Archive for the Yuri Manga Category


Hello, Melancholic!, Volume 3 (ハロー、メランコリック!)

June 2nd, 2021

When we last saw them, Minato had just blurted out that she liked Hibiki. As we begin Hello, Melancholic!, Volume 3 (ハロー、メランコリック!) everything between them is so normal it’s making them both uncomfortable. The pressure is going to build and the rest of the band is just waiting for it to blow. In the mean time, new first-years have joined and Minato is now a sempai

But, we’re not done yet, because Hibiki’s online posts opens an opportunity for Minato that she is absolutely not at all ready to take. A local band of adults – one that has a reputation for a high level of musical proficiency – has invited Minato to try out for a position as backup, a high honor. Minato’s good enough, but she is emotionally still so scarred from her previous experience in trying out for a band position that she rejects the chance. Even when Hibiki helps her to confront her fears, Minato continues to retreat into herself, eventually lashing out at Hibiki.

This too comes to a head, after Minato asks the only other second year in the group for advice. Luckily for her, Emma is a good advice giver and in a moment of clarity, Minato realizes that she’s never had a friend to ask advice from – and it takes her breath away. Finally everything comes down to a confrontation, and as the rest of the band eavesdrop outside the door, Hibiki and Minato say some things that they need to say. Minato works through last lingering doubts about Hibiki going off to college with help from the ever-chill Sachiko and Chika.  The book ends with Minato (sporting a new look) and Hibiki meeting up again on a spring day a year later.

The extra chapter delves into Emma’s secret life with an older woman.

Okay, you’re probably looking at this and wondering why I picked *this* story for day two of Pride Month, since I’m usually so intentional about my choices? (I hope you notice that I’m intentional.) Well for a couple of reasons – things that happen in this series that I think are very relevant to right now.

One – this is a story about a kid who had been bullied and it is not a miraculous story of redemption or perseverance. Minato slowly, carefully sheds some of the baggage she was burdened with, but it’s not without risk to her and to survive it, she just grows. The whole school isn’t applauding her, she isn’t made prom queen, this isn’t a Hollywood story. Minato finds some people who help her grow up and grow beyond the damage – I honestly wish this was a narrative that we got more often. Most of us who were bullied don’t get a reckoning, we just get old and the things that weighed us down, don’t anymore. I was in college when one of the kids who had bullied me as as a tween was sitting in a class I walked into. She saw me and said something rude and I just…laughed at her. I mean, really? Was I supposed to care what she thought? It was too ridiculous to imagine.

Two – and this made me cheer out loud. Minato, all upset at losing Hibiki to college, assumes Chika and Sachiko will be going to school together. As it turns out, Chika’s going to trade school to be a dental hygenist, Sachiko’s going on to a private school. Minato, shocked, asked if they aren’t upset at never seeing each other and they stare at her like she’s turned purple. Why? Because they have cell phones, for pity’s sake. Cell phones and days off and maybe they’ll move in together, but really – there is no reason that high school is the end of it allTM. Why wouldn’t they keep seeing each other?

Three – yesterday was pretty heavy going with The Rose of Versailles and tomorrow is pretty heavy going and I wanted something light and fun and a story about a girl meeting and falling in love with her sempai in band is about as close to an autobiography as I’ll ever get in a manga. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 9
Story – 9 More conflict in this volume is a good thing, as Minato becomes less passive
Characters – 9
Service – 1
Yuri – 9

Overall – 9

Thank you Ohsawa-sensei for this utterly delightful story.





The Rose of Versailles, Volume 4

June 1st, 2021

What better way is there to start off Pride Month than to begin with revolution, with a fight against the status quo and respectability? What better thing can we do in 2021 than to remember why we celebrate this month, than to tear down systemic oppression and fight for our freedoms?

Sit yourself down, make yourself some tea, maybe a crepe, and buckle in, because we’re about to get historical. The Rose of Versailles, Volume 4 will cover the last days of the French Revolution, and of Oscar François de Jarjeyes’ life in noble service to the undeserving ancien régime of France. The parallels to right now are once again uncanny and distressing.

As the book opens, Oscar and Andre’ finally confront the one thing they have never discussed in a lifetime of friendship – their feelings for one another. They consummate what little of their marriage they will ever have.

