of fandom and BL artists

[meitachi]

You guys, you guys! I TOOK MY LSAT TODAY.

You know what that means? It means it's over and, even if I'm busy with school, I at least won't have Giant Test of Doom That Will Affect My Entire Future looming over my head anymore. So, hiatus? It's over! See my flail, see me cheer! *\o/*

Which means--yes, I know, you're on the edge of your seats--expect a lot of spam from me in the future. :D For one, expect pics (tomorrow-ish) of my new haircut!(!11) and some memes. Lots of memes. I like memes. They are a productive waste of my time. Possibly also fic (psst, go read blind_go. I somehow managed to actually write fic for that, despite being on hiatus and, er, so studiously studying for my LSAT), but we'll see.

And so while I'm recovering from an overload of logic and reasoning from the LSAT, I thought I'd read some p0rn. That made me think too hard on my BL series. So here are some thoughts on my favorite BL manga artists (because you care, lol):


Honami Yukine: She is my unequivocal favorite. Her art isn't the prettiest out there, necessarily, but god it's so proportional and soft and lovely and alkdjld. She's always the artist to someone else's story, which unfortunately means she's often stuck drawing for less-than-amazing storylines, but her art more than makes up for it. I fawn over all of her work (especially the more recent stuff). I am so biased. Rin! and Kiss Scandal (GAY POLITICIANS) are eternal favorites, but I adore Kimi ni wa Katenai too. Oh boys' school drama! I love it.

Yamane Ayano: I know she's really popular (I also know mistress #1 hates her uke-seme stereotypes, especially in regards to SD doujin) but--what can I say? Her boys are pretty. Not just girly pretty either, but pretty with manly muscles and slicked back hair and mafia power and guhhh. Okay, I admit it: I'm utterly superficial. Why are you surprised? I hardly read boyp0rn for the plot, now do I? Her artbook is the loveliest eye-candy ever. I have to admit, though, as much as I love Viewfinder, I love her same-age (schoolboys!) art best. There's just something so hot about friends/rivals/classmates together. ::starry-eyed::

Fujiyama Hyouta: I love her art. She's a recent favorite, actually, but her art--it's just--gahh. It's a lovely balance of realistic (for BL, FOR BL, that is always my qualifer) and pretty eye-candy. I don't know. :| I'm sure I had real reasons but I don't remember them. Junjou seems to be her most popular work, but I liked Stories of Love in 1K Apartment (licensed as Lover's Flat) best. Honki Ja Nee Kara was also sweet and not too sappy or overblown in terms of plot.

Minase Masara: This is all about the eye-candy. Good lord, her proportions are utterly unrealistic. Her boys' bodies makes me a little upset because she makes 'em a little too skinny and not exactly well-defined. I want my men to be a little more manly, please! Her ukes have a tendency of looking very similar too; she likes the dark-haired seme and long-blond-haired uke stereotypes (in both Empty Heart and Lies & Kisses, for example). But her art is so pretty (the eyes, the eyes) and she is so prolific (so many one-shots) that I don't care. Heh. I love her longer works best, though (see above cited series). Gokujou no Koibito is probably my current favorite, but I think that's because it's ongoing...

Takaaki Kusaka: HER ART IS SO CUTE. SO CUTE. I swear to god she has the cutest chibis ever but I can't because there are a couple of others I could list for the same honor. ;__; But, seriously, the first thing that turned me on to her art was You Pray Happiness with the utterly irresistably cute main character alkdjslk. She tends to make them a tad too naive and childlike, but their flailing and blushing is just SO ADORABLE that realism can just be thrown out the window. SO CUTE OMG. She also connects all her series (the characters are all related somehow), which is fantastic and tons of fun, even if it gets a little confusing sometimes. My favorites are You Pray Happiness and Aisareru Hito e Tsugu. :3

Yamoto Nase: CUTEST CHIBIS EVAR. Seriously, seriously. I was so addicted to collecting all of her series a year or two ago but, looking back, I don't love her art as much. It's too cute for me. :\ Her chibis will forever be the cutest things in the world, though. I swear to God. I will always love her for Chintsubu (that's the one with talking penises. Yes, really.) though, LOL. Such mind-bending crack, but omg. I've never seen dicks so cute. (Never thought I'd say those words either...) From what I've seen of the first chapter of Mr. Convenience, her art style's matured some and not as cutesy anymore. I like!

