Crack List: A Yuri Valentine's Day

Inspired by Manga Bookshelf's Valentine's Day and White Day posts from last year, I've made a list of how some of the most popular yuri characters would react to getting Valentine's Day chocolates. (Assuming that the gift giver is a teenaged girl. You'll notice that rather than write "the gift-giver" or something similarly clunky a million times, I've decided to just use "you.") Don't take it seriously- it's just for giggles.

Up first, we have...

Kannazuki no Miko's Chikane:
If it isn't from Himeko, it's going in the garbage. If it is, she will slowly savor each bite as if it had been sprinkled with angel dust and kissed by a goddess, and then keep the chocolate box as a memento.

Sailor Moon's Haruka:
Will accept it with a little tongue-in-cheek flirtiness but only really look forward to seeing what Michiru gives her (which will no doubt be perfect).

Revolutionary Girl Utena's Juri:
Will raise one eyebrow and be like, "Who are you? Why are you giving me this?" and suspect you of being insincere. If it's from Shiori, she will wonder what it's laced with and attempt to forget about her again by chucking it into a pond.

Maria-sama ga Miteru's Sachiko:
Hates Valentine's Day, mostly because she hates getting chocolate from fangirls. She will refuse anyone's chocolate. Almost. She will happily eat anything Yumi gives her, even if it's filled with rusty nails.

Oniisama e's Saint-Juste:
Will politely accept it among the gajillion other gifts and love letters she gets, but will later swallow a handful of pills, wash them down with some hard liquour, and walk in the rain while thinking about how Valentine's Day chocolates will never fill the void in her heart.

Maria-sama ga Miteru's Sei:
Will say "Mmmmmm, chocolate!" and give you a hearty thanks. If you're Yumi, expect her to be all over you. If you're Shimako, expect her to eat your gift without realizing it's yours.

Strawberrry Panic!'s Shizuma:
Pre-Nagisa, she would have been like "Of course I'll accept them, my little minx," and tried to remember if she'd already slept with you or not. Now that she's with Nagisa, she will be flattered, but won't reciprocate.

Mai-Hime's Shizuru:
Will smile and accept it with a faux-surprised "Ara!" ("Oh my!"), but probably forget your name in two seconds since she only wants chocolate from Natsuki. If she uses your Valentine's Day chocolate for anything, it will be to try to make Natsuki jealous.

Revolutionary Girl Utena's Utena:
She isn't completely aware of how popular she is, so she will accept whatever she gets with a genuine smile of thanks without thinking too much about what it could mean. Just watch out for Wakaba. (Anthy would actually be pretty chill about it.)

Have a Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy 2010!

Yay, it's 2010! ^^ Whether you kicked off the new year with a jump-start on one of your resolutions (if you made resolutions), a hangover, a hatsumode, or all three, I hope everybody's having a good start to the new year/decade.

Here's a list of my top 10 yuri anime of 2009, followed by a list of my top 10 yuri anime of the past decade.

My Top 10 of 2009:

10) A tie between Ikki Tousen (Funi's re-release of the first season and Media Blasters' release of Dragon Destiny) and Nanoha (Funi's release): Once I gave Ikki Tousen a shot, it turned out to be stupid fun (with yuri!). Nanoha season 1 (that's all that I've watched up to this point) deserves mention for how much it improved by the end, with some cute subtext to boot.

9) Saki (streaming on Crunchyroll)- What began as a dull high school comedy/drama quickly developed into a fun tournament-style title with a likeable, yuri-riffic cast of characters. My top couples are still Momo x Yumi, Nodoka x Saki, and Hisa x...uhh, Mako or Mihoko (whichever ^^;;).

8) Maria-sama ga Miteru Season 3 (RightStuf's release): I absolutely love Marimite. And RightStuf, for licensing it. :-)

7) Blue Drop- A very good, low-key sci-fi romantic drama that I didn't expect to see released in English on DVD. Go, go Sentai!

