. Picked up a few more books, of course. ^_^ 

At which point I was fading from hunger, so I headed back to my hotel. But I finally got to check off something from my to-do in Tokyo list – I managed to buy a doughnut from Mister Donut. I’ve never managed to have one before in all my times here. Life goals!

Tomorrow is my last day and it will be more running around. I want to get back to the Yuriten once more, hit up Harajuku and make sure I everything on my list that can be get is gotten. Wish me luck!

Posted in Tokyo Journal | 4 Comments »


Yuri Meguri, Part 2 – Yuriten 2018!

April 28th, 2018

So, wow, Yuriten 2018 in Tokyo was fantastic! 

Backing up, my day began too early, when I realized I had forgotten something important and jolted myself awake at 5AM. Whee!  By 10, I was ready to go when Uchida-san from the host company for Yuriten, Village Vanguard, came to get me. First off, I cannot thank Uchida-san enough, she was a superhero! Interpreting isn’t easy and a lot of our discussion was complicated and otaku-ish. She was brilliant.

We headed over to Aoyama, then wandered through the byways until we came to Lightbox Studio.  As we stood there, the line got longer and actually wrapped around itself. The place was pretty full the entire time we were there. There were slightly more men than women, but Uchida-san and I both noted that it was a young crowd, and fairly mixed crowd. We were both pleased by the turnout. (In the windows, just peeking over the boards for the art, you could see lilies. It was really sweet. The camera couldn’t get it, though.)

I loved the venue! It was so much more pleasant than a department store space might have been. We walked through the exhibit, speaking of the various series. Uchida-san was not originally a Yuri fan, but she started to read Yuri when she was put on this project, so it was fun to talk about the  some of the series presented to us. She and I then wandered the exhibition. (All my unlabeled, unsorted, unedited pictures can be found on my Yuriten 2018 photoset on FB.)

The event poster had been signed by some of the artists.

This drawing by Canno is the same couple in the Yuriten main visual photo, as adults – you can tell because of the bracelets. I thought that a nice touch.

Uchida-san and I laughed a lot. She was so cute and funny, especially when she didn’t so much like a series, she was very circumspect, but (of course) I would rant. ^_^ I had a funny rant when we got to Citrus because I started talking about Yuzu’s life after Mei, how her next three girlfriends would be like “Stop talking about your sister, I get you loved her, move on, get some therapy!” ^_^

Here is a very small selection of pictures. I took more than I uploaded to FB, but it’ll have to wait until I get home for full upload.

 

 

 

This was a piece of original art, not a reproduction, by Shimura Takako-sensei.

 

 

Of course they had a poster for the just-announced Yagate Kimi ni Naru anime! 

 

 

They had the standee from the Kase-san movie, of course and the movie poster…and fliers…and the video of the trailer…because a theatrical release is a big deal for Yuri anime!

When we got to Miman’s Watashi no Yuri ha Oshigoto desu! section, we talked about the official comic on the B-side of the Yuriten flier (which you can read on the Yuriten home page, scroll down past the main visual) and how we were sorry that they didn’t actually have a Yuri cafe…this time. Next year, I hope. ^_^

At the end, there was a table with original drawings by a few artists. Itou Hachi-sensei cut out the negative space on hers for a really beautiful 3-d effect, that I think my camera just caught it.

 

The shop was as large as the exhibit space. This is only a shot or two, but almost every artist that had been exhibited was represented by stuff. I bought a bunch of stuff for lucky boxes and presents and got myself an After Hours t-shirt. I’m still waffling on getting that Aoi Hana print shirt. The shop had 3 or 4 registers, all of them were had lines.

After buying a bag full of Yuristuff, we headed backwards through the exhibit, so I could look at everything without taking pictures.

Then I was invited out to lunch with Kawamoto-san from Kadokawa, Uchida-san and Morishima Akiko-sensei.