Zaou Taishi: ...her boys' faces are freaking hot. I was reading Bokutachi wa asu ni mukatte ikiru no da yesterday and I realized that, yes, that was very true. Her p0rn is also hot. But what bugs me? Her hands. They are clunky and awkward and not slim and beautiful. THIS BOTHERS ME, OKAY? Let me sulk in peace. Favorites? Bokutachi and Koi wa Ina Mono Myouna Mono.

Tateno Makoto: She is a lovely balance of hot (and unrealistic) boys and cute chibis. Her angry chibis are the best! I remember having read a lot of her works in the past without being terribly impressed, but after Yellow, I seem to have grown to like her boys a lot more. :) She actually has plot too, which is fabulous! She's another one that tends to make her boys look similar, or that might just because she has so many works and boys and only so many ways to distinguish them...her biggest challenge was probably Hero Heel. If you weren't a close observer of hair styles and dialogue, you'd be so confused (reminded me of Boy Princess in that aspect). I like her storytelling though; it's pretty good and has decent emotional impact. Add in her lovely art and p0rn, all is well! Favorite is definitely Muse Gakuen de Aou. Pop idols and boys' schools? Best combo ever!

Sakuragi Yaya: Her boys' hands are HUGE and they're so tall and skinny and they faces are pointy and their mouths are wide and I LOVE HER ART SO MUCH. I can't explain it. Well, it's not like her art's hideous by any means. It's just so ridiculous disproportionate. And yet she makes her boys so hot. Her eyes, her eyes are fucking unbelievable. Gorgeous. So intense and expressive. alksdjfl I love Renai Kyoutei Nukegake Nashi best because it was the first I read and it's so, So Classic. Plus Suwabe Junichi (ATOBE ♥) is in the drama CD. Oh, my soul. P.S. Hot sex, y/y?

Nishimura Shuuko: I didn't start liking her art until afascinante scanlated Kishidou Club. :| I can't explain what I love about her art other than than the hot boy bods and the hot sex they have with each other. I'm pretty sure that's it. Oh, her chibis are cute too...but nothing exceptional. All chibis are cute. IDK I CAN'T EXPLAIN IT. My favorite series is actually Asayake no Diamond (hee, baseball), but Go Con is tons of fun.

Kawai Toko: I should definitely have listed her sooner. Kawai Toko is one of my favoritest (I can't find real words to express this) manga-ka ever. She--her art is kind of loose and scribbly (but not messy), full of angles, but it's still so easy on the eyes. More than that, though, are her stories. Oh god, her stories rip me apart. They make me ;__________; and they make me wibble and the fluff makes me clutch at it to make the hurt go away. Her smut scenes are unfuckingbelievable and her cute boys are just too cute for words. I wish I could pick a favorite. BondZ and Cut are both amazing and hurtful and wonderful, but I also love Cafe Latte Rhapsody [C1 C2] and Ano kado wo magatta tokoro. ::flails:: I can't choose!

Toujou Asami: I love Denkou Sekka Boys. It's among my top favorite BL series because, hee, high school and pop idols and jealousy and tons of fun! Her at was gorgeous back then too--I'm so much less fond of her newer style. I actually kind of hate it. :| Why, Toujou-sensei, why?

Takanaga Hinako: Ahhhh, her art is pretty and cute and so very classic BL-ish! I don't know what else to say about it because among her many works (and all those fangirls who fangirl said works), I've only read the first part of Bukiyou na Silent and The Tyrant Who Falls in Love [V1 V2 V3c1 V3end]. The latter reminds me strongly of Umeda/Akiha of HanaKimi (Doctor/Retard, anyone?), which explains why beckerbell loves them so much. ;) If anyone has the complete scanlations of Bukiyou na Silent, though, I'd love you a lot...

