2009 Moment of Anime 7: The Strange Realism of Delusion

Yuri Monogatari Vol.5's only 4koma story, 'On the Road Where the White Flowers Bloom', by Sakuraike Kana is my favourite of that anthology. It is hilarious on some many levels: as a meta-comment on the world on doujinshi, the two distinct leads with two supporting charas and the dynamics between them, the ironies of in-comic charas protesting about being treated as a doujinshi pairing, the surprising degrees of understanding and tangled webs of misunderstanding and so on.

In one of the 4koma, a (female) doujin buyer shyly asks Cotton-san if her work is based on actual experience; it's a question she gets asked often because, as her circle partner (who is actually one with the experience) opines, her work seems strangely realistic to outsiders. This line reminded me of how often we describe something as realistic even if we don't have the faintest clue about the reality of what we are describing. And when the real doesn't match up to the delusion, we reject the former instead.

Another one for the project.

Yuri Monogatari Vol.4

Picked up a copy of Yuri Monogatari Vol.3 and Rica 'tte Kanji!? in Apr 2005 when I dropped in on the Yuricon gang during the Yuri Revolution. Great bunch of people, with Evil Genius Erica Friedman at the fore, all of whom I deeply respect for taking action to plug gaps in the market rather than just waiting for the established companies to do so (and complaining plenty in the meantime). Thus I was pleased that my pre-ordered YM4 (sneak peeks) arrived so quickly and in perfect condition.

At 176 pages, this anthology contains a diverse variety of art styles and stories. Akiko Morishima's "Ichigo Hime" and Agatha "Kriss" Laguniak's "Bittersweet Melody" set their stories in the past. The first drips with cuteness in a pre-modern Japanese setting while playing on two familiar themes of incognito royalty and the heroine saving the damsel in distress. The second successfully evokes dark stormy nights and forests though the Victorian setting made me feel that the dialogue might have been enhanced by a dose of Charlotte Brontë styling.

Yuri For Adults

Rica 'tte Kanji!? by Rica Takashima, translated by Rica Takashima and Erica Friedman, edited by
Edwin Chapman, ALC Publishing (2004).

Acquired Rica'tte Kanji!? (roughly translated as "Like, Rica!?" - thanks, Erica!), a 96 page translated manga at the 2005 Yuri Revolution event in Tokyo and though it's hardly a new work, I do think it is a good introductory manga to yuri stories about mature lesbians. Short summary. The main character, also named Rica Takashima, meets Miho in a Shinjuku Nichome bar. Hilarity, fun and love ensues.

Art. At first impression, the drawing style looked simple. Upon further examination, there was actually plenty of little details built in which made the characters and their surroundings quite distinct, giving them plenty of substance and yet still looking quite clean and uncluttered.

I thought it was a good decision to retain the Japanese format whereby pages turn from left to right as the story progresses and the (English-style) back cover is actually the front cover. This avoided having to mirror the storyboards inside. This change is a subtle one but the difference was really brought home to me when I compared the Dark Horse and Kodansha editions of Ghost in the Shell. With left and right inverted, the balance of each panel composition was really affected. I do think that publishing companies should have more confidence in non-Japanese readers and retain the Japanese format to preserve the original intent and artwork of the mangaka.

Translation. Reading the English text felt effortless and seamless, a really positive testimony to how well Rica and Erica worked together on this. I also liked how Japanese characters were retained for sound effects since translation of those tends to be unavoidably unwieldy (e.g. "gan!" as "horrible revelation!") though I am sure not everyone shares this view.

Story. Erica Friedman has often bemoaned the lack of yuri anime and manga by adult women and adult lesbians and I would think that this manga gives a perfect feel of what she would like to see more of. While yuri in terms of fan service (Ikkitousen, KannaMiko etc.) and recurrent jokes (Kaorin in Azumanga) are well established, I do believe that the market for well-crafted stories about mature adults in a yuri relationship can be tapped. This manga transcends the high school first lesbian kiss stereotype with characters who are not angsty or uncertain about their sexuality and go about leading their lives much like the rest of us. Too often, "adult" or "mature" is taken only to mean "sex" or "porn". Rica'tte Kanji!? helps to redress this imbalance.

The juxataposition of Rica and Miho with their contrasting status as newbie and veteran love-hunter introduces the reader to the wider dynamics of Nichome. This acts as the context and supporting cast for the development for their relationship which goes through the trials and tribulations of first impressions, competition from romantic rivals, (relatively minor) personal crises, some exploration of personal histories and break throughs in levels of mutual understanding. Everything remains quite chaste which quite nicely suits how the relatively pure Rica is controlling the pace of the relationship.

In conclusion, a genuine pleasure to read. The characters are likeable and believable, the story moves at a gentle but steady pace. I certainly would love to see how Rica and Miho's relationship develops from here and look forward to future works by Rica Takashima. (Rica 'tte Kanji is available via ALC Publishing's online shop for USD 15. Currently some damaged copies with the wrong ISBN number are available at 50% discount.)