Archive for the Yuri Manga Category


Kaijuu-iro no Shima, Volume 1 (かいじゅう色の島), Guest Review by Mariko S.

July 28th, 2021

It is Wednesday and you know what that means! It is indeed a Guest Review Wednesday here on Okazu. Today we welcome back Mariko S. (whose compelling review I have sincerely missed!), with a look at Kaijuu-iro no Shima (かいじゅう色の島), Volume 1. Please give her a warm Okazu welcome back. The floor is yours, Mariko!

I can remember clearly a certain type of person from my tween years, as we all navigated that transition between child and not-child. Smaller than other kids, shy, awkward, left out. Maybe because of those things, still interested in (or, at least, still holding onto) “childish” things. A little scared or uncertain about the adulthood their peers were rushing toward (seemingly) eagerly. Chigawa Kon is a girl like this. Slight and tomboyish, she scuttles barefoot around her tiny island town in a one-piece swimsuit and ill-fitting shorts, passing another lazy summer alone.
 
I remember another type of person from those formative years, too. A little too hurried to put on the markers of adulthood, forced by a body that seemingly overnight changed unrecognizably into something else to pretend they’re ready for it. Even more than that, putting on a front of maturity to try to mask the deep insecurities and immaturity that roiled in them as well. Hitoto Furuka is this girl. Taller, more developed, with painted nails and stylish clothes, her sudden appearance on the island presents a curious interruption for Kon, who doesn’t exactly understand the crushes her peers are so excited about, but who now finds Furuka compelling for reasons she can’t quite articulate.

What I find most remarkable about this manga is how grounded it is. That sounds like an absurd thing to say about a manga in which a (maybe real) mystical sea monster features heavily, along with supernatural phenomena of various kinds. But this is a manga about school girls in Japan that features NONE of the tropes or fetishes of school girl Yuri. There are no uniforms, no zettai ryouiki, no absurd clubs or sharing of cakes. This story could take place for any kids anywhere whiling away a summer vacation. Men exist and aren’t toxic creepos – Furuka’s uncle is an easygoing laborer who is confused as to why he has to suddenly put up with a freeloading relative. Kon’s little brother is a fun-loving kid who is really into kaijuu. More than anything, the vibe this story gives off to me is like Blue Drop, another slow-burn sci-fi Yuri tale set in a sleepy seaside town with a richly developed cast.

The first volume isn’t very long, and moves at a languid pace, and yet somehow many momentous things have happened by the end, and many more mysteries have been set up for the future. Does the monster exist? If so, is it embodied in Furuka? What is the relationship between Kon and the women sacrificed to the monster generations ago? Does Furuka have a mysterious power, or was the intervention with the bullies related to the monster somehow? Kon and Furuka have already kissed by the middle of the book, and maybe more, so with that out of the way we can focus on the real development of their relationship, on whether they can overcome both the mundane and fantastic challenges set before them, and of course on delving deeper into the lore of the island.

This story comes closer to transcending the definition of Yuri as “lesbian content without lesbian identity” for a school setting than any other I have read recently. Despite Furuka’s efforts to look mature, she quickly reveals that she has basically run away to this island with little to no plan for her future. Chief among her reasons is her despair and loneliness at not fitting in because she is gay. She never uses the word “lesbian,” but she describes knowing since the fourth grade that she wasn’t like the other girls, and only had eyes for one of her female friends. Unfortunately, she describes herself as “sick.” Kon isn’t thrown by this at all, and decides she must have this same “sickness” since she feels this way about Furuka. I’m not going to say everything that happens between them feels realistic, but it certainly fits in just fine with plenty of other coming-of-age teen romances. Kon is believably depicted as a girl just starting to awaken to the idea that she might love another girl, and Furuka is a sympathetic example of a girl who already knows this about herself and unfortunately feels outcast because of it. Yes, we all love Yuri stories where the protagonists face no obstacles to their love, but it’s also nice to have a story that acknowledges and deals with still very real prejudices.

Ratings:

Art – 8 Extra points for the variety of character designs and the imaginative sea monster renderings
Story – 8 I’m enjoying it very much, it’s different from anything else out there.
Characters – 7 Kon and Furuka feel like real people. There isn’t much of a supporting cast at this point, though.
Yuri – 7 Kon and Furuka’s relationship is at the center of the story.
Service – 7 I wouldn’t say it is prurient, but there is a fair amount of (not explicit) nudity, and a scene of Furuka brooding that is set unnecessarily in the shower.

Overall – 8 Intangibles and personal taste make this a solid 8 for me, I’m eager to see where the story goes! Alas, as I understand it, new installments are released only quarterly, so we may be waiting awhile for the next volume.

Erica here: Thank you so much for another fantastic review! I want to run out and get this manga, right away, now.