I have an important announcement to make, Kawamoto-san is the true Yuri master. His knowledge surpasses mine. He showed me his prize possession of the earliest Yuri doujinshi ever. I was blown away. After lunch, we talked about publishing, and Yuri and…stuff….

One of the things we discussed  was that goods and information are how some fans engage with the media. I mean, people who can create their own stuff do, but not everyone can.  You know I talk about how there’s a level of fan who just likes to watch or read or whatever, but then there is a level where uppercase ‘F’ Fans want to be part of or engage with the story, which is where you have derivative creative work, cosplay and fanart and fanfic and AMVs, etc. Some people don’t have that kind of creative drive, but they still want to have a deeper connection to the work, so they collect goods and/or information as an expression of that connection. Some fans hoard that information, to use as status. “I know more than you about….” which can become toxic. (And sort of feeds back to the conversation I had with Kat Callahan, because the more passionate one is about that information, while the passion is admirable, the opinion is perceived by those who do not share it as, well…ridiculous. And if the fan is obsessive and inflexible, they come across as an asshole. That’s where toxic fandom festers. I’m right, you’re wrong, I’m so right that I have to attack you to prove how wrong you are… etc, etc.)

Yuri fans have not had the opportunity to be goods and info hoarders so much, which is why Yuriten is still fun. Sure, it’s a blatant commercialization of Yuri. So? ^_^ 

We went for coffee and talked about publishing and Yuri and stuff for a few more hours! Morishima-sensei drew a little comic about this, and put it up on Twitter. 

We talked about the history of Yuri, about Yuricon 2005, and the day we all said, “this is Yuri.” And here were were 13 years later surrounded by all this Yuri! 

I learned a new word, tottoii, which means “precious” but like to an obsessive amount.  I failed at sharing common new slang from America, because I have no teens in my life right now. :-(

Oh, I was asked again about the reason I picked “Okazu” for this blog name. It’s because it means little dishes, you know, like in a bentou box, but also because it’s not a full meal, it was slang for lesbian sex which isn’t the “main course” in straight porn. You understand? So, it turns out that Galette magazine has that name because a galette is a full meal! Wow, really?! Food and sex and Yuri. I approve.

When we broke up for the day, Morishima-sensei and I head back to Ikebukuro, she wanted to buy a Kase-san movie ticket for the postcards. (She drew one of the postcards, and they didn’t send her a set?!?) So we went to Yurimate together. The Ikebukuro station was a madhouse (first Saturday of Golden Week at dinner time, so many people!) and it was hard to see the signs, but I know it pretty well, and lead her through to Sunshine-dori and down to Animate. (I do not object to this dashing idealized version of me!)

We browsed Yurimate and she drew a little comic for their message board. I really wanted to tell the girl behind the counter she had Morishima-sensei right there, make her sign things! but I didn’t. Such restraint. 

 

 

After making our way back to the station, Morishima-sensei and I parted. It was so great to spend time with her! And Sensei, I cannot wait until get to read your new work in Galette!

Thank you to Uchida-san, Kawamoto-san, Morishima-sensei and everyone at the Yuriten 2018! It was an absolutely lovely event. I’ll go back again before I leave for more pictures and goods.

Posted in Events, Tokyo Journal | 21 Comments »


Yuri Meguri 2018, Part 1

April 27th, 2018

Welcome to the Yuri Meguri 2018!

This week is a perfect time to be in Tokyo if you are a Yuri fan! I began my stay with a quick visit to the Ikebukuro Animate, where they are running a first anniversary Yurimate event.

For all the photos of the Yurimate exhibit and the Yuribu layout, take a look on my Yurimate album on Facebook.

The Yuribu is on the first floor as it has been. The shelves include new releases and the 20th anniversary editions of the Maria-sama ga Miteru novels series, which made me smile. I picked up a few Yuriten fliers on the display!

