Yuri Anime: Dear Brother Set 2, Disk 1 (English)

April 20th, 2015

DearBrother2When people referred to the anime based on Riyoko Ikeda’s Dear Brother manga as Yuri, it was primarily this section of the series they were talking about. Disk 1 of the second Dear Brother set is pretty much the pinnacle of Yuri in the series – it’s also a brief moment of life and joy and happiness in what is otherwise an extraordinarily dark series.

In this disk we start to realize that the drama – all of the drama – is centered upon a single person. Ichinomiya Fukiko, known as Miya-sama, is not just a terrible person, she is a pathologically controlling and sadistic person. As Saint Just starts to recover herself, rediscovering a small joy in the physical activity of basketball, Miya-sama reels her back in repeatedly, like a fisherman tiring out his prey.

But even on the darkest days, the sunlight can sometimes shine through the clouds and Saint Just finds enough of herself left to enjoy – fully and totally – basketball again. Mariko, Nanako and Tomoko are friends and can laugh and joke together without the jealousy we saw in the first set. Through Nanoko’s eyes, we discover that Mariko has fallen in love with Kaoru no Kimi. Not content to be a fan or admirer, Mariko has taken a kind of small possession of Kaoru’s well-being and not been rebuffed. This triggers thoughts in Nanako’s mind that she’s never had before and she considers the idea that she is in love with Saint-Just. Saint-Just does her best to prove to Nanako that she is not lovable at all.

But it’s when Miya-sama “teases” Nanako with veiled threats and unfunny jokes that we realize there is something much, much larger than the obvious going on. In the end, it his Ichinomiya Takashi, Miya-sama’s older brother who gives us the first clue to what it might be. We are left wondering why, when she has Saint Just on such a short leash, Miya-sama cares so much about Nanako?

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 9
Characters – 9
Yuri – 5
Service – 1

Overall – 9

Enjoy the laughter and the respite from the dark…in Disk 2 the clouds will thicken again.

Posted in Dear Brother, English Anime, Riyoko Ikeda | 2 Comments »


Western Comix: Underwire Comic (English)

April 19th, 2015

download (1)We are many things here at Okazu. We focus on lesbian-themed works, but are queer, female and minority creator – friendly. There are a lot of good works that we look at that don’t fit snugly into the “lesbian” category. However, that doesn’t mean that I am without bias. I’m human…of course I have some bias. ^_^ There is one critical and important facet of female existence that I basically ignore completely – motherhood. There is no good reason for this lacuna, except my complete, total and utter disinterest in stories of motherhood.

Today, we’re going to work outside my comfort zone and talk about a unremittingly middle-aged comic by a white, straight, American mother. Jennifer Hayden‘s Underwire is published by Top Shelf, and is a collection of her comix about life. Her straight woman’s perspective is, to me, as nearly alien as anything wholly fictional, so when  I say to you with all honestly that I loved this book, trust me, it’s as big a surprise to me as it might be to you. ^_^

To clarify, I know Jennifer and like her loads, and love talking with her, but still, our life experiences are vastly different. I knew I’d like her comics, as I’ve been reading her comic blog, Rushes, since we met several years ago. But, this book was so deeply rooted in her life as a mother, the wonder with which she watched her children becoming people and the connections she was making between her past and their future – things I know I will never experience – that it held an almost fantasy-element for me. “OH, so that’s what it’s like when you suddenly look at your baby and see the adult they will become.”

The art is as unlike manga at as possible. Everything – backgrounds, textures, shading, is all done with pen, by the author. There’s no team of assistants here, no house style. I found it to be very American and very comix. ^_^

My summation of Underwire is this: After reading a number of for-adults-but-rather-infantile comics (I’m looking at you, Rokujo Hitoma no Nekogami-sama,) Jennifer Hayden’s Underwire is almost breath-robbingly adult. Women who read comics, you should read this one. It’s for grown ups.

