#bear notes

[kumash0ck]

Obata Rui is putting out another yuri series soon (looking forward to a translation!!) so I figured it's a good time to revisit their previous yuri work: An OL at her Limit and a College Girl!

It's a super quick read (reread it on my lunch break) and really sweet premise-- OL who's super reliable and cool at work is actually a mess and a bit of crybaby at home befriending a college student who's very gentle and doting but is really a bit of a tease. It has the limited color palette super popular with works that start off as pixiv/twitter weeklise that really adds to the charm too (LOVE orange).

Not a whole ton to discuss but it's only two volumes so why not check it out. If you want a fluffy slice of life yuri that's super low stakes and is super pretty to look at then this is def the sweet treat for you!

[loveisalwaystheanswer]

I see that the only reason Syd can't decide to work in another restaurant is that because feelings are involved. She can't be rational about this one. Because, u know... Carmy. And if it weren't for him, she would leave the bear right away.

Our baby is struggling sooooo fucking much. The thought of leaving him just hurts her. This is the battle between her heart and her mind.

[kumash0ck]

Sweet Heat!

New sports yuri is currently getting scanlated and it's exactly what I've been looking for in a sports yuri. First of all it's pro wrestling which is so rife with insane rivalries and hot and heavy physical contact and second it has a running wizard of oz theme between the two rivals which unfortunately is a direct pointed attack on my interests.

The series follows Saeko, the heel and former boxer, and Haruka, the face and reason Saeko could have a place to continue her career, who are the most bitter of rivals in the ring but are secretly dating once their masks come off.

Now hidden relationships are a delight for me so long as both parties are on the same page about it, but given how easy it'd be to cross a line mid fight I do enjoy their signal to slip into work mode. Having something nonverbal but innocuous to do in a pinch is clever and I hope it does make an appearance in more chapters (and maybe gets noticed by another wrestler for tension sake).

As of writing this there's only 3 chapters out now so it's still early in there series, but I can't wait to have more wrestlers introduced and more rivalries and story lines to get spun (within the ring) just like in actual pro wrestling. If they introduce families as part of a story line that would be an automatic win in my book for dedication to the craft.

Since Saeko had a career before pro wrestling I'm also excited to see her former fans/haters from her boxing days stir up drama now that she's switched paths. I can definitely foresee a roadblock in her relationship with wanting to stay an exclusive heel to BFly-Cat but knowing that locking them into those roles could make it harder to branch out down the line, especially if either one actually aims for the top--only time will tell!

It doesn't have an official translation yet so godspeed and many thanks to Kirin-Kun for picking up ANOTHER series on top of all the other manga in translation. They don't have a tip jar to my knowledge but if you're liking the series, purchasing it through official means helps leverage for an official English release so check it out!!

[kumash0ck]

New Series to Watch Out For!

Another chapter of You Started This, So You Better Finish It dropped this past week and I'll be keeping an eye on how it goes!

I enjoyed Touma's previous work Just the Two of Us (the pre-serialization twoshot was excellent!), so I was excited when the first chapter of this series released.

Love that from the bat it dove right into exploring comphet. I'll admit the trope of paid girlfriend falling in love with the client can personally turn me off a series by virtue of how unrealistic they are, but I do enjoy stories exploring the dynamic when it comes to handling a first time female client and the new feelings that can unlock.

I especially love this brief bit of Reina going down the rabbit hole of these new feelings, something I find more modern yuri series incorporating. It adds a splash of comedy for every reader who's done this at a similar turning point in life and no doubt knows exactly where this is headed for our protagonist.

Touma's art style is gorgeous and I love the extra lines used in panels to place emphasis on a character, especially in hair or blushes--really makes everything pop! Not to mention how the artist draw hands... I'm always a sucker for the smaller details like including fingernails or the textures on rings. It's another layer of care that isn't required but certainly appreciated!

Also huge fan of the simplified style--the round hands are very cuteful and add to the charm of these scenes!

And as always shout out to the scanlation group (person)! I appreciate the time Rehashed Scans took to translate and clean the SFX. It's an often overlooked or unsung task but it really adds to the atmosphere of each page so I really respect the work!

There's only 2 chapters currently so def a quick read for the time being but I look forward to seeing how this series continues!

[kumash0ck]

Idolatry

Another manga that has really popped off on twt lately that is a super fun read is Idolatry by Shin Ootaka (artist Homare). It follows Junna Harumi, a die hard stan of the idol Tsukishiro Fuwari. After her oshi's group disbands and she deduces her fave will be part of an upcoming idol audition show (whose top 5 will get to debut), she goes through absurd lengths of net stalking to be able to boost Fuwari's odds of winning.

I want to be clear, Junna is def a bit of a creep (really just shy of a yandere since she's not very physically violent or in direct contact with her obsession) and the series doesn't shy away from that; she's ready to do just about anything if it means her fave gets the limelight she thinks she deserves. There's a lot of gap moe in her being cute and so utterly+earnestly love struck by Fuwari then turning around and blackmailing someone to get an inside guy for production.

In a competition with 99 other girls and skills of someone who's way too online (def NOT an idol), it's really interesting seeing Junna line up all the dominoes and knock it down for a big payoff. There's no doubt she's going to come up with some wildly convoluted plans during each stage of tryouts and more to get what she wants, it's only a matter of how far the author wants to push it.

That said, she's not the only crazy girl in the series. More idols get introduced once filming begins and the nonchalant #1 is quickly established as a very active menace in her plans.