The Yurimate takes up the exhibition portion of the 3rd floor. The walls are adorned with reproductions of current popular manga series from Comic Yuri Hime and Dengeki Daioh. Goods and books are laid out in the middle with some interesting choices for goods – Yagate Kimi ni Naru has a phone case available, for instance. One wall also has a screen playing the Asagao to Kase-san trailer and the Yuriten is selling tickets to the movie.

It’s all quite charming and I’ll be returning later to give it a closer look (and see if I can get more pictures.)

As I walked back to the hotel, I passed the Humax theater where in June Asagao to Kase-san will be screening and I suddenly realized how great a time it was for Yuri fan. I dubbed this trip a Yuri Meguri and decided that I would spend the next few days on a tour of Yuri in Tokyo. ^_^ (All the pictures can be found on the Yuri Meguri Facebook photoset.)

(A meguri is a trip “around” a place hitting up specified locations, btw. Years ago in Tokyo I did a Shichifukujin Meguri to visit shrines for the seven lucky gods and their boat.)

My first full day in town was the day I visited Akihabara. My first stop was the Yuribu I had never been to before, the Shosen Yuribu! I’d never even heard of the Shosen Book Tower until last year when they did an amusing April Fool’s joke about turning the whole thing into the Yuri Book Tower, then launched the Yuribu.

When I arrived, there was clearly marked sign right at the entrance for the Yuribu.

And when I found it, it was also clearly marked.

It wasn’t big, but it was another take on what constitutes “Yuri” from the perspective of the Shosen staff. So there were a bunch of older magazines, like Hirari and some new volumes of manga. 

Then it was on to Gamers, for their Yuribu. While Gamers is still hugely moe-focused, was much less skanky than it used to be. I have no idea if that is mostly due to them changing or me just not seeing it. ^_^; They had a mini-museum to a charming little series I’m reading, so haven’t yet reviewed, Nettaigyou ha Yuki ni Kogareru (熱帯魚は雪に焦がれる). 

 

And across from that, there was a display to Love to Lie Angle. Along the  wall was a small, but shockingly not-creepy Yuri section.

 

I then wandered over to Toranoana, which still had their Yuri Corner set up and – as I have come to expect – some series I have never before heard of! (It’s also next to some storage, which gives it a real “back corner” feel. There was a poster for Kase-san, and  surprising display of the members of Cham-Jam from Hirao Auri’s  Oshi ga Budokan Ittekuretara Shinu, Volume 1（推しが武道館いってくれたら死ぬ）. 

Then it was over to Animate, but as you remember, there is no Yuri club there, because it’s in the Ikebukuro store. ^_^ Then I popped over to Comic Zin, where I picked up some Yuri doujinshi, including a collection of office romance that I was glad to find.

Last time, I didn’t get a good picture, but I managed to show you this time. This section is on your right as you walk in to the second floor and very easy to see. 

 

The next day I went out to Ueno area to meet up with Kat Callahan, who wrote those excellent reviews of NTR for the now-defunct Anime Now website.

We made our way to the Yayoi-Yumei museum for an exhibit of sailor-style school uniforms, featuring art by Nakamura Yusuke whose art I adore and Takeuchi Naoko, with some images from Sailor Moon and a Q&A about her designs. There were mannequins with different uniform and tie styles and and photos of historical Japanese school uniforms and how they changed over time. 

We then wandered through the rest of the museum, enjoying Yumeji Takehisa’s art (which I found fascinating, as it was very nostalgic, but none of it was my nostalgia) and loads of pleasant Taisho and Showa girls’ magazine art, including a number of pieces by Nakahara Junichi, another very influential artist for the girls’ magazine aesthetic. You’ve probably seen his work.

Kat and I had a fascinating discussion that ranged around gender, sexuality, obsessive fandom and school uniforms. It was absolutely delightful and I learned a lot! That you so much, Kat, for joining me!

We walked over to Yamashiroya, where I found a bunch of really awesome Haruka x Michiru goods for the Lucky Boxes. ^_^

And now, as I sign off, I am getting ready for the opening of the Yuriten! I’ll be back with a report. 

