Yuri Network News – September 18, 2010

September 18th, 2010

I just want to take a moment to thank Allaine and Dreiser, hosts of Thursday’s BlogtalkRadio show about Yuri and Yuri Fanfic. Dreiser, you are now officially my #2 fan – your encyclopedic knowledge of my fanfic is deeply disturbing. ^_^

You can download the show, if you missed the original call, directly from the website. But only if you want to hear us geek out about Sailor Moon…alot.

Yuri Anime

Be “befriended” by Takemachi Nanoha all over again in high-res detail, with the Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Movie the 1st (魔法少女リリカルなのは The MOVIE 1st) in Blu-Ray. This is the Japanese release, but you know it’ll be worth it for the battle scenes and whatever goodies you get (special bag, booklet, pamphlet) to make the cost palatable.

Back here in the West, Funimation is putting together the second season box set for Kaleido Star and it will include the Legend of Phoenix: Layla Hamilton Monogatari OVA. If there was ONE thing about Kaleido Star worth watching it was that OVA! It’s…wow.

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Yuri Manga

Yuru Yuri has a 4th volume scheduled. I boggle.

In the meantime, Ichijinsha will be putting some of their Yuri Hime manga series online, according to the an announcement in Yuri Hime S, Volume 14. (See this report on Yurina Hibi for the picture and info.) They are saying “Yuri Hime” comics, but the series mentioned all look like they are from YHS: Flower Flower, Marriage Black, Cassiopeia Dolce, etc…

Fans of Zettai Shoujo Astoria will be pleased to learn that the first collected volume is due out on October 18th.

Yet another due from Ichijinsha is Sukoyaka Paradigm Shift which since, I have never heard of it, I assume is one of the cell phone manga…or something else. ^_^

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Snatches of Yuri

Yuyu Shiki, a Yuri-ish slice of life thing from Mangatime Kirara continues to be a Yuri-sh slice-of-life thing with characters that “suki” and “daisuki” each other. Volume 2 is out, if you’re interested.

A collection entitled Seinen no Tame ni Dokusha Club has an intriguingly classic Yuri cover, a distressing title and a dubious premise…and I think I want to read it.

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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!



Yuri Fanfic BlogTalkRadio Interview Tonight!

September 16th, 2010

If you like Yuri fanfic, or are a Yuri fan and want to geek out over our favorite fandoms, join hosts Allaine, Dreiser (yes, that Dreiser!) and myself tonight at 10PM Eastern Time at Femmeslash4Fans BlogTalkRadio.

Sailor Moon, Shoujo Kakumei Utena and Maria-sama ga Miteru are on the menu, but don’t be surprised when other series have a cameo. ^_^

To celebrate today’s talk, I even uploaded a new fanfic on “Worldshaking” Fanfic. Hopefully, I’ll get a chance to talk about why I think creative fan work (fan art, fanfic, AMVs, cosplay, doujinshi,) does not have the same detrimental effect as scanlation, because I do have a theory about that. ^_^

As I always say, Dreiser and I are drinking buddies, so we always have fun talking fanfic. I hope you’ll join us!



K-ON! Manga, Volume 2

September 15th, 2010

In Volume 2 of the K-ON! manga, the light music club drinks tea, they eat food, they go to a guitar store, they go on a summer “band camp.” They swim. They chat and joke around. They slack and sometimes, on special days, they work really hard.

They get a new member! Asuza is glomped and made to wear cat ears, but only because she’s cute as a button. Now that they have a new member, sometimes they even remember to practice.

You know what the Yuriest thing about 5 girls hanging out and doing stuff is?

Nothing.

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – There is none, but I’m still giving it an 8
Characters – 10, this is a completely character driven series
Yuri – 0
Service – 4

Overall – 8

Read this article on the end of K-ON! anime at Japanator. That’s pretty much my definition of the word “otaku.”



Yuri Manga: Zettai Shoujo Seiiki Amnesium, Volume 1

September 14th, 2010

Most folks, after spending years honing their craft, improve at whatever they set out to do. Some with marginal skills may never be great, but can at least reach “competent.” For instance, I was never going to be a concert clarinetist, but when I was practicing 4 hours a day, I got better.

Some people, though, become less good, for any number of reasons. There may be less of a drive to excel; time crunches, over-extension, professional commitments, life all take their toll on some people. And a few just run out of something to say. You can see this in bands, particularly. They start out life all young and angry and edgy, but by the third album extolling the virtues of fatherhood and married life you’re ready to vomit at the blandness of their work. ^_^

And some people…well, some people just get worse.

