Yuri Network News – April 14, 2012

April 14th, 2012

Yuri Manga

French Publisher Taifu has licensed Morinaga Milk’s Himitsu no Recipe and Kurogane Kenn’s manga Shoujo Sect and Hoshikawa Ginza Yon-choume. Thanks to everyone who wrote us with the news!

JManga launches Morinaga Milk’s Girlfriends, Volume 4 & Volume 5 with an interview with Morinaga-sensei! They are also running crazy with promotional contests – like them on Facebook, follow them on Twitter for a chance to get fun anime goods as prizes. In addition, if you buy Volumes 4 and/or 5, you can get 50% of the cost back, as a rebate.

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Yuri Anime

In their Anime Boston panel, Funimation announced that they’ll be simulcasting the Jormungand anime, squee. In their panel, they said that To Aru Kagaku no Railgun is hopefully going to be a 2012 release.

Fate Zero made its debut streaming on Nico Nico Douga last week. Looks like Crunchyroll will get it, and the presumption is that it will be on a week delay.

Crunchyroll will be streaming Queen’s Blade Rebellion, for what it’s worth to you.

Sentai Filmworks announced they have licensed Hidamari Sketch x SP.

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Other News

While author, gourmet and gourmand Anthony Bourdain dreams about Jiro dreaming of Sushi,  Maria-sama ga Miteru illustrator Hibiki Reine is drawing Jiro’s (different Jiro) Ramen, as this article on Akibablog shows. (Sachiko likes “dirty ramen,” hunh hunh….)

I did a quick compare and contrast between big and small anime/manga cons for Hooded Utilitarian.

You may have seen this Blood-C short, starring Nene and Nono introducing the movie, but what you can’t have known is that in one of those magic moments of serendipity that fill my life, I met the animator in Tokyo in 2010, as we sat at a large table at that Hanazono shrine, eating oden at the shrine festival. Mino-san you rock!

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That wraps it up 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.

Posted in Yuri Network News | 7 Comments »


Yuri Manga: Pure Yuri Anthology Hirari, Volume 7 (ピュア百合アンソロジー ひらり)

April 12th, 2012

Almost despite itself, Pure Yuri Anthology, Hirari, Volume 7 (ピュア百合アンソロジー ひらり), actually includes some Yuri.

Yes, most of the stories still skate on the thin edge of thinking/feeling and acting, but a few stories make the jump to actually expressing the emotions and desire out loud.

Yostsuhara Furiko’s “Ai o Kakujin” is not one of these, but it was sweet in its own way. A girl can’t stop herself from writing her object of desire into a novel as a romantic lead, despite the friend’s discombobulation.

“Suhin Behin” was a strangely taught little story about the importance of makeup and clothes to a woman, but also about how makeup and clothes are a form of lying about how one “really” looks.

In Hakamada Mera’s “Salomelic” Salome’s flaky mother is not helping her settle in at all, but at least she’s decided to make up with her boyfriend, and stay in town. To celebrate the fact that she won’t be moving again, Salome officially switches into the school uniform. Oh, and she confesses to Hikari that she likes her. But Hikari has a secret she isn’t sharing…^_^

The cover story wins this time. “Harukaze to Kase-san” went in a completely unpredictable direction. Yamada has been training with Kase-san to run the school marathon and for the first time ever, should be able to complete the course. Due to a freak accident however, Yamada is injured right at the start, and while Kase-san wins (not just for the girls, but overall, beating all the guys, as well) she immediately runs to the infirmary. Once she’s made sure Yamada is okay, she takes her prize for winning 1st place – a kiss.

This issue of Hirari actually had a few kisses. Like I said, despite itself it’s actually leaking out of the characters’ heads into action. Let’s not tell anyone, or they may put a stop to it. ^_^

As always there are loads of other stories, but these were the most notable IMHO. Your mileage will surely vary.

Ratings:

Overall – 7

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Yuri Night/ Pizza Party at Smith College on Friday, April 13th

April 11th, 2012

Here is the list of anime that will be shown:

Kannazuki no Miko episode 1
Maria-sama ga Miteru episode 1
Revolutionary Girl Utena episode 1
Simoun episode 1
Strawberry Panic! episode 1

YNN Correspondent Katherine H has been working really hard to get a Yuri Night Pizza Party together at Smith College, so if you live in the area, please drop by! Here’s a map of the campus.

Through a quirk of fate, I will be attending, so if you’re in the Northampton area, I hope you’ll stop by and say hi!

Also – major point here, Katherine says she set this up specifically to show that if you want a Yuri event in your area, you can, y’know, just do one. Don’t whine that no one else is doing it – do it yourself! Yay Katherine!
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Online Live Yuri Panel – Question Solicit and Introduction

April 11th, 2012

There are a lot of folks who would like to attend my Yuri Panels and Lectures, but for one reason or another, don’t have the chance to. Therefore, as a new feature for Yuricon, we’re starting a series of online panels. Watch the video below to get the basic idea:

So, get those questions in and as soon as we can, I’ll announce the first time and place for a live online Yuri panel. (I’m very much hoping it will be this month, and I’ll do my very best to pick a time where the most times zone can tune in!)

I’m looking forward to your questions!

Update: Before you send in any questions for the Online Yuri Panel, stop by Yuricon and read our answer to “What is Yuri?”

Posted in Yuricon | 7 Comments »


Magic Knight Rayearth Anime Second Season, Disk 3 (English)

April 9th, 2012

For those of you looking at the actual disks of the Second season set of Magic Knight Rayearth, this review is of the Disk labeled 7, as the disk numbering continued from the first season straight through the second.

Finally, at last, I encountered Nova and subsequently stare at many of you now with some concern that you see her as a “Yuri” character, and not just simply as insane. ^_^;;

But first, I should point out that the plot is now so deeply flawed and diluted that it was hard slogging through every episode of this disk, so Nova wasn’t the real problem.

If you recall, the plot as it was set up is that, now Pillar-less, Cephiro is in danger of being invaded by three other countries. Eagle of Autozam is the least annoying and in these episodes he also appears to be dying of tuberculosis so that his story is extra tragic. Hikaru suddenly develops a raging crush on Lantis out of nowhere and Umi is likewise assigned a pairing – we already knew about Fuu and Ferio from the first series. At least that one makes sense. Having given everyone something to lose, everyone loses everything, Hikaru is lost in her own thoughts, assailed by the monothematic Nova, while Umi and Fuu are captured by the other two countries who want Cephiro.

I was not thrilled to my core to learn that there were three more disks of this to wade through before resolution.

Okay, let’s look at Nova for a second. Really? Yuri…?  I don’t see it, sorry. I see someone who was created to be a monomaniac, self-absorbed and obsessive with one goal in mind – to emotionally torture and defeat Hikaru. The fact that she touches her a lot and goes on and on about how “cute” she is reads about as charming as a serial killer.

OTOH, I really like Fuu and Umi in the final episodes here, where split up they are forced to be the actual people they are, rather than Legendary Magic Knights.

So, yeah, just about halfway through this series, the plot becomes messy, but we’re about due for a breakthrough. The Magic Knights will be back in top form in just a bit.

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 4
Characters – 6
Yuri – 3, if that’s what you call it
LoserFanBoy – 3

Overall – 7

I’m okay with Eagle and Geo, if Lantis doesn’t work out. ^_^

Posted in English Anime | 2 Comments »