Review in Brief: Shoko Hidaka's Geliebter Freund

This is not really a review -- Geliebter Freund is just my latest translation project, a typical school-boy romance, childhood friends reunited variety. It seems to bear out my reaction to my only previous experience with Hidaka -- her stories are low-key and fairly uneventful, with a lot of psychological introspection. I'm having trouble getting into this one, but I'm not sure if it's the story or the circumstances -- I was doing these as fill-in for slow periods at work, and the powers that be decided I wasn't busy enough, so progress has been kind of patchy. I think, though, that the story itself doesn't have that much grab-power -- it's been kind of hard to get into.

One thing that attracted me to this one is that I like Hidaka's drawing style. It's a nice, clean, open style that I find appealing. One thing I noticed is that she is of those mangaka who renders faces in a sort of non-racial manner -- her characters could be Asian or Western. The reason this comes to mind is that I ran across a post at another blog way back when that asked the question "Do Japanese see manga characters as Japanese?" The question left me sort of wondering "WTF?" and as I remember the essay, it made a big deal out of the way characters in manga are designed. (I'm talking about those manga that fall within what I call a "comic realism" or bishounen style, as opposed to those that tend toward chibi renderings or highly abstracted character designs -- most BL manga as opposed to something like Sgt. Frog. Since that time my experience with manga and anime has expanded just a bit, and looking at that question now, it's pretty much moot -- even within one manga or anime, you can find characters who fit comfortably into either an Asian or European "type," if you care to classify them that way. I don't. (Just watching Samurai 7 -- again -- and noticed that there are a number of characters who come close to being caricatures of the Western conception of "Asian" -- of course, there are a number of characters who are caricatures anyway.) Frankly, it's a question that would never occur to me, since it completely avoids the reality of the thing, and takes no account of the history of manga and the influences on it.

By way of a footnote, I was fairly recently directed to an essay entitled "The Invisible Knapsack" as a means of educating me in the error of my attitudes about race. (Which, as it happens, are pretty much nonexistent -- I was raised to view people as people, not as stereotypes. It stuck.) Unfortunately, while a brilliant example of liberal guilt, the writer's experiences did not match my own in any way. Nor did her assumptions. Sadly, the person who directed me did not want to hear anything about the reality of differences in human experiences -- apparently, if I'm white, I must fit into a certain set of parameters that describe my life experience and my attitudes in a way that she finds acceptable. Thus, my last run-in with the PC left. I removed that blog from my bookmarks. They have nothing to offer me.

(And before anyone lands on me, I'm fully aware of the institutionalized racism in this country, hate the idea of it, and won't tolerate it in any realm where I have the power to do anything. That's not what this is about. This is about dealing with people as people.)

Reviews in Brief: Another Look at Kimi Shiruya?

I recently picked up Satoru Ishihara's Kimi Shiruya -- Dost Thou Know? again after quite some time. Looking back, I realize that I've written quite a bit about this book (not only a Review in Brief, but another extended essay, and a a Friday Gay Blogging commentary, not to mention a review at GMR that has since been moved to Sleeping Hedgehog.

So what can I find to say that's new? Not much, really, but I was struck by how fundamental the use of metaphor is in this book. It starts almost from the beginning, around page eight or ten, when Masaomi compares Tsurugi to a sword, and later to a spring gale. Ishihara continues, piling metaphor on metaphor around the central one: the romance as a duel.

Speaking of gales, it's worth nothing the title of the first chapter, "The Wind Cometh." A wind, in Japanese culture, as far as I've been able to tell, marks a change. We have a similar image, "A change in the wind," but to the Japanese, as nearly as I've been able to puzzle out, the mere fact of the wind in itself is sufficient. (Note that in Makoto Tateno's Ka Shin Fu, the wind is a central image, as well.)

Ishihara noted that it took her three years and a range of drawing styles to complete Kimi Shiruya?, and one can see the change in the art, but it really is a progression, from a rather rough, strongly graphic style to a much more elegant and subtle presentation. The spread below is one of my favorites in the book, since it demonstrates the development of Ishihara's drawing style and points up the role of metaphor in the story: Masaomi is allowing his relationship with Tsurugi to develop -- to "ripen in its own time."

