Adult Swim: Grown Up in More Than One Way (Pt 2)

So, last time, I talked about Yoshinaga Fumi's non-yaoi work, some of which is really excellent (like Oooku) if not necessarily enjoyable and some of which is both (like Antique Bakery). I like and reread many of these books, but I don't like any of them as much as I like her yaoi with the possible exception of Antique Bakery, but I can't read Antique Bakery without reading the associated doujinshi which I actually read first. And the doujinshi is hard hard core yaoi. You can read the Antique Bakery manga without the doujinshi and it's well worth it, but, in my opinion, the doujinshi really completes it (at least the thirteen chapters I've seen) with considerably backstory including Ono's immediate reaction when he's rejected so cruelly by Tachibana and the reason he became the gay playboy he did.

 Without the original manga, I still liked the doujinshi, too, but you should be warned. It's emotionally wrenching in some places and could also be a helpful hint how-to on anal sex so it's really not for everyone. Chikage and Tachibana are really expanded here but, of course, Ono (as the one unabashedly gay character) is the center of attention. And he is far from flawless. I'm a monogamous soul, so I'm not condoning all his actions, but I can see where he's coming from and don't dislike him (though I could understand if you did). For me, the doujinshi fills in the blanks (I'm guessing for the mangaka, as well, since she wrote them), but I won't lie, I find her romance and sex scenes very very compelling. And the romances feel real, and more touching because they aren't perfect rather than less. I won't lie, I bought the books based on the dj and never regretted either.

The graphic and no holds barred nature of the yaoi in the Antique Bakery dj is in keeping with the graphic and gory details of the sex in her yaoi in general. So that you know. 

But wait, there's more. The yaoi selections, like the non-yaoi selections, frequently involve dark stuff. Cases in point include some of the stories in Don't Say Any More, Darling, Truly Kindly and Gerard and Jacques, all but the last of which can be readily purchased. In all cases, there are some sweet stories mixed in with bittersweet or even dark stories. Truly Kindly is a mix of dark modern stories with two that manage to have happy endings and a handful of historical stories (some dark, some not) set in ancient Japan and pre-revolutionary France (the latter precursors to Lovers in the Night). The dark aspects of "Chinoiserie", for instance, are completely in keeping with the historical setting and, in my opinion, were more poignant as a result. Don't Say Any More, Darling is another set of one-shot stories (not all are yaoi) that run from sweet (the first one) to downright depressing. Yoshinaga-sensie has a real gift for infusing life into short stories, by the way. Not everyone has it.

Gerard and Jacques, which is about an erotic novelist during revolutionary France who meets the son of an aristocrat in a boy's brothel. The start is about as dark a beginning as you can get for what turns out to be a very satisfying and sweet story. Once again, Yohinaga-sensei weaves such intricate and compelling backstories and paints (realistically) the environment so clearly that what seems like a heinous set of actions turn out to make a lot of sense, even be understandable. I'm frequently amazed how she pulls that off. Of the three darker works, Gerard and Jacques, which is one story set in two volumes, is probably my favorite of these three, and I never would have thought so if I'd read just the first chapter or two. Yoshinaga-sensei is sneaky like that. The only reason I don't own Gerard and Jacques is that I can't find them in English.

Moving from the darkest toward happier shores is Solfege, which has still a sizeable modicum of dark with a music teacher who gets involved with his earnest singing student (at least somewhat selfishly) only to send him away far more selflessly and eventually fall to ruin...only to be searched out again by his now world-acclaimed student.  The happy ending is clear but the extent (did they get back together or not) is left to the reader to decide.

Lovers In the Night takes off after the French shorts at the end of Truly Kindly and is a single story of a spoiled but devoted gay French aristocrat (who becomes an emigre during the French Revolution) and his equally devoted and dominating butler. Normally, I'm not fond of the master-servant stories, but Yoshinaga-sensei does seem to delight in oversetting my personal prejudices with effective story telling. I do love happy endings.

But, I've found happy endings more frequently (and at least as satisfying) in the yaoi than her non-yaoi. I've also found as much if not more humor, which is always a plus for me (and Yoshinaga is really good at the kind of humor that tickles me no end). And the yaoi, which often deal with very realistic concerns of gay partnerships, don't seem to need to delve as frequently into the dark depths as the very real issues are compelling enough for interest. Of this ilk there's Moon and Sandals, a nice story of an adult romance and a student romance, with the crush of the student for the gay teacher nicely handled (as well as the romance the teacher has with a chef) and the subsequent romance the student has with another student. The student, particularly, is charming with his forthright earnestness and determination. The characters, as usual, are the strong element and quite appealing.


