Forum - View topicIs this upcoming manga release a good idea?
|
Goto page Previous 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Next |
| Author | Message | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
omar235
 Posts: 1572 Location: Florida, Jacksonvile |
|
|||
I actually meant as far as a sextual relationship EX. fondeling, kissing, passionate hugs. I can't remember if they kissed in Loveless but it didn't get crusified for any of the content it had in there, but like you said Ritsuka is older than the girl in this manga but still I think that as long as it doesn't go beyond huging. Kissing...I don't know it could get burned for it but if the guy doesn't do what the girl wrote on the paper it should be ok. 
When I was in the fourth grade I knew what ejaculate meant. so why not her...only a year younger. |
||||
|
||||
HitokiriShadow
 Posts: 6251 |
|
|||
|
I think the age is part of the issue, but less so than the fact that there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of sexual content in the main couple in Loveless, both from what you said and what I've heard from others (I've only seen the first episode from a preview disc and I've only seen some scans of the yuri portion of the manga). While the kissing may between a 20+ year old man and a middleschooler may be a bit disturbing (along with other aspects of the relationship), its not the kind of stuff you see in Kodomo no Jikan.
|
||||
|
||||
|
Swissman
Posts: 768 Location: Switzerland |
|
|||
If the information on her private homepage is true, she sure is. And after having read both volumes, it doesn't surprise me. Like I said, the content is way more decent than it appears to be and also *could* be. I'd call the relationship between Rin and teacher Aoki "cute" rather than ill and seriously misguided. She has definitely a crush on Aoki and knows how to embarass him. But like any child at her age, Rin can be hurt very easily and that is something Aoki-sensei fears most. The relationship between Rin and Aoki isn't the only thing going on in this manga. There are two other rather special girls in Aoki's class: One is Kuro, a sort of "tsundere"-type girl who likes to wear gothic-lolita and maiden-style clothes. Kuro has a crush on Rin, and therefore she's rather violently jealous of Aoki. The other one, Mimi-chan, is your typical shy-type girl with glasses. She isn't particularly interested in her teacher or boys in general, but develops a crush on Rin's protegee, a young man who lives with Rin, later on in the second volume. |
||||
|
||||
|
HitokiriShadow
Posts: 6251 |
|
|||
|
I take it Mimi is the girl in the top panel (in the first post) and Kuro is the blond one at the top of the second page?
Anyhow, the more I hear about this title, the more I'm interested in actually checking it out. It sounds like it may actually be a fun little series. |
||||
|
||||
Richard J.
 Posts: 3367 Location: Sic Semper Tyrannis. |
|
|||
I'm surprised that the creator is female mainly because I grew up around women who would never have created a series like this. It's like when I found out that the creator of Koi Kaze was a woman. It just didn't entirely compute because the vast majority of the women I've met would never touch on these sorts of subjects. By the way, if Seven Seas is looking for controversial titles, I wished they'd pick up Koi Kaze. The manga is excellent. Also, Swissman, your descriptions of the series are making me even more eager to get my hands on this title. I was already looking forward to the twisted comedy, now I can look forward to good characters and emotional interplay. And if anyone is interested, or if you'd like something more to help you judge the potential controversy of this series, there is a PVC of Rin coming out soon. Check out Hobbylink Japan for a look at it. I'll even provide a link: http://www.hlj.com/product/MAX04061 |
||||
|
||||
|
Swissman
Posts: 768 Location: Switzerland |
|
|||
|
@HitokiriShadow
I only see 1 page in the first post. The girl with the black hair in the top panel together with the teacher is actually Kuro, the one in the small middle panel is Mimi and the girl holding the brush painting is Rin. To get a better idea of the girls, look at those gashapon figures. Rin is the blond girl, Mimi is the one with slight reddish hair and Kuro wears cat ears (don't ask me why. She even wears them in class sometimes). I found a japanese interview with Kaoru Watashiya where she tells, among other things, that she actually tries to incorporate serious moments about the relationship between adults and children which is not always that what her editor wants (he wants more comedy and less seriousness). Most important, Watashiya says about her Kodomo no Jikan that it basically is a *love story*, one about forbidden love, and that she tries to challenge the limits of usual (= non erotic) manga magazines, but still strictly keeping in mind that it's not an ero-manga. @Richard J. I'm glad my descriptions make you want to read the manga. I know I sound like some weird fanboy, but the manga really is better than it's title premise and the one short description on the Seven Seas homepage. And I agree with you, Koi Kaze is a very good manga. It surprises me as well that the creator is a woman (didn't know it until your posting). |
||||
|
||||
Kagemusha
 Posts: 2783 Location: Boston |
|
|||
|
While my gut reaction to this was it's pedo fodder, we really can't jump to conclusions based on one panel. Like Swissman said, it seems to be just a bit of comedy. Obviously there are vast cultural diffrences between our two countries (I wouldn't be suprised if they toned down the translation), and sexual humor involving children doesn't seem to be totally taboo over there (a certian clip of the comedian "Hard Gay" playing with children comes to mind).