Itsuki Kaname: Her style is hit-or-miss with me. I don't like most of her art (or stories, I guess). Lost Boys was a big fat flop with me, but I adored Tsuki Yadoru (mm, faux-incest), and Futari Yuugi (twincest!). Very unmanly boys, but so pretty to look at it when it hits me right. :D

Yoshinaga Fumi: I--I don't know what to say. Her art is so different and minimalistic and just...different. I lose the words. But I love her art, I do. She is especially good at the French Revolution era, oh yes, Gerard et Jacques, which I love to little pieces. Soflege made me cry like the sap I am, and--yeah. She doesn't do explicit a lot (I don't think?), but she hints very well. And sometimes she suggests very well without the in-your-face-fluids-everywhere kind of thing. Definitely a stand-out.

Kotobuki Tarako: Sex Pistols is her claim to fame. It's also possibly the most cracked-out, best thing EVER. Seriously. I had so much doubt for why people liked this series (and it's definitely not going to be everyone's thing), especially when the art was not amazing, there was furry/bestiality-type-things and mpreg. :| I said. :| :| :| WHY. But when I finally read it, I alksjfld-ed over it and LOL-ed and started to ♥. Yeah. It reduces me to emoticons, haha. I definitely have favorite pairings (Yonekuni/Pres!) and people I don't like (oh whatshisface), and the people connections are so hard to keep straight, but it's such a fun series. I'm so mad that it's licensed. I'm going to have to wait so long for volume 6. ::cry:: (P.S. The art really, really, really grew on me. I can't explain it. Also Ju's Sex Pistols fics are some of my favorite in the world.)

Abe Miyuki: This lady draws my number one favorite BL series of all time: Komatta Toki ni wa Hoshi ni Kike. It is ridiculously PG and long (26 volumes, watch me cry) but the relationship between Kiyomine and Takara puts me beyond words into a state of bliss that nothing will ever describe. I love them so, so much. I love this series to pieces. I love all the minor characters, I love the side-stories, I love the drama CD (with MINAJUN, people, MINAJUN). I hate so much that Peccatore Sanctuary has only scanlated through V9c1 and have pretty much done nothing since February. That is why I have volumes 9-26 in Chinese. Yes, I am that desperate. This is the ultimate story of friendship and dependence and as badly as I want some real kissing and petting and frottage (I love that word ahaha), part of me doesn't even need it because of how touchy-feely and dependent Kiyomine and Takara already are with each other. They're so irreplaceable. ;^; ♥ I want to fic them so badly. Omg.



...so, er, before I shut up:

Chitose Piyoko: I hate her art. I hate her boys and their pointy, unnatural hair. I hate their elongated, disproportionate bodies. I hate their lovely tight asses in the clingiest, most unrealistic pants ever. Hate hate hate. I have no idea why her series are popular at all--okay, I lie. I do know. But it doesn't make me like her any better. Her plot is crap on top of her art. I HATE HER ART ALSKJFLDK. GAHHH. /out of system!

Okay, I'm better now. There are lots of other BL manga artists I like but don't adore enough to babble on about so...;) Talk to me about them! Oh, and I've only linked downloads for series I already had up on MediaFire, so just poke me if you want anything else I've mentioned. Or you could send me stuff too! Pimp me a manga-ka you love? Yesss.


ALSO, GD GOT RID OF HIS GAY-BUN. I LOVE HIS NEW HAIR SO MUCH. (Even though I kind of grew used to his gay-bun and ♥ed at it some, shh.) He's so--unhappy in the newest performance (MusicBank 280907) though. D: Unenthusiastic and quiet. What's wrong, baby?

Everyone should also watch Attack on the Pin-Up Boys. Funniest movie ever, y/y? (There's even plot! I swear!) It taught me all 13 Super Junior members' names! I totally ship Pin-Up Boys AU!Donghae/Kibum. Do not attempt to persuade me otherwise, muwahaha.