The next morning, committed to the cause of the people, Oscar leads her troops to one of the most resonant moments of the Revolution – the day the canons of the Bastille were turned, not upon the prison, but upon the town. This scene makes me tremble, to be honest. In recent years, in cities all over the US, the canons were indeed turned upon the people…and it has come very close to making a difference, but never quite close enough. Even in 18th century France, the Revolution, while it ushered in new ideals, failed to bring the kind of change the commoners were fighting for – food, justice, the right to live without harassment.

We are asked to watch as the characters we learned about face the guillotine, the mob, or are cut down in battle. It’s never an easy story, but one we need to be able to get to the end of. With Fersen’s death, which was slightly more complicated than the narration makes it seem, the story as such, is over.

We take a deep breath, because the neither the series nor the story is truly over. Instead we are plunged from the real horrors of history into a gothic horror, complete with a virgin-killing, blood-bathing protagonist, a murderous creepy doll, and Oscar’s niece Lulu. Get used to Lulu, she’ll be back. This final story gives us some predatory lesbian behavior from the Marquise de Montclair, which I find somehow refreshing, after the guillotine and the spectre of an uncaring elite staring at children dying without interest.

And so, the main narrative of The Rose of Versailles comes to an end, as the République Française begins. But wait! There’s more! More evil women, more mysterious disappearances, more predatory lesbians and more Lulu on the way in The Rose of Versailles, Volume 5! (Which is the part I worked on first, oddly, with translator Mari Morimoto.)

Ratings:

Art – 9 Honestly fantastic
Story – 9 A lot happens, good and bad
Characters – 9 We’re going to do some rethinking about people here
Service – Not visually, but there is some in Montclair’s behavior
Yuri – Same as above

Overall – 9

My hat is off to Jocelyne for the fine translation and Jeannie Lee for the great lettering. Andy Tsang’s cover design is amazing. Again, my thanks to the UDON team for making this a pleasure to work on. Gonna say…I’m still blown away that I was able to help out.

All I have to say this pride month is Vive la Révolution! There’s still so much yet to fight for. Let’s get out there and fight for every last queer kid, so in 30 years they can be clueless gobs about us on the neural network. ^_^





Syrup, A Yuri Anthology, Volume 3

May 28th, 2021

Syrup, A Yuri Anthology, Volume 3‘s Japanese name is Syrup NIGHT Hatsuyoru Yuri Anthology, (シロップ NIGHT 初夜百合アンソロジー) and I want to make that very clear, because the title explains why I never reviewed it in Japanese. An entire anthology about women’s “first time” with each other is exactly the kind of fetish about women’s sexuality that I, personally, can live happily without. Virginity is a stupid social construct that is used to control women’s bodies and sexuality, and fetishizing it is a thing people who are not me might do.

That said, Syrup, A Yuri Anthology, Volume 3 is a collection of shorts by names you will undoubtedly recognize from other Yuri anthologies. Creators in this anthology include Itou Hachi, Iwami Kyouko, Ikeda Takashi, Sal Jiang, Canno, Morinaga Milk and a few other names that are new to me. The stories range in tone, from melancholy loss to embarrassed comedy and whether or not you find them sexy will be entirely personal. For me, the strongest stories were Iwami Kyouko’s “Spare Key,” and Canno’s “The Story of the First and Last Night,” which was also a ghost story about grief.

I found it impossible to even read Itou Hachi’s story, which was basically the same lolicon animal-eared girls story they always provide, but in this case, the age issue was impossible for me to ignore. I am telling you this not to offend those of you who enjoy Itou’s work, but to warn those of you who don’t…this one is really not a thing I want to keep in the house.

Ratings: All are variable, as it’s an anthology.

Overall – 7

If 18+ Yuri anthologies are your boom, and you like – or would like to get to know – the creators in this collection, or enjoy this particular fetish, undoubtedly, you’ll enjoy this volume. Seven Seas bringing out 18+ Yuri will certainly appeal to some folks. It wasn’t for me, and I knew that going in to it, but it may well be for you! I can’t call this hentai or porn, even, but as an 18+ anthology, it didn’t hit a single mark on my “sexy” scorecard.





