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missmouseeyes · 6 months

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October 22-28 is Ace Week 2023, so I’d like to give a spotlight to some manga I have enjoyed that have also touched on asexuality.

I Want To Be A Wall by Honami Shirono

A 3 volume Josei manga about the lavender marriage between Gakurouta, a closeted gay man who pines for his childhood friend, and Yuriko, an aromantic, asexual BL fangirl.

She Loves To Cook, and She Loves To Eat by Sakaomi Yuzaki

An ongoing yuri Josei manga with a TV adaptation about two women who bond over food. The series recently introduced Yako, an asexual lesbian, and it’s possible that protagonist Nomoto may be on the ace spectrum as well.

Is Love The Answer? by Uta Isaki

A single volume josei manga about Chika, a young college student who has always considered herself an “alien” because she has no desire for romance or physical intimacy, but finds community with people like herself.

Our Dreams At Dusk: Shimanami Tasogare by Yuhki Kamatani

A 4 volume Seinen manga about a closeted gay boy who gets to know the patrons of a drop-in center who all turn out to be part of the LGBTQ community. Someone-san might be considered a deuteragonist of the story.

I’d also like to mention two yuri manga I haven’t finished yet- I have only read the first volume of both- but because of what others have said I know they feature asexual characters!

Catch These Hands! (murata)

Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon (Shio Usui)

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hiro-doodlez · 3 months

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Happy Valentines!! Since it's that sad boy time of year for me (for reasons my aroaceness will explain) I have 2 books about being on the aroace spec that I think anyone looking for, uhh validation would enjoy!! Theyre a joy to read and very very comforting on bad days!! More about them under the cut :3

LOVELESS

Loveless is a novel that tells Georgia Warr's story of finding out she's the A in the LGBTQIA+ community. This book has so many quotes that make me just want to cry, like WHY are you this good.. please mx alice oseman STOP THIS ATTACK ON MY HEART “In the end, that was the problem with romance. It was so easy to romanticize romance because it was everywhere. It was in music and on TV and in filtered Instagram photos. It was in the air, crisp and alive with fresh possibility. It was in falling leaves, crumbling wooden doorways, scuffed cobblestones and fields of dandelions. It was in the touch of hands, scrawled letters, crumpled sheets and the golden hour. A soft yawn, early morning laughter, shoes lined up together by the door. Eyes across a dance floor. I could see it all, all the time, all around, but when I got closer, I found nothing was there.” my fav quote: “I'm at uni for three months and suddenly I'm not straight any more.” “I used to dream of a spellbinding, endless, forever romance. A beautiful story of meeting a person who could change your whole world. But now, I realised, friendship could be that too.”

IS LOVE THE ANSWER?

Is love the answer? Is a manga following a girl named Chika figuring out she's (aro)ace. The entire thing has AMAZING art and just some of the most.. i feel you buddy lines i've ever read. For example: "I see. I just haven't met "the one" yet... yeah. I'm sure that's all it is." "I'm asexual. That's what I am. There might be other possibilities. Maybe a year from now I might identify differently. But right now, that's what feels right to me."

#aroace #aromantic #asexual #aromanticism #asexuality #aro #ace #alice oseman #loveless alice oseman #is love the answer?

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themelodyofspring · 9 months

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I'm sure you'll find your own answer.

#is love the answer?#uta isaki #booklr #mypics #books #books and flowers #bookblr #currently reading #open books #manga #book quotes #quotes #books and plants #asexual #ace #asexuality #lgbtqia #lgbt+

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acesincomics · 1 year

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This month, not one but two manga with aroace protagonists will be released in English!

Kimi no Sekai ni Koi wa Nai (Is Love the Answer?) by Uta Isaki and Watashi wa Kabe ni Naritai (I Want to Be a Wall) Vol. 2 by Honami Shirono are both coming out January 17th!

きみのせかいに恋はない Kimi no Sekai ni Koi wa Nai

Is Love the Answer?

By 伊咲ウタ Uta Isaki

A poignant coming-of-age story about a young woman coming into her own as she discovers her identity as aromantic asexual. A complete story in a single volume, from the creator of Mine-kun is Asexual. When it comes to love, high schooler Chika wonders if she might be an alien. She’s never fallen for or even had a crush on anyone, and she has no desire for physical intimacy. Her friends tell her that she just "hasn't met the one yet," but Chika has doubts… It's only when Chika enters college and meets peers like herself that she realizes there’s a word for what she feels inside--asexual--and she’s not the only one. After years of wondering if love was the answer, Chika realizes that the answer she long sought may not exist at all--and that that's perfectly normal.