It says something, I think, that I can come back to what is, after all, a romance in comic-book form two years later -- and one directed toward teen-age girls -- and still find it not only appealing, but terrifically sophisticated, especially since I've gained so much more experience with the medium in that time. I guess that means I should continue to trust my instincts.

Reviews in Brief: Masara Minase's Der bittere Kuss der Lüge

Now that I've finished volume 8 of When a Man Loves a Man (and if volume 9 ever comes down to a reasonable price, I'll go back and finish the series), I've gone on to a BL manga by an artist new to me, Masara Minase. If Der bittere Kuss der Lüge is any example of her work, I'll really be looking forward to the next one on the stack, a two-volume series.

Tatsuya Soga is trying to find a long-lost half-brother, and his investigation is about to bear fruit. While out one night at one of his favored establishments, his eye is caught by a young waiter who also plays the piano, and quite beautifully. It brings back memories of his little brother, Haruka, and his toy piano. Tatsuya strikes up a conversation with the young man, Haru Igarashi, and eventually takes him home. After some initial misgivings, Haru realizes that he's in love with Tatsuya, who is more than willing to return the favor: Tatsuya is smitten. Enough that he insists that Haru move into his apartment.

And then he discovers that Haru is the long-lost Haruka.

This is another "brothers who fall in love" story, similar to Yugi Yamada's Open the Door to Your Heart, this time through a agency of a somewhat fickle mother: while Tatsuya was the product of his father's first marriage, he's convinced that Haru is his half-brother by his father's second wife.

The story is knotty enough, and carries enough tension, to keep the reader engaged. Tatsuya's reaction to finding out who Haru really is, and the involvement of another of Haru's "altere Brüder" only serve to complicate an already complicated situation. (Did I mention that Haru is underage?) Minase's drawing is appealing, somewhat reminiscent of Kae Maruya (who also seems to be quite popular in Germany) -- clear and open, and subtly expressive. Layouts are fluid enough to be interesting.

The German seems somewhat simpler than WaMLaM, or else I've improved more than I thought. I'm not quite done with the actual translation/adaptation, but I cheated -- I read ahead to the happy ending.

This one's from Carlsen.

Reviews in Brief: Toko Kawai's Café Latte Rhapsody

Café Latte Rhapsody, created by Toko Kawai, is a charming bit of fluff that I ran across in my Amazon Recommendations. The reviews made it sound appealing, and I found it in the Marketplace for next to nothing.

Hajime Serizawa is short, freckled, and works in a bookstore. He notices Keito Tsudo McCloud, who is very tall and looks pretty scary -- at first. Seri-kun soon realizes, however, that Keito is shy, awkward, and sweet, as well as being more than a little exotic: aside from being phenomenally tall, he has hazel eyes and dark auburn hair. It turns out he is part Japanese, part French-Canadian, part French, and part Chinese. Serizawa is strongly attracted, but it's Keito who confesses first.

There's not a lot of tension in this story, which for some reason didn't really bother me that much, even though I tend to prefer stories with a lot of undercurrents. The conflicts are minor, and largely centered on the respective insecurities of the two young men: Serizawa doesn't think he's very attractive, and Keito has trouble communicating -- Japanese is not his first language. The characters have a bit more depth than one might expect, and Kawai has been somewhat circumspect in revealing them -- there's enough subtlety in the writing that the reader does have something to do.

The drawing has a lot of charm, and I didn't even mind the many chibi frames, perhaps because they're not limited to broad comedic reactions, but also include moments of what I can only describe as "quiet comfort" -- those moments when the boys are just being happy together.

All in all, it's a feel-good story, very good for an hour or so when you don't want to tax your brain but want something light to fill the time.

From Juné.

Reviews in Brief: Souya Himawari's Right Here, Right Now

Souya Himawari's Right Here, Right Now is the beginning of another one of those series that looks as though it's going to develop nicely, but it's too soon to tell for sure.

