A princess-turned-soldier falls for another female soldier. Two schoolgirl athletes competing against each other fall in love. A young woman determined to become a prince (not a princess) wins another young woman's hand in a duel.

These are just some of the storylines you will find in lesbian-themed forms of Japanese animation, called "yuri." Typically used to mean any lesbian content in entertainment media-- whether sexual or romantic, explicit or implied--yuri (also called "shoujoai") is found in both manga (Japanese comic books) and anime (animated Japanese movies and TV shows).

Manga is one of the earliest forms of comic books, originally produced in the late eighteenth century for adult males and packaged as books, rather than in the magazine-style format we are accustomed to in the West. These books dealt with a wide range of subjects including romance, drama, fantasy, action and even pornography.

Manga became a booming industry in Japan, but it wasn’t until the 1940’s that manga artists decided to tap into stories that the female population would take interest. It was then that groundbreaking artist Osamu Tezuka began developing the first shoujo (girl) manga. With his manga Ribon no kishi (Knight of the Ribbon, 1954), he created longer, sophisticated storylines bringing together drama, adventure, fantasy, tragedy, humor, and romance.

But it wasn't until the 1970’s that manga dealing with romantic relationships forming between females began to pop up. The very first manga involving a lesbian relationship was Yamagishi Ryohko's 1971 manga Shiroi Heya no Futari (Our White Room), which introduced a young girl named Resine who lives at a boarding school, and shares a room with "bad girl" Simone. The girls hit it off, and become romantically involved, in a storyline much like Susan Swan’s Lost and Delirious.

In 1972, Ikeda Riyoko wrote Rose de Versailles, which would become one of the most popular manga (and anime) to come about. It is Ikeda who is known for the breakthrough with yuri manga.

Japanese animation was introduced after manga proved to be such a welcome commodity in Japanese culture. Anime, like manga, has many genres: Action, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Children’s, Adventure, Romance, Hentai (pornographic), Yaoi/Shonen Ai (gay/boy love), and of course Yuri/Shoujo Ai (lesbian/girl love).

Although anime has had a presence in the Western hemisphere for a long while--anime has been dubbed into English and sold in syndication to many companies in the United States and Canada--the medium has only recently developed strong visibility, due in part to series like Pokemon.

Unfortunately, the success of Pokemon and other anime for children has led many to believe that the genre is only for children, when in fact, much anime is unsuitable for younger viewers.

Manga and anime treats heterosexual and homosexual relationships fairly equally. Gay, lesbian and heterosexual relationships are just relationships in most stories. Gay couples face the same difficult scenarios encountered by heterosexual couples.

Page 1 / 2 / 3 - Next