Lesbian Comix: Definition and Potential

May 5th, 2007

Today’s review is a first for Okazu. Our Guest Reviewer, Jen, has made many dozens of comments here, but this is the first review she’s written for us. I’m thrilled beyond belief to introduce you all to such an original thinker, and funny, funny gal. Take it away Jen!

Forgive the stream-of-consciousness writing style of this review, as it wasn’t done in one sitting… despite the act of sitting itself being enjoyed thoroughly both times.Just finished Ariel Schrag’s DEFINITION, and the sequel POTENTIAL.

These are auto-biographical comics of Ariel’s experiences in school as an “omigod I lust after girls YAY ME!” lesbian. On the plus side; she wrote, drew and published at such a very young age. Attended comic cons to sell her wares, too. I am quite impressed.

Over the course of both volumes (earlier and latter works available) we marvel as Arial’s illustrative skill grows in parallel to her own character as she slowly (awkwardly, painfully, insert negative yet faintly nostalgic buzzword for teen experience HERE) wades her way through adolescence the way almost all of us did: Teens; you don’t live them, you merely survive them.

POTENTIAL is the perfect title for volume #2, as we are now quite familiar with Arial’s emotional highs and lows from the childish misadventures of DEFINITION, and now we hope for nothing but the best for her as she bravely does all she can to turn crushes into genuine sexual relationships with all the “you are my soul mate” type of sincerity that comes with such leaps of faith. And with that, the positives of these books begins to drain (“drain” now redefined in my vocabulary. That shows you the emotional attachment I now have to Arial by proxy.)

On the negative… well there’s a few, but it’s probably just me. Stepping back, volume #1 was mostly recurring tales of problematic family life, disturbing sweet-sixteen experiences and “let’s get drunk and see what really horrible things can happen to me and my girlfriends” type stories. These were her “Gee I must be bi” years, so she’s still actively seeking a boyfriend, all quite unnerving as Arial draws herself and those around her far smaller and vulnerable than a true sixteen year old would be depicted.

This mostly continues into POTENTIAL, where despite the “Yes I am in fact gay and it’s time to DO something about it” proclamation in the opening chapter, her strategy remains drinking heavily/doing drugs and then hoping something real good happens (guess the odds). It’s hard to empathize with someone who keeps doing that to herself (even though all her friends think this plan is a winner… and hey, “that’s what you do in school, right?”).

That brings me to my problem with most “comix”, that being they’re not fiction. Fictional Yuri stories *can* be created with in-depth characters and a story structure with a satisfying ending. With real life you get recurring awkward experiences with real people possessing frustrating/unexplainable behaviours that just leave you unsatisfied.

Add to the fact that the story is told quite openly with all sexual and emotional car wrecks recounted in detail, there’s a sharp sense of voyeurism I got from this. I didn’t get that with Alison Bechdel’s FUN HOME, but then that’s in NO way a fair comparison. Arial is chronicling her romantic/sexual encounters (not what you’d call happy nor enjoyable), coupled with her family life (ditto) in real-time with no real retrospective narrative. It’s not a comfortable read in any way.

My opinions on comix as a publishing sub-genre notwithstanding, I still wanna meet her and have her sign the books. That’d be awesome.

A quick visit to her website tells us that these and other works are currently being adapted into a movie, and that when not story writing for THE L WORD, she’s working on more self-publishing and is one year younger than me.

…excuse me while I wallow in a quick Marimite/chocolate combo before sleeping it off and enjoying another day of admin at a job I hate. -__-

Ratings:
Art – 8. Varies wildly in quality and style, but expressively loveable all the same.
Story – 7. Better to have loved and lost and had your heart shredded over and over and over and it keeps getting worse oh God than never to have loved at all.
Characters – 6. Filtered through Arial’s eyes, but all sufficiently messed up to be believably human.
Yuri – 9. She tried. She honestly did. Poor thing.
Service – 4. Girls having lotsa sex, all thoroughly devoid of any enjoyment whatsoever…could that possibly matter?

Overall – 7

Erica here: One of the reasons I wanted to publish this review, particularly, was Jen’s comments about the autobiographical nature of “comix.” It put me in mind of Takeuchi Sachiko’s Honey & Honey, and also Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home right away. I’m all for using Takeuchi’s phrase “comic essays” to categorize these works which are *clearly* meant to be read as non-fiction autobiography, rather than as a “graphic novel.” I encourage you all to help disseminate this genre label of “comic essay”. ^_^

Let’s all thank Jen for the fabulous review!