Mizuo Yanase is your typical high-school boy, although rather small, and not real interested in going to his tea ceremony lessons. One of his favorite hideouts is an abandoned temple. He stops by one day after not having been there for a while and parks himself on the site of the vanished altar, where the Buddha statue used to sit. He suddenly hears chanting and finds himself in the temple five hundred years ago, surrounded by monks, who immediately take him for an avatar of the Buddha. It's not long before he comes to the attention of sixteen-year-old Takakage Fujima, the heir of the Fujima lands, presently locked in a struggle for survival against the neighboring Kitagawa clan. Takakage is happy to carry the living Buddha into battle as an encouragement to his men. Takakage also has a more immediate interest in Mizuo.

I was a little disappointed in this one. Himawari's given it a light-hearted treatment, which tends to undercut the dramatic scenes substantially. Sadly, there is potential for strong dramatic conflict that's not developed -- at least, not yet: the situation, which includes a couple of trips for Mizuo back and forth through time, could develop some nice twists.

The drawing reflects this: it's pleasant enough, all the characters are appealing, but no more than that. Even though Takakage ages six years in the course of the story, he doesn't really look all that more mature, and certainly not hard-bitten enough to have earned the sobriqet "Demon." The visual narrative is sort of shoujo standard, loose but not particularly adventurous.

I may follow up on volume two, but given the lightness of this first part, it's not going to be high on my list.

From Juné.

Reviews in Brief: Hori Tomoki's Crimson Snow

I meant to post this yesterday and forgot. Sorry.

Crimson Snow is another collection that caught my attention after a notice at Yaoi Rose (now alas, defunct -- Rose, like so many of us, has discovered that the demands far outstrip the time available to meet them). It's sort of a mixed bag.

The title series, "Crimson Snow" parts I-III, involves a wounded yakuza, Kazuma, rescued and nursed back to health by the illegitimate son of a tea ceremony master, Yukihiro. They fall in love, but Kazuma decides he must pay his debt for killing a man. The final story, "Garance," portrays their reunion years later.

"At First Sight" is a school-boy romance, lamentably brief, as Liam Blake discovers that the boy he's been watching, Maddox Suns, has also been watching him.

In "Cry for the Sun," Ethan sees a face he almost remembers at his father's funeral, and starts wracking his brain trying to unearth the memories. He finally remembers his father's former lover, Oliver, and then realizes the feelings that were buried with the memories.

Tomoki's drawing is appealing, although her uke tend to look very young. Her style is very open and clear, and although there's nothing really radical about the page layouts, they are loose enough to be interesting.

The stories, alas, need much more development, particularly the title series, which could easily make a full-length manga itself. There's a lack of tension throughout that is, I think, the result of the surface treatment, although it's easy to see the potential in these stories, although "At First Sight" seems like a filler.

From BLU. (Also, sadly, now defunct in North America -- Tokyopop has closed its Los Angeles office, which was the center of its efforts here, and the licensing is apparently up for grabs, which tends to happen in the industry.)

The News Is What It Always Is

which makes me think I should just stop writing about politics. We'll see.

I reread No Touching at All today as my refuge from everything else I have to do. It's really an amazing little gem: funny, touching, sweet, romantic, edgy and altogether wonderful. It's one of those books that gets richer as you go back into it -- there's much more to it than I realized in the Review in Brief.

And that's all, folks!

Reviews in Brief: Yuki Shimizu's Ze, Vols, 1-6

I've caught up on Yuki Shimizu's Ze -- volume 6 is out in English, out of eleven volumes total, so there's a lot to look forward to -- and I don't seem to have reviewed it here. That's certainly an oversight.

The basic situation is as follows: Raizou Shichikawa, having lost everything -- his grandmother, his home, even most of his clothes -- lands a position as housekeeper to the somewhat eccentric Mitou family, or at least part of it. This part of the family, composed of Kotoha Mitou, Ouka Mitou, Benio, Konoe and Kon, lives in a mansion that is actually owned by Waki Yoshiwara. It doesn't take long for Raizou to discover the family's secret: Kotoha and Ouka are kotodamishi, sorcerers who use the power of words. Konoe and Benio are their respective kami-sama, dolls given life by Waki, the dollmaker, who heal their masters (kotodamishi has some heavy-duty blowback) and protect them from the worst effects of kotodama. Kon is a kami without a master; Raizou promptly falls in love with him and claims him for his own. (And note that kotodamishi and their kami-sama must be of the same sex, for some reason.)