SO FLIST, HOW ARE YOU? ♥

Comments

[fishingfor.livejournal.com]

I HAVE, LIKE, 3 DBSK SONGS. :| They frightened me away after "Balloons". My friends are working on me, but I'm too entranced by Big Bang!

[loika.livejournal.com]

Congrats! :D ♥

[meiface.livejournal.com]

Thank you! But, shh, I am crying over Crisis Core now. ;_______;

[telrunya.livejournal.com]

Congratulations! 8D

Wow, you know you have read enough yaoi when you read this post and can identified all the mangakas without effort. *hides* But hey, have you read anything by Mika Sadahiro?

[meiface.livejournal.com]

Yay, thank you. Of course, congrats should maybe be saved until after I get my scores...>_>

Hee, oh us BL fangirls and name-recognition. I never used to know these artists but now I do! And yes, I've read some things by Sadahiro, but I don't know...I think she's too kinky for me generally. :| There are a few of her works I like but most of them are not my thing, I guess. And I can't decide if I love or dislike her art. I'm so confused!

[aka-anonymous.livejournal.com]

Firstly--YAY! Welcome back!

Second, I don't really keep track of mangaka names, except for a special few, most of whom you have listed here and with good reason. But one is missing, what do you think of Naono Bohra? Just out of curiosity.

[meiface.livejournal.com]

Ahh, I knew I would be called out for Naono Bohra & Youka Nitta--I'm sure I should be ashamed of myself as a BL fangirl but I never got into either of their works. I don't know what it is! My initial (and superficial) reaction is that I don't like the art but I shouldn't let that bias me since I love FAKE and its art...I suppose I just never found a series with a story I really liked that would help me overcome the art? If you have any to rec me, please do! :D

[loveblackcoffee.livejournal.com]

mei...i have to admit i read like 3 of your lil reviews and got bored

stop fangirling and go out there and get a life...sheesh

[meiface.livejournal.com]

Psh, why would I need to have a life? I just finished my LSAT. Today was my day of doing nothing productive! It's fantastic. Ah, 2D fandom, I've missed you. I will go back to RL tomorrow. Ew.

[keelieinblack.livejournal.com]

Okay, you don't even know me, but I completely support your Chitose Piyoko hate. The bad sex scenes! The weirdly flat-looking faces of all her characters! And yet she has so many fans that I'd thought that I must have been missing something, so thanks for speaking up and letting me know that I'm not totally crazy in my disdain for her.

I, er, happened to have all the scanlations of Bukiyou na Silent near to hand, so you can grab it here (http://www.sendspace.com/file/mq4k0s) if you like.

Also, I think Yoshinaga Fumi tends to save most of the explicitness for her doujinshi.

Congrats on finishing the LSATs!

[meiface.livejournal.com]

Eeee, I think it is Vitally Important that we get to know each other now. :D For you have sent me shiny manga and also agree with me about Chitose Piyoko hate. Every time her stuff is posted on yaoi_daily, there are pages of comments on how hot her boys are, and I just want to complain about how hot they really, really aren't.

Also, I think I need to hunt for some Yoshinaga Fumi doujin. Do you know what she does 'em for?

And thank you! :D

[osoreranai.livejournal.com]

Another one bites the dust! Nicely done with the test and the taking and the taking of the test and ish.

You holdin' up all right over at that little school of yours?

[meiface.livejournal.com]

I'm holding up! Still alive and kicking at any rate. With the LSAT off my back, I feel like I have so much more free time--I don't, of course, but it's still a lot less pressure. :D

And how 'bout you?

[meritjubet.livejournal.com]

That's great :) sadly, I will be going on a semi-hiatus starting tomorrow. Gah.