Posted in Tokyo Journal | 2 Comments »


Miss Koizumi Loves Ramen Noodles Anime (English) Guest Review by Christian LeBlanc

April 25th, 2018

Welcome to another Guest Review Wednesday on Okazu! Today we have the pleasure of you another new Guest Reviewer, frequent Okazu commenter, and talented 3D comics conversionist, Christian LeBlanc I expect you will all give Christian a warm Okazu welcome! 

“I want ramen…ramen…ramen…I want ramen.”

These are the first words that open slice-of-life gourmet comedy Ms. Koizumi Loves Ramen Noodles  and quickly sum up the main character’s raison d’être. Koizumi-san (we never learn her full name) is a new transfer student at Yuu Ohsawa’s high school, and is henceforth the object of Yuu’s affections, despite never returning those feelings. In fact, Koizumi never expresses any emotion outside of eating ramen, where she is shown displaying extremes of determination and pleasure.

“My only family is ramen.”

Based on the manga Ramen Daisuki Koizumi-san (ラーメン大好き小泉さん) by Naru Narumi, each episode is made of several shorts, and the show focuses on two obsessions: Koizumi’s obsession with ramen, and Yuu’s obsession with Koizumi. Koizumi’s obsession with ramen results in her talking matter-of-factly at great lengths about different aspects of ramen, flavors, methods of preparation, restaurants etc. with whoever she’s with at the time. Even though Koizumi prefers to enjoy ramen alone, she often ends up eating with Yuu, or with one of Yuu’s best friends: Jun Takahashi (the anxious brainy one) or Misa Nakamura (the fashionable one). These interactions allow the viewer to hear the Wikipedia-like info-dumps of ramen knowledge that Koizumi shares.

“Koizumi’s only lover is ramen.”

Yuu’s obsession with Koizumi, however, is another matter, and one that will divide viewers. The tone of the show is light and comedic, so Yuu’s constant badgering and stalking of Koizumi is played for laughs. Based on a lot of reviews I’ve read and comment sections I’ve lurked in, many people are annoyed by Yuu, and not amused. As someone privileged to have not been on the receiving end of unwanted attention very often, I found the series amusing watching it one episode a week: drawing pictures of Koizumi in her notebook, laughing goofily at the thoughts of their spending time together, blushing while gazing at her, making up cute little songs about her while she’s getting groceries, all this endeared me towards Yuu.

Watching it again all at once for this review, Yuu’s behaviour is harder for me to laugh off. Yuu calls Koizumi cold for rejecting her, “stingy” for not wanting to go on a beach outing and let Yuu see her in a bathing suit, and is constantly shown lurking behind bushes and signs as she follows Koizumi around after being told she wants to be alone. She’s jealous that her friends have gotten Koizumi’s contact info before she has, and her eyes will sometimes go blank as the background warps and her voice distorts as she chants obsessively to herself about Koizumi. (It’s worth noting that my wife sympathized with Koizumi right from the start.)

“Why did you want to climb that mountain?” “Because there’s ramen there.”

Overlooking problematic behavior to enjoy media is rarely a choice for me – I either buy in and gloss over the negative, or, something is ruined because of what I’m not able to look past. For viewers able to stomach Yuu’s behaviour, there’s a fair bit of comedy on offer (Yuu’s voice actor, Ayane Sakura, impressively delivers plaintive shrieks, shattered ranting, and aggressive bellows of relief). There’s also lots of knowledge about ramen, beautiful background scenery, and a travelogue-like presentation of restaurants (most, if not all, of the restaurants visited in the show are based on real-life ramen restaurants). The background music is unobtrusive, but unmemorable (in contrast, the opening and closing theme songs are very catchy and upbeat). You will learn about ramen with extra fat added (with a bizarre visual metaphor of sakura leaves falling onto the water), pineapple ramen, international variations of ramen, euglena (a bug-like type of algae) in ramen, cold ramen, a ramen with a blue broth that turns pink with the addition of vinegar, cocoa ramen, and more.