Posted in LGBTQ, Western Comic/Comix | 4 Comments »


My HiME Anime, Volume 3

May 4th, 2007

Thanks awfully to Ted for his sponsorship of today’s review! As always, it is greatly appreciated!

So there I was, all ready to wallow in what I felt was a well-deserved bout of Schadenfreude, so I popped Mai HiME, Volume 3 into the player. Well, pfft on me, because this volume was primarily fluff with an emphasis on comedy. Oh, sure, there was a little bit of plot and character development…and the kernel of what will later become a bigger crisis of conscience for Mikoto. But mostly it’s just stupid. ^_^;

The first episode is a a suspect “everyone is at the beach” episode. Mai is lifeguarding as one of her many jobs, when every single other character in the series just happens to drop by. This episode is notable for Shizuru’s harem who compete to put lotion on “Shizuru-oneesama.” Natsuki becomes the butt (pun intended) of yet another joke for basically no reason except that no one slaps writers when they add stuff like that in. We really need to retrain them a bit.

This was followed by an Iron Chef parody with more than its fair share of “girl trips and knocks cake over” gags. In fact, I think the episode used up every anime ever’s share of that particular joke. For ever. The only genuinely funny thing about the episode were the cakes at the end. They were just…funny. The “funny” Orphen eating the cakes…not so much. The punchline is that it is Mai’s birthday. The surprise party waiting for her at the end of the day keeps the episode from having to end wallowly and maudlin.

The last two episodes revolve around several things: there appears to be a vampire attacking girls on campus, (or perhaps a pervert – in any case, the girls are found stripped, with holes in their neck) and Miyu’s relationship with Alyssa (is it bad of my to like her better as a bird?) Haruka mobilizes the student council to try to catch the vampire and the HiMe mobilize themselves to fight the Orphen it clearly is. Natuski helpfully gives us incomplete information about the “1st District” which is also involved, and the “1st District” folks helpfully ramble on about a new Golden Age that will, of course, require a massive downsizing effort in the number of people on the planet. This never makes any sense to me anyway, but when Miyu tells us that the Searss Foundation already runs the planet, my thought was, “well what the hell do they want then – they’ve already got the world.” I’m sure the Golden Age will be ever so much better/different than what we have now. @_@

The volume climaxes with a big throwdown between Miyu, whose name is really a silly acronym that rivals HiME for “huh?” points and Mikoto, Natsuki and Mai. This is what, episode 12? And there’s 26 in the series. So…you can guess that it’s a draw.

Notable in this last episode is Yukino’s discussion of “like” with a fairly clueless Mikoto. Yukino realizes that her “like” of Haruka is in fact the kind *we* like, while Mikoto will now begin to obsess about her own understanding of “like” for the rest of the series.

Oh, and we get another HiME. She might have been more of a surprise, except that she was getting an awful lot of screentime all of a sudden.

The DVD extras were marginally interesting. They are basically, as Serge describes most ero-games, “Powerpoint” presentations. And the voiceovers frequently have nothing to do with the underwear or bathing suit shots on the screen. But Youko-sensei’s verbalization of our opinions of Midori (she’s cracked, but kind of fun) and Yukino’s discussion of what Haruka means to her were very decent.

Ratings:

Art – 5
Character – 7
Story – 6
Yuri – 3
Service – 6

Overall – 7

I know it’s not fair, but the more I watch of Mai HiME, the more I really like Mai Otome. Yukariko is so much better as a teacher than a nun.

Posted in English Anime, Mai Hime | 4 Comments »


Yuri Anthology: Souer Sengen, Yellow

May 3rd, 2007

Souer Sengen is yet another collection of yuri doujinshi for Maria-sama ga Miteru. Like my earlier reviews of Gokigenyou and Maria’s Wink, this book is one of a series. In this case the stories are loosely collected around the three Rose Families: Red, Yellow and White, one volume focused on Yumi and one on the supporting characters called, “SP”.

Todays review will be on the Yellow Rose Family Volume. Why this one of all of them? Because this one is, IMHO, the best of the bunch. If you asked me why, I’m not sure I’d be able to put my finger on it, exactly. I think it’s a combination of several things – I like the focus on Rei x Yoshino, I like many of the circles that contributed and I like several of the stories already, a priori. I own some of the doujinshi from which the stories are taken and they are some of my favorites.

