There was, as I said, only one right answer to “Who Was the Best Character?”
As amazing as Ragyo was – and she was the most fabulous villian of the last several years – and as excellent as Ryuuko and Satsuki were, there really can be only one best character.
The Banchou of Honnoji Gakuen…Manshoku Mako.
Those of you who voted Mako in the comments, please email me at yuricon at gmail dot com with your name, age and mailing address and I will send you a present in recognition of your wisdom. ^_^
You know what? I think I really, really like Ohsawa Yayoi. Last year I was blown away by her Black Yagi to Gekiyaku Madeline /Strange Babies series, but here we are in her totally grounded in reality collection of shorts, Okujou PikaPika Romance (屋上ぴかぴかロマンス) and I still really like her work. A lot.
In “Shoshin Metronome,” Kawai-san does not like snare drummer Ichibashi-san, but as a trumpet player, she has to sit directly in front of her. Their relationship changes from prickly dislike to reluctant friendship to maybe just a little more.
Hana and Nozomi have been friends since childhood, but new school friends are pulling Hana in one direction, and she’s not sure if Nozomi is holding her back or not. I didn’t much like this story, as Hana forces herself on Nozomi in a very un-friendly way and a happily ever after does not actually make it okay.
“Double Bind” is probably the realest story in the book, which follows a deeply uncomfortable breakup between two adult women. Mayu breaks up with Emi to go out with a guy. We follow Emi’s grieving and have to recoil a bit when Mayu shows up again and again, so Emi can’t move on. Worse, Mayu sleeps with Emi as a piece on the side, which enrages Emi. Emi pulls herself together and is starting to get her life back together when Mayu shows up, again, this time having left the guy because she realizes she was an idiot. The story does not have an end, leaving us with Emi’s tearful face. Will they get together again, or not? We don’t know…which is exactly why I think the story works.
In “in secret…?” a student learns there is more to her doofus-y teacher than can be seen on the surface. Carole King’s version of You’ve Got a Friend plays an important role in this story, which immediately made me think of nawoko’s Voiceful.
The final story is an original for this collection which returns us to the somewhat fraught relationship between Kawai-san and Ichibashi-san, as they find more than just a friend in one another.
Ratings:
Art – 8
Story – Variable, but 7 overall. “Double Bind” is hard to read, but really the standout story at a 9
Characters – 7 You like some more than others, just like life. ^_^
Yuri – 9
Service – 2
Overall – 8
Yet again, I find that I connect better to these stories as a collection, rather than individually in Comic Yuri Hime. And I strongly hope we’ll be seeing more from Ohsawa Yayoi-sensei.
By Popular Demand! And because I want to! Welcome to the Okazu review of, streaming right this second for free, legally (with regional restrictions) on Crunchyroll…Kill La Kill.
I’m going to say this plainly and simply, right up front – it is going to be very, very hard to topple this anime from my #1 of the year spot. It was just fantastic in every way. This is why I watch anime, in the same way that reading Mori Natsuko’s books is why I learned to read Japanese. It was outrageous, it was offensive and I loved it.
The plot is very much the driving force of the anime, so I’ll keep the synopsis short. Matoi Ryuko arrives at Honnouji Academy seeking revenge for the death of her father. What she finds is a plot so complex that the lives of all humanity is at stake.
Because this anime really is just that fabulous, and I don’t want to ruin one single second of the “wtf was THAT!?!???? Hahahahaha!!!!!” that you will experience, I refuse to spoil the story. Which of course means you’ll have no idea why I liked it so much. So without spoiling the actual plot, I’ll try to explain what made this anime so good.
Ratings:
Story: The plot is insane and absurd…and wonderful. The writing has a kind of internal consistency and plausibility that I long for in my own writing. Having created a world, the writers take that world to the absolute limits…and it works. 10 out of 10
Character: These may well be the greatest characters every created. Full stop. And I cannot tell you why until every last one of you has seen the anime. 10 out of 10
Art: Every once in a while, as you’re watching Kill La Kill, the art style switches, not to “funny SD” or “hyperbolic action” but to a specific period or genre and suddenly you realize that that scene was an homage to something you recognize. The speech patterns also change from time to time to fit that homage as well. This is basically the most fun I’ve had actually watching an anime in a long time. 10 out of 10
Service: By the gods, does this series have service. I don’t hate service. I hate coy or creepy service. Grow the fuck up and look at the girl’s tits. Stare at the guy’s ass, don’t be a creep about it. Don’t titter or giggle. This series doesn’t creep, titter or giggle. It’s over the top and downright hilarious with the service. Naked girls, sure, naked guys too, by the end everyone’s naked…and it totally works. It’s actually part of the plot! And funny! And sort of honorable, and yet funny. 1000 out of 10
And, of course….
