queer comics

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Lenni Reviews: “Orlando: A Graphic Novel Adaptation of Virginia Woolf’s Queer Classic” by Susanne Kuhlendahl & Virginia Woolf

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

This graphic novel is an adaptation of Virginia Woolf’s novel, which tells the story of a young nobleman traveling through time in the body of a woman. It’s a pretty good adaptation and a great way to introduce classic literature to a new audience. But the really flowy, beautiful art didn’t always mesh well with the words on the page. The art is what I enjoyed most about this, how the pages just flowed, the selective use of color, all of it worked fantastically. It’s lovely to look at. Some of the events are glossed over, which gives some odd pacing in parts. I did have fun reading this and I kinda wanna go back and read the book again. 3.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “The Metalhead Next Door” by Mamita

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is rated 18+

Kento is a broke college student who moves out of the dorms to abnormally cheap apartment to save money knowing the place has no heat or hot water. When he almost freezes to death outside, his neighbor, Soushi, saves him. They become friends but the outgoing Kento hasn’t told Soushi he’s gay. After a year of friendship, Kento vanishes; leaving Soushi to deal with some confusing feelings.

This manga takes place over three  years and at 200 or so pages, there are some time skips that are pretty clear. I would classify their relationship as a slow burn but there’s not enough pages to get bogged in that. Since Kento works with kids, there’s some funny interactions he has with them and while it’s probably not the best to get relationship advice from a kid, their interaction was pretty funny. You have to get to the end to see any smut which is not overly detailed but you absolutely get what’s going on. And I’m not even going to pretend the metal head in me wasn’t biased towards the misunderstood shy guy who likes metal music. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Engage” Vol. 1, by Yuu Minaduki

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is rated 18+

Mei works had his family’s business, a taiyaki shop that gets really busy around an event called the Star Festival and has a long standing crush on a repeat customer named Naru. While Mai would love to confess his feelings, Naru may be more connected to Mei than he ever thought.

There’s a lot of intrigue going on here so if you’re looking for some quick smut, this isn’t it. Naru has a bunch of secrets and can’t seem to leave Mei alone; doing that strange thing of ‘I know I’m bad for this person and should leave them alone but I’m going to bring them close to me’ and not actually doing what could possibly be best for Mei. I was just left with this confusion thinking ‘where exactly is this going and do I care enough to keep reading and find out?’ But, we shall see. The first volume isn’t always the strongest start but there’s always the feeling of wanting the resolution. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reivews: “Is Love the Answer?” by Uta Isaki

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High schooler Chika believes something is wrong with her because she’s never fallen in love and has no desire for intimacy; unlike her peers who incessantly talk about it. In college, she finally realizes there is nothing wrong with her at all.

While I get the goal of this manga is to teach the reader about how sexuality is a spectrum and you don’t have to claim a label and live in it forever, it doesn’t do it quite as well as Love’s in Sight or Perfect World. It has a lot of exposition and I got the feeling of being talked at rather than going on the same journey as Chika. It’s not bad but I think it could have been smoother in that respect. It’s probably not really fair to compare a series that has a bunch of time to grow rather than this small collection, though. 3.9 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “The Summer Hikaru Died” Vol. 1, by Mokumokuren

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Hikaru went missing in the mountains for a week and while his friend, Yoshiki, is glad he was found, Yoshiki knows whatever came back is not Hikaru despite wearing his body.

While the mystery of the thing currently living inside Hikaru is intriguing and the main reason why I hadda grab this series, most of this is really sad since we’re watching Yoshiki deal simultaneously deal with his grief and the threat this new entity may pose. Sadness just permeates every inch of this volume; even the thing inside Hikaru laments the fact that Hikaru is really dead and has taken his place. And when I say “sad” I don’t mean like Boy’s Abyss where it’s sad and dark. Unless some darkness is on the way in future volumes but this is an interesting start. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “A Boy Named Rose” by Gaëlle Geniller

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Set in 1920’s Paris, twenty year old Rose has always dreamed of dancing on stage at Le Jardin; a cabaret his mother manages. When he gets the chance, Rose acquires an ardent fan, Aime, who attends all his shows and is persistent in seeing Rose one on one.

This graphic novel is beautiful and actually calming. It’s not overly dramatic, light hearted, and takes it’s time as Rose explores his identity and enjoys expressing him or herself by doing what s/he loves with the people s/he loves. It’s romantic and character driven, very worth checking out. I kept waiting for something awful to happen but, nope! It’s just so sweet. 4 out of 5.

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