Then, there's Ichigenme, the First Class is Civil Law (which I've only found complete in published form, but, good news, it's published and readily available), which follows the charming but unexpected pairing of a serious law student (and eventual law professor) and his laid back and charming gay companion of the computer genius variety. That the computer genius' brother (also a law student) has his own affair with a professor, a story I also found charming. My description does not do the story justice nor touch on the profound but engaging humor spread all through this book nor the masterful characterizations often done with what seems a couple of lines of dialog and a few panels. I love them all but I have a soft spot for the long curly-haired computer freak. (There's a surprise).

All of these books I found interesting, most of them charming (with the occasional story I could have done without). Like most of Yoshinaga-sensei's work, even the most depressing stuff, it's amazingly rereadable, I think because the world is so real. They're great stories and it's almost a pity that those who would be squeamish about the portrayal of sex (gay and/or otherwise) would miss out on these because they are so interesting. If, however, you like effective sex scenes, these also include some of the best. And I think I'm becoming nearly expert on it.   Good books, worth owning (which is good because they are almost all licensed and hard to find otherwise, at least complete) and, yes, I own every thing described here except the Antique Bakery dj and Gerard and Jacques. And I'd own them if they became available.

Update: I just found out there's an anime for Antique Bakery as well, strictly based on the books and not yaoi, but managing, in twelve episodes, the capture the gist of the four books.  Clean enough for a teenage audience (children would not get the many subtleties) and well worth $30. I liked it (noting that Chikage provided the bulk of the humor, bless his simple heart - he's a favorite. How can anyone hate Chikage?) It's subtitled, but worth the trouble, at least to a fan like me. Comes in a nice little case with a booklet of Antique Bakery factoids and stuff.

Update: I got the first volume of Gerard and Jacques! Squee!

Read more...

Adult Swim: Grown Up in More Than One Way (Pt 1)

You may have all noticed that my posts often talk about a particular mangaka's body of work rather than just a single work. This may be more true in yaoi than other fields since yaoi is frequently (though not always) a one or two volume endeavor per story (if not a one-shot). Plus, it's been my experience that, when I stumble across a really good mangaka, it's worth my time to check our her (or his) other work. I frequently find other gems...and not always just in yaoi.

Which is how I stumbled across Yoshinaga Fumi. Actually, I'd read (but didn't consider a keeper at the time) a period yaoi set in Europe called Gerard & Jacques as it started pretty dark and I almost didn't continue. Even so, I was a bit intrigued (I love history) and, when I stumbled across something else later, I started to explore and then became entranced. I've since reread Gerard & Jacques many times and it's now one of my favorites. She still isn't my favorite yaoi author (probably), though she's on my short list of real favorites. She is, however, something really special in more than one way, first and foremost because she's one of the most superlative storytellers I've ever come across in any medium. When I say medium, I mean music, movies, anime, novels, short stories, manga, you name it. I read a single chapter (all that's available) on-line from Garden of Dreams and was struck speechless. It was a masterful example of evocative story telling and character building, as well having all the pathos of the best poetry. It was, in fact, much like a poem in manga form.

Garden of Dreams isn't yaoi. It wasn't explicit or offensive and it wasn't trying to make some societal point (as far as I know). It was set during the Crusades but involved relatively normal people who were incredibly complex, imperfect while being entirely easy to empathize with. They felt incredibly real, and touched me to an unprecedented degree. Based on the one short story, I bought the book (readily available at Amazon). I hadn't read the first thirty pages before I was compelled to buy a second copy and send it to my sister, wiping away my tears.

Although she writes some unabashed yaoi, she has also written many other manga that is not yaoi. All of it is amazingly grown up, even if it isn't R-rated, if you understand the distinction.  Though some of it is that, too. In this part 1, I'm going to mostly talk about her non-yaoi work.

I'm convinced Yoshinaga's work would be suited for nearly any English class as an example of show vs. tell. Using her not inconsiderable artistic talent, she weaves complex plots in environments that seem almost static because the real drama is the exposition and interaction of her characters who are brilliantly revealed in tiny, seemingly unrelated vignettes until, before you know it, she's made a cohesive whole of brilliantly fleshed out characters that are so much more than two dimensional.

Her crafting is such that she frequently creates characters doing all manner of thoughtless, destructive, sometimes horrific things, but, as you learn more about them and where they came from you (or at least I) find myself understanding even when I can't entirely accept what they do. Some of her characters are unshakably noble and admirable. Some are thoughtless and selfish. Most are a combination of all of that, just like the rest of us. And, by showing us these people and actions as seen through the eyes of one party or the next, we have the opportunity to learn and appreciate these people to depths I have rarely seen elsewhere.