Yuri: There is Yuri. There’s actually quite a bit of it. Creepy, incesty Yuri, Fan-pairing Yuri, slightly less creepy incesty Yuri, rival Yuri, friend Yuri and in the end, there’s actually a potential couple. A good one. Not a creepy one. 10 out of 10
Overall – 10
This anime is a 10, full stop, one of the two amazing anime I’m watching this season (Hozuki no Reitestsu is the other) and a very strong contender for #1 of 2014. Kudos to the translation team. You did a bang-up job.
Quick contest – Who’s the best character? There’s only one right answer. Winner gets something cool. Answer in the comments. Don’t know? Go watch it and see!
Yuri Manga
Top story of the week: Digital Manga, after months of having it listed as “coming soon,” has formally announced Aoi Hana/Sweet Blue Flowers will be released on their eManga platform.
YNN Corrspondent Niki S. want you to know that Tokyopop has recently started adding its “global manga” titles to Comixology, which includes the by-now out-of-print 12 Days. Excellent news for anyone who missed that book the first time around.
As we look towards the release of the Inugami-san to Nekoyama-san (犬神さんと猫山さん) anime, the third volume of the manga is out next month. Also next month by Kuzushiro-sensei, Heian period gag comic Kimi ni Tamenara Shineru, Volume 4 (姫のためなら死ねる) hits the shelves.
Out from Yuri Hime Comics is another gag 4-koma series, Kimono Nadesico, Volume 3 (きものなでしこ ).
Rakuen Le Paradis, Volume 14 (楽園 Le Paradis ) graced shelves at the end of last month, and I’m sure I mentioned it, but it’s worth a reminder.
I have no doubt that someone out there wants this Japanese Kindle Yuri bondage maid manga Kosoku Maid – Yuri no Saku Choubatsudai (拘束メイド-百合の咲く懲罰台). If you get it, let us know how it is, will ya?
I know *nothing* about Mebae (メバエ), except that Comic Natalie tells us it’s a Yuri anthology slated for an April release.
And the winner for the most ambiguously “good” news this month – webcomic site Champion Taboo, has a comic that stars a Yuri fan called Fragtime, (フラグタイム) Volume 1 of which is available on Japanese Kindle. (Ambiguously good, because anything with “Champion” in the title is not necessarily a good thing.)
It’s been pretty well-covered. but Japanese comic site Comic Walker has opened up for global registration. Some of the manga is English (licensed back from American localizers) and going forward they are planning on translating other, not-previously translated titles. Right now, they have Non Non Byori, Fate/kaleid liner Prisma ☆ Illya Drei 3, in English (among about 20 English titles) and the Mouretsu Space Pirate movie manga, Abyss of Hyperspace in Japanese. Registration required and downloading their Publis reader, but totally worth the few moments it takes.
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That’s a wrap for this week! 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!
In February, I hit a wall on the Yuri manga anthology, Yuri Koi☆Girls Love Story (百合☆恋). The one story I was interested in had gone quickly from interesting to excruciating and I wasn’t sure whether I’d get Volume 3.
An Okazu reader by the name of Tim assured me that the story got better. Tim lied. Okay, okay, he probably didn’t lie, and he was looking into much later chapters, but…. ^_^
So, in Volume 1, in the lead story “Yuri no Tanpopo”, we meet Mizuho and her lover Ena through the eyes of Mizuho’s younger sister. In Volume 2, Mizuho is a jerk to Ena. In Volume 3, We see Mizuho through the eyes of Ena and even accounting for Ena being biased, Mizuho is a much, much worse jerk than we guessed.
In fact, this story so depressed me, I have been unable to bring myself to read the rest of the stories in this book. The bland moe stories don’t interest me, but a few of them don’t look so bad…but I can’t do it.
Ratings: Mizuho, you jerk. You’re ruining it for all of us.
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