The back to back stories by Bonny Bonnie, one of which ends happily and one sadly, both of which deal with Yoshino’s desire to kiss Rei, are quite enjoyable. In the first, they kiss, and Rei says that it tastes warm and nice. This is followed by a second, deeper kiss, and Yoshino complains that Rei tastes like takoyaki. ^_^ The second story ends with them kissing, but Rei saying that she really doesn’t want to open that door any further…. Both are quite sweet in their own way. You’ll pardon me if I prefer the first. ^_^

There’s a cute tale as Eriko passes a book from Rei to Yoshino, and in doing so ponders how close they are. It’s nice insight from Rosa Foetida into her “little sisters.” And, among the many other stories that look at the relationship between Yoshino and Rei, this collection includes the story from my very first Maria-sama ga Miteru doujinshi purchase, from long before I had the vaguest clue about the series. The circle is Bebe, and the series is called “Creole.” The first Creole story is about the “Day it Began,” which is to say, they day Yoshino and Rei become lovers. Despite it’s intense lolification of Yoshino, I like this story a lot. In fact, I like the whole Creole series alot – even the one where Sachiko presides over a sex club. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 8 variable, pretty decent, with the exception of one story, which was “shriek!” bad
Characters – 10 Yoshino…!
Story – also variable, averages to about a 6
Yuri – 9, except where it’s 10
Service – 10

Overall – 8

The entire Souer Sengen series is worth taking a look at. Some very fun and well-known Marimite parody circles contribute, like Pen-Pen Gusa Club, and the aforementioned Bebe and Bonny Bonnie. So there’s something of interest in each volume. But in my entirely personal opinion – this volume is the best one.

Posted in Maria-sama ga Miteru, Yuri Anthology, Yuri Doujinshi | 2 Comments »


Yuri Manga: Hatsukoi Shimai 2

May 2nd, 2007

I sincerely doubt that I’d like this series half as much as I do, if it hadn’t been a Drama CD first. (Read my review here.) But it was, and Paku Romi played Touko-sensei with a sexy voice and that, as they say, was that. :-)

Volume 2 of Hatsukoi Shimai is a collection of chapters that ran in Yuri Hime magazine. The story picks up shortly after the end of Volume 1. Cute, cheerful Mastusato Chika is pleased as punch to have built a relationship with the object of her admiration and desire, Kizaki Haruna, and a friendship with Haruna’s little sister, Akiho.

Chika and Akiho are walking to school one day, when they come across a hullaballoo over a young, attractive woman who has apparently just pulled up on a motorcycle. The visitor asks for directions to the staff room, but the crowd around her threatens to knock over her bike and Akiho jumps to help her keep it upright. In the most inappropriately intimate way possible, the visitor asks Akiho to lead the way. Akiho, annoyed at the woman’s carefree attitude, huffs along, but after some gentle teasing of her and Chika, leaves the woman to make her own way.

Both Chika and Akiho are shocked, therefore, when the head teacher introduces the visitor as their subsitute teacher for a while, Hiiragi Touko.

Chika takes herself off to find Haruna in their private little spot behind the school, where they share a few moments of quiet happiness with each other. But as they talk, Chika becomes painfully aware that she really doesn’t know much about Haruna who, despite being so pleasant, is still somewhat reserved and hard to get to know. On the way back from lunch, Chika trips down some stairs. As Haruna runs to her aid, Touko-sensei scoops her up in her arms and carries her to the doctor’s office. Later, when Haruna stops by to walk Chika home, she learns that Touko-sensei is giving Chika a ride home on her bike. And thus begins Touko’s apparent plot to break Haruna and Chika up.

As often as she can, Touko inserts herself next to Chika, offering assistance with everything, including private supplemental lessons. She’s never *quite* actionably inappropriate, but her behavior drives Akiho insane with protective anger, to the point of her volunteering for the school festival committee to keep Chika from Touko’s grasp. In contrast, as Touko and Chika become closer, Haruna withdraws into herself. She starts to have nightmares about her relationship with her former sempai. She even goes so far as to overreact when Chika tries to take a heavy bag from her – she slaps Chika’s hand away with some force.

Akiho, as she does in the Drama CD, confronts Touko, who accuses her of being jealous of Chika – and Haruna. The charge is accurate, but it doesn’t daunt Akiho who warns Touko away from her friend. (In the background, we also get a little more of a glimpse of Teshigawara’s crush on Akiho, and her jealousy of Touko and Akiho’s time together.)