Kaijuu-iro no Shima,Volume 1 is available in print from Amazon JP, or CD Japan and available in digital format on Amazon JP Kindle or Bookwalker JP. And, if you haven’t already seen it, take a moment to watch the animated trailer for this volume of manga!





The Conditions of Paradise: Azure Dreams

July 26th, 2021

It was 2009 when I read this book the first time. Here was what I wrote at the time,

In Ruri-iro Yume (瑠璃色の夢) Morishima Akiko gets to realize a dream of hers … . She is able to draw a series of stories about adult women in relationships with other women.

As I read that now 12-year old review, I find that I could have cut and pasted a great deal of it into this one, as most of the references she’s made to her other series still have not been licensed. Hanjuku Joshi had a brief sojourn in English with JManga, but is otherwise not available here. Neither are Renai Joshika (Volume 1 and Volume 2) or Renai Joshi File (レンアイ・女子ファイル) .

So here we are, getting to see what Morishima-sensei was thinking about more than a decade ago – and it may be even more relevant to today’s Yuri than it was then, now that adult women and their dreams are the subject of more Yuri than ever before. Here we are at The Conditions of Paradise: Azure Dreams.

As a collection of shorts, this volume holds up rather nicely, I think. Morishima-sensei’s art style is still cute, and this look at different couples and different kinds of relationships makes for a nice variety. I summed up that 2009 review with, “In any case, Morishima’s art is super-duper cute. But her stories are smart, poignant and often very real. And, okay, sometimes her stories are super-duper cute, too. ^_^” And that holds true today. ^_^

Interestingly, in a kind of time warp, the characters from Hanjuku Joshi (from whom you met Chitose and her fujoshi sister) are back again, in “Motto Hanjuku Joshi” which runs right now in Galette magazine. It’s still a delightful series and one half the most problematic couple has aged out of school, so the problematic part of their relationship is less so. ^_^  Is today’s the motto, “everything old is new again” or “old Yuri doesn’t die, it’s just moves magazines”? In any case,

I really like that these three books are being sold as a series and I hope one day you’ll get to read the rest of the stories from which several of these shorts have been spun off.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 8
Characters – 9
Yuri – 9
Lesbian – 7
Service – 7

Overall – 9

It is so lovely to see Elina Ishikawa working on a Yuri manga again – we worked together on the Jmanga volumes. ^_^ Very fine work from Asha Barton on adaptation, CK Russell’s lettering and retouch is a thankless job, so appreciate those sound effects! Nicky Lim’s cover design work is on point, as always, and let me just say, I weep with joy at seeing the proofreaders and Dawn Davis and Danielle King, credited along with editor Shannon Fay. The one thing Seven Seas does that I love most, is give you a glimpse of the entirety of the number of people who work to make this book happen. My sincere thanks to Rhiannon Lissa, and Julie as well. It’s a team effort and most readers have no idea how many folks have to put time in to get a book on their shelves. Thanks so much to the team at Seven Seas.

It has been absolutely wonderful to see more of Morishima-sensei’s art in English! Now, can I ask favor? I really want to see Takemiya Jin’s work in English, too. Pretty please? ^_^





Mayu, Matou, Volume 4 (繭、纏う)

July 25th, 2021

As have all the volumes of Hara Yuriko’s series, Mayu, Matou, Volume 4 (繭、纏う) begins with a short scenario. In this one we meet younger Youko and her onee-sama Reina, who is headed to Hoshimya Academy ahead of her, which is why Youko was motivated to go to this elite school. Age has brought Reina neither wisdom nor kindness, and we are fleetingly glad that Youko has grown beyond her.

This is followed by the obligatory, “holy shit, this school and it’s clothes and all the people who attend, are SUPER CREEPY” story….

…and then the story settles back in to talk about the struggle between Kujou and Youko for Hana’s soul. This is not a love triangle, it is a death match and I’m getting nervous about the outcome. Two of three people in the triangle are currently waging an all-out war for the third.

At the end of this volume, I actually breathed a sigh of relief that there will be another volume.  I’ve never wanted someone to come to such a bad end as I currently hope for Kujou. At this point, I know exactly what I want for the climax to be. Hana is a prince in serious need of rescuing.

Hara-sensei’s art is genuinely amazing this volume. I know I keep joking about the hair in this series, but the textures, and movement here is nothing short of  outstanding work. The use of light, shadow, reflection…every page just stopped me moving forward as I had to actually look at it and admire the skill.

For a series I didn’t want to start all that much, I definitely am looking forward to the next volume and what I hope will be a decisive climax.

Ratings:

Art – Honestly 9
Characters – 8
Story – 8
Service – 5 This volume amps up the creepy, the sex, and the dark
Yuri – 8 See above.

