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Review Archive

To see a list of reviews in alphabetical order, please see our review index.

Review: Last Portrait

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Sunday, July 15, 2007

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Manga-ka: Akira Honma
Publisher: DramaQueen
Rating: Mature (18+)
Released: April 2007

Synopsis: “Yamato works for his father’s company, is subordinate to his older sister’s fiancé, Sakaguchi-san, and harbours a secret affection for him. That day before his sister’s wedding, Yamato privately confesses his feelings to Sakaguchi. The answer he receives is surprisingly and unexpected, but at this last hour, can Yamato face the consequences of having his wish fulfilled…?” Extra Story: Stairway to Heaven

The story begins with Yamato, a talented artist with little self-esteem. He is crushed by the words his father spoke to him of the uselessness of art. Leaving his sketchbook to the hands of some stranger in the rain, Yamato attempts to move on. Six months later, he’s an employee in his father’s company. It’s here he meets, seemingly for the first time, the older Sakaguchi, his boss and soon to be brother-in-law. Unfortunately for the already emotionally troubled Yamato, it was love at first sight.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Boys' Love/Yaoi, DramaQueen

Review: YAOI, Anthology of Boys’ Love Stories (Vol. 01)

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Saturday, July 14, 2007

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Author/Artists: Various
Publisher: YaoiPress
Rating: 18+
Released: March 2007

Synopsis: “This is brand new anthology series of Boys Love. First, prisoners of a medieval circus unite against their wicked ringmaster. Then a tale of forbidden love between members or two rival gangs in modern Tokyo. The final tale is of a boy who escapes his sadistic hillbilly captors, and recovers from their torture with the help of a romantically vulnerable cop. The best Global Yaoi talent comes together for this steamy yaoi anthology.”

Continuing a strong new trend of original yaois created by fans and artists outside of Japan, Yaoi Anthology is a unique and varied collection of short stories. Written and drawn by the usual teams we’ve come to recognize from Yaoi Press, you’ll find few surprises here but some things do manage to find a way to stand out.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Boys' Love/Yaoi, Yaoi Press

Review: Batman Beyond Season 3

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Friday, July 13, 2007

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Title: Batman Beyond: Season Three
Company: Warner Brothers, DC Comics
Format: DVD, Region 1
Rating: Not Rated
Length: 273mins
Includes:
13 Episodes, 2 Discs
English & French (episodes only)
“Inside Batman Beyond Season 3: Producers Panel Discussion”
“Close Up On: Favorite Moments of the Series, Creative Team and VA, Will Friedle

Synopsis: “Rage and revenge first motivated Terry McGinnis to steal Bruce Wayne’s high-tech Batsuit. A greater purpose and a sense of justice kept him wearing it. For two years, he patrolled streets and skies of Gotham City with Bruce Wayne as his guide, but in these final 13 adventures from the Emmy-Awarding winning TV series, Gotham’s greatest defender soars as the true hero he is! Though the power-hungry plans of criminals like Inque, The Royal Flush Gang and The Kobras grow more villainous with each attempt, Terry wipes them out. His heroism doesn’t go unnoticed: Superman invites him to join the Justice League. But after years of thinking he had nothing in common with the original Batman, Terry realizes he’s just the man for the job.”

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Categories: Misc, Reviews

Review: Tokyo Babylon

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Tuesday, July 10, 2007

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Manga-ka: CLAMP
Publisher: Tokyopop
Rating: 13+
Released: May 2004 – May 2005
Volumes: 7

Synopsis: The story of young Sumeragi Subaru, 13th generation of the Sumeragi clan. Born with strong spiritual powers, he uses his abilities to confront and calm the restless spirits of Tokyo. Pure hearted and kind, Subaru is aided by his energetic twin sister, Sumeragi Hokuto, and the mysterious veterinarian, Sakurazuka Seishiro. A prequel to CLAMP’s X/1999.

Tokyo Babylon is one of CLAMP’s older works and a prequel to X/1999, thus also vaguely connecting it to their previous CLAMP School series of books. To those only familiar with CLAMP’s more recent works, you may be unfamiliar with the art style but do not let that turn you away. Here in this book you have the complete, classic CLAMP formula, compelling characters, wonderful art, an intriguing plot that keeps you guessing and, of course, a little homoerotic tension.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Tokyo Babylon, Tokyopop

Review: Ichigenme (Vol. 01)

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Tuesday, July 10, 2007

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Manga-ka: Fumi Yoshinaga
Publisher: 801Media
Rating: 18+
Released: Febuary 2007

Synopsis: “Tamiya meets Tohdou at Reinou University when he is unexpectedly French kissed by him at his zemi’s, or seminar’s, launch party! While Tamiya is somewhat put off by the unexpected kiss, considering the other students were forced to strip, he is grateful to Tohdou and they soon begin a curious friendship. But things become a little rocky when Tohdou admits he is gay and asks Tamiya to become his lover…”

Another in a long line of Yoshinaga’s work, Ichigenme should not let down any of her fans. Contained in its pages are all the classics of the manga-ka’s style, well-written dialogue, several different characters to bounce the story off of and a simple layout for which to follow it all.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: 801Media, Boys' Love/Yaoi, Fumi Yoshinaga

Review: Lovers In the Night

Posted by Lissa Pattillo on Friday, July 6, 2007

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Manga-ka: Fumi Yoshinaga
Publisher: BLU Manga
Rating: Mature (18+)
Released: May 2007

Synopsis: “Hired as a servant by an aristocrat family, Claude works hard to care for the family that took him in. But when the master of the house and his wife eventually pass away, Claude must keep spoiled son Antoine in line and teach him to be a proper gentleman. As the two become closer, a forbidden love develops between them…”

Lovers in the Night is a one shot graphic novel following the relationship of its two main characters; Claude, the monotone hired servant and Antoine, a young spoiled Aristocrat. Though the story begins with Claude as a servant to Antoine’s father, this first chapter merely acts as a stepping-stone to the main story following the forbidden love between Claude and his late Master’s son.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: BLU, Boys' Love/Yaoi, Fumi Yoshinaga