Volumes 1 and 2 focus on Raizou and Kon, with an added appearance by Asari (who actually appears almost throughout the story line) and Shoui Mitou, his kotodama and the actual head of the family. Volumes 3 and 4 focus on Genma Yashiro, who took his mother's name when his father, Seima Mitou, kicked them out, and Himi, first his father's kami and now his. Volumes 5 and 6 follow the story of Ryuusei Kitamura, a bastard child of the family, and Moriya, who is determined to become Ryuusei's kami -- he does not want to return to hakushi, blank paper -- that is, to die. There are side stories periodically that focus on particular pairs, and each adds another dimension to those characters.

That's one of the chief attractions of this series: as it progresses, the characterizations become more complex, situations become less straightforward, and relationships become more nuanced. And somehow, the drawing, which is very appealing to start with, becomes clearer and stronger.

It's definitely a series to follow, and I can't believe I haven't highlighted it here yet.

It's from 801 Media.

Reviews in Brief: Youka Nitta's When a Man Loves a Man, Vols. 1-6 (German Edition)

A bit of an update. I posted briefly about this series when I first started it, and it's been an adventure. The upside is that my German is coming back to me, although I've discovered that if I don't do a little bit every day, I lose vocabulary. But it's a long series -- nine volumes total, of which I now have eight and have managed to translate six.

The story in brief is the doings of four hosts who work in two different host clubs (sort of the male equivalent of geishas). Kyosuke Iwaki leaves early on to start his own club, the Rusty Nail, leaving Ryo Takaaki (whose real name is Yoji Kato) as the head host of Schnapps. The meet again, and Iwaki, as it turns out, is in love with Ryo. Things are complicated by another host at Schnapps, Takaaki Shinkawa, who is also in love with Ryo. Rejected, he leaves Schnapps to go work for Iwaki, unaware of the relationship between his new boss and Ryo. Things are complicated further by Kenzaki, who professes not to like men, but who falls in love with Shinkawa.

It turns into a character study of Ryo, who is certainly the main character through all of this, with flashbacks to his arrival in Tokyo and his mentoring by Iwaki. (Ryo's mother was a hostess in Tokyo before she moved back to her home town and opened her own club, so the milieu is a natural fit for Ryo.) It's also a fairly complex series -- almost a soap opera -- with subseries detailing the various encounters among the four men. Through it all, Ryo remains somewhat remote and uninvolved, although there are a couple of scenes in which he opens up a bit. Iwaki is similarly dispassionate, although we come to realize that he's only playing his cards close to his chest -- he understands Ryo better than anyone else and has a good sense of what's needed to win him. Shinkawa is impatient and ultimately drives Ryo away from Tokyo and back to the country, where a conversation with his mother forces Ryo to confront himself. At the end of volume 6 he returns to Tokyo, and to Iwaki -- but there's no guarantee that's going to last, particularly since Ryo is firmly convinced that relationships between men are necessarily ephemeral.

Nitta has a tendency toward melodrama, which sometimes jars, although in the case of Shinkawa, it's perfectly apt -- sometimes you want to shake him and ask him what the hell he's thinking of. On the whole, the story is complex enough and moves well enough to keep us interested. Interestingly, unlike some later efforts, there's not much in the way of sex through most of the series -- it's much more about the emotional context.

The drawing, although early Nitta (as it happens, this is her first BL series), has all the hallmarks of her style: firm, clear lines and a sense of openness in the frames. Layouts are coherent, not particularly adventurous, although firmly in the shoujo canon. And after six volumes, I'm able to discern the subtle differences in features that distinguish the characters. (It's also interesting to note Nitta's tendency to re-use character names. If Iwaki and Kato sound familiar, that's because they are the protagonists in Embracing Love: Cherished Spring -- also known as Haru wo. . . .)

It's turning out to be a good one, and I was right on one thing: it's turned out to be the ideal way to relearn German.

From Carlsen Manga.

Reviews in Brief: Hayate Kuku's Your Love Sickness

Your Love Sickness is a BL story collection that features some outre characters and appealing drawing. I picked it up at a store closing sale at Borders -- it turned out to be a bargain.

The title story features two fox spirits, A'ura and Unka. Unka is a low-caste red fox, while A'ura comes from the highest family of the white foxes. Unka, although he loves A'ura, is hesitant because of their difference in status; A'ura doesn't care.

