Ready?  Here we go!

The book itself is hardcover with that wonderful silver lettering on the side.  I didn’t take a picture of the spine, but silver lettering is there as well.  The obi was a bit torn on the left cover, but it’s still okay (I have a habit of not removing the obi till I’m ready to read it.  It’s a part of the book for me, after all…).

The sticker sheet was the FIRST thing I saw upon opening the book.  I don’t know if the stickers can be used over and over, so this was as far as I’ve gotten when it came to touching the stickers.  If anyone has started to peel the stickers can you please let me know if they can be constantly used? xD

Part of the full-color comic which looks oh so pretty.  Haven’t had time to read it yet.  Still, I REALLY love how Nakamura-sensei draws eyes–you just can’t help but stare!

At the end of all the illustrations, there’s a listing of them, and where they first appeared.  Goodness, even the artwork caused me to tear up at some points.. ; ;

That’s it for the Graduation Album Fanbook!  If there’s one thing I have to say, it’s that fans of Nakamura, both new and old, have been waiting for this day for a long long time.  Since the Fanbook’s announcement earlier this year, we have all been waiting for the release date, only to be met with a three-month wait.  But you know what?  The wait is worth it, and it is worth the buy.  For anyone who’s been wanting to get this, get it as soon as you can.  If you live in the US and are waiting to get it, it’s best to grab it while Kinokuniya has it in stock–it’s in the Los Angeles branch for $44.50.  The price tag may be hefty, but again, it’s SO worth it.

I hope I was able to give everyone a good taste of this very well-done book! (^^)/

Secondly, there has been a bit going on for Nakamura Asumiko.  Aside from her one-shot for Poco-Poco (Adorute to Adarute),  she was recently in a set of 10 video clips on the site!  I haven’t finished watching it yet, but seeing her at work coloring a manga (with just a mouse!) is enough to make me happy.  You can also hear her voice!  If that’s not incentive enough to get you to have a look, then hopefully the fact that it’s another manga for Poco-Poco (titled 「王と側近」(“Ou to Sokkin”/”King and Close Associate”)) will.

For those who have been waiting a long time, Nakamura-sensei’s “Graduation Album” fanbook IS. ON. SALE!  I stumbled upon it while browsing Kinokuniya eleven days ago.  If you’re in the US and you want this, you’d better get it while you can–as of this time it is still IN STOCK in the Los Angeles branch, so make your order now.  The price tag may be a little hefty ($44.50), but it is well worth the price.  Aside from being just a fan of Nakamura, one of the main reasons why I jumped on this was because part of the proceeds go to the Japan Disaster Relief Fund.  I placed my order two weeks ago when it was on special order status, and I should be receiving it this week.

Expect a couple photos of the fanbook!

So from July of 2010 till roughly January of 2011, we didn’t hear much from Nakamura-sensei.   That is, until there was buzz about her newest tankoubon release, Tetsudou Shoujo Manga (鉄道少女漫画) was released in February of 2011.  And now, there is a new 15-page short by her, titled Aadorute to Aadarute (アードルテとアーダルテ), which can be found here.  As you can see, her artwork’s changed just a little bit, as it has lost the retro 70s-ish style that I came to associate with her works.  It’s not a bad change; in fact, it looks a little more refined.  The short is in color, and is a wonderful take on “The Prince and the Pauper.”

Nakamura-sensei, welcome back!!

I’ve been doing a lot of gaming, and out of the ones I’d already listed, it’s been nothing but Kichiku Megane, Sweet Pool, and Starry Sky ~in Autumn~ and ~in Winter~. I have no idea where, but somewhere along the line I got into ero-otome games.

I guess you could chalk that up to me following a certain seiyuu’s works through thick and thin, good and bad.  As a result, I got into ero-otome games (which, ironically enough, aren’t so bad).  There are two that I decided to check out: Ijiwaru My Master and Kuro to Kin no Akanai Kagi.  The former is about the heroine finding herself in the demon world after receiving  a necklace, and the latter is about a heroine (who is a hikikomori) who–after getting her hair trimmed by a mysterious barber–finds  herself back in the outside world again.   I  may be glossing over the actual plots of both, but would you rather hear a glossed-over version, or a very-detailed version that includes just how screwed up the characters are?