All of which is to say that the “creative” team known as Kaishaku has absolutely surpassed themselves in crappily executed crap with the creation of Zettai Shoujo Seiiki Amnesium (絶対少女聖域アムネシアン).

I won’t bother summarizing the plot because, frankly, there is no point. The plot serves as the thinnest possible frame around a series of service-y violence, much of it sexual, against the ever-popular punching bags of Himeko and Chikane.

Amnesium is a blivet of a manga, filled to the brim with fetishes, rape, mostly-nude, but you know, not *totally* nude nudity, sexual harassment, more rape, more fetishes and more sexual harassment.

Kaishaku’s writing has regressed to the point that I either have to imagine them chained to desks, staring helplessly at an editor holding a whip, mumbling, “rape Himeko, okay, rape Chikane, okay, okay, okay, okay, okay” or sitting around in the asylum slavering. Because, frankly, this iteration is just…sad. Himeko had a sister Chikane, but she died and now a person who looks and sounds *just* like Chikane-oneesama, with the name Chikane, has arrived, but isn’t Chikane-oneesama, has unsisterly intentions, but may have been the one to kill her sister. /mumble/okay, okay, okay, okay/mumble/

The art is no better than it ever has been, so any action scene is hard to parse, but since they are all the same – attempted rape, Himeko’s and/or Chikane’s clothes are shredded (crotches are miraculously never visible, of course) fighting occurs, Chikane wins when Himeko commands her to – it doesn’t really matter anyway. Whee.

Ratings:

Service: 10

Overall: 2, but only so there’s somewhere down to go for Volume 2

Today’s book was sponsored by LFB-in-training and Okazu superhero Dan P.! You are so getting these Dan. You need them. You *want* them. ^_^



Yuri Manga: Fidanzato no Tameiki

September 13th, 2010

Fidanzato no Tameiki (フィダンツァートのためいき) by Tanaka Rin, is a collection of Yuri Hime cell phone comics that take place at “Himeyuri Jogakuin,” a fictitious school of the girl’s private variety.

Each story is a short “plot, what plot?” in which a short set-up is followed by sex. The stories vary in quality from the highly suspect first story (to which my reaction actually was “Augh!” at the suddenness of the moment the characters are making out.) Because these stories are short and focus on the sex, they have all the weakness and strengths of most fanfic – they may not be to your taste, but are quickly over. And they very, very much read like a Yuri Hime cell phone series.

The first story touches upon a cool, competent swim team sempai who is quite inexplicably wowed by the adorableness of an incompetent, blubbering kouhai.

The second story contrasts a beautiful, sweet-tempered, and easily distracted Student Council President and her long-suffering Vice President.

In what is probably my favorite story, “Restrizione” two members of the Fine Arts Club have little in common but their feelings for one another. Thinking about it, I probably like it best because the characters are closer to being equal in status than most of the characters in the other stories. I also felt that the sexual tension between them worked where in some of the stories, it was a hand-wave that we had to accept existed, but wasn’t actually there.

The next story covers pervy sempai/cute, incompetent kouhai territory with a Yuri take on “Beauty and the Beast.” The irony stick is a little heavy for this one, as Beauty’s final monologue is about loving the beast despite her being so different from everyone else.

A track sempai let’s the whole school know she and her kouhai are lovers – in no uncertain terms – in the fifth story. This one wasn’t too bad; there was a little jealousy-conflict that made sense in the context of the story.

In the sixth story, a teasing Literature club president seduces the quiet girl with her words.

And in the final story, a student of Astronomy considers her teacher a heavenly body (and yes, I realize I deserve to be beaten for that pun.)

I can’t say that I loved this collection, but other than the first story, I really didn’t dislike it, particularly. It is what it is – collection of cell phone “ecchi” Yuri.

Ratings:

Art – Call it 7 – sometimes I really like Tanaka’s art…other times not so much
Story – 7, except the first one
Characters – 5 They left no impression
Yuri – 8
Service – 8

Overall – 7

Because the title was a little awkward in Japanese, I did a bit of research. Fidanzato is “engaged” or “fiancée” in Italian, but it’s in the male form. The title ought to be “Fidanzata no Tameiki.” You think any one but me cares? (^_^)

Today’s thanks go to Okazu Superhero Dan P., for sponsoring this item from my Amazon JP Wishlist! It was pretty bad, Dan. But wait, because the next one…through the roof.