Bukatsu no Kouhai ni Semarareteimasu by Koshino

Let's talk about Bukatsu no Kouhai ni Semarareteimasu.

You might know this or not, but a lot of professional manga-ka have cut their creative teeth in fandom. CLAMP, of course, is the most common example. They started up making Captain Tsubasa parody books (of the slash variety, of course), and look where they are now, entertaining millions of fans with their strange, confusing plots and constant ship-teasing. They made it.

Other artists continue making fancomics even after they debut. Murakami Maki, the creator of Gravitation, for example, has done doujinshi for her own comic. And she isn't the only one.

It's not something you come across back home, is it? You usually don't find a professional using his skills to make fan parodies...

It was a bit of a stretch, and I'm (not) sorry.

Which brings me to Koshino. She, too, has done (and continues to do) fanbooks, mostly Fullmetal Alchemist slash. She also has found success with Bukatsu no Kouhai ni Semarareteimasu (I'm going to start calling it BKS from now on), a comic series that you can find on Libre Mobile's web service. It's done so well that they've produced an audio version (which is can be bought via Libre Mobile.)

I don't deal with Libre Mobile (and I'm pretty sure you can't either), so when I came across BKS for the first time in Magazine Be-Boy, the May 2011 issue, I thought it was a one-shot. Little did I know...

Hadaka Necktie-chan by Fujio

Let's talk about Hadaka Necktie-chan.

Several years ago, the doujinshi circle green park published a series of strips about a cute, innocent boy that says nothing and wears only a black tie and matching socks. The art style is very cute, and the stories are funny. Now, these self-published comics are being reprinted in Magazine Be-Boy.

Because of the art style, it isn't as pervy as it could have been, what with a lead character nearly naked the entire time (and that magical tie is always working, making sure nothing is seen.) If this was done in a more realistic style...

An awkward moment for all one.
From episode 18, "Necktie Koukan", Be-Boy 8/2011

Fudanshi Monogatari by Narazaki Souta

Every yaoi fangirl worth her weight in slash doujinshi knows that 'fujoshi' is just another word for freak weirdo pervert a female fan of handsome guys in homoerotic relationships. Once a derogatory term, the fangirls have since reclaimed it and use it in a self-deprecating manner... at least according to Wikipedia, and we should always trust Wikipedia.

That term is the reason why this blog is called 'Rotten Reading'. I am a lost soul, forever doomed to look at the subtext and go, 'Yeah, I can totally see them hooking up.'

And I can't argue with the label. You have to be pretty rotten-minded to think of some of the things yaoi girls dream up. (Though, to be fair, fanboys can be just as bad.)

'Fudanshi' is the male equivalent of a 'fujoshi', i.e. a yaoi fanboy, and yes, they do exist. (I've even dated one once, just before I was infected by the BL myself.) That said, let's talk about a yaoi fanboy.

Let's play 'Spot the Bottom'.

Aoi Koi by Narazaki Souta

(I had to rewrite this because of some hiccup somewhere. Totes not my fault.)

Let's talk about Blue Love.

Aoi Koi is a two-part comic written by Narazaki Souta. It was published in Magazine Beboy, Feb. and March 2011. Shigemi is a baseball boy who accidentally walks in on an awkward scene, in which a girl was confessing her love to Rio, Shigemi's best friend.


Rio is your archetypical cool guy. He doesn't talk much, which gives him a mysterious air. He's very handsome, and that, with his mysterious air, makes Rio very popular with the girls. The twist: he is also a huge fan of Kamen Rider-style hero shows. Shigemi is the only one who knows about this, and is constantly rolling his eyes at the idea that this cool guy is the also the biggest dork he knows.

Rio turns the girl down, of course (gosh, I wonder why), and instead spends his free time with Shigemi. Shigemi, confused over why Rio rejected the girl, starts to think that Rio needs a girlfriend who understands him