Anyway, the artwork for Kuro to Kin was done by YURA, the same group that did the artwork for Lucky Dog 1 , so it was no wonder why the art and colors looked so similar.  Here is the opening for Kuro to Kin (NSFW):

…And here’s the opening for Ijiwaru My Master (NSFW):

Other than that, I have been busy compiling names of mangaka and seiyuu on my LiveJournal for the past few weeks since the earthquake in Japan on 3/11.  If you know of anyone that has been accounted for that isn’t on the list, please comment on the entry with the name(s).  Even now I am still updating the list.  The most I can do at this point is to help out others who are just as worried.  So let’s all hope for the best, and that everyone is safe!

The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads Fresher than ever.

Crunchy numbers

A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 3,000 times in 2010. That’s about 7 full 747s.

In 2010, there were 23 new posts, not bad for the first year! There were 22 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 4mb. That’s about 2 pictures per month.

The busiest day of the year was October 22nd with 59 views. The most popular post that day was Mangaka Minute: Marta Matsuo’s 1st Tankoubon Release!.

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were twitter.com, en.wordpress.com, isnitfine.wordpress.com, shinkeikaku.wordpress.com, and azurekitsune.livejournal.com.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for usotsuki wa shinshi no hajimari, lies are a gentleman’s manners, marta matsuo, bang zoom entertainment, and nakamura asumiko.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

Mangaka Minute: Marta Matsuo’s 1st Tankoubon Release! July 2010
1 comment

BL + Otome Games: Another Interesting Part of Being a Fujoshi September 2010
4 comments

My Top BL Manga Artists May 2010
1 comment

Mangaka Minute: Nakamura Asumiko taking a break July 2010
2 comments

A Coalition Against Scan Sites? June 2010
8 comments

What I personally call the “Libre Shakedown” occurred roughly midway through September, and basically scared some groups into shutting down.  Most dropped titles that were under the Libre imprint.

On the other hand, Digital Manga, one of the largest yaoi licensors in the English manga market, is trying to monopolize the BL genre entirely.  With the Digital Manga Guild, the company would use the scanlators in order to push more titles out.  Going by what’s given to us on their site for the Guild, all we’re met with is vagueness–nothing is outright explained.

Yet, while reading everything that was stated, I couldn’t help but see red flags all over.  The revenue didn’t sound right to me.  The fact that scanlators would have to “show proof of their work” was a huge red flag, since that would mean admitting to copyright infringement.

While the FAQ for the Digital Manga Guild is still evolving, I’m still seeing red flags on this venture.  By “hiring” scanlators to work on those “thousands of titles,” the number of groups working on unlicensed material is likely to go down.  With this venture, it seems as if Digital Manga is trying to flood the manga market with tons of BL titles, titles that may not even be advertised, since DMP tends to just license stuff and not give them the attention that those titles deserve; BL series by the popular mangaka don’t count, since DMP will basically pimp those titles easily.

I’ve actually seen a few reactions to this, and though the Pro-DMP individuals are happy to hear about this (as well as the demise of scanlating groups), I doubt that they even know what they’re getting themselves into.  To me, working for mere cents for a company is like cheap labor, and who’s to say that the people who do take up this venture will have any say in anything?  Regardless, I’m not going to give DMP any so-called help; I’d rather import my manga and support the Japanese publishers.   If you ask me, DMP did enough damage already.

I’ll start with the BL games.

I had no idea about visual novels and all that, but I got into BL games due to curiosity.  What followed was a snowball effect where I ended up getting interested in games to play, haha.  Anyway, BL games are often called “visual novels” since all you have are pictures and dialogue.  The only thing that progresses the story are your choices.

I haven’t completed any fully, but I have finished off at least one route in thiese games:

Sweet Pool

Kichiku Megane

Lucky Dog 1

Though.. I haven’t played the “legendary” Lamento or Togainu no Chi, but I do plan on playing them, one day!  Ironically enough, the very first one I did play was Sweet Pool by Nitro+ Chiral (the same company that did Lamento and Togainu), and that one was very gory.  If you can’t take gore, then you probably won’t like that game.  Kichiku Megane is a pretty hardcore title that’s made a name for itself on its own, and is definitely worth checking out if you’re a fan of one (or more) of the seiyuu that are cast.  Lucky Dog 1 is a doujin game by Tennenouji, and even though it’s fairly new, it’s really entertaining. XD

I usually post picspams of the routes  that I play on my yaoi-centric Tumblr (which may not have BL content posted daily, btw), along with my own thoughts on the game itself.  So far, I’ve posted thought pieces for:

• The “Diving Deep” route in Sweet Pool.
• The “Mido (Megane)” route in Kichiku Megane.
• The “Ivan” and “Giulio” routes in Lucky Dog 1.

And yes, these are very time-consuming.  Thank goodness for sites like Half-Adder, or else I’d end up getting bad endings all up the wazoo.  So if you’re curious on BL games, do take a look at the thought pieces I linked to above.

Now onto the Otome games.

I’ve only played one series of otome (maiden) games, and that is the Starry Sky series of games.  Divvied up into four seasons (Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter), you play the heroine at an all-boys private school, called “Seigatsu Academy.”  In each game, you have three love interests, so in all you’ve 12 guys to choose as your “target.”  Here’s a breakdown of all four games:

1. Starry Sky ~in Spring~

You, the heroine, enroll in Seigatsu Gakuen, and meet up with three of your childhood friends: Yoh Tomoe, Kanata Nanami, and Suzuya Tohzuki.  Yoh had moved away to France and came back to go to school, and Kanata and Suzuya have always been there to keep an eye on  you since you entered the institution.  Yoh represents the Capricorn sign, Kanata represents the Pisces sign, and Suzuya represents the Cancer sign.

2. Starry Sky ~in Summer~

You, the heroine, are part of the Archery Club.  The captain of the club is Homare Kanakubo, a soft-spoken character who represents the sign of Taurus.  The sub-captain is a tsundere character named Ryunosuke Miyaji who secretly likes sweets of all kinds.  Azusa Kinose is a newcomer to the Archery Club, who often flirts with the heroine and likes to tease Ryunosuke.  His sign is Sagittarius.

3. Starry Sky ~in Autumn~

You, the heroine, meet three various teachers in the school: Iku Mizushima( Gemini), Naoshi Haruki (Leo), and Kotarou Hoshizuki (Libra).  [I really need to play this one more.]

4. Starry Sky ~in Winter~

You, the heroine, are part of the Student Council.  It is here that you meet the other members of the Student Council–Tsubasa Amaha (Aquarius), Kazuki Shiranui (Aries), and Hayato Aozora (Virgo).  I’ve played Hayato’s route once, and I’m playing it again, hehe.  But basically the plot’s centered around Kazuki’s graduation, wherein he would be leaving the school (and the Student Council).  This one was almost heartbreaking, especially since they were all wondering what would happen between ‘em.

If you like sweet stories with a bit of drama mixed in, then by all means check out Starry Sky.   The games are starting to get their own PSP ports, so you don’t have to worry about regions in games and all that.   I’m waiting for Winter to come out on the PSP, and then I’ll work my way backwards.

Anywho, I think that’s it for the introductory BL + Otome game post.  I think once I’m completely done with one (or all) of the games listed above I’ll post about it here. =Db

Unfortunately on the ANN and MyAnimeList forums, people attacked her for her viewpoints.  They called her “overdramatic,” “crazy,” and someone who has her “panties in a bunch.”  Are you serious?  I admit that if it weren’t for the hype surrounding “Black Butler” when it came time for the anime to come out, I wouldn’t have checked it out.  Usually when a show starts to gain some sort of following, word of it spreads like wildfire.  This is exactly what happened with Kuroshitsuji/Black Butler.  I’m not going to say that Yana Toboso doesn’t deserve to have her series popular in Japan; every “new” mangaka could use the exposure.  However, Toboso-sensei–like every other mangaka in Japan that isn’t as popular as Rumiko Takahashi–is trying to make a living.  So for Japanese “fans” to download her stuff and then send messages saying “Hey I saw all of this on an overseas site. LOL.” is more of a slap in the face.

And while I’m at it, let me say this: Fansubs exist because of unavailability in various regions.  The same can be said for scanlations of manga titles that are otherwise unavailable.  What if you wanted to get into a series but couldn’t due to unavailability or it going out of print?  You’re shit out of luck unless you get an illegal version of it.  I’m neutral when it comes to scans and fansubs–when it’s unlicensed, I’ll check out fansubbed/scanlated versions of it.  If I finish it before it’s licensed and I find that I like it, then I’ll add it to the growing list of titles to buy.  So since “Black Butler” is licensed, I’ve stated that I’ll buy the manga, and the anime (when it’s released on DVD).   Availability is the key problem in the whole fansub/scanlation debate, and for many who don’t understand the fandom and just call us pirates without giving any thought to it.

But before anyone starts throwing mud in the comments, I’ll say this:  I consume “Black Butler” legally.  I’ve been watching it streamed on Funimation’s site ever since they posted it.  The same goes for the second season, which is simulcasted.  I can’t speak for others, but know that not everyone who consumes manga via scanlations and anime via fansubs does so with every series ever released.

As someone who is aiming to become a writer, I feel very sorry for Toboso-sensei.  Artists are those who depend on their creative works for a living, and mangaka are no different from this.  They have to take up side-jobs if they’re not popular enough, and their schedules are hectic.  Put yourself in her shoes: If you were a new artist with a breakout work, how would you react?

There is no pure line to walk when you’re a fan of manga.  If you’re into scans and fansubs,  you’re deemed a “pirate,” regardless of how many series you buy.  If anything, Toboso-sensei’s message is one that I–as a writer, not a scanlator–can agree with.  And let me just say this, to those who are quick to judge based on the fact that I am part of a scanlating group:

Not all scanlators will take on licensed work.  Don’t judge that which you don’t understand.

If you go to Nakamura-sensei’s site here, you’ll be met with a small message, which says this:

中村明日美子オフィシャルサイトは、

2010年7月末日をもちまして終了させていただきました。

ありがとうございました。

Now, here is the romanisation, followed by my (very) loose (and very literal) translation:

Nakamura Asumiko OFFICIAL SITE wa,

2010-nen shichigatsu matsuhi mochimashite shuuryou saseteitadakimashita.

Arigatougozaimashita.

Asumiko Nakamura’s official site,

has had its ownership terminated as of the last day of July 2010.

Thank you very much.

While only bad things can be thought of right now as to what may have caused Nakamura-sensei to close down her site, we can only wish her the best.  This shutting down of her site occurs close to a month after she posted a message on her site which notified fans of her hiatus.

Good luck, Nakamura-sensei!

EDIT: Huge thanks to ふう子 for breaking this info via Twitter.

First reported on my friend ふう子’s site (along with the cover–take a look, it’s gorgeous!!), Marta Matsuo is releasing her very first tankoubon through Opera’s EDGE COMIX label.  The title is called 「嘘つきは紳士のはじまり」 (Usotsuki wa Shinshi no Hajimari – Lies are a Gentleman’s Manners).

Now, I’m very happy about this for a couple reasons, the main one being that I was afraid that I wouldn’t see anything by Matsuo-sensei again.  Ever.  So Serious, as short as it was (at 16 pgs), was my first glance at this mangaka’s work, and I immediately fell in love with it.  But upon looking up her name, I found that there wasn’t much under her belt.

’till now.

So I’ll just put it like this: If you loved So Serious, and want to read more of her works, pick up this book!!  Usotsuki wa Shinshi no Hajimari goes on sale 7/23.  Preorder from Amazon.co.jp, or wait patiently (or impatiently) for the release date.