Fujoshi O'Clock (801 Edition)

What time is it? It's . . . Fujoshi O'Clock, the biweekly feature at Nagareboshi Review, when I bring to you the latest fujoshi-related news and reviews and various shiny BL-flavored things. Why? Because rotten girls need love too!

It's 8/01 yet again (here's a reminder of what 801 Day is about), so enjoy a very special edition of FOC! ♥

This week on Fujoshi O'Clock:

• From the last MMF, about Yun Kouga: a Loveless fan writes a letter to Yun Kouga, another blogger discusses Loveless and the modern misappropriation of Moe, and Manga Bookshelf looks at volumes one and two of the Loveless manga.
• SuBlime has licensed three new yaoi series: Sleeping Moon, False Memories, and Hide and Seek, all from authors that should be familiar to BL fans in North America.
• The e-magazine Sparkler Monthly has launched, now with new chapters of fan favorite Off*Beat and other new series. It's part of Chromatic Press, which is rereleasing Off*Beat with plans to finish the series in print.
• As part of 801 Day, Otaku Champloo is hosting a ten day MMF, all about boys' love manga. Along with an introductory post on the MMF, Otaku Champloo has a post explaining what boys' love manga exactly is and two giveaways, found here and here. You can follow the hashtag #801MMF on Twitter for more 801 blog posts.
• Experiments In Manga is also doing a giveaway for the 801 Manga Moveable Feast. Up for the grabbing is Shiuko Kano's manga Affair, and it's open to fujoshi worldwide.
• CM Branford Manga Blog posts about language and yaoi as a contribution to the MMF. Fandom linguistics for the win!

Reviews:

• Rebecca Silverman at ANN reviews volume one of Sleeping Moon by Kano Miyamoto, a supernatural mystery by a prolific manga-ka.
• Manic About Manga reviews Priceless Honey by Shiuko Kano, a mature BL manga that is also a collection of short one-shots.
• Cherry Blossom Reviews reviews the series Punch Up! by Shiuko Kano, which is described as "pornographic and kinky", just so you know!

Am I missing your blog? Got some awesome fujoshi-related news and reviews you think deserve a shout-out? Poke me with a link and a bit of description over at my Twitter: @theseventhl. I'm always on the look out for more BL love!

Fujoshi O'Clock (7/12/13)

What time is it? It's . . . Fujoshi O'Clock, the biweekly feature at Nagareboshi Review, when I bring to you the latest fujoshi-related news and reviews and various shiny BL-flavored things. Why? Because rotten girls need love too!

This week on Fujoshi O'Clock:

• Manga Bookshelf is hosting the latest Manga Moveable Feast, featuring the works of Loveless manga-ka Yun Kouga. The July Feast officially begins in two days.
• AnimeNation: An anime film of the Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi light novel/manga series has recently been announced. The manga had once been licensed by Tokyopop's Blu imprint but was never actually released in English.
• the manga habit shares images of the BL video game No, Thank You!!!, in which there are lots of cute guys including a super handsome oyaji (!!!); there is a link to her Tumblr, where more images are.

Reviews:

• Experiments in Manga reviews volume one of Off*Beat by Jen Lee Quick, an OEL manga that has recently been republished by Chromatic Press.
• Brain Vs. Book reviews Kaze to Ki no Uta volumes 9 & 10 by Keiko Takemiya, a BL-tinged series by the manga-ka behind To Terra and Andromeda Stories.
• Leroy at I Reads You reviews Sleeping Moon volume 1 by Kano Miyamoto; the story is part mystery, part ghost story.

Am I missing your blog? Got some awesome fujoshi-related news and reviews you think deserve a shout-out? Poke me with a link and a bit of description over at my Twitter: @theseventhl. I'm always on the look out for more BL love!

Fujoshi O'Clock (6/28/13)

What time is it? It's . . . Fujoshi O'Clock, the biweekly feature at Nagareboshi Review, when I bring to you the latest fujoshi-related news and reviews and various shiny BL-flavored things. Why? Because rotten girls need love too!

This week on Fujoshi O'Clock:

• The Manga Bookshelf posts their latest BL Bookshelf, including looks at new releases by SuBLime and Digital Manga.
• the manga habit has made additions to the fantasy BL manga list, such as titles by Kuku Hayate, Miyamoto Kano, and Tanaka Suzuki.
• Crunchyroll: Hoshino Lily has shared the twenty-year evolution of her art style. She's best known for her character designs on Mawaru Penguindrum as well as her yaoi/boys' love manga.

Reviews:

• Leroy at I Reads You reviews Blue Morning volume one by Shoko Hidaka, and its angle on romance makes it interesting enough to keep reading.
• Experiments in Manga reviews Manly by Dale Lazarov, an Original English Language manga about very masculine men that borders on bara. Warning: book cover is NSFW.

Am I missing your blog? Got some awesome fujoshi-related news and reviews you think deserve a shout-out? Poke me with a link and a bit of description over at my Twitter: @theseventhl. I'm always on the look out for more BL love!

Fujoshi O'Clock (10/19/12)

What time is it? It's . . . Fujoshi O'Clock, the biweekly feature at Nagareboshi Review, when I bring to you the latest fujoshi-related news and reviews and various shiny BL-flavored things. Why? Because rotten girls need love too!