...wow. You've read so many. I will have to bookmark this page so when my hiatus is over, I will have lots of BL to look forward to. Pr0n as motivation! Y/Y? XD

[meiface.livejournal.com]

Oh no, we've just missed each other! D: Well, I hope you take care and focus on whatever in your life that you need to focus on. I send love from my corner of the world! ♥

Heh, it's over many years that I've read, collected, discarded, and come to form opinions on all these BL manga and their artists. Definitely come back here for recs if you want. P0rn is the best motivator! That is what I did to get through my LSAT lol, I told myself: "After this you can have a nap! P0rntime and a nap!"

[sapphynashi.livejournal.com]

DUDE I WAS THINKING OF MAKING A BL POST TODAY TOO. :D Now I can just refer to yours! XD *lazy*

Oh, do read more of Bukiyou na Silent! I just caught up, and eeeeeee. Socute!

Don't share the love for Denkou Sekka Boys though. :\ I mean, I loved Ritsu, but uhh, the other guy, what's-his-face Whiny Uke was everything I hated about well, whiny ukes.

[meiface.livejournal.com]

LET ME GO COMMENT ON YOUR POST. I knew I left some things off!

I don't know why but Kodaka never bothered me in Denkou Sekka Boys. Not like Norio or mongoose-face in Sex Pistols, or...a lot of other whiny ukes. :/ My affections are strange and inconsistent?

[scorch66.livejournal.com]

OMG! You didn't mention Youka Nitta's Haru wo Daiteita...:(
Iwaki & Katou deserve some love too, but other than that I think you listed pretty much all the good BL mangas.;)

[meiface.livejournal.com]

Ahhh, see, I hate to admit it but I'm not a Youka Nitta fan? D: D: D: Someone has to explain the appeal to me! I--I don't know. Her art turned me off. It was actually the hair and the excessive highlights on the dark hair which made the guy look...really weird. But if you want to convince as to why Haru wo Daiteita is awesome, please try! I'd love to see why everyone loves it so.

[kiizu.livejournal.com]

:O :O :O Komatta Toki ni wa Hoshi ni Kike!!!! Oh, please, please, please link me to the Chinese scans, I only have up to the first chapter of volume 9.
Come to think of it, I probably got to know this series thanks to you. ♥

[onew.livejournal.com]

oooh, congratulations!! :D i'm sure you did well in the exam. :D
and oh, kihae~ :D my icon's killing the pair (yay for eunhae!), but god, i love kihae. :D may i interest you in some videos showcasing their uh... their being them? ^^;

i obviously fail at persuading people. xD

[meiface.livejournal.com]

Eunhae is...Eunhyuk and Donghae? I'm still learning! You may link videos, but I can't promise anything! The movie made me ship KiHae for life, hee. (I mean, to the point of wanting to fic for a fandom I'm not even in! That's something. :O!)

[pastel-colours.livejournal.com]

Congrats on finishing your LSAT! I know that I, personally, over-stress about big exams like that -_-' I feel like a huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders after finishing them xD

Nekota Yonezou (or Yamada D. Yonezou, whatever she wants to be called) is one of my favourite BL mangaka. Plus, she writes hot PoT doujinshi *__* It's basically all Inui/Kaidou BUT INUI/KAIDOU. I would name some more mangaka, but you already have them all listed.

[meiface.livejournal.com]

I am so, so bad about following PoT doujin. Actually, I'm generally just really bad about reading doujinshi, lately. There are a few I made exceptions for but now I'm just alkdjlfd over canon stuff, haha. Er. Strangely, I have a lot higher tolerance for crappy plotlines in manga/dj than in fic. Like the cheesy, stereotypical SasuNaru stuff--or event the TezuFuji! :x

Alskjfkd but there was this manga-ka, Hirotaki Kisaragi (Hiromu Kashiwagi), who did the BEST HYOUTEI EVER. Except it was Kabaji/Atobe. But the art was so amazing that I bought it. ;_; I should rec it and make people read it.

Also, thank you so much for your congrats! ♥ I'm with you--so stressful! I'm really glad that's all done with now!

