Well, didn’t think a meme would be apt for this moment but I really feel that it has been a journey from this blog to this moment.
(more…)Category: Features
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Spotlight: Kumota Haruko
Mii and Kei from Itoshi no Nekokke Here’s the fondest memory I have of Kumota Haruko.I was running around Osaka station, trying to get my google maps to work just to find the exit to Denden town. I had a Shinkansen to catch. I was hungry. I was lugging my luggage around because lockers were unavailable. At this point, I’m running on adrenaline as I found my way out of the stations, rushed towards Animate, and finally found the limited release of Itoshi no Nekokke vol. 3 that came with a tote bag. After a 5 minute run to animate, I headed back to the station and took my scheduled Shinkansen, out of breath and giggling in my seat as I leisurely read Mii and Kei flirting in their home.At that point, I realised that I was willing to do everything to read Haruko Kumota’s work. -
On the Bitches of Boys Love: the pornographic response of Japan’s rotten women
I’m pleased to share my article that looks into how BL’s getting nastier by the minute!I find it so surreal to write this so casually given the tone of what I’ve been writing for the past few years. I have disappeared from this site as I prioritised my academic work and now I’m happy to share a result of that work!This article was born from reading all the naughty BL that’s been released in the last decade. Harada. Ogeretsu Tanaka. Yamane Ayano. You know, the nasty titles that are not classified as shonen’ai in foreign sites and are often categorised as yaoi for their “sexually explicit” content. In Japan, it has been referred to as Hard BL, but in recent years these titles have been described as eroBL. I examine the nuances of this term and the characteristics that make these eroBL titles as pornographic among BL readers. Much like the BL pundits I mentioned in this article, this research was born from my own curiosity over what makes a “sexually explicit” BL work and how that even happened.There’s a lot of history that I glossed over for the purposes of the article. I’ll probably write about that on this blog if time permits.Nonetheless, here’s my published article for everyone to read! It’s free for the first 50 downloads and if it runs out, don’t hesitate to contact me. ^_~)This was a fun research to do and I’m so happy to the editors of this special issue for their support!Cheers and let me know what you think in the comments below or on twitter! -
The polarised “dangerous” boys love manga of 2018
2017 came like a hurricane and I have not left. Just when I thought I’d have a little break to write something for this blog, I’m swept away by strong currents of school work, papers, and other things. I’ve been working hard to find time to settle and for some magical reason, after sleepless nights pouring through papers, I found myself some free time to write. Because you know what, I HAVE BEEN DYING TO WRITE ABOUT THE CRITICALLY-ACCLAIMED AND AWARD-WINNING BL LISTS OF KONO BL GA YABAI AND CHIL-CHIL!
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The 2017 Dangerous Boys Love (BL) Manga
2016 was quite surreal as seemingly impossible things just got real. From the deaths of our cultural heroes to the figure skating anime we never realised we actually needed, 2016 was exceptionally cray. 2016’s BL titles were no exception.The 2017 list of BL’s “dangerous” titles, as selected by Japanese BL readers and critics for Kono BL ga Yabai, represents an audience’s thirst for something different, exciting, if not, a bit “dangerous.” This is more apparent in 2017 than in previous years as readers and critics chose stories that were definitely “yabai”. -
My favourite manga reads in 2016
2016. What a year.
It’s been a tough year for many of us and personally, it was a challenging one. I was so busy with the last stretch of my dissertation that I hardly read any manga at all! When things finally slowed down in December, I started thinking of the titles I should put on this list and honestly, I hardly remembered five titles! I know I enjoyed a couple of reads, but I can’t even remember why I enjoyed them! Isn’t that sad!?! My head was totally out of it that I spent the last week recalling all the good things I read. Thankfully, there were a few that reminded me of good things about 2016. Just like before, these are titles that I have read in the last year and are not necessarily published that same year.
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The BL Manga Starter Kit
I’d like to think of this BL Starter Kit as Pandora’s Box. When Airin raised the idea to me, I was obscenely curious over what she had to say. In fact, I’ve been very curious what titles people suggested because getting someone started on BL is like opening Pandora’s Box. The entire world thinks that it has nothing but evil — homosexuality, misrepresentation of homosexuality/masculinity, sexual aggression, yaoi hands, etc. Before you even grab your first BL book, people would have told you 9000 reasons why it suck and why you should not read it. It’s reached a point where any person who likes BL will openly tell you “Yeah, it’s TRASH,” as if acknowledging that nothing good comes out of it. And yet, a recent book about BL has earned an Eisner nomination. Amazing artists such as Yoshinaga Fumi and Shimura Takako started their careers as BL writers. And then the people who considered BL also trash also openly admitted that they genuinely love the genre. Doesn’t that make you want to open this Pandora’s Box?
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2016 BL Webcomic Rec List
Whether it’s raining or I’m burning under the summer sun, I will not miss out on this year’s rec list!
The contributions this year are amazing and diverse. I took out some recs because they’re quite young narratives which still needs some time to brew. For most, well, I did my best to list them down below.
If you’re looking for a steamy summer read, then you can get started with these BL webcomics!
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The dangerous Boys Love (BL) manga of 2016
Another year. Another set of dangerous BL. WHERE DID THE YEAR GO!?!
I started the year writing about Kono BL ga Yabai and here I am writing about it again!?! And I hardly reviewed any awesome BL this year since I’ve been busy writing other things. OTL. But I did manage to find time to read a handful of new BL titles this year. Sort of. I’m quite sure I’ve read a couple but it’s quite sad that I really remember so few. That said, the number 1 title in Kono BL ga Yabai 2016 is definitely no surprise although it’s one that truly deserves the term dangerous. Here’s this year’s list of Kono BL ga Yabai and Chichil’s Best BL.
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10 awesomesauce manga from 2015
The book pile that keeps on growing. OTL. 2015 came and went so fast and I feel like I haven’t read enough manga. OTL. More like, I feel like I haven’t written much about the manga I read in the last year. I remember making a call for more josei this year but I ended up reading so much shonen (and dojinshi) for my thesis. OTL. However, I did have a few favourite reads and as I jotted them down, I realised they were mostly by female authors! Yay! I guess I did josei up this year, after all! Well, technically, they’re not titles in josei magazines but I guess I’m quite happy reading a diverse set of reads from female authors (and 2 dudes with awesome titles). I guess having online readers such as Line Manga and Comic Fleur helped. I started reading a lot of these titles because they were initially available for free online. But I really should be reading the physical manga I’ve bought but hahaha. OTL.
Again, just like every year, these titles are not necessarily published on 2015 but ones that I’ve read in 2015. So, here’s my favorite reads from last year!
