Generally speaking, soft to hardcore men on men relationships in Japanese animation (anime) and comics (manga) are labeled as Yaoi. In a typical male on male plotline, there is always the dominant (Seme) and submissive (Uke) pairing. Tamer romances – labeled as Boy’s Love – simply insinuations of relationship between two male characters. Yaoi and Boy’s Love have been hugely popular among women consumers as these are often written by women for women. There is also Gei Comi (Gay Comics) written by men for men. Where ‘Boy’s Love’ and ‘Yaoi’ often depict relationships mimicking heterosexual dynamics (masculine + feminine), Gei Comi generally focuses on pairing at an equal level. Examples of some well-known shonen ai stories that have made it to the mainstream audience are Loveless, Saint Seya.

Women on women relationships or transgendered characters in Japanese anime are more complex to explain since lesbians and transgenders often figure prominently in pornographic materials.

Though transgendered characters appearing often in Japanese animation, strictly speaking, there are no firmly established genre for transgendered characters as their male or female counterparts. However, transgenders in entertainment has been a part of Japanese culture as far back as the 17^th century with Kabuki .Generally, transgendered characters often provide comedic relief or serve as basic of a comedic plot. Examples of well-know anime with central transgendered characters are Ranma ½, Simoun, Tokyo Godfathers, Kashimashi. More often, MTF or FTM characters are categorized either in the Yaoi (Ritsu Sohma from Fruit Basket) or Yuri (Utena in Revolutionary Girl Utena) genre rather than its own.

Yuri started appearing in 1970s in the hands of mangaka (comic authors) such as Riyoko Ikeda (Rose of Versailles, Claudine, Oniisama e) and Royoko Yamagishi (The Two in the White Room). Unfortunately, the recurring theme of these novels has the lesbian protégé villains or suffer unsavory endings. In the 1990s, more positive-themed yuri become available such as the sisterly love-laden ‘Maria-sama ga Miteru’. Though at the same time, lesbian characters are used as a shock-factor in mainstream anime such as ‘Ghost in the Shell’s Motoko Kusanagi (read the original Japanese manga), ‘Gunsmith Cats’ Goldie, Misty and Rally Vincent. In the early 2000s, publications such Yuri Hime helped introduce works by Rica Takashima, Aikiko Morishima, Eriko Tadeno to name a few which depicts down-to-earth lesbian relationships.

With Japanese syndications such as Yuri Hime (was Yuri Shimai – geared towards a female audience), Yuri Hime S (geared towards a male audience), Eternal Sisters as well as American publishers like Seven Seas Entertainment ) and ALC Publishing , yuri is getting easier and easier to come by. Titles like Hayate Blade & Revolutionary Girl Utena have definitely made it in the mainstream. Good quality English scanlated Yuri material from stellar sites such as ililicious.net, Wings of Yuri, Horobi no Michi, Tranquil Spring, Dynasty Scans also help expose Yuri to the people in the know.

As with all the dedicated fansubbers and scanlators, if you like what you read/watched, be sure to buy the work when it gets commercially published to show your support for the genre!

Ana A hopes that talented readers will be inspired to submit Malaysian-themed yuri stories for publication in ALC’s upcoming 7th Yuri Monogatari book. She would have liked to submit something too but life is prevented her from doing so…

This is footage of rehearsals from American Vampire by the Wicked Boy Ballet Co, choreographed by Trevor Little, performed by Trevor Little and David Dubois. Apparently, it’s not just about vampires, it’s about the shape of the American soul.

Both dancers are in beautiful form, ravishing each other through dramatic choreography. The interaction between them, viewed as a romantic relationship, looks like one wraught with grief and pathos, the struggle for dominance - actually, I kid. Watching guys suck at each other’s necks, the only thing that makes me call it possibly latent homosexuality is that they’re vampires – these might not be gay vampires, they could just be doing it for the narrative! I’m tempted to make Anne Rice / yaoi manga comparisons.

Anyway, that’s not what matters – the dancing is gorgeous. I’ve love to see it.

More about the dance company here:

The Wicked Boy Ballet Co. is a contemporary men’s dance/theatre group based in Boston, MA. It’s mission is to explore story telling techniques through dance from a modern perspective, and to develop the internet as a unique artistic medium for the performing arts. 

WHO ARE WE?

Well…WE’RE WICKED

As in: wicked bad…or…wicked cool…or…”the wintah in Bahston is wicked bittah”…or…”I can kick my foahead wicked hahd!!!”

WE’RE BOYS.

‘Nuff said. We’re not opposed to girls. We like girls…well…some of us, at least. They’re useful. Sometimes. 

WE LIVE IN BOSTON.

So, you know…we eat at Dunkin’ Donuts a lot, and like, we hate giving directions… and we’ll tailgate your ass like a mo-fo.

WE’RE REALLY REALLY SEXY.

Trust us. Studies have conclusively shown that the Wicked Boys are, in fact, one of the leading causes of puberty in America today. No one wants to talk about it, but it’s true.

Would we lie?

(from their About Us page)

With a name like Wicked Boy Ballet Co, what’s not to like?