Available from Kodansha (Japanese) | (English)

わたしは壁になりたい Watashi wa Kabe ni Naritai

I Want to Be a Wall, Vol. 2

By 白野ほなみ Honami Shirono | Emma Schumacker, Alexis Eckerman (Eng.)

Any good love story starts at the beginning: Where and how did the lovebirds meet? Was it love at first sight? And most importantly, was there a spark? For Yuriko and Gakurouta, their initial meeting was nothing to write home about—after all, matchmaking services aren’t unheard of. But a chance second encounter on the street revealed that as an asexual woman and gay man, they might have much more in common than they initially assumed. And in that moment, they felt not a spark but something better: the seed of a friendship, ready to take root and bloom.

Available from Kadokawa (Japanese) | Yen Press (English)

#Kimi no Sekai ni Koi wa Nai #Is Love the Answer?#Watashi wa Kabe ni Naritai #I Want to Be a Wall #asexual comics #aromantic comics #manga #acespec characters #aroace characters #comics with ace characters #comics with aroace characters #comic: Kimi no Sekai ni Koi wa Nai #comic: Watashi wa Kabe ni Naritai

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ladyloveandjustice · 4 months

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My Favorite New Manga and Graphic Novels I Read in 2023

It's time to take a look at the comics and manga I read this year! I read a whopping 78 manga and graphic novels in all. Here's a link to my Goodreads year in books (the manga is at the beginning, the novels start with Siren Queen) and my storygraph wrap up.

I also read 36 novels! If you want to see my favorites, check out my reviews here!

And finally, I've got the continuing manga series I've enjoyed this year here, so check that post out too!

The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen

This is a tale about a first-generation Vietnamese-American boy struggling with coming out to his mother. He connects with his mother through fairytales-- she uses them to express her journey as an immigrant, and he uses them to explore his queerness and identity as a Vietnamese kid growing up in America. It's an absolutely gorgeous book full of Trung Le Nguyen's signature stunning art. The fantastical, ethereal fairy tales are weaved beautifully into the lives of the characters. The book explores how fairy tales can form connection, can express culture, can tap deeply into something real and true, and can offer tragedy and catharsis. The protagonist uses fairy tales to write his own story, and the ending is lovely and moving.

Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles by Mark Russell and Mike Feehan

You may know Mark Russell from his darker, socially aware re-imagining of the Flintstones, which made quite a splash on Tumblr with this post. Well, I had pleasure of meeting him at a local convention, and I finally got his comic re-imagining of Snagglepuss, also of Hanna-Barbera. He re-imagines the titular pink puma as a closeted gay playwright in the 50's dealing with McCarthyism. It's as wild as it sounds,but also really digs into the politics of the time, the struggle of standing against oppression and how art fights through suppression and censorship. It's tragic, hopeful, poignant and full of historical references. I enjoyed it ! Definitely be cautious if you're deeply disturbed by homophobia and suicide.

The Summer Hikaru Died by Mokumokuren

A story about a teenage boy, Yoshiki, who realizes that his best friend and crush Hikaru has died and been replaced by a strange eldritch being who is imitating him. But, missing his loved one and desperate to cling to any piece of him, Yoshiki decides to keep on having a relationship with this mysterious entity. This book's horror is visceral and sublime, especially the bizarre, creepy, beautiful body horror involving the being who replaced Hikaru. It's an exploration of anxieties involving grief, relationships, and sexuality that hits just right, and the atmosphere layered with dread is top notch. I love me some messed up relationships and unknowable queer monsters, and this book delivers.

Chainsaw Man, Look Back and Goodbye Eri by Tatsuki Fujimoto

Chainsaw Man needs no introduction, but I did end up really enjoying the story of the doggy-devil boy hunting other devils. It got so tragic and intense at the end, with lots of great surreal horror imagery and darkly funny moments. I'm impressed it went so hard, though the random powers that kept piling up made what was happening hard to follow at times, especially in fights. I'm also enjoying the current weird arc starring a class-A disaster girl and the demon sharing her body.

Look Back

I really do enjoy how Fuijimoto writes messy pre-teen/teenage girls. They ring so true. The manga follows the fraught friendship between two girls as they create manga, exploring the struggle of art mixing with real relationships, and how someone keeps creating after tragedy. It's a little hard to follow at times (especially since I have to differentiate the leads based on hairstyle), but it's a good read.