I have quite a collection of her works despite another trait I admire but don't necessarily care for myself: she is not afraid to leave the reader unfulfilled. There are, of course, happy endings in her books, but there are as many sad ones, wonderful characters who never find (or keep) their true loves, people who fail, people who can't overcome their own failings. Some of it isn't entertaining. Much of it is dark and sad and fraught with people making mistakes they can never recover from, or receiving scars they can't erase from their own hearts.

And example in point is Oooku, her award-winning manga, in this case, an alternate history story sent early in the Edo era (for those who are Japanese history buffs, well, you don't need me to explain, but its after Tokugawa took over the shogunate and his family kept power until the Emperor took it back the last century or so). Normally I despise alternate histories because they are frequently done by people who don't know jack about history or are done in such a slipshod manner with characters completely out of keeping with people of the day that it sends me up the wall. Not the case here. Yoshinaga spins a what-if tale of a plague that, over several generations, wipes out the majority of men in Japan. Instead of changing historical events as a result, she uses this idea to explain many of Japan's policies during that time including its isolationism and increasing feudalism, forcing people to be tied to the land. Real events are woven through but given impetus by this key change rather than happening despite. It's fascinating. No, really.

Historical Japan is a brutal and unforgiving world and Yoshinaga does not pull punches. In many ways, it's harsh and unfeeling and filled with callous actions, elitism, brutality, and downright unfairness. Truly wonderful and fantastic characters are misused, abused, tormented by fate, left to fend for themselves or live their lives bereft. Other people do cruel and inhumane things (by our standards) from their own torment, mistaken priorities, and, in many cases, necessity. It's brilliant. It's fascinating. It's sometimes depressing as hell.

I own all the Oooku books available in English and I've read it twice and I still don't enjoy reading it. Some time while reading the second volume, I usually ask myself why I haven't stopped reading because obviously I don't like it, but, once I start, I absolutely can't stop. It's compelling. And, even after I've read it, no matter how tired I am, I can't sleep the next night - so much is wandering through my brain.

The artwork is gorgeous and evocative. Actually, I'm impressed by anyone making a tonsured man look attractive.  And, as much as I don't read it for entertainment, I'm glad I have read it and believe it to be genius.

Not everything non-yaoi is dark or lacking in entertainment. If most of her work has some level of pathos, she has a real gift for ribald and subtle humors she sprinkles about most of her work, even the darkest. Flower of Life is a school slice of life with the straight-forward main character, who'd missed a year of school due to leukemia, and quite the eclectic mix of other characters. All My Darling Daughters focuses mainly on female relationships (not homosexual), but familial. Kodomo No Taion is also about family, but from a man's perspective.

Yoshinaga Fumi also seems to have a fascination with food. Two other mangas are unabashedly focused on food: Not Love but Delicious Food Makes Me So Happy (restaurant hopping and life from a woman's perspective) and What Did You Eat Yesterday? which is non-yaoi other than the two main characters are a gay couple with the emphasis on the lawyer who goes shopping daily (with frugality in mind as much as taste) before coming home and whipping up a five course meal of authentic Japanese fair for his companion, who's main job is to exult over the flavor and texture of the meal. The latter is effectively a cooking show in manga form. Since I'm not a gourmand, I didn't really care for either of these manga, but I can see how a food nut could really get excited.

If I admire but don't enjoy all her books, there are some that I definitely admire and enjoy, so, if we're talking about non-yaoi genius, I can't forgo mentioning another award winner, Antique Bakery, which, if described, sounds as dull as dishwater but in reality is anything but. If we are hit over the head with more food (and we are, of the French style pastry variety) and we find a very gay character without being yaoi (which we do), none of that precludes that this as another brilliant piece of work about four very unlikely and complex men (OK, one not so complex man) who happen to run a bakery, the journey that brought them there, the non-romantic bonds that tie them together. I have not found Antique Bakery on line but it can be bought (all four volumes) in licensed book form (and, yes I have them and bought those for my sister as well). Don't let the description fool you, this is frequently hilarious, frequently touching, frequently thought-provoking stuff.

Actually, unlike most mangakas, because so much of her work is licensed, only smatterings of most of her work is available on line. That's the bad news. The good news is you can buy several of her works in book form most readily. In English and everything. Antique Bakery is just one example of that.

Speaking of Antique Bakery you can find on-line, one thing you can find (but not in book form) is the doujinshi (special extra mangas written by fans or authors to pass out at conventions) by the author of Antique Bakery which takes the story forward. But, if Antique Bakery isn't yaoi (and it isn't), the Antique Bakery doujinshi definitely is hardcore yaoi. So I'll save talking about it for part 2.

Read more...