I recommend a couple of episodes to give this series a try, starting with episode 3 “Third Bowl: Saimin / Flavor Concentration Booth / Instant Noodles” (Yuu is actually appreciated this episode by Koizumi, who she finds passed out on the street after she forgets that the restaurant she wanted to go to was closed that day). Episode 6 “Sixth Bowl: Morning Ramen / Hiyashi / The Museum” allows Koizumi some time alone in a nice quiet episode, that also has the funniest line in the series. The browns and yellows in the background scenery of an evening festival are also beautiful to look at. After these two, you’ll know if you’re up to watching episode 10 “Tenth Bowl: An Unfamiliar Dish / Spinning Ramen / Rise to the Challenge!!” which is undoubtedly the funniest episode (but also features Yuu at her most unhinged…there are observation journals, a disturbing bulletin board full of photos torn and pasted together, etc).

“What do I have to do to become ramen?”

As for Yuri, it’s undeniable, but still never stated in as many words. Every bit of Yuri in the show comes from Yuu’s one-sided crush on Koizumi: she’s portrayed with hearts in her eyes during the opening theme song, her friends tell her “You’ve always loved cute girls, Yuu” after noticing her crush, and she fantasizes about the two of them in wedding dresses cutting a cake together. This last fantasy comes from asking Koizumi to help her cut apart a giant gyoza, which she sees as their “first cooperative activity.” The visuals, as well as Yuu’s behavior in general, make it obvious that she’s interested in having a romantic relationship with Koizumi, but the language itself is in denial, just as when Yuu basically confesses her feelings to Koizumi in the 12th and final episode: “I’m just obsessed with Koizumi-san, the girl who’s obsessed with ramen! I-I’ve never felt anything like that before. Which is why I was hoping we could maybe become better friends.” It’s obvious that what’s unspoken is “And maybe something more,” but it IS still unspoken, and I wouldn’t blame anyone who feels disappointed by this.

The ending theme “Love Men Holic,” sung by Shiena Nishizawa, reflects this discrepancy. At first glance, the title suggests someone addicted to loving men; on closer inspection, the ‘men’ is actually the same ‘men’ as in ‘ramen,’ while the word ‘love’ resembles the ‘ra’ in ‘ramen’ in an awkward portmanteau.

Ratings:

Art – 8 The background scenery is gorgeous, and the restaurants make you feel like you’re there. The characters themselves are drawn quite well (although Koizumi’s red eyes make me worry about all the sodium she’s consuming in her ramen-only diet).
Story – 4 The story is just a frame on which to hang lots of knowledge about ramen, and one girl crushing on another.
Characters – 3 (see Story, with a point taken away for bad behavior)
Yuri – 3 (It’s one-sided, and it’s not healthy, and it takes a back seat to the ramen. I believe it’s meant to be the ‘heart’ of the show, but I don’t feel that it succeeds well in that role)
Ramen – 11
Service – 3 or 10. There’s an occasional male-gazey pan over one of the girls in their bathing suit, and Jun does tongue an egg for a split second. I have to offer a 10 even though I don’t understand it or feel it: as Koizumi and friends chow down on noodles, male observers are sometimes shown with shocked expressions, gulping nervously, and even blushing sometimes, which indicates they’re getting something out of this that I’m not. Comments I’ve read online take for granted that the dining scenes are obviously service-y, but again, I’m stymied. Euphoric sighs at the end of a bowl are the closest I get to understanding it.

Overall – 7

BONUS RECIPE!