Goodbye Eri

Probably my least favorite of the three, but it's a fun read- a weird ride that examines the thin line between fiction and reality in art and makes good use of Fujimoto's cinephile background and signature gaslight gatekeep girlboss characters.

Is Love the Answer? by Uta Isaki

The story follows a teenage girl, Chika, who has always struggled with not being attracted to anyone. When Chika enters college, she meets queer people all across the spectrum of asexuality, and starts exploring her own identity. As an ace, this is the best story about asexuality that I've read. It was a nuanced look at asexuality and queerness and all the variations. Chika's journey and how she found her community was moving and poignant. It's a honest, moving look at relationships and identity, and how complicated and hard to define both of those things can be. I loved the moments of Chika imagining herself as an alien to explore and cope, and how she bonded with people through magical girl shows and other geekery. My favorite new manga of the year, it really connected with me!

The Girl that Can’t Get a Girlfriend by Mieri Hiranishi

Oh girl, I've been there. This is a fun autobiographical comic about a butch4butch lesbian's struggles finding a partner in a word that favors butch/femme, and it's just an honest look at the messiness of loneliness and relationships. I also appreciate that crushing on Haruka in Sailor Moon and becoming a HaruMichi stan was the beginning the author's queer awakening because uh...same! She has taste, and is truly relatable.

Qualia the Purple: The Complete Manga Collection by Hisamitsu Ueo and Shirou Tsunashima

See my review of the light novel here for my general thoughts on the story, since it's adapted pretty faithfully. I do think the manga is overall the best experience though, because the illustrations break up the detailed explanations of quantum mechanics a bit, and it includes a bit of extra content that fleshes things out, especially withthe ending.

The Single Life: 60 year old lesbian who is single and living alone by Akiko Morishima

Just like it says on the tin, this focuses on a 60-year-old single lesbian. And definitely the shortest thing on here, since only one 30 page chapter is out. It's a grounded story about a woman looking back on her journey to finding her identity, touching on sexism in the workplace and other challenges. It paints a portrait of a proudly gay elder who's still perfectly content being single and feels fulfilled by the life she had rather than regretting past relationships. I definitely want to see more.

Daemons of the Shadow Realm by Hiromu Arakawa

Arakawa's latest, the story is about a boy who lives in a small village with his little sister is imprisoned and has to carry out a mysterious duty...but then the village is attacked, supernatural daemons awaken, and everything he knows might be wrong. I'm enjoying this fun romp so far! It delivers an really nice plot twist right out the gate (and an excellent subversion of the usual shonen "must-protect-my-saintly-sister" narratives). It boasts Arakawa's usual fun cast and interesting world (and cool ladies). There's some slight tone and pacing issues in the first part- there's so much time spent explaining mechanics the lead doesn't really get to react to his life turning upside down. But it starts smoothing out by the second volume. I'm excited to see what's next!

Superman: Space Age by Mark Russell and Michael Allred

This is a retelling of Superman set throughout the late fifties to early eighties that has Superman interact with the political and social upheaval of the time and question his own role in things. It explored the Superman mythos through a lot of cool new angles, and has a good Lois (why yes she would break Watergate) which is how I always measure a Superman adaptation. My one complaint is, while I liked some of the things it did with Batman, the ending with the Joker was pretty weak. The ending of the overall comic will also be bizarre for anyone not uses to how weird comics can get, but I think I dug it.

#DRCL by Shin'ichi Sakamoto

A manga retelling of Dracula that focuses on Mina as the protagonist and imagines the characters at an English prep school. It adds a lot of diversity to the characters and has exquisite, evocative art. I'm curious where it will go and what it intends to do with all it's changes (especially Lucy), because right now it's mostly vibes and creepiness and the direction isn't clear.

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cadhla182 · 1 year

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I read it. I liked it.

#asexual #is love the answer?

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aroaessidhe · 5 months

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Aro & ace Graphic Novels

A-Okay - middle grade memoir - ace MC, partly about figuring out asexuality

How To Be Ace - memoir - ace MC, about asexuality

Gender Queer - memoir - ace MC, mostly about gender, but also a little about asexuality

Paper planes - YA contemporary - ace (& aro coded) MC

Is Love The Answer? - adult/NA contemporary - aroace MC, aspec side characters, about being aroace.

The Last Session - adult/NA contemporary / fantasy - one of the main cast is aro

I Want To Be A Wall - adult/NA contemporary, aroace MC

(this is specifically published graphic novels/manga, not webcomics - there's quite a few of those!)