In preparation for the school festival, it is decided that first year classes will pair with second-year classes and do things together. Their class decides to do a cafe in which they will also sell beaded items. Chika turns out to be really talented at beading (shades of the Hatsukoi Shimai Drama CD there. My review here.) While working with Haruna, Chika teaches her how to make beaded rings, and they give each other their first attempts.

We also get a chance to meet Miyu and Kirika, also from the third drama CD, which gives us a chance to see the third of our couples in the series. Miyu comments to Chika that since she, Chika, has come to school, Haruna has become much more cheerful and easygoing.

Separated from Haruna because the older girl has been avoiding her, Chika is really distressed but, when, on the day of the school festival, she loses the ring Haruna gave her, she becomes frantic and runs out into the rain to find it. Akiho runs to find Haruna and send her after Chika, and Touko-sensei after both of them.

In the pouring rain, Haruna finds Chika and they reunite happily. Haruna tells Chika about her past relationship with her sempai. She was in love with the older girl, who was always warm to her in private, but in public, became cold and repudiated her. She realizes that, without meaning to, she was doing the same to Chika, but won’t do it any more. Touko-sensei shows up with the lost ring. She slips it to Haruna and tells them both to get back to the classroom so they don’t catch cold.

On the way back, Touko runs into Akiho, who dissolves into tears in her arms, admitting her jealousy, but also that she really, truly is happy for her best friend and her sister. Touko in turn admits that she was in love with a girl when she was in school, but had never confessed to her and although she thought it would be okay to be by her side forever, time and distance took them apart from each other. She saw Haruna and Chika and thought that they were like her and that girl and didn’t want them to lose each other because they didn’t admit their feelings. Akiho goes back to her tsundere ways, pushing herself away from Touko (or vice versa) and I await them getting together, still. (Seriously…I am suffering here, guys. I need some Akiho x Touko time in the next couple of chapters or I will start to whine.)

Later, back in the woods by the pond, Chika and Haruna have a long talk about how they feel. Haruna slips the ring she made onto Chika’s ring finger and Chika returns the favor. They kiss, very aware that the whole thing is imbued with the force of a vow to love one another and be together forever.

And on that happy note Volume 2 ends.

The art has smoothed out a bit as the manga has gone on. It’s nothing special or revolutionary, but it’s pleasant enough. The story differs from the original Drama CDs, which I like, and Chika and Haruna’s relationship has, at last, progressed beyond hand holding. That and some other things have made my two-part Hatsukoi Shimai fanfic completely obsolete, but I don’t care. I enjoy the idea of Touko and Akiho as a couple and any time with Touko is fine with me. So I stand by it, despite the fact that I’m blatantly wrong in some places. LOL As far as I know, it’s the *only* Hatsukoi Shimai fanfic, so if you don’t like it, :-p.

We get the usual color page reproduction, some very cute 4-panel gag comics on the inside cover and a nice postcard inside. There’s also a really cute little pic on the back cover of Akiho flanked by Touko and Teshigawara, which I found incredibly charming.

Ratings:

Art – 6 nothing to rave over, but clean and neat
Story – 7
Characters – 7 Touko’s behavior is so very, very wrong…
Yuri – 8
Service – 3

Overall – 7

I wonder why I never noticed Teshigawara’s crush was on Akiho the first time around. I just sort of assumed that this was a harem style thing and it was Chika. SO glad to be wrong. (Not a harem story? Does that even exist?

 

Posted in Comic Yuri Hime, Hatsukoi Shimai, Koi Shimai, Yuri Manga | 2 Comments »


Looking back at New Year’s Day

May 2nd, 2007

This is a post that has nothing to do with Yuri. :-)

Back in January, on the first two days of the year, I, the wife, and our friend and YC staffer Bruce all undertook something called a “Shichifukujin-meguri,” while in Tokyo. That is, we walked around the section of Tokyo called Minato-ku and visited the shrines of all seven of the gods of fortune and the eighth, for their treasure ship. It’s considered good luck to do so. In return for that pilgrimage, I asked for one thing – not to get the usual jet-lag from hell during my trip. And, as I did not, I thought we all held up our ends of the bargain and went home satisfied. :-)

Well, in the last month, I’ve gotten married, got a new job, and been on “the cover” of Afterellen, so I kind of feel like they did a bit more on their side than I have on mine. lol So this is thanks to Ebisu, Daikokuten, Bishamonten, Fukurokuju, Jurojin, Hotei and my especially beloved Benten and their ship of treasure for everything. I promise to give them something nice in return. :-)

Posted in Now This Is Only My Opinion | 2 Comments »