News

Netcomics Licenses Five New Boys-Love Manga Titles

The North American publisher Netcomics has announced that it will publish two new titles from Japan's Softline this August and three more this October. Before the print versions ship, Netcomics will also debut these titles on its Netcomics.com website as early as this month.

Age Called Blue
est em (Softline)
August 2009
"Age Called Blue by est em follows two friends, Billy and Nick. These boys have been living as roommates while doing everything they can to promote their band, “The Rebels.” Billy has been harboring feelings for Nick for some time, but hasn't yet found the nerve to try and move their relationship beyond the boundaries of normal friendship. In the world of struggling artists, trouble is always on the horizon, and is soon to rear its head as the other members of the band grow tired of Nick's free-thinking and easy-going ways. They want the “hippy” out of the band, leaving Billy with a heart-wrenching choice: Should he follow his life-long desire to make music, a career he's thrown countless hours of time into? Or, should he side with the boy who stole his heart long ago, his true best friend, Nick?"

Dining Bar Akira (Kuimonodokoro Akira)
Tomoko Yamashita (Softline)
August 2009
"Dining Bar Akira by Tomoko Yamashita centers on the happenings in a bar Kuimonodokoro Akira runs. Although the 32-year-old has never given thought to being in a relationship with a man, Akira seriously considers the proposition when he receives a sudden love confession from his male colleague, 26 year-old Torihara. It's no secret that new relationships can bring about their fair share of stress, but one with another man? And, with a colleague to boot? Finding himself in quite a conundrum, Akira struggles with his pride as an older man facing a younger and male pursuer, never mind that busy bar he's responsible for managing."

Merry Family Plan
Sumitomo Morozumi (Softline)
October 2009
"Merry Family Plan—Sumitomo Morozumi's debut work—compiles her light-but-lively stories that have just the right mixture of comedy and boyhood angst, filled with plenty of adorable moments. Typical school boy Shibutani has always had trouble staying interested in his girlfriends, but when mild-mannered Yoshizumi transfers to his class, his interest is strangely piqued. As Shibutani tries to get to know his new classmate, he finds Yoshizumi to be awkward and even hostile. Other delightfully-crafted stories include a high school boy with a bizarre mask fetish deeply in lust with his dentist; a boyfriend's jealously over the close relationship between his lover and a best friend; and a couple who are overtly pouting over who should be on top in the bedroom. The stories of Merry Family Plan rest humorously on the lighter side. Coupled with Morozumi's unique art style, this wacky romp down yaoi lane is sure to leave readers feeling warm and fuzzy inside."

Love Full of Scars
Delico Psyche (Softline)
October 2009
"Love Full of Scars by Delico Psyche follows some of the rougher, odder, and even taboo relationships known to the yaoi genre. Youkou is a heartthrob who is reputed to have quite the technique in the bedroom. His friend, Yukio, well aware of his reputation, begins to worry when Youkou starts coming home with cuts and bruises. In another atypical story, Ishimoto discovers he and his driver's ed. instructor share the same passion for action-hero figurines. While bonding over their miniature, plastic heroes, the two get hopelessly drunk, and Ishimoto finds himself butt-naked in his instructor's bed the next morning. In an odd tale of forbidden love, Fumi is quite taken with the handsome man his brother has become while studying abroad, perhaps even a little too taken. Conflicted by desires to both embrace and push each other away, these siblings struggle to regain a normal, brotherly bond in the face a tempting, tabooed path. The stories in Love Full of Scars tell of both the physical and emotional marks that tough love can leave on a person."

Black-Winged Love
Tomoko Yamashita (Softline)
October 2009
"Black-Winged Love by Tomoko Yamashita focuses on the predicaments gay characters face because of their sexuality. In a tale of schoolboy crushes, a protective sister tries to stop a group of homophobes from harassing her brother. Worse yet, she discovers it's the object of her brother's affections leading the harassment. Another young student, Kanome, finds himself alone in the library with a classmate he has the hots for. By sexually charging the conversation, Kanome's clever tongue may score him a bit of action. A more serious sketch follows Minori, a boy who is debating about coming out to his family. Shortly after he decides that neither he nor his family is ready, his sister jumps the gun and outs him at the dinner table. Once the shock fades and the dust settles, will this family be able to come together in acceptance, or has Minori forever torn his family apart? Other stories introduce the heartbreak of unreciprocated life-long devotion, a glimpse into the nightlife of a sultry hustler, and the hilarious antics caused by sexual tension between friends. Black-Winged Love touches on some of the more serious struggles that can arise from one's sexuality, without forgetting the lighter side of love."

Source: MangaBlog