Episode 2 features a visit to a restaurant based on Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa-Pine in Tokyo, where every item on the menu contains pineapple. After watching the episode I was insanely curious to try it, so I watched a few YouTube videos with the owner and parsed together my own home-made, easy-to-follow attempt at it. Please enjoy a bowl of this while you give the show a try. (My wife insists I make this for us once a week, and a few people I’ve shared this with online told me they really liked it)

Serves: 1 (just double the ingredients and use two packs of instant ramen noodles when cooking for two)

Note: this recipe is vegan, however, one person I shared it with reported success using kippers instead of tofu. You may also want to boil an egg to have with yours, as my wife does.

Boil 1 ½ cups of water.

While the water’s heating up, add:
¼ tsp pepper (but use 3/8 tsp if cooking for two)
1/8 tsp Sriracha sauce (use less or more depending on your preferences for heat)
1 Tbsp soy sauce
½ packet of beef flavouring from instant ramen
11 or 12 cubes of tofu

Shred about half a carrot while you’re waiting, too.

Once boiling, add a ½ cup of the pineapple juice from a can of crushed pineapple, as well as the ramen noodles. Let boil for about 2 minutes (or according to package directions), remove from heat, and throw in some spinach. (If you prefer bok choy over spinach, add that to the broth 1st thing, as it takes longer to cook)

Pour into a bowl with some nori (dried seaweed) strips, 2/3 cup crushed pineapple, sliced green onion, top with shredded carrot, and enjoy!

(Note: the real recipe uses Korean chili threads, but I haven’t been able to find this in my area)

 

Erica here: Seriously, euglena?!? Holy crap. Bruce loved ramen and and travelogue stories and Yuri and euglena, which was his “favorite single-cel organism” . Stupid Bruce going and dying, he would have loved this series.  Grr…..

Anyway, fabulous review and I take what I said on Twitter back back, this recipe actually sounds pretty good. Thanks so much for sharing!

Posted in Christian LeBlanc, English Anime, Guest Review | 3 Comments »


Yuri Manga: Éclair Bleue: Anata ni Hibiku Yuri Anthology (エクレア bleue あなたに響く百合アンソロジー)

April 23rd, 2018

Éclair Bleue: Ananta ni Hibiku Yuri Anthology (エクレア bleue あなたに響く百合アンソロジー) is the third of the Éclair anthology series.  The first two, Éclair  and Éclair blanche were firmly set in the world of schoolgirl romance. In this volume, the stories wander away towards hints of there being life beyond high school. 

To be sure, the protagonists are often themselves still in school with a variety of crushes on older women in their lives, but one or twice it slips and forgets that lesbian eventually graduate and yet, remain interested in romantic relationships with other women. Shocking, I know. 

The volume starts off with a color illustration by Hibiki Reine, which felt rather nostalgic, since we haven’t seen much of hers in Yuri anthologies for some time. You’ll recognize many of the names in this collection. Between Galette and Comic Yuri Hime, you’ll likely recognize many of them on sight. My favorite short this volume was “Sato to Namida to Onna to Onna” by Kita Taki which follows an office worker who can see that her coworker is struggling and helps, maybe, her find something to hang on to. I’ve always like Kitao-sensei’s grasp of adult concerns in her stories. Sato’s stability is refreshing, as Fujiwara says. 

The thing I actually like best about the Éclair series, is that it reminds me of the Yuri anthologies I used to obsessively consume before we had an established genre, with magazines and publishers putting out high-quality Yuri. These anthologies have always been important for Yuri creators, giving them a place to get their work to a larger audience (and, in many cases, use that to springboard to a professional level) and also provide the freedom of putting out the stories they wanted to see told. This series is nice for that, because it gives artists who are neck deep in their own series for one publisher a chance to play a bit in a looser-format anthology.

Ratings:

Overall – 8

I may not always like every story, but I will always love these kinds of Yuri anthologies. They are important piece of Yuri history for me. And, for the very first time, you too will be able to enjoy one of these Yuri anthologies in English when Yen Press publishes Éclair: A Girls’ Love Anthology That Resonates in Your Heart this summer!

Posted in Éclair, Yuri Anthology, Yuri Manga | 2 Comments »