In "Disappearing Into the Dew," Yoshiro is out on the mountain when heavy fog rolls in. Looking for a stream to guide him back to the foot of the mountain, he happens instead on a pond and a rain god, Kugira, who decided to go fishing. Kugira thinks Yoshiro is very cute.

Rick, the central character of "Cheeping," is a superstar model who's gotten into the habit of stopping by Oshi's bento shop for dinner every night -- he loves the, um, food, he says. Then he breaks his leg and his manager arranges for Oshi to deliver his supper. Oshi's rather cool, and Rick is really shy, but thanks to a rain storm, they get it sorted out.

"Cross My Heart" is about a promise Kaoru's friend Mickey made when they were children: Kaoru's family moved, but Mickey promised to protect their neighborhood. Now Kaoru's a police detective and Mickey's the heir to a yakuza gang -- but he has taken care of the neighborhood.

These are solid stories, and my only problems are that the title series could be a little more smoothly integrated -- it's a bit choppy -- and I think they would all benefit by more development. They might even be enough for full books by themselves.

The drawing is very appealing. Kuku has managed to catch a hint of wildness in these men, not only the gods but the humans as well. They're not only handsome but very sexy. (Oshi, I think, gets the total fox award, but it's a hard call.) Layouts are quite nice, smooth but flexible and very clear.

From Juné.

Reviews in Brief: Seven Days: Monday-Thursday

Seven Days: Monday-Thursday, a story by Venio Tachibana illustrated by Rhito Takarai, is another one I got based on a recommendation by Yaoi Rose. She has good instincts.

Touji Seryou will go out with anyone who asks him on a Monday -- but he always breaks up with them on Sunday. This Monday, Yuzuru Shino runs into Seryou and, on a whim, asks him to go out with him -- Seryou is the prettiest boy in school. Seryou, as always, agrees -- even though he's only dated girls so far. Inevitably, things get more serious than either boy had counted on.

This one's a stand-out. Even though we can predict with a fair amount of certainty what's going to happen -- it's BL manga, after all -- the interplay between the two and the reverberations of Seryou's past liaisons together provide a nice tension in the story that carries us along. Shino has his own hesitations, but finds himself flying into a fit of jealousy over one of Seryou's past girlfriends.

The drawing is completely charming. The characters are adorable, and Seryou especially is appealingly gawky. Layouts are relatively sedate, but the flow is good and clear.

This is volume 1. I can hardly wait for Friday through Sunday.

From Juné.

Reviews in Brief: Yugi Yamada's No One Loves Me

I've been on a Yugi Yamada streak the past few days -- now that volume 2 of Close the Last Door! is out, I've gotten Open the Door to Your Heart and this one, No One Loves Me. Yamada seems to have a particular fondness for quirky characters.

Katsuhiro is pretty much a recluse. He owns a used bookstore and tends not to leave. Masafumi is a salesman for a small publisher who gets assigned to edit a book by a Cezch author, to capitalize on a film being adapted from the book. After a vain search for a translator, he finally finds Katsuhiro, who studied for several years in the Czech Republic. The chemistry is potent, even given Katsuhiro's abrupt manner and withdrawn personality. Things are complicated by the arrival of Tetsushi Hasegawa, from another publishing house, who happens to have been Katsuhiro's roommate in the Czech Republic. And then a mysterious stranger appears, looking for a particular book. Katsuhiro offers to order it for him, but the man keeps coming back, particularly when Tetsushi is hanging around.

This is a complicated narrative that takes place over a series of interlocked stories centering on, first, Katsuhiro and Masafumi, and then on Tetsushi and the stranger. It's a couple of oddball romances in which what is not said is at least as important as what is. And it's a long book -- over 300 pages. There's a lot going on, not the least of which is the way that everyone winds up "helping out" at Katsuhiro's store.

Yamada's drawing is in great form on this one, confident and clear. She's managed to avoid making any of the uke look girly, the men are all very appealing -- Masafumi gets the fox prize in this one -- and the visual flow is fluid, intuitive and clear.

I can't think why it took me so long to start investigating Yamada, but I guess it's a matter of so many books, so little time. Expect more from me on Yamada.