Also it must be said but I love how Lisa's eyes are drawn. I'm pretty sure it's a stylistic choice and not representing smth like heterochromia but as a big fan of asymmetric character design I LOVE it. All our main idol characters have different designed pupils but her's just really stick to me--more is more is better imo so a quirky choice like this for the main rival is great!

If the actions of the mc put you off then I wouldn't pick it up hoping for immediate yuri (like with many mega idol fans, Junna mostly wants to see her fave succeed rather than get in a personal relationship for now). That said, if you want to see some ridiculous overplanning and micromanaging just to create the most opportunity for Fuwari to shine brightest, then this is def a great read.

It's a pretty short series (12 chapters translated as of writing this) so there hasn't been a ton of development just yet but it's def a fun series to keep an eye on!

[kumash0ck]

The Wolf Steals the Sun (Manhwa)

Read a quick short series (9 chapters) after seeing screenshots of the beautiful art on twt.

The Wolf Steals the Sun (nsfw) is abt a princess who's getting married off by her mother, but her attention is quickly caught by a descendant of fenrir who's gets passed over as potential suitor.

They nonetheless become entangled and hijinks ensue.

Truly the plot feels quite rushed and some of the character development (or really just the character motives) comes across as awkward and forced. If this was a fuller series of maybe 30 chapters I feel like it could've been a really great story about starcrossed lovers. It's a real shame bc I am quite a sucker for fantasy manhwa with an established religion that is typically the source of conflict and magic surrounding beastmen and the likes. I was really expecting the religion to play a bigger role given how Charlotte was supposedly a princess for the people kind of holy maiden but it was mentioned and then quickly forgotten. Surprisingly, homophobia doesn't even seem to be a problem in this world as no one bats an eye on the girl/girl action which is a plus but you can't help but roll your eyes at the overplayed beastmen are savages trope.

Like I'm not above reading what equates to a dime paperback romance novel with a loosely established setting and overdone tropes--I'd read 1000 more GL series just like it I just wish it was paced a touch better with more chapters.

That said the art is quite gorgeous and it's such a brief series that it's a great quick read if you've got a free hour. The biggest appeal is of course that it's 100% nsfw and nearly every chapter gets some action, especially when Skadi wolfs out 🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️

Overall, the story is perfectly mediocre but the art is 10/10. Check it out if you have time!

[kumash0ck]

ik Kuzushiro's horror yuri oneshot is making the rounds (well deserved it's a good read if you haven't checked it out yet) but I want to highlight another oneshot that's been fantranslated recently!

Corpse to corpse by Katahiko is a pretty blood story about a girl on the run from her loansharks getting picked up by a vampire. The two bond over the empty feeling they both experience, being a part of this world but not really living in it.

The cover alone is especially captivating and overall I think the style is very sleek! I also really enjoy how the frames were done in the flashback portions--I know a black background is nothing new but I like the contrast the double white lines provided. Overall, really hope this artist continues in the field and can get more published.

[kumash0ck]

Stupid Woman 26:00

This has been on my reading list for a while because the art of this series is so gorgeous and after finally reading through what's been translated I can say with confidence this is one of those series with so much potential that I gotta invest at 10 chapters. This is less of a review and more just comments I have on the current translated chapters.

The series follows Atsuko and Yuri, two former classmates (not quite friends) who meet again after their 15 yr class reunion. The series kicks off with a super interesting start (and content warning for domestic abuse): with Atsuko kills Yuri's husband who had been physically abusing her. But even though Atsuko says it's because he was a scumbag who deserved it, her seemingly noble act is just barely hiding an ulterior motive-- not necessarily love for Yuri, but definitely something that's hiding just beyond the reader's view. The first volume has some solid character building as the two flee to Vietnam to avoid arrest, and while the shared duress helps them bond at first, there's definitely some lingering tension that blows up by chapter 10.

Yuri is an especially flawed character. She's brash, stubborn and sometimes narrow minded. She's suspicious of men but will turn around and defend them if they show her positive attention. This is exactly the kind of complex woman I want and I will defend her even if she is annoying because women should be allowed to be annoying as fuck. Not to say all roads lead back to her abuse, but I think her contradictory behavior in chapter 10 is very indicative of a woman whose self worth has been beaten like hell and is terrified of being singled out and othered after years of just being a housewife. She won't defend herself when a stranger calls her stupid or acts rude because it's safer to roll over and defer to someone if it means keeping the peace.

The things Atsuko said weren't untrue even if her delivery was harsh. I'm quite glad she didn't try to act like the bigger person/break out in therapist speak and just flat up said what she was feeling even if it was a rude wakeup call for Yuri. I can't agree with either person's physical digs but to be clear, they're both pretty rough characters. They don't do good things all the time but that's what makes it suuuuch a good read. Sometimes you gotta be scratching at the wall in frustration when characters do things that don't make sense or make you cringe from how wrong of a choice it is. If you want two complicated adult women thrown in a chaotic and stressful situation making choices that may not be the best but are what they decide in the moment given the pressure of murder following them then this is def a great series to pick up. It's a bit slow to update but the one scanlator already does so many other series too so no rush in that respect--it doesn't take long to reread when a new chapter drops!

(As an aside, I think it's quite unique to have the story take place in Vietnam especially with the added layer of commentary the main characters have about the country. I'm not Vietnamese but I am Filipino and the way the two discuss the cheapness/quality of the goods and services of the country is so similar to what I've experienced as a pinay it's kinda crazy to see it in a yuri manga! I don't think the series is trying to be a commentary on anything in particular in this regard, but I can't name another series off the top of my head that would even show the biases some east asians hold toward SEAs. It's still early to see but I'm curious if this will ever get touched again since it doesn't look like the protags will be leaving the country any time soon.)