[meiface.livejournal.com]

♥♥♥ Thank you! Hopefully there will be more reason for celebration in 3 weeks. ::crosses fingers::

[ch-ar-me.livejournal.com]

CONGRATULATIONS!!! YOU'RE DONE!!! XDDD ♥♥♥♥

I am...so BAD with mangaka names. Actually I'm bad with manga titles too *heads desk*. One I definitely recognized though was Empty Heart by Minase Masara ♥♥

I LOVE THAT SO MUCH. I saw the manga on sale on a local bookstore that sells discounted books. WHY THEY HAVE RANDOM YAOI TITLES I HAVE NO IDEA. And it was pretty cheap too, around...*computes exchange rate* $3 or so. I bought it for the mere reason it was BL, and the prettiness killed me. *______*

I share the Youka Nitta non-fangirling. A friend gave me a CD containing purely her works, and I just..browsed it abit XD Not really a big fan of Haru wo Daite, even if my RL friends really love it XD;;

And...who is Chitose Piyoko? Enlighten me on the hate ^^;;

*goes off to save the wonderful MF links*

[meiface.livejournal.com]

Hurray, thank you! Also, Minase Masara is clearly awesome. You're so lucky you found a copy of her work! I swear I never see the awesome yaoi titles--other than those from DMP/June. The titles from the smaller publishers are so hard to find. :(

I'm going to give Youka Nitta another chance but I don't see the love happening. Idk. Chitose Piyoko either, gah. afascinante has some of her works, if you want to just lookit at it. They have downloads too!

♥ Enjoy the dls!

[emeraldcrystal.livejournal.com]

HAHAHAHA. SUJU! I'll ship Pin-Up Boys AU!Donghae/Kibum, but only if it's AU. Otherwise, EUNHAE. Yes. And yay for finishing LSATs! I don't actually know what they are, but congrats!

Er. When it comes to BL, I have a little more to say:
Firstly, I have to completely agree with what you said for Yamato Nase--her art is waay too cute. I really kinda dislike it. Haven't seen her new works though. From the one's you've listed, I have some favs: Kawai Toko, Honami Yukine, Fujiyama Hyouta, Abe Miyuki, Kotobuki Tarako, Sakuragi Yaya, Tojou Asami, Tateno Makoto. The other's are just so-so for me. Yamane is too popular for me, I think. And some of the I just haven't read enough of (Takaaki Kusaka). And some of them, I just don't like their art (Zaou Taishi). But I've said too much so I'll shut up now.

[emeraldcrystal.livejournal.com]

Wait, I've totally missed Yoshinaga Fumi and Takanaga Hinako. Heh.

[rain-streaked.livejournal.com]

this is like... *checks date* two months late, but eeee, thank you so much for this post. ♥ just what i needed to ease myself back into the 2D world. :D i hope you don't mind me snagging more than a few links?

[meiface.livejournal.com]

Ahh, see me reply to comments post-hiatus, really. I am more than happy for you to snag links. Snag more! BL is to be shared! alkdjfl and I am insanely happy because KomaHoshi (do you read KomaHoshi? Have you?) has now officially been made a shared project between Peccatore-Sanctuary, Bliss, and Biblo Eros, meaning that it is actually going to get worked on now!! \:D/

[celerywench.livejournal.com]

MEEEEEEEEI ♥ omg how did I miss your flail about BL artists D;;; some of my faaaavs too ♥ I would marry Toko Kawaii if I was a lesbian and gay marriage was legal! lol. Seriously though, she is the only mangaka whose english titles I have to have ALL of. Especially Loveholic!!!♥

and I some point I will probably beg you to reup some of those links =DDD

anywho, as to why I was trapsiding through the backlogs of your lj: WHERE IS THAT GAY PIRATE BOOK YOU RECCED D; *waaaants* I think I can sneak it into my book list for school lol

[meiface.livejournal.com]

Ahaha, the gay pirate book is called Brethren by W.A. Hoffman. Google or Amazon search for it and you will definitely find it. It's awesome. ♥

If you need me to reup any of these, just shout. I am always happy to spread the love of gay gay BL. It's awesome.