This one's from Juné.

Reviews in Brief: Kou Yoneda's No Touching At All

I ran across Kou Yoneda's No Touching At All at YaoiRose, a BL-oriented blog that has proven to be a good place to find out what's new and whether it's worth it. Rose liked it, but her review, I think, didn't really do this one justice. (In her defense, her reviews are brief and to the point -- shorter even than these Reviews in Brief.)

Shima, on his first day at his new job, shares the elevator with a man who's desperately hung over and otherwise sort of rough around the edges. Togawa, of course, is his new boss. Their affair is one of the knottiest and most engaging I've run across in BL manga.

I get the impression that this one was very carefully thought out -- it's amazingly well constructed, fairly elliptical, with a lot going on under the surface. Yoneda does an excellent job of playing off assumptions against reality, on both sides colored by the men's own histories. It takes a major crisis for these guys to finally admit their feelings for each other, and yet it all makes perfect sense in the context of the characters and the story.

The drawing is free, confident, and very expressive. The character designs remind me somewhat of Yukimura's rendering of Nao in Love Song for the Miserable -- there's that same kind of openness to the faces. (And Yoneda manages to get character into her renderings as well.) This is one where the cover art is a good reflection of the interior. There's a lot of subtlety in the use of shading and tone that takes the drawing up a level, and the layouts, while fluid and intuitive, add another dimension to the narrative.

I'm busily trying to find more by Yoneda -- this one really impressed me in the best possible way.

From June.

Reviews in Brief: Rakun's U Don't Know Me

Rakun's U Don't Know Me is a Korean BL man hwa, about two childhood friends, Seyun and Yoojin, who are separated when Seyun's family moves away but reunite years later in high school. And as it turns out, in spite of their closeness as children, they don't know each other very well at all.

Although it doesn't come through with absolute clarity, this is another character-driven story, with conflicts seated in assumptions on either side that turn out to be unjustified. It's also a little bit on the seamy side -- Seyun's acquaintances are not all upstanding citizens, although Yoojin seems to be pretty much squeaky clean -- star athlete, excellent student, good relationship with his parents. (Seyun's parents are not always the most understanding.) Seyun is deceptive -- he seems very frail but is anything but.

It's the parents who offer another one of the surprises in this story, particularly Yoojin's, who discover the nature of the boys' friendship when it's progressed somewhat beyond mere cameraderie.

There's very little comedy in this one, and what there is is pretty understated, although there are a series of vignettes at the end that give us some real -- well, "comedy" is perhaps too strong: call it "humor" of a mordant sort.

The drawing is very clean,, and there's a good clear flow to the graphics, and although the layouts are not too adventurous, they have their moments. Character designs are, of course, appealing, although not as expressive as they could be.

It's from NetComics, a new one for me, but a publisher who looks interesting.

Reviews in Brief: Kairi Shimotsuki's Madness

Madness is a two-volume BL manga that brings together more or less equal parts post-Apocalyptic adventure, psychological thriller, romance, and weird.

It's far in the future, and the world is recovering from a series of massive earthquakes that destroyed civilization -- or most of it. One effect of the collapse has been the rise of a group of wanton killers, the gang "Madness," who knew no limits on their savagery. But they've been missing for a while, disbanded -- their leader, Kyo, was killed.

In the Church of Saint Shuhamiel, there is a prisoner, a young man who has lost his memories, tended to by the gentle young priest, Izaya. The prisoner was jailed by Iazaya's father as a criminal; he also possessed a sword, named "Siegfried," itself a fearsome weapon. The prisoner is Kyo, and one day another member of Madness, Sae, arrives -- he wants the sword. After things have sorted themselves out, Kyo, Sae and Izaya flee to another city -- but it seems someone is on their tails, assassins intent on obliterating all trace of Madness.

The story is more than a little rough around the edges, a quality unfortunately reinforced by the graphic work, which, will arresting and sometimes quite beautiful, is as often as not unreadable. It's not until the second volume that we have any idea what's really going on, and the whole thing turns out to hinge on a somewhat trite science-fiction device. It really takes two or three readings to get a clear idea of the story line.

The cast of characters, however, is engaging, if somewhat weird, and the drawing makes it clear who is who, although they are all quite lovely.