|
||||
|
||||
adam_omega
 Posts: 256 Location: Seven Seas |
|
|||
I posted over in the AnimeonDVD version of this thread that the author for Kodomo no Jikan has asked that the series be called "Nymphet" in English, so it was the creator's call. - Adam Arnold Seven Seas Entertainment http://www.gomanga.com/ |
||||
|
||||
|
Swissman
Posts: 768 Location: Switzerland |
|
|||
Really? .... Well, whatever. I still think its wrong, but if it's her decision, so be it. Sorry for the accusation. My english-japanese dictionary translates "nymphet" with 1) A young and beautiful undersized nymph 2) (informal) A beautiful girl (bishoujo) with sex appeal 3) (biology) a young insect that has a similar form to the adult, a kind of larva stadium. Maybe Watashiya connotes he english "nymphet" more with some sort of transformation phase of a young girl which has sex appeal, whereas in english most people think of 2). |
||||
|
||||
|
adam_omega
Posts: 256 Location: Seven Seas |
|
|||
|
Actually, the term "Nymphet" comes from the book Lolita and is used in the same context:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nymphet - Adam Arnold Seven Seas Entertainment http://www.gomanga.com/ |
||||
|
||||
|
Richard J.
Posts: 3367 Location: Sic Semper Tyrannis. |
|
|||
From the other thread:
I have yet to buy anything from you. Forgive me, but until you licensed the Kashimashi manga and Strawberry Panic! light novels, none of your other titles struck my interests. Now, however, I'm planning on picking up the aforementioned titles, Nymphet, and everything in the Strawberry line. (Yuri fan!  )
Maybe it's a sign of elitism in me, but I feel proud that I will soon be supporting a company with the right attitude on editing and a mindset that allow for such a different title to be licensed. I sincerely hope that you see a good return on this investment. |
||||
|
||||
|
HitokiriShadow
Posts: 6251 |
|
|||
Pretty much the same for me, though I had considered getting the Boogiepop manga and novels at times. I am definitely getting Kashimashi and probably all of the current titles from the Strawberry line. I'm still iffy on this one but I'm leaning towards it. |
||||
|
||||
chicogrande
 Posts: 190 Location: Huntsville, Alabama |
|
|||
Strawberry Marshmallow's female characters exist in a non-sexual story environment. As far as I know, none of them have suggestively sucked the finger of an adult male as Rin does in Nymphet. That makes a whole lot of difference in my book about what "loli" is. Still, I may be judging out of context from a single image. I hope swissman is right and Nymphet has more to the story than what I initially surmised from two pages. But you know, I'm still worried. I ran accross a 09/5/06 article from Publisher's Weekly that speaks about the growth of Seven Seas Entertainment and their title, Nymphet. Also, there is a mention about Seven Seas and Nymphet in the article "Manga, Manhwa Creators in the Spotlight" from 07/25/06 where Publisher's Weekly describes Nymphet as "a lollicon title (lollicon typically involves romance with young girls)." Here is another lolita themed article, this time about Goth Lolitas. It ends with a statement by Kuo-Yu Liang, v-p, sales and marketing at Diamond Book Distributors that '"In the U.S we just don't have a sanctioned national obsession with young girls."' Now bear with me (I know, I keep going). Publisher's Weekly also has many articles that talk about Yaoi titles and their growth. They are as accepting of homosexual themes as any literary publication can be. Homosexuality in any form of literature holds a special creative place supported by influential people and organizations. In contrast, I know that Nabokov's "Lolita" also holds a special place in literature. But, does it have enough literary pull to excuse this apparent thematic sibling? Can it's position protect it from any societal backlash? Now, please. I'm not trying to be completely negative here. But, I wonder if even Publisher's Weekly is completely fine with it. I know I got a twist in my gut when I read the phrase "romance with young girls." (I'm almost done. Really. I know a lot of you are making like  )
To further drive the point. This is an image of a PVC statue of the Strawberry Marshmallow characters Miwa Matsuoka as a flight attendant and Ana Coppola as a teacher. Very nice and positive images. Now, look at Rin Kokonoe's PVC statue. A skank in the making. 
|
||||
|
||||
|
Richard J.
Posts: 3367 Location: Sic Semper Tyrannis. |
|
|||
chicogrande: It's clear that this isn't going to be a series for everyone, but it seems like it also isn't as salacious as we were thinking. The more sexual aspects may simply be the author's way to showing just how wrong Rin's understanding of what love is supposed to be is. Personally, I'm looking forward to it. After participating in this thread, I'm even more interested. I hope that Seven Seas won't suffer any severe backlash and will continue to bring over more out-of-the-mainstream titles. After all, diversity is a good thing. |
||||
|
||||
|
Kagemusha
Posts: 2783 Location: Boston |
|
|||
Child pageants are only popular in specific regions in the US, hardly the same thing as the situation in Japan.
From the descriptions I've heard I doubt this manga is anything beyond dirty, shallow humor. Nothing wrong with that, but Lolita this ain't. |
||||
|
||||
 |
All times are GMT - 5 Hours |
|
|
|
Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group