6) CANAAN: I know, I know. Besides Liang, the only yuri in this series is subtext/wishful thinking. But what delicious subtext it is. ^___^ Plus, yay for having another really good seinen action series revolving around a non-school-aged, primarily female cast that doesn't moe-fy or Queen's Blade-out its characters (while still including some yuri).

5) Maria-sama ga Miteru Season 4- The fourth, possibly (imo, probably) final season for one of my all-time favorite shows. More wonderful subtext (and friendships) between wonderful characters in a wonderful story.

4) To Aru Kagaku no Railgun: For simply being a fun sci-fi action title with a canon yuri lead. (Although Saten's skirt-flipping ways and Uiharu's fascination with Tokiwadai have both pinged my gaydar as well.)

3) El Cazador de la Bruja (Funi's English DVD release): The final, most yuriful series in Bee Train's "girls-with-guns" trilogy, finally available in English! XD Yay, Nadie x Ellis!

2) Sasameki Koto (streaming on Crunchyroll): It didn't have the budget or, frankly, the same level of direction as Aoi Hana's adaptation, but it was a joy to see Sumi, Ushio, and the rest of the Joshibu finally animated, and it was simply a fun show. Plus, it was cool to not only see this series stream on AE, but also get picked up by other lesbian media sites.

1) Aoi Hana (streaming on Crunchyroll): Surprise. ^^; From the opening episode, I loved this series. The characters, the story, the art, the music, everything, pulled together by Kenichi Kasai's brilliant direction, with Ikuhara Kunihiko's beautiful OP as the cherry on top. I couldn't have been happier with this adaptation- aside from the fact that it needs a second season (like so many other shows on this list). Plus, it was very cool to see a yuri anime streamed on Afterellen for the first time.

Honorable mention goes to Shin Koihime Musou (for the sheer number of yuri characters) and Kanamemo (for Yume and Yuuki, even if Haruka...well, everybody who reads this blog already knows how I feel about Haruka).

My Top 10 of the Past Decade:

10) Yami to Boushi to Hon no Tabibito: This is a crappy title with a crappy, tear-your-heart-out-and-stomp-on-it ending (although I've heard that the manga and game both have yuri-friendly endings). But it was the earliest yuri-centric title to air during the past decade. For helping to get the yuri ball rolling, Yamibou deserves a spot here. (Plus, I like Hazuki. She deserves a better series.)

9) Magical Girl Lyrical  Nanoha- I've only seen the first season, but since I know that StrikerS features Nanoha and Fate living together as adults, sharing a bed (when they could easily sleep in separate beds), and raising a kid who calls them both "mama", I'm listing it.

8) Mai-Hime- For being a popular action title that gave rise to a popular yuri couple, among numerous other potential pairs. It spawned even more yuri in its spin-off, Mai-Otome, and in the two OVAs that branched from Mai-Otome. Not to mention Mai-Hime Destiny, Mao-Hime (I think that's what it's called...I haven't really bothered with reading it), and the upcoming Mai-Hime EXA. (I'm trying to forget the first Mai-Hime manga.)

7) Strawberry Panic- For further cementing Marimite's influence and the pervasive "all-girls' school" trope in yuri, for better or for worse. Plus, it's a fun show.

6) Simoun: An absolutely excellent fantasy title from beginning to end that any anime fan would do well to try. Plus, the plot is wrapped up very satisfyingly (but not too neatly or happily) within its 26(!) episode span.

5) Noir: Aside from Chloe, subtext only, but worth listing for its influence on the subtext-rich "girl-with-guns" subgenre, including Madlax, El Cazador, and (likely) CANAAN, among other titles.

4) Sasameki Koto- Just an enjoyable yuri-centric title that gently pokes fun at (and at times, subverts) yuri tropes and stars a likeable cast. Mega-points for not taking place at an all-girls' school (and for pointing out that Ushio tried her darndest to get into one), and continuing the trend of featuring characters who aren't simply "in love with this particular, exceptional person who happens to be a girl."