Overall – 9

Cocoon, Entwined, Volume 4 will be arriving on US shelves in December 2021 from Yen Press. I’d really like to know what you all think of this volume, because I was super impressed (also horrified, creeped out, annoyed, lots of other emotions) by it. ^_^

I was just posting this, and even the covers have changed in tone.  Wow.





Strawberry Fields Once Again, Volume 3

July 23rd, 2021

In Volume 1, we met Akira, a withdrawn loner and Pure, an outgoing and positive transfer student who tells Akira that she’s from the future where they are lovers.  In Volume 2, Akira slowly and surely grows to love Pure, only to find that the other girl has disappeared.

In Strawberry Fields Once Again, Volume 3, we find ourselves in a cascading series of fractured timelines. As we watch Pure and Akira miss each other over and over, we begin to pick up the thread of the story and it turns out that indeed Pure was from the future!

Akira and her brother Ruri, after the death of their mother, each chose to withdraw from life in a slightly different way. Akira dedicated herself to otome games and unbeknownst to her, Ruri dedicated himself to repairing what he believed was the true timeline. But – and this is really an important point in real, life, I think – Ruri only sees his parents from a child’s point of view and doesn’t account for them having lives as adults that he’s not privy to. From his immature and self-serving perspective, the timeline he’s seeking to restore is the “correct” one…but as we learn, there is no timeline in which his family is restored in the way he wishes.  But selfishly, he puts his energy towards stopping Pure, rather than himself, becoming what passes as this series’ bad guy.

When Ruri is confronted with this truth, he relents and Pure and Akira finally meet up after a series of failures in Pure’s time-travel attempts.

In the end, the timeline for Pure and Akira are restored enough for them to find one another and be married, and what started out as a kind of weird little typical school drama, ends as a weird little time-travel story with a Yuri wedding and a happy ending for mostly everyone.

So yeah, this book travels a long distance from that first chapter, but now that we’re here at the end, it was definitely an interesting ride. In Japanese I ended up reading this volume through 3 times, just to make absolutely sure I understood it and, if I had not, I probably would have had to read this English-volume through more than once. ^_^ Amanda Haley does a fine job on the translation, so it’s not on her – honestly a very excellent job, as she helped me clear up some small details I had missed or ignored, and I enjoyed the clean look of Abigail Blackman’s lettering – also, not credited, but whomever did the editing, nice job! (Yen, could you please give folks credit when they work on a book? ) The rough-texture of the cover stock is intriguing addition, I think this series might have been better served by glossy, but I kinda like the feel of this anyway.

Overall, a strange little series that was totally worth reading.  ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 8
Character – 7
Service – 2
Yuri – 6

Overall – 7

The main weakness of the story was character, it was very hard to actually like anyone until after you understood the whole picture and by then, it was too late for about half of them. ^_^;





Mejirobana Saku, Volume 2 (メジロバナの咲く)

July 22nd, 2021

Back in 2020 when I reviewed the first volume of Nakamura Asumiko’s first manga that was specifically meant to be seen as Yuri, I kept my expectations relatively low-key. I was already familiar with Nakamura-sensei’s work, I knew her art was quirky and her characters tended be off-balance, but charming. Indeed, Volume 1 was very much all of that.

Mejirobana Saku, Volume 2 (メジロバナの咲く) threw me for a complete loop. The set-up in Volume 1, which appeared to be headed towards a traditional love triangle is set aside for something far more complicated. What I thought was heading towards Yawnsville, took a sharp turn and became exactly the kind of non-conventional, dramatic and honestly compelling and delightful story I have come to expect from this author.

It was apparent from the beginning that Ruby’s parents had failed her, but when we finally meet her father, we start to understand the multiple ways in which adult selfishness can have an impact upon their children. And the thing is…by the end of the story we don’t even dislike her parents, even despite everything they put Ruby through, Steph and Liz both rise way above their initial characterizations for an series of amazing scenes…. 

The end of the story is…well, I’m not going to spoil it, because you’ll be getting A White Rose in Bloom, Volume 2 at the end of this year and I don’t want to ruin a single moment of it for you. If you haven’t read Volume 1 of that yet, definitely do, because you need to get set-up for a story that isn’t at all what you expected and is all the better for it. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 9
Characters – 9 Fabulous
Service – Kinda, but not really, let’s say 1 because
Yuri – 7

Overall – 9 Wow, that was fantastic.

In my review of Volume 1 I said of this book, “We’re never going to shed the tropes of Yuri, but revisiting them with talented creators doing something unique and unpredictable with them” and I have never been as prophetic. Nakamura-sensei takes all the old tropes and without changing a thing, gives us something wholly unique and unpredictable. An absolutely fabulous read.