Ratings:

Art – 9 Skilled comix will always have a place on my shelves
Story – 8 Extremely personal, but more random thoughts than memoir
Characters – Real people that I’m glad to lunch with

Overall – 9

Posted in Western Comic/Comix | No Comments »


Yuri Network News – (百合ネットワークニュース) – April 18, 2015

April 18th, 2015

YNN_Lissa

Event News

I will be presenting at Kean University’s Towercon on Sunday, April 19th at 3:25. Admission is free and the event is presented by the very nice folks of the Kean Otaku Anime Society. Drop by and say hi!

 

Tokyo’s Rainbow Pride Parade and events are next weekend. If you’re there, take some pictures and let us know how it is!

***

Sailor Moon

There is a major correction to a news report from last week on the new Sailor Moon anime. As of now, no new series has been greenlit. The announcement about the second season was made by Toei Europe, referring to the currently running second season. We don’t yet know whether we’ll actually see the Death Busters arc or not. Yet.

Instead, let’s console ourselves with some amazing Sailor Moon fan art, bizarre Sailor Moon merchandise that probably no one really wants, and the cover art and song titles from the new Sailor Moon character image song collection (美少女戦士セーラームーンCrystal キャラクター音楽集)! (Hat tips to ANN and Dorkly for those.)

***

Yuri Manga

YNN Correspondent Amanda B has written in with very exciting news of a “Thai adult life manga called Lily Love by Ratana Satis that’s being translated. The mangaka granted permission for groups to translate into English and Spanish, and uses the same English group for assistance in contacting and connecting with international fans. She also made a mention recently that she’s currently selling the first collected volume in Thailand at the moment, which is available for purchase. Apparently, enough international fans wanted it, so there is a window until April 19th for fans to write her Facebook inbox of where they would like the volume to be shipped to order a copy.”Well that’s all kind of awesome, for Ms. Satis and us! I’ve already written her to get a copy, it’ll cost approximately $16USD with shipping. ^_^

Futaribeya (ふたりべや) by Yukiko could be good, but I’m not holding my breath. YMMV.

Kono Hana Teikitan (このはな綺譚) was a manga published some years ago when it ran in Comic Yuri Hime S. Amano Sakuya’s comic featured moe fox girls so, not surprisingly I never got it or reviewed it. Gentosha comics is resurrecting the series as a Birz series, with new kanji in the title. Another toe in the Yuri world for Birz, which seems to be really going great guns into the genre.

One more Yuri comic essay is hitting shelves, Manga de Tsutsuru Yurina Hibi (まんがで綴る百合な日々 ) by Negitane, a comic essay about Yuri daily life.

I can hardly think this far ahead but the July Issue of Comic Yuri Hime (コミック百合姫 2015年 07月号) is available for pre-order.

Whoa, this is interesting – Yoshitomo Akihito’s series Futari to Futari (ふたりとふたり) from Tsubomi magazine is being resurrected as a JP Kindle comic by Yuri Hime. Again, very moe, all about two friends, who have feelings for each other’s younger sisters. Also being brought back to life as a Kindle publication is Yoshitomi’s Comic Yuri Hime S volume Nettai Shoujo (熱帯少女).Not series I resonated with, all way too lolicon for me, but how interesting all these old series are being dug up and revived.

***

Support Yuri News and Reviews –  Subscribe to Okazu withSubcribe with Patreon

***

Yuri Game

Starlight Vega is a game in development with multiple GL romances, a free demo and DRM free downloads. Give it a try and let us know how it is!

***

Other News

io9 has a fantistic article Like These TV Shows? Here Are The Webcomics You Should Read. I’ve bookmarked  a number of these for future reading.

***

Know some cool Yuri News you want people to know about? Become a Yuri Network Correspondent by sending me any Yuri-related news you find. Emails go to anilesbocon01 at hotmail dot com. Not to the comments here, please, or they might be forgotten or missed. There’s a reason for this madness. This way I know you are a real human, not Anonymous (which I do not encourage – stand by your words with your name!) and I can send you a YNN correspondent’s badge.