I'm not sure how I feel about this one -- it's not horrible, but it could be much better with a little more clarity in story line and graphics.

It's from BLU.

Reviews in Brief: Makoto Tateno's A Bloody Kiss Tonight

Makoto Tateno has entered the BL vampire subgenre with A Bloody Kiss Tonight, a set of interrelated stories about young men and the vampires who love them.

The core is the tale of Riku, a junior in high school, and Keito, who orders a dozen roses from the flower shop where Riku works part-time, with the stipulation that Riku deliver them. But it seems that Riku is the reincarnation of the man that Keito has loved for centuries.

Keito shares his house with two friends, Natsui and Saisei, each of whom has his own story: Saisei finds a young man he can't control, and so, of course, is captivated. Natsuhi runs across a boy on the street, obviously ill, and senses bad blood. Quite in spite of himself, Natsuhi sucks out the bad blood -- and then goes on his way.

The stories are kind of thin, to be quite honest about it -- in fact, "The Scent of Lilies," which finishes the collection, is barely more than an anecdote. One thing that I've always liked about Tateno's work is her careful delineation of character, and it just doesn't come through here -- "A Bloody Kiss Tonight II," Saisei's story, is the best in this regard, and still a little flat. I just didn't believe a lot of what was going on, and she's always been good with clear motivations. Not so much here.

The drawing is Tateno through and through -- not so prettified as Yokan: Premonition, but not quite up to the standard of Yellow or others of her earlier series. (This one was originally published in 2009.)

So, it's sort of mid-range -- not her best, but not her worst, either.

From DokiDoki.

Reviews in Brief: Ellie Mamahara and Takana Mizuhashi, Double Cast

Another new title from Ellie Mamahara, based on an original story by Takana Mizuhashi.  It's a little odd for Mamahara, but worth a look.

Yuki Yamamuro is an actor -- in fact, he's a very popular TV star who presently is working in a stage production, a modern-day version of Goethe's Faust.  He's double-cast in the role of Mephistopheles, alternating performances with a rising young star, Mitsuru Sawaki.  His producer, mentor, and sometime lover, Ryousuke Otaki, wants both of them for a 50th anniversary production for his TV network.  Yuki, knowing how Otaki works, decides to make a pre-emptive strike and attempts to seduce Mitsuru.  Things don't turn out quite the way Yuki planned.

Double Cast is not the usual comedy of errors that we've come to expect from Mamahara, but Mizuhashi's story has more going for it than I had thought at first.  It's a fairly serious story, more drama than comedy -- in fact, there's almost no comedy at all -- and quirkier psychology.  Otaki knows that Yuki needs constant reassurance and has provided it for ten years.  Now it's time for Yuki to stand on his own two feet.  Strangely enough, it's Mitsuru who gives him the direction he needs.

Mamahara's drawing is gorgeous.  I've always been fond of her character designs -- those tall, angular guys with huge hands and feet -- but everything's up a notch or two in this one.  It's a recent work, originally published in 2007, and the style and layouts are that much more sophisticated than in the past.

Don't let your expectations get in the way of this one -- it's got some meat and deserves a careful reading.

From DokiDoki. (Note: The English-language edition is so recent that I had to use the Japanese cover. It's the same art, just the language is different.)

Reviews in Brief: Ayano Yamane's Finder, Vol. 1: Target in the Viewfinder

Ayano Yamane was one of my early favorites among mangaka doing yaoi, and Finder is one of her best-known series. Volume 1 has come out in a new edition, so I thought it was worth a try.

This volume is a story collection, with the Finder series forming the core. The title story, the following entry, "Fixer," and the final story, "In the Heat of the Night," all center on a young freelance photographer, Akihito Takabana, who gets his first big scoop -- and manages to run afoul of the crime lord Asami. Takabana is conflicted about the whole thing -- Asami is not the tenderest of lovers, but for some reason, Akihito keeps coming back for more.

The next two stories, "Love Lesson," about a first-year high-schooler who runs afoul of the student council president, and "Plants in Love," about two track stars who discover that their fathers are romantically involved, are pretty much throw-aways. The stories are thin, somewhat contrived, and mostly an excuse for sex scenes.