#aspec books / aspec database / tumblr masterpost

#aspec books #there's gotta be more published graphic novels right????? I must be missing some #asexual books #is love the answer?#how to be ace #gender queer #graphic novels

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sciderman · 6 months

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i relate to peter parker because i’ve had six crushes this year alone

damn son save some for the rest of us!!

#sci speaks #i think i've only ever had one crush in my life. wilding. i wish i fell in love easier. it feels wonderful.#oh the people with hyperactive hearts...#i wish i had felt this way at some point when i was younger. it kind of felt like my heart wasn't fully developed yet.#holds my heart in my hands. why were you such a late bloomer. why didn't you feel more things earlier on.#i'm kind of sad that i didn't have teenage crushes or anything. i feel like i missed out.#is it because nobody around me was appealing. or is it because i was too busy on my own planet.#i think i wasn't really close with a lot of people when i was younger. i kind of never came out of my shell.#so nobody got close enough to me for me to like them.#not that it's necessarily how it works. but it takes a lot for me to get there with somebody i think.#i think a lot of the relationships i've been in i'm still To This Day not even sure if i actually liked them back in that way.#squeezes my heart in my hand. why are you so fussy.#i wish i had more experiences under my belt. i really do. but also i don't want to be in situations that are uncomfortable either.#and i don't want to just be there for the sake of it.#lies on the floor and stares at the ceiling. i don't know what i want.#is love the answer?#i don't know. sometimes i want it more than anything. but it's such a ball-ache to get. sometimes you think you're better off without it.#i wish i knew what i wanted. i think i just want to be brave enough to find out.#why do i ramble so much in my tags. it's like tumblr is my therapist or something.#i'm feeling weird about myself lately. just kind of a little tired. i don't feel bad. but kind of perpetually low-energy.#like i never have the time to do things that make me happy. and when i do get the time i don't have the energy.#is this what it's like to live in this world. i need like. a year's break from work. i think.#i need like a year-long vacation. i need a gap year. i need a year to live life.#i wonder if it's financially viable. i think i'd eat through everything i have if i did that. but.#you can get money back. you can't get your time back.

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out-of-context-aro-ace · 3 months

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youtube

"You know your set when an aspec is on deck" (lololol) but the video is about asexual rep in manga, I just like that line and have never heard of it before

Video by @kamenootblr

#asexual #aroace #manga #is love the answer?#mine kun #uta isaki #doughnuts under a crescent moon #ace lesbian #shio usui #i want to be a wall #honomi shirono #koisenu futari #erika yoshida #catherine kobaly #video essay

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haveyoureadthiscomic-poll · 4 months

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#is love the answer?#uta isaki #lgbt comic #lgbt comics #lgbt manga #manga #asexual #kodansha #poll

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hikikomoriheadphonegirl · 7 months

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"Magical Girl Rosette" character designs from Kimi no Sekai ni Koi wa Nai

#Kimi no Sekai ni Koi wa Nai #Is Love the Answer?#Isaki Uta #magical girls

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tuxibirdie · 9 months

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I just finished reading the manga Is Love the Answer? by Uta Isaki and oh my god

I am not articulate enough to fully explain how much I love this but I will try

I honestly didn't think it would hit me so hard but seeing a character figure out that shes aroace was so.. nice

the story didn't invalidate it at all and even talked about some of the bs people say abt aroacespec people (you just need to try it, you're a prude, etc.)

and the protagonist is genderqueer too!

it was just really super nice seeing a character I could almost fully relate to when it comes to sexual/gender orientation

and! and! the story addresses how sexuality and gender is fluid and labels aren't all-encompassing

like it explicitly says not every ace person has the same experience!!! there are many facets to asexuality!!!!! (and this applies to other orientations too!!)

omg and theres also a moment where the protagonist realizes she feels some kind of attraction to a fictional character (but not exactly romantic) and holy crap I FELT THAT

and I felt SO VALIDATED when that happened

cuz I have my fictional not-quite-crushes and sometimes I wonder if that make me not ace but no! I still am!!

I didn't realize how much I needed aroace representation until I read this, and now I sorely wish there was more

or at the very least I hope more people (queer or not) find and read more stories like this

I wish there was more understanding between people when it comes to this

goodness this made me so emotional sorry for the long post but seriously go read Is Love the Answer?

#tuxitalks #is love the answer?#is love the answer #uta isaki #manga #asexual #aroace #aspec #aro #aromantic #lgbtq #lgbtqia

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themelodyofspring · 2 months

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