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

Posted in Yuri Network News | 4 Comments »


Yuri Manga: Kyou mo Futari ha Nakayoshi Desu. ~Kuzushiro Short Story Collection (今日も２人は仲良しです。)

April 17th, 2015

FutarihaNakayoshiKyou mo Futari ha Nakayoshi Desu.~Kuzushiro Short Story Collection (今日も２人は仲良しです。) is a collection published not by Yuri Hime Comics, but by Rex Comics, also an Ichijinsha imprint. I found that interesting, although without any particular context.

The short stories are right in Kuzushiro-sensei’s ballpark – two people who are lovers/rivals and both slightly nuts, so that the situations, while they may start off normal, are guaranteed to descend immediately into wackiness. The majority of the stories are or could be considered to be Yuri, but there are a few male x female pairings which work just as well.

The first few chapters follow various couples in a idol group. Each couple is equally amusingly dysfunctional, but anyone familiar with Nekoyama-san to Inugami-san, would instantly recognize the formula. And speaking of Nekoyama-san to Inugami-san, this collection includes an early story idea for that series.

My favorite stories follow a seriously creepy eye-patch wearing girl and the girl she targets in school…and yes, I know that’s utterly predictable of me, but it’s not the eyepatch that worked for me this time, it was the utterly fucked up eye she had under it. ^_^

The art was clean, much cleaner than I’m used to from Kuzushiro-sensei, but the comedic gags weren’t quite as sharp, as befits earlier work.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – Variable, we’ll say 7
Characters – 7
Yuri – 8
Service – 2

Overall – 8

A great way to enjoy more from a creator whose work makes me happy.

Posted in Gag Comics/4-koma, Kuzushiro, Yuri Manga | No Comments »


Yuri Anime: Yurikuma Arashi (English)

April 14th, 2015

yurikumaThe Yurikuma Arashi anime from Funimation is, like so many of Ikuhara Kunihiko’s works, a fairy tale. Like so many of his previous works, in this fairy tale the fairy ex machina is the tale itself.

Tsubaki Kureha has met – and forgotten – a childhood friend who is a bear. Ginko has never forgotten her childhood friend and seeks to become a girl to be with Kureha. Surrounding this bastard child of The Gift of the Magi and every outsider story ever, is a series of repeated, variably meaningful images and a story that is never quite sure if it believes in itself or not.

Because there’s no coherence in the story in and of itself, there’s a lot of time to just enjoy the random bits of imagery and wonder what it means to Ikuhara, since it’s almost never given any meaning in the context of the story.

Buried as we were  in overuse of “Yuri” imagery, some with overtly sexual connotation, some completely lacking anything of the kind, all those lilies ceased to have any meaning, which was sort of interesting. Lily petals, whole lily flowers showering down upon the heads of characters and yet, it had almost no connection to the narrative.

There were two standout qualities of the series for me – first and foremost, seeing animated versions of Morishima Akiko-sensei’s art made watching this series worthwhile. Additionally – and I have thanked her personally on Twitter for this – I really appreciated Yuriika, an honest-to-goodness, Evil Psycho Lesbian character. She was my favorite and her death was utterly meaningless, as befits someone who is so pointlessly obsessed.

Yurrika

I do not feel that this series was compelling, in the way Utena, or even Mawaru Penguindrum was, but the ending was not predictable, none of the loose ends were tied up and everything we experience in the body of the story turned out to not be true, so that has to count for something. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 8 Two great tastes that tasted deeply odd together
Story – 7 Once upon a time…oh fuck it.
Characters – 7 Uncarved blocks, one and all. Just remove everything that isn’t a bear
Yuri – 14 million
Service – 7 Much higher than I’d like

Overall – 7

My final thought on the end of Yurikuma Arashi is this: There’s something right/not right about “Ave Maria” becoming a Yuri anthem.

Posted in English Anime, Yuri Anime | 6 Comments »