Reading at Dawn - Book Review Blog

Yaoi - manga and anime

Books 25 in http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/p/a-to-z-challenge-sign-uplist-2014.html

Since I write a fair amount of m/m, I have also come to appreciate Yaoi and Shouned-ai manga along with the animated versions. It's a very different form of story telling, the images and text compared to a novel, but I find them enjoyable once I figure out what the heck is going on, lol. But first I must add due to the nature of the images found in Yaoi:


Okay, better. Yes, Yaoi does get graphic and there are pictures. So it pretty much puts the Graphic in Graphic Novels, lol. And to be honest, I sometimes skim over the sexual images because that's not what I'm reading the story for, plus you don't need to stare at it much to know what is going on so they are easy to skim. What I read for is the plot and what puts the boys together. As a writer of boy/boy stories, it's nice to see what is already out there and while there aren't a ton of gay young adult or even adult books (there are some though), a fair amount exists in the world of manga.

It took me a while to get used to reading them. First off, the free manga sites like to slow my computer down. So, that doesn't help, but also... there are lots of pages and when I first tried, I didn't know the read right to left, or the whole how to interpret story through small bits of writing on top of images. But I'm getting better at it.

Then there is the trick. Fan art is fun and can show different series I'd never heard of before. But most of the time, an image of two boys kissing may not actually exist in the manga. Have to figure out if someone is posting an image from the manga, or if they are just doing fan art, as I have been tricked before.

If looking for less graphic, try searching Shounen-ai instead of Yaoi, but I'll be honest, some intermix cause I've seen some graphic content listed under the lighter one that could totally have been called Yaoi.

Also, like some romance (from what I've read on other blogs) at times in Yaoi the question of consent gets a little questionable. I'm not a big fan of force and then the whole "if they like it, it's okay," cause well... No. Don't do that. I'd like to see more where the conflict isn't "OMG how can I do stuff with a guy" and see more that are okay with being gay but other issues arise. Only on occasion does the questionable consent work and some suffering is involved in that, like in Junjou Romantica. But enough of rambles, here are my favorite Yaoi that I've read so far.

Junjou Romantica (both manga and the animated version)
My favorite is the first pairing, the "Junjou Romantica" one. While the other two stories are okay, the confusion and innocence of the main character as he tries to come to terms with his romance with another male was by far the best. It's one of the few times where I don't get too bothered by the consent question, because at the very beginning it's not romance, but near the end, we see him saying he wants to be the guy's special someone. And Usami does struggle later with his actions from the beginning, so that was good to see. However, it does get a little old with him taking control all the time. One of my favorite ones, in the animated version and in the manga, was when Misaki tries to do the moves. He may have no idea what he is doing, but he tries. That was a big moment for him and one of my favorites. Followed close by the conversation in the Ferris wheel.  Such a cute couple. Though I need to finish reading the manga cause I wonder if the brother ever finds out what his little brother and his best friend have been up to all those years... hehe


Monochrome Factor (animated version, haven't read the manga yet)

This one is more obscure. I have a friend who works in the gaming industry and goes to many anime conventions and he'd never heard of it. The Yaoi in the anime version is also minimal. Just kissing so it's far less graphic as it doesn't get sexual, though there is violence because the main character has to fight shadow demons. Though at times I understood Akira's struggles when Shirgone kept professing love for him. He's never sure how he feels and has to deal with that long with demons attacking, being part shadow and not knowing much about his own future. He also has some awesome friends to help along the way as they fight the growing darkness that threatens their world. I've also heard the boy/boy factor was amped up for the animated version, so it may not be the same with the manga. In fact, I wish there was more of the animated show cause I liked Akira. And this is probably the only thing I've ever attempted writing fanfiction for, because I want more story. Should read the manga, I suppose.

Other yaoi manga that I've enjoyed includes:
Gokujou no Koibito
Hey, Class President
Cello Mellow
Love Neko


Special mention for Black Butler and Betrayal Knows My Name, both ones I need to finish that may not quite qualify as yaoi (depending who is doing the defining) but are awesome.

Reviewed by:
Dawn Embers

Lover's Doll - Mishima Kazuhiko

About the story: When Shin hears about a doll known as the "bloody doll" from his friends, he can't help but be curious. Instantly falling in love with the figurine he decides to buy it, but there are rumors about the doll and how it got its name. It can supposedly move and talk and some former owners even claim it drank their blood. Unfazed, Shin buys the doll anyway to find out that the rumors might not be as ridiculous as they sound...

My opinion: Manga story telling is interesting and well, different. And the ones I read are no exception. Most of these on this blog were from searching for shounen-ai, so boys love types. The one here was a bit weird in places. He buys this male doll and it comes to life, which is the basics of how the story line begins.  The characters were fun to read, especially the doll who had quite the personality. And with manga it's amazing what the writer can do with so little to work with and while the images help there is only so much a still frame image can add. So, to have just the story come through the dialogue and words written in the frames can be an astounding feat. I liked this one personally as a cute little boys love story. It's not sexual or graphic, for those interested or not interested in such. Just a fun little story about a boy and a boy doll.



Brave New World - Yamada Nari

About the story: Nikotama Souhei is transferring to a new school and vows to enjoy a new life, living a lifestyle true to himself...or herself, as the case may be. Adopting the name "Sara", Souhei heads to school in a girls' uniform, ready to grab life by the knads and twist. Sara's no pushover: bright, hyper and frequently violent. She's like nothing anyone at the school has ever encountered. Especially her sweet, upstanding classmate Naruse Kaito who finds himself knee-deep in Sara's "Brave New World".

My Opinion: A different story with unique main character. I enjoyed a couple stories about a boy who wanted to dress up as a girl in school, passing as one to those who may not have known before hand. This is one of two in particular and definitely stood out amongst the small crowd of ones I read. Sara is interesting and different for sure. I was thrown off at first because the character doesn't use first person when talking about him/herself. Instead, the character goes "Sarah wants" and such in third person when talking to others. And I'd wondered if it was just from the being in the female identity but nope: there is a part where Sara goes back to dressing as Nikotama for family reasons and also uses third person when talking about himself. So, that was a bit different. But Sara sure has quite the fireball personality. She's going out into the New World of hers and making sure people notice. Overall, a fun little story with some genderbending and light romance.


Sazanami Cherry - Kamiyoshi

About the story: Migiwa Kazuhiro has always been watching Ren, cute, admirable, and his first love. With all his courage, he finally managed to give her a love letter and confessed on a train, only to find that Ren is...!? (Spoiler coming!)

My opinion: This one is like Brave New World, only some difference, in particular the viewpoint because it's from the boy love interest's perspective. The boy gets the courage to approach this girl he has seen on the train and is in love with only to discover the one wearing the skirt he has admired is actually *spoils it* a boy. But he ends up getting to know and spending time with Ren, discovering things he never considered before and even has fun trying on a dress at one point. Also has family issues in the story, and a sister with a secret too. So, fun and tame story also with genderbending but less of a strong personality in this one.



Overall, if you haven't tried reading manga, check a couple out online. There are many different types and for the writers, it's possible to learn from different forms of story telling. Just remember, most read right to left (but a few on occasion read left to right. And have fun.

Have you ever read Manga before?
What are you favorites?