I Reads You Review: CRUSHING LOVE (Yaoi)

Creator: Ritsu Natsumizu (cartoonist); Issei Shimizu (translation)

Publishing Information: DMP/Juné Manga; B&W paperback, 208pp, $12.95 U.S.

Ordering Numbers: ISBN 10: 1-56970-774-X; ISBN 13: 978-1-56970-774-6

Rated “M” for “Mature Audiences 18+”

Crushing Love is a yaoi manga short story collection from Ritsu Natsumizu. The stories focus on romantic love and passionate affairs. In each relationship, the romance is a burden on or creates a burden for one of the partners more than for the other – a crushing love.

The title story, “Crushing Love,” opens to find rich boy, Keiichiro Kuroda, still smarting over being the jilted lover. When his former lover, desperate for cash, asks for money, Kuroda agrees to give him the money (5 million yen), but he won’t make it easy. Kuroda sets up a game wherein he leaves the money in the park as a test.

The bag with the money in it, however, gets picked up by Kaoru Otowa, who is also desperate for cash. Although he initially plans to turn the money over to the police, Kaoru decides to leave to town for Kyoto in order to pay off his debt to Yukihiko Shingyoji, a shady businessman. Kuroda accosts Kaoru and then, decides to accompany him to Kyoto where a cat and mouse game between Kuroda and Shingyoji ensues – with Kaoru as the prize.

“Crushing Love” epitomizes the stories in this collection, stories in which love is a burden or puts a weight on a lover. In the title story, the weight is on Kaoru as the one who needs the money and because he believes that his debt is what stands in the way of real romance with Kuroda.

A better example of crushing love is “Purity and Tyranny of Love,” which is tied to “Crushing Love” by the character, Yukihiko Shingyoji, who is one of the romantic leads in “Purity.” In fact, this story actually takes place during “Crushing Love” and is a side story. This time, the burden is on Sei Aoyama, the son of a former Shingyoji family servant. Sei loves Yukihiko, and while Yukihiko flirts with Sei and has sex with him, Sei is unsure how real their relationship is.

All these stories play with the idea of uncertain love, in which one lover is unsure of his partner. In these stories, the uke (bottom) is both the girlish bishounen boy and the one plagued with doubts. Meanwhile, the seme (top), who is usually masculine, devilish, and a tease, happily enjoys the sex, but also slyly keeps his uke toy unsure about the seriousness of the relationship.

This collection is a good read, light and frothy. There is plenty of sex, but the drama is not serious. It’s a bit too melodramatic, like a gentle spoof of soap opera romance.

B

TOKYOPOP Adds Titles to DMP's Online Stable

Digital Manga Publishing and TOKYOPOP bring twelve new titles to eManga.com

Digital Manga, one of the manga industry's most unique and creative publishers, is proud to announce an online collaboration with TOKYOPOP, a leading manga publisher and pop-culture digital entertainment company. The partnership will launch with the addition of twelve new titles from TOKYOPOP's BLU Manga yaoi imprint to eManga’s online library.

The BLU Manga yaoi will be available for purchase through eManga’s online manga service, emanga.com, which streams content through an Adobe Flash player, allowing readers to access their library wherever they have an internet connection. Originally sold for $14.99 in print, the BLU volumes will be available on eManga.com for $5.99, making it more affordable than ever to read old and new favorites.

The first twelve BLU titles will include: Liberty Liberty! by Hinako Takanaga, Calling by Miu Otsuki, Croquis by Hinako Takanaga, Cute Devil by Hiro Madarame, Isle of Forbidden Love by Duo Brand, Blood Honey by Sakyou Yozakura, Love Knot by Lemon Ichijo, Madness volumes 1 & 2 by Kairi Shimotsuki, Scarlet by Hiro Madarame, Secretary’s Love by Tohko Akiba and Stray Cat by Halco.

For more information about our eManga system and to begin reading right away, visit http://www.emanga.com/ and click on the TOKYOPOP tab under "publishers".


About Digital Manga Publishing
Located in Gardena, CA, Digital Manga Publishing is one of the industry's most unconventional and innovative companies, specializing in building corporate and cultural bridges from Japan to the Western Hemisphere - specifically through the licensing, importation and preparation of anime (Japanese animation), manga (Japanese comic books) and related merchandise for the North American mainstream and subculture markets. In this capacity, DMI serves as a catalyst for the expansion of Japanese pop culture institutions into global arenas. The company's imprint line includes DMP: its mainstream imprint, DMP PLATINUM: its classic manga imprint, JUNE´: its boys love imprint, 801 MEDIA: its adult boys love imprint, and DokiDoki: its exclusive co-publishing imprint with Shinshokan Publishing.