Hana ni Arashi, Volume 6 (はなにあらし)

May 27th, 2021

Nanoha and Chidori have shared their first kisses and, frankly, they are pretty sure that they no one has noticed, even though it got a little weird between them for a while. Their partially right, because their friends haven’t noticed…but first-year Mai, who has had a crush on Nanoha for a while, sure has.

In Hana ni Arashi, Volume 6 (はなにあらし), by Kobachi Ruka, Mai tries to confirm her suspicions, and eventually asks Chidori, who  is pretty honest with a girl who fancies herself Chidori’s rival. All is well…except it’s not. Because, as Chidori and Mai patch over any awkwardness between them, Nanoha is feeling out of the loop. She’s presuming the worst.

Now Nanoha and Chodori, who couldn’t wait to go on the school trip together, are avoiding each other. Their friends notice almost immediately. They’d been so close and now they won’t even look at one another.  To their credit, the friends shove the two of them together, say, “Deal with it” and go off to see the powerspot.

Nanoha and Chidori have it all out and even as they do, realize how nothing it all was. Finally, kneeling at Nanoha’s feet, Chidori swears that she loves Nanoha. Then realizes that’s she’s in a church. Nanoha watches Chidori struggle with emotions and kisses her on the forehead. They return to their friends, united once again. Undoubtedly, they’ll deal with Mai when they get home.

This manga, which is a Shounen Sunday Comic, is slow, and surprisingly, maybe, genuinely sweet.  There is a little fanservice presented as Chidroi’s imagination running away with her, and aside from that, it’s really not. We don’t skirt-stare, no up-from-ground shots. Take out two panels and it’s…just romance.  Nice romance between two young women.  Sometimes, it’s just nice to read something nice. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 7
Characters – 8
Yuri – 6
Service – 2 Less service, but the gaze is still creepier than I like. But I feel that way about almost everything these days.

Overall – 7

Volume 7 and Volume 8 are already available, Volume 9 is on the way in Japan shortly!

I’ll keep turning to this series when my brain needs a nice summer day and two girls in love.

 





Dekisokonai Hime-tachi, Volume 4 (できそこないの姫君たち)

May 20th, 2021

Fujishiro Nanaki, having been ostracized by her group of fashionable and popular girls, has found acceptance with the “nerd” group, Kurokawa’s friends Izumi and Iroha. Together they are on the school trip. As we established last volume, we might have expected Kurokawa and Fujishiro to have had the tension between them explored, but as they aren’t in the same room. We instead are, like Fujishiro, side-lined by a sudden confession in Dekisokonai Hime-tachi, Volume 4.

In discussing this series with the lovely folks on the Okazu Discord, I gained a lot of good perspective. And, to be very honest, I needed it, because I am having a very hard time caring about the characters of this school-life drama by Ajiichi. So when the consensus was that this series felt like an “antagonistic GIRL FRIENDS,” as farfetched put it, I felt validated. Also, I know this is petty, but I am now done with the color coded naming scheme. In any case, I really appreciated having had the conversation! If you want to talk out your deep feelings about a Yuri manga, drop by our Discord and have at it! Okazu Patrons have a room of their own, where you can make suggestions and ask questions of me ^_^

On the positive side – every volume has had one really excellent conversation that has kept me coming back to this series. Kurokawa explaining how their lives were too different to reconcile, Fujishiro confronting the teacher, then standing up to her “friends.”  In this volume a confession leads to a brief conversation about LGBTQ people, and ultimately to acceptance. If Nanaki is a little confused or awkward, we can give her the benefit of the doubt, as Izumi does, for trying.

Kurokawa’s relegated to the position of supporting role in this volume, for which the volume suffered. Fujishiro is a fine character, but if there is any energy at all, it is the two of them playing off one another.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 7
Characters – 7
Service – 6
LGBTQ – 6

Overall – 7

You’ll be getting this volume of Failed Princesses, Volume 4, in August, and Volume 5 of Dekisokonai Hime-tachi (できそこないの姫君たち) is already on Japanese bookstore shelves. I know already that the next volume simply adds another plot complication to the mix, which sure, keeps the series going, but I kinda want at least one important thing to resolve, or at least, be addressed,  before we move on.