This week on Fujoshi O'Clock:

• Ogiue Maniax keeps on with the Fujoshi Files series with two new entries: Buraidaru Marie of Codename Sailor V and Gen'ei Ryou of Suzaku: Kabukicho Mahjong Legend.
• ふう子 at Hazukashii Kedo has started posting top 5 series lists for sub-genres of boys' love manga. The two that are up cover romance BL series and incest BL series.
• YaoiCon 2012 brought new BL licenses from Viz's yaoi imprint SubLime; these include titles from manga-ka such as Youka Nitta, Kano Miyamoto, and Yaya Sakuragi.
• For the first time in what seems like foever, Yaoi911 has updated their blog with info on their latest webcomic "The Young Protectors" and a new (somewhat NSFW) yaoi wallpaper free for download.

Reviews:

• ANN's Rebecca Silverman reviews In These Words by Guilt/Pleasure and gives it an overall positive rating, while warning for disturbing material inside.
• Bill Sherman of Blogcritics Book also reviews In These Words. His review talks mostly about how explicit and disturbing the content is.
• Connie at Slightly Biased manga reviews Flutter by Momoko Tenzen and finds it a pretty fantastic story about salarymen in love.
• A Library Girl's Familiar Diversion reviews Part-Time Pet by Reno Amagi; they found it fluffy but overall the relationships were too taboo for their tastes.

Am I missing your blog? Got some awesome fujoshi-related news and reviews you think deserve a shout-out? Poke me with a link and a bit of description over at my Twitter: @theseventhl. I'm always on the look out for more BL love!

Fujoshi O'Clock (6/28/12)

What time is it? It's . . . Fujoshi O'Clock, the biweekly feature at Nagareboshi Review, when I bring to you the latest fujoshi-related news and reviews and various shiny BL-flavored things. Why? Because rotten girls need love too!

This week on Fujoshi O'Clock:

• ANN: Viz's boys' love imprint, SuBLime, is offering fixes for the Kindle editions of its manga. Affected titles include several by Kano Miyamoto and Nase Yamato's Cigarette Kisses.
• Kuriosity reports on a new omnibus now available for pre-order: Games With Me, a BL OEL comic written by Tina Anderson, known for her comic Loud Snow. Anderson is also hosting a giveaway for a chance to win a copy of Games With Me that involves writing reviews.
• Because I didn't post last week, you now have two Fujoshi Files from Ogiue Maniax to look forward to! File 45 is Aoba Tsugumi from Kannagi and File 46 is Kagawa Rika from Otaku no Musume-san. I think I need to read this OnMs, yes?
• Over at the Manga Bookshelf, the latest edition of BL Bookrack is up; Michelle and Melinda are looking at the latest titles as well as some classic light novels and a most excellent new webcomic from Alex Woolfson (author of Artifice!).

Reviews: 

• Norikazu Akira is popular again in the review section, as ANN's Rebecca reviews Honey Darling and Connie from Slightly Biased Manga also reviews Honey Darling. It's interesting to read two differing opinions on a single work. Maybe I'm next up to review this one?
• Connie from Slightly Biased Manga has also reviewed the sixth book in Ayano Yamane's Finder series, Passion Within The Viewfinder. Even she admits that no one reads Finder for the story. Just look at the covers!
• Lissa at Kuriousity.ca reviews Three Wolf Mountain by Naono Bohra, a hotly anticipated title that looks to be quite excellent. Plus, Naono Bohra in English and in print! That is always excellent news.
• And not to toot my own horn, but let's do. I've posted several boys' love reviews over the past week, including ones for Miki Araya's I'll Be Your Slave, Kano Miyamoto's Two of Hearts, Aki Morimoto's light novel Like A Love Comedy, and  Kou Yoneda's one-shot Kanjou Spectrum. All wonderful titles, really!

 
Am I missing your blog? Got some awesome fujoshi-related news and reviews you think deserve a shout-out? Poke me with a link and a bit of description over at my Twitter: @theseventhl. I'm always on the look out for more BL love!

Manga Review: Two Of Hearts

Two Of Hearts
Author: Kano Miyamoto
Deux Press
208 pages


Haruya, a magazine article writer, is constantly frustrating his editors with his lack of inspiration. However, upon meeting a shy boy undressing on the beach, their lives become linked. An unusual relationship follows that will ultimately be beneficial for the both of them. (Source: Goodreads)


I seem to have unconsciously hit a streak with my BL reading as this is the second yaoi story I've read in a row in which one of the main couple is a writer. Except that this is a struggling loner writer named Haruya who has given up his dream of writing a novel and has resigned himself to writing for a magazine, seemingly destined to never become anything greater. 

His "slow and complacent lifestyle" gets changed completely by the arrival of newcomer Maki washing his clothes in the water at the beach. It soon becomes clear that Maki has been through some terrible things and needs a gentle touch, like Haruya's, to change for the better. Naturally, these two guys become unlikely housemates and friends that threatens to become something more.


It's a slow-moving romance that takes as many steps forward as it does back, but it ends up in a satisfying, endearing relationship. Despite some snags in the second half and a bit of bad play by Haruya's editor, Two Of Hearts remains a wholly decent and entertaining boys' love drama that has me intrigued in Kano Miyamoto's other stories in English.