3) Kannazuki no Miko- First anime title centered around a canon yuri couple with a happy ending. (At least, I see it as a happy ending.) I'll admit my bias- even though I'm not fond of the angsty moping that makes up a sizeable chunk of this series anymore, this was the first title that I recognized as "yuri", and I was head-over-heels in love with it for quite a while. Plus, thanks to the enduring popularity of Chimeko (and Kaishaku's perennial fondness for them), we can likely expect a new yuri action anime- an adaptation of Kaishaku's Zettai Shoujo Seiiki Amnesian- within the next few years. :-)

2) Aoi Hana- Simultaneously the best and most realistic title centered around a canon yuri protagonist in the past decade.

1) Maria-sama ga Miteru: Because no other yuri title that aired from 2000 through 2009 has been as influential or as heavily-referenced as Marimite.

And that's it. ^^ Whatever you agree or disagree with, hopefully you got something (entertainment? befuddlement? irritation?) out of it. I took into account: A) what I liked, B) what was good (which is still subjective), C) what was influential, and D) what marked noteworthy shifts/trends in yuri anime. (The latter two factors aren't immune to subjectivity either, of course.)

If I were in Japan this February, I would definitely go to this XD

According to the official Japanese Mai-Hime website, a "Hime Night" event is going to be held at Ikebukuro's Cinema Sunshine at night on Saturday, February 13 and Sunday, February 20 to celebrate the re-release of Mai-Hime on Blu-Ray.

The guests for the first night will be Nakahara Mai (the seiyuu who played Tokiha Mai), Shimizu Ai (Minagi Mikoto), and the show's producer.

The guests for the second night will be Shindou Naomi (Fujino Shizuru), Nanri Yuuka (Yuuki Nao), and the producer again. (The ANN encyclopedia entry for MH lists two producers, though, so it'll probably be a different producer on each night?)

The first 13 episodes of Mai-Hime will be screened on the first night and the last 13 episodes will be screened on the second night. (In Blu-Ray, I'm presuming.)

More details on what will happen at the event and ticket information will be released at some point in January. It would not only be very cool (for me, being a seiyuu-otaku) to see the MH seiyuu live, but also to collectively fangeek over the show with other fans of the series. XD

And only 1 more day until the final episode of Sasameki Koto! ^^ (Whoops- I initially thought that it would be 12 episodes since it's listed as 12 on CR- not that I'm complaining about getting one more episode than I  expected. ^__^) Can't wait!!

YES!!!!! More Mai-Hime!!! XD

In manga form, that is. :3  (Although I would LOVE another animated Mai series.)

The all-new Mai-Hime EXA manga will launch in the February 2010 issue of Monthly Comic Dengeki Daioh, which is due out on January 27. ^^ (Dengeki Daioh's the same magazine that To Aru Kagaku no Railgun is running in.)

This one looks more promising than the previous manga adaptation of Mai-Hime- at least as far as the art goes. ^^; (It looks closer to Hirokazu Hisayuki's original character designs.) While the first Mai-Hime manga was drawn by Satou Kenetsu (art of Seikon no Qwaser), the art in Mai-Hime EXA will be by Kōteiryū (art of Maji-Kyū 4-Koma Fate/stay night). Mai-Hime EXA will be written by Sukukaze Ryo (original concept of the Demonbane OVA, story of the .hack//cell manga, story of the Idolmaster: XENOGLOSSIA manga and novels), instead of Kimura Noboru, who wrote the first MH manga (along with the script, screenplay, or series composition of several different series). Hopefully Sukukaze and Kōteiryū will do a good job with this new series. :) (And just as importantly, hopefully "Yatate Hajime" will allow them to do a good job. At least, what I would consider good. *cough*Don'tmakeTatetheleadagain.*cough*)

Plus...

a PV for Ryukishi07's Ookami Kakushi anime has been released!! XD Episode 1 of Ookami Kakushi will premiere on January 7.



I'm really excited for this one. Hopefully it'll provide more of Ryukishi07's signature mystery-horror goodness until season 2 of Umineko appears. (What a brilliantly cracked finale. :-) Poor Ange, though. I like her much more than Battler.) Fans who are following the Higurashi manga in English, of course, can also look forward to the next volume of the Curse Killing Arc on February 23.

BGM- "Honey Bee" by v(neu)