Geting a new volume of Rakuen Le Paradis is, for me, what Girls Night Out must be for more typical women. Its a chance to kick back and read something made, pretty much for me, with just enough “bad behavior” built in that it feels hedonistic, even though realistically, I’m sitting here reading a comic book, just as going out for drinks and bad behavior must make “normal” women feel like they are being bad, while they are, in fact, not really doing much of anything, good or bad. ^_^ Sort of like the woman on the cover of this issue – it looks like she’s being hedonistic, and maybe, there’s a couple of things we might think of that she might be doing, but probably she’s just sitting on a railing drinking a glass of wine. ^_^

In Nishi UKO’s “Collectors,” Takako has changed her hair color, but Shinobu recognizes her from a distance anyway. (I once recognized my wife by her knees, so..,yeah.)

This issue of “My Dear” by Kazuma Kowo, Akito-sempai has to confront his mother with the concept that he is dating Chikako. It’s ugly, but he gets past it, and gets a kiss as a reward. One of my two favorite not-Yuri stories in the magazine.

I will never ever like Kurosaki Rendou’s art, but in “Kanojou Jikken,” [sic] his characters look less strung out than usual, although their feelings are mismatched.

“Seijukuki Jinmei Vega” by Hayashiya Shizuru continues, much to my suprise and pleasure. Vega, it turns out, is really suffering from Washime-sempai’s reluctance to recharge her with a kiss. When an attractive older woman kisses Vega for real, she returns to her full-sized alien form. Typically, Washime-sempai responds in the wrongest way possible. Sigh.

“Omoi no Kakera” hits two very interesting hurdles, as Mika is told that her preference for older woman is merely delusion and denial on her part and the owner of the cafe Mika thinks she likes comes very, very close to having to deal with her roommate’s feelings for her. I can’t say I want Mika to get together with Mayu, though…!

Nishi Uko completes another short “Ni-ju no Mugen” about a woman and what she associates her lover with.

Hisaki Mika throws in a little story about a kouhai that thinks her female sempai is cute in “Kawaiiyo.”

And, while not Yuri at all, but still one of my absolute must-reads. Kazuki and Kanata are too adorable for words, again, in “14-sai no Koi” as they discover that they’d actually like to touch one another when they do the traditional after-festival folkdance. Good heavens, these two are cute.

Typically, I will buy a magazine if I read two stories that run in the magazine. When it’s 6 perissue, like this magazine, it’s a no brainer for me. Rakuen Le Paradis remains my #1 magazine every issue. ^_^

Ratings:

Overall – 8

Shou is depressed. There’s just no other way to describe it, really. She doesn’t like school, she doesn’t like home, the whole town holds no interest for her…life holds no interest for her.

Then she wanders into a teeny little overgrown patch of a park and meets a blind girl who teaches her the value of life.

Kurai Mori, Shiroi Michi (くらいもり、しろいみち) is a fable about appreciating what you have while you have it, because you just never know when you’re going to lose it.

I’d be hard pressed to call this a Yuri story. It’s true that Chiharu, the blind girl, seems to have affection for Shou, and it’s just as clear that Shou feels something about Chiharu, but we never really allow their relationship to develop past “feels something.” The impression is one of had they had time and freedom, they might have come to love one another.

Despite the premise – and I mean that literally, because the premise starts off heavy-handed and dire – I came to really like this series. Upon my third re-read of this volume I figured out why. Chiharu is really everything Shou is not. She dresses in white, and has no vision, but radiates things like light and joy, all of which is tedious…but she also has a snarky sense of humor, which really pulls her out of the stereotype she was falling into. Shou redeems herself at the ends, where she catches up to the lesson she’s been taught and, perhaps, has a chance at becoming a person one day.

Yoshida Chiyu’s art is approachable, but scritchy, somewhere in between typical josei and typical Yuri, if I had to pick an analogy. I like it, and ultimately, I liked this story, despite the brickbat of allegory.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 7
Characters – 8
Yuri – 3
Service – 0

Overall – 8

Opposites attract. ^_^