The remaining story, "Risky Society," about a group of "gifted" young men who work as a special ops force for the government, is somewhat more substantial and deserves to be continued. In fact, I found this one the most appealing story of the group, probably because it's the one with the most "story."

The saving grace here is Yamane's drawing, which is lush, rich, and full-bodied. Almost sounds like a good wine, doesn't it? She does have a definite character "type," although she does show some variation -- once again, mostly apparent in "Risky Society." Layouts are fairly pedestrian, and sex scenes are, as usual, quite explicit.

Yamane can come up with some good, tight, absorbing stories, although this is not a prime example. The "Finder" stories are fairly predictable, and the two "inside" stories are pretty much as I mentioned -- excuses for sex scenes. It will be interesting to see if she manages to salvage "Finder," although in my own opinion, "Risky Society" has a lot more potential.

From Juné.

Reviews in Brief: Ellie Mamahara's Baseball Heaven

Right up front, I love Ellie Mamahara's work. Her stories are absurd and funny enough to carry themselves, and her drawing is immensely appealing. I happened on a copy of Baseball Heaven when I had a discount coupon in my pocket -- 'nuff said?

Chiaki Ogata, shortstop for the Tokyo Elephants baseball team and a strong contender for the batter's trophy, has his nose a little out of joint. The team's new pitcher, Eiji Uno, who will probably make Rookie of the Year, is friendly, outgoing, and easy to get along with -- for everyone but Ogata. Ogata's getting self-conscious about it -- after all, they're teammates and they should try to get along, right? He finally confronts Uno one evening and discovers the horrible truth: Uno's been avoiding him because he's in love with him and is too embarrassed to get close. Ogata is nonplussed and immediately distances himself -- and then realizes that the idea makes him happy.

The comedy here is on the same general order as Alley of First Love, a matter of crossed signals and missed opportunities in a constantly shifting landscape: first Ogata and then Uno will abruptly change his behavior, so everyone's at sea. And there are enough complications to keep things lively.

Mamahara's drawing is wonderful. I've said this before, but think Alberto Giacometti does manga: Mamahara's style incorporates those kinds of elongated figures, in her case angular, almost blocky, with huge hands and feet (and why is that so sexy? I don't know, but it is). It's definitely a cartoony style, but she never falls into chibi frames, which is a blessing: she doesn't need to -- and the drawing still supports the comic aspects, as well as the more serious moments. And there are some frames that are simply beautiful in their own right.

From BLU.

Reviews in Brief: Hinako Takanaga, The Tyrant Falls in Love

I mentioned this one in passing in my survey of the work of Hinako Takanaga, but it does deserve some space of its own.  Originally published in Japan in 2005, it recently made its appearance in English.  I'd venture to guess that Takanaga has caught on in America, since this seems to follow a pattern I've seen with other mangaka:  one or two recent works are licensed for English editions, and then suddenly earlier works start making their appearance.  Since manga publishing seems to be entirely market-driven, I think it's safe to say that Takanaga has a following.

Souichi Tatsumi is a graduate student in agriculture sciences, and vociferously homophobic.  His lab assistant, Tetsuhiro Morinaga, is gay and madly in love with Tatsumi.  Needless to say, the relationship is not all roses, but it's manageable.  That is, until a friend of Morinaga's gives him a bottle of aphrodisiac, which Morinaga stashes under the sink, thinking he'll never use it.  Then Tatsumi gets upset because his little brother is living in San Francisco -- this is just the time that the city started issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.  Tatsumi decides they need to drink, and while Morinaga is out getting more beer, he discovers the hidden aphrodisiac.  Of course, you can guess what happens.

The psychology here is downright weird, although fairly common:  even after sleeping with Morinaga, and realizing he can't do without him, Tatsumi won't admit to any feelings on his part -- except outrage.  It's almost abusive, except that Morinaga is pretty much in control.  At any rate, Takanga plays it for laughs, and the comedy is broad and somewhat raucous.

That quality comes through in the drawing, as well.  It's a very active piece of work visually, and although there are one or two spreads where we start to see Takanaga's ability with design, mostly it's about the action.  Character designs are in line with her other work, very appealing -- these guys are really cute.

This is volume one of a series.  It's not great, but it's not bad, either.  From Juné.