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Jason Thompson's House of 1000 Manga - est em




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Merida



Joined: 21 Feb 2012
Posts: 1945
PostPosted: Thu Jul 19, 2012 6:02 am Reply with quote
Quote:
certainly better than Ristorante Paradiso, where the old guys are sexy and weathered-looking but actually don't act very mature or introspective (for example, why are they still waiters at age 50?).


Well, why not? Maybe they actually love their jobs?

That aside, nice article! I really enjoy est em's art and storytelling. Smile
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Brainchild129



Joined: 09 Aug 2011
Posts: 307
PostPosted: Thu Jul 19, 2012 10:13 am Reply with quote
I love her works too - she's a major step above a lot of BL authors.

I discovered her work by picking up a copy of Red Blinds the Foolish at a bookstore. Imagine my shock when it was full not of bishies, but realistic looking men! Ones with normal proportions and muscles and even body hair! It also took some getting use to her writing style too, where a lot is told through subtext and quiet moments, as well as the short story anthology structure, but I've come to appreciate her visuals and writing style, and I'm glad more of her work is getting out there through J-Manga.

You know, I was never much of a yaoi reader until I started reading this column, but it has yet to steer me wrong in that regard. It led me to picking up works by Fumi Yoshinaga, Hinako Takanaga, and hopefully it will lead others to seek out est em's work, to show that yaoi can step beyond all its usual tropes.
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Escapingfate



Joined: 25 Aug 2011
Posts: 3
PostPosted: Thu Jul 19, 2012 11:24 am Reply with quote
I'm really happy to see that people are starting to catch onto Est Em! I recently discovered her and I didn't think that many people would appreciate her style, even though I fell in love with it.
Age Called Blue is my favorite Smile

I'm glad that you wrote an article about her Jason!
I really hope people who read it are influenced to read her stories and spread their impressions via word of mouth. I would love to see her stories appreciated more around the net.
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Keichitsu0305





PostPosted: Thu Jul 19, 2012 11:25 am Reply with quote
Est-em is probably one of the few BL artists I admire when it comes to art and storytelling. I find her lines quite appealing and lovely like she actually tries to draw realistic looking men. Always great to see manga where the artist actually knows how to draw hands, heads, torsos, and legs using some form of proportion while still making the characters look attractive.

Jason Thompson wrote:
There's a dark, melancholy tone in est em's work: not gratuitous rape & trauma like some mangaka, but self-destructive characters and themes of love and death. She doesn't go for explicit sex or violence or bodily fluids (sorry, hardcore BL readers), but her characters' slim, wiry bodies soak up a surprising amount of emotional pain.


Not many artist, BL or not, can accomplish this task without resorting to old worn out cliches which can, eventually, come off as some sort of superficial excuse to get the main couple to 'comfort each other' later on. I should know, I used to read those kinds of stories before taking BL manga more seriously.

So great article, as always!
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Snomaster1
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Joined: 31 Aug 2011
Posts: 2793
PostPosted: Thu Jul 19, 2012 2:28 pm Reply with quote
Well,call me old-fashioned but I'm no yaoi or yuri fan. In fact,I tend to stay away from that genre as much as possible.

Last edited by Snomaster1 on Wed Jul 25, 2012 2:08 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Brand



Joined: 30 Jan 2006
Posts: 1028
PostPosted: Thu Jul 19, 2012 4:03 pm Reply with quote
Merida wrote:
Well, why not? Maybe they actually love their jobs?


Also, I'd assume working at a what is probably a four star restaurant for upper class patrons is very different then working at the local mom & pop dinner.

I love all of her work. I have everything she has done published in English. Great stories and wonderful art, it is a nice change of pace from the norm.
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Uzukiki



Joined: 19 Jul 2012
Posts: 1
PostPosted: Thu Jul 19, 2012 4:41 pm Reply with quote
Forgot to mention the other two Est Em digital licenses through Digital Manga Guild.
Kine In!: http://www.amazon.com/Kine-In-Yaoi-Manga-ebook/dp/B0083NTNAE/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1342733943&sr=8-3&keywords=est+em
and
ULTRAS
http://www.amazon.com/ULTRAS-Yaoi-Manga-ebook/dp/B008AQ5AOM/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1342734007&sr=1-3

and Seduce me After the Show has a digital release too.
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RestLessone



Joined: 02 Aug 2009
Posts: 1426
Location: New York
PostPosted: Fri Jul 20, 2012 1:02 am Reply with quote
While I was initially attracted to her work, as her character designs are very nice...I just couldn't get past the whole bullfighting deal. I grew hopeful when people said it was portrayed negatively, but knowing that she really enjoys it has turned me off again.

Still, I like her art style. It's rather fresh and different. I'd be interested in reading that interview if it's ever translated.
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infiltration.cru



Joined: 28 Jan 2012
Posts: 321
PostPosted: Fri Jul 20, 2012 6:43 am Reply with quote
great column, as always.
it's good to read stuf like this once in a while since one can easily get dismayed when looking at boys love manga sections in german comic shops. it's a huge thing here but almost anything i read into until now has been horribly run-of-the-mill stuff with horrible art or just as horrible characterizations.

i may just have to import some of it to see if it's up my alley or not.
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IkariGendo



Joined: 05 May 2009
Posts: 102
PostPosted: Fri Jul 20, 2012 10:14 am Reply with quote
Snomaster1 wrote:
Well,call me old-fashioned but I'm no yaoi or yuri fan. In fact,I tend to stay away from that genre as much as possible.


So don't read it then? I don't read BL stuff, but I've recently read her manga Udon no Onna, while not mentioned in the article, it's a nice 1 volume josei story, decided to read it after watching Natsuyuki Rendezvous (another title with a relationship where the woman is older than the guy) and was pleasantly surprised. enough to spark my interest in her other works, despite the BL theme.

Interesting article, what I read about Golondrina's story in a spanish review makes more sense now, I'll have to check what's available, I think the last time I checked amazon listed some of her works OOP.
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Chrno2



Joined: 28 May 2004
Posts: 6171
Location: USA
PostPosted: Sun Jul 22, 2012 10:03 am Reply with quote
I have yet to actually flip through a work of est em. I had heard about her some years ago on here and some other blog posts. I was actually surprised at her work being published in "bara" publications. I will admit from what I have seen of her work it's really gorgeous stuff.
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Snomaster1
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Joined: 31 Aug 2011
Posts: 2793
PostPosted: Wed Jul 25, 2012 2:07 pm Reply with quote
Well,IkariGendo,the reason I don't read BL and GL manga is it's not my thing. If I liked romances,I'd be more into the traditional romances,boy-girl romances,not yaoi and yuri. They're just not for me.
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