For more information about Digital Manga Publishing, visit http://www.digitalmanga.com/ as well as:
http://twitter.com/digitalmanga
http://www.youtube.com/user/junemanga
http://www.youtube.com/user/801media
http://www.youtube.com/user/digitalmanga
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Digital-Manga-Inc/225333830592

About Tokyopop
Founded in 1997 by international media entrepreneur Stu Levy, TOKYOPOP established the market for manga in North America, introducing the term to the English language in the process. Over its history, TOKYOPOP has published over 3000 books, distributed anime and Asian films on home video and television, licensed merchandise to consumer goods companies, created graphic novels of major brands such as Warcraft, Star Trek, SpongeBob SquarePants, and Hannah Montana, and led the way digitally in social media, e-commerce and user-generated content. TOKYOPOP’s brand expanded internationally with offices in Europe and Japan and a network of over 160 partners in more than 50 countries and 30 languages. Taking its Manga Revolution beyond the page, TOKYOPOP has begun producing live-action and animated film and television content based on its extensive intellectual property library, including Priest, Van Von Hunter, and another 20 projects currently in development, along with America’s Greatest Otaku, an 8-episode reality show filmed during its 2010 summer-long, 28-city national tour.

For more information, visit http://www.tokyopop.com/ as well as www.twitter.com/tokyopop and www.facebook.com/tokyopop.

Pop Japan Travel Announces "Totoro's Pathway" Tour

Press release:

Pop Japan Travel introduces Ghibli-themed "Totoro's Pathway" Tour!

Gardena, CA (August 24, 2010) - After a busy summer travel season, Pop Japan Travel is pleased to announce the Totoro's Pathway Tour, a tour that takes visitors beyond urban Tokyo to the locales that inspired the setting for many of the iconic masterworks produced by Studio Ghibli.

With an itinerary that covers more than 700 miles, the Totoro's Pathway tour will lead guests north to the rolling mountains and natural beauty of Kakunodate, which background artist Kazuo Oga incorporated into My Neighbor Totoro. The tour then heads south to Tomo-no-ura, a small coastal fishing village that inspired the look of Ponyo. Along the way, the tour will visit numerous other destinations, including the famous caves and sea views of Matsushima, the Oeshiki Festival in suburban Tokyo, and (of course) the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka. The tour is the first of a brand new lineup of tours announced by Pop Japan Travel for the coming year.

"This tour lets people experience the hospitality of rural Japan while visiting places that have played an instrumental role in some of the world's most famous animated films," says PJT Director of Operations Gigi Guiting, admitting that, "It's something we've been wanting to try for a long time. Besides, if we wanted to tour all the places that inspired the Ghibli films, we'd probably have to organize a world tour!" Evan Miller, PJT Tour Coordinator and former resident of rural Japan himself, echoed that sentiment. "We wanted to give our guests a look at some of Japan's hidden gems that most tourists overlook, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to do that."

The Totoro's Pathway Tour takes off on October 5 and returns on October 14. The cost of the tour includes all accommodations, round trip airfare to Japan from Los Angeles, full tours of every area visited, transportation, professional bilingual tour guides, entrance fees to all activities, a customized guidebook created exclusively for the tour, and more. Guests from other cities may also contact Pop Japan Travel to arrange flights to Japan from other destinations. People interested in taking the tour may visit http://www.popjapantravel.com/ or e-mail go@popjapantravel.com to sign up. All applications are due by September 7.

Since 2003, POP JAPAN TRAVEL has operated countless group tours and custom tours with themes focused on Japanese anime, manga, video games, music, fashion (to name a few) – all at an affordable price. Pop Japan Travel tours offer a careful balance of the hyper-modern world of J-pop culture and the rich traditions of ancient Japan. Additionally, PJT is the ONLY tour agency to provide exclusive experiences such as visits to anime and game studios, meetings with manga artists or designers, and classes at an actual manga school. On every group tour, a friendly, accommodating, knowledgeable, and bilingual guide will make sure your experience in Japan is everything you could ever hope it would be, and more.

Hoopsters in Love

I read The Object Of My Affection (Yaoi) (Yaoi Manga)

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has smart phones apps and they're Free).

Waiting for Death

I read Yokan - Premonition (Yaoi)

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has apps for the iPhone and Palm smart phones and they're FREE FREE FREE!)

Maniac Short-Shot with Pretty Art

I read Maniac Shorts Shot (Yaoi

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has apps for the iPhone and Palm smart phones).

Otodama's Pretty Boys and the Men Who Want to Hurt Them

I read Otodama - Voice From the Dead

The Memories of Dry Heat

I read Dry Heat (Yaoi)

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has an update of it iPhone app).  This is a yaoi manga from June Manga.

You are the Scheming Political Father

I read Millennium Prime Minister Volume 3

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has a new version of its iPhone app).  This is a DokiDoki title from DMP.

Happy Boys Comes to a Happy Ending

I read Happy Boys Volume 2

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has an iPhone app).  This is a DokiDoki title from DMP.

Kabuki Red

I read Kabuki Volume 2: Red (Yaoi) (v. 2)

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which now has an iPhone app).  This is a yaoi manga title from June Manga.

The Vampire Beauty Shop

I read How to Seduce a Vampire (Yaoi)

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which now has an iPhone app).  This is a yaoi manga title from June Manga.

To the Victors Goes Kurashina Sensei

I read Kurashina Sensei's Passion Volume 2 (Yaoi)

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which now has an iPhone app).

Vampire Hunter D on Playstation's Digital Comics

IDW AND DIGITAL MANGA LAUNCH VAMPIRE HUNTER D ON PLAYSTATION’S DIGITAL COMICS


Partnership brings first manga title to PSP™(PlayStation®Portable)

IDW Publishing and Digital Manga Publishing forge ahead in the world of digital comics today by bringing the first manga title to Sony’s hot new PSP Digital Comics offering: Vampire Hunter D, as part of continued growth to become one of the best selling manga titles globally. Vampire Hunter D first gained notoriety when it landed ashore as an anime property in the late 1980’s. Its popularity has continued to grow with subsequent feature anime films, English adapted novel series and jumping boundaries over to manga form. With over 17 million copies sold in books, video, and merchandise worldwide, the Vampire Hunter D property now debuts in this new digital medium.

“We’re very excited to release the very first digital manga on the PSP and to kick off our partnership with Digital Manga,” said Jeff Webber, Director of ePublishing at IDW. “Vampire Hunter D is an excellent story to launch the PSP manga catalogue, offering this popular series for manga fans worldwide through this new platform. We’ll be rolling out the first volume of the series as a new chapter each week for the next six weeks.”

With the success of the Vampire Hunter D manga series, Digital Manga Publishing teams up with IDW Publishing to bring what every manga, sci-fi and horror fan has been waiting for through Sony’s PSP. Set in the far future, Vampire Hunter D chronicles the fallout of massive world war. From the darkness of war’s devastation, mutants and a race of vampires known as the Nobility have spawned. They rule the weak with no remorse. Once bitten by a Nobility, one is cursed to become a member of the undead. Villagers cower in fear, hoping and praying for a savior to rid them of their undying nightmare. All they have to defend against this fate is a different kind of danger – a Vampire Hunter.

“We’re sure every fan’s anticipation will be met with this launch,” commented Fred Lui, VP Production for Digital Manga Publishing. “DMP and IDW are very proud to have a title such as this—so known throughout the years in the anime/manga fandom – be able to debut it as the first of its kind for PSP. This is just the start of many things to come from IDW and DMP.”

The first chapter of Vampire Hunter D came out last week, and was #1 in the US, and #2 in the UK and European Union in sales for the PSP platform. Stay on top of releases of Vampire Hunter D through the Sony PSP blog.

Vampire Hunter D Volume 1: Chapter #1 ($1.99) is now available through the PlayStation®Store here.

Visit IDWPublishing.com to sign up for updates and learn more about the company and its top-selling books. For more information about Vampire Hunter D, visit the official website at www.vampire-d.com

About IDW Publishing
IDW is an award-winning publisher of comic books, graphic novels and trade paperbacks, based in San Diego, California. Renowned for its diverse catalog of licensed and independent titles, IDW publishes some of the most successful and popular titles in the industry, including: Hasbro's The Transformers and G.I. JOE, Paramount's Star Trek; Fox's Angel; the BBC's Doctor Who; and comics and trade collections based on novels by worldwide bestselling author, James Patterson. IDW is also home to the Library of American Comics imprint, which publishes classic comic reprints; Yoe! Books, a partnership with Yoe! Studios; and is the print publisher for EA Comics and ComicMix.

IDW's original horror series, 30 Days of Night, was launched as a major motion picture in October 2007 by Sony Pictures and was the #1 film in its first week of release. More information about the company can be found at IDWPublishing.com.

About Digital Manga Publishing
Located in Gardena, CA, Digital Manga Publishing is one of the industry's most unconventional and innovative companies, specializing in building corporate and cultural bridges from Japan to the Western Hemisphere - specifically through the licensing, importation and localization of anime (Japanese animation), manga (Japanese comic books) and related merchandise for the North American mainstream and subculture markets. In this capacity, Digital Manga Inc. serves as a catalyst for the expansion of Japanese pop culture institutions into global arenas. The company's diverse manga imprint line includes high profile manga/anime titles such as Vampire Hunter D; popular romance titles--Only the Ring Finger Knows; classic iconic titles--Speed Racer Mach GoGoGo; and award nominated titles--Itazura Na Kiss (Young Adult Library Service Assoc.) and Antique Bakery (Eisner Award). Digital Manga Publishing also caters to the young audience with a vast array of educational and instructional line of books with their Edu-Manga series and Let’s Draw Manga series.

Digital Manga Publishing has also established domestic co-publishing ventures with Dark Horse Comics (Trigun, Hellsing, Berserk), as well as foreign co-publishing partnerships with Taiyoh Tosho Publishing, Oakla Publishing, and Shinshokan Publishing--DokiDoki imprint.

For more information about Digital Manga Publishing, visit http://www.digitalmanga.com/

About the Author
Hideyuki Kikuchi is one of Japan’s top horror writers. Over the past two decades, several of his works have been adapted into live-action and anime movies, including Vampire Hunter D and his first novel, Demon City Shinjuku. Drawing from such inspirations as Horror of Dracula, Kikuchi has spawned over 20 novels in his Vampire Hunter D series.

About the Illustrator
Saiko Takaki, a professional graphic designer, illustrator, and manga artist for close to a decade, has worked on numerous projects for the manga and game industry in Japan. A very close friend of the author, Hideyuki Kikuchi, Takaki was commissioned by DMP to undertake the daunting task of adapting his famous novel into manga form. Hand-picked by Kikuchi himself, Takaki has proven to be one of Japan’s up and coming manga horror artists.

"Takaki's artwork is dynamic, expressive and remarkably detailed yet flows effortlessly as if you are watching rather than reading this story, it is engaging and you find yourself at the end before you've even realized it leaving you wanting more." -SciFi Online

"...stands in the very small circle of great vampire comics." -Comic Book Bin

I Reads You Review: FEVERED KISS (Yaoi Novel)

Creators: Arika Kuga with Taishi Zaou (spot illustrations) with Translation by Design (translation)
Publishing Information: DMP/DokiDoki, B&W, paperback, 168 pages, $10.95 (US)
Ordering Numbers: ISBN: 978-1-56970-091-4 (ISBN-13)

Fevered Kiss is a yaoi novel from writer Arika Kuga with full page illustrations from Taishi Zaou (who also produces work under the name “Mikiyo Tsuda”). This is the story of two young men who fall in love and share hot kisses, but can’t (or won’t) speak what is on their minds in matters of love.

College student Satori Okada is a straight-laced guy, but at an end-of-the-year party, he has more drinks than usual. A night of conversation and friendship turns into morning, when Satori wakes up in bed with fellow student Naotaka Asou. They lovemaking is good, and Satori can’t (or won’t) push Asou away. After that night, however, all Asou wants to do is kiss Satori, and they are the most passionate and fevered kisses Satori has every experienced. But what are Asou’s intentions, Satori wonders? Asou won’t go further than kisses, nor does Asou express his feelings.

Then, Satori discovers two people connected to Asou. One is an apparently jealous former lover named Iizuka Shunpei. The other is a beautiful young woman from another college, Yasumi Takahashi, whom Satori sees with Asou. Will these confused lovers ever learn to talk to each other?

In addition to being a yaoi novel, Fevered Kiss is also a light novel, a form of Japanese novel targeted at teen readers. Light novels are also relatively short (essentially a novella) and come with illustrations. This is definitely yaoi – boys’ love featuring explicit sex between male lovers, and using words, writer Arika Kuga creates love scenes that are as steamy as anything a yaoi manga artist can draw. This novel isn’t light on the bump and grind, but it’s not just about sex. Fevered Kiss is deeply romantic, and Kuga fills it with the kind of romantic melodrama and soap opera conflict that will have readers quickly flipping pages.

Taishi Zaou’s 12 or so illustrations add a nice touch to the book, but while Zaou is quite good at drawing characters, this story doesn’t necessarily need her contributions. Fevered Kiss’ words will get you hot all on their own.

Buy Fevered Kiss (Yaoi Novel)

In the Walnut Love Awaits

I read In The Walnut (Yaoi)

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which now has an iPhone app).

Physical Attraction = Booty Call

I read Physical Attraction (Yaoi)

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin.

Reversible Offers Doujinshi Delights

I read Reversible Volume 1 (Yaoi)

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin.  This is a yaoi anthology collected doujinshi (self-published) manga.

Taimashin the Dancer

I finally read Taimashin: The Red Spider Exorcist Volume 1

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin.

My Boyfriend is a Tramp, but He Makes a Good Martini

I read How To Capture a Martini (Yaoi)

I posted the review at the Comic Book Bin.  This is a hot yaoi manga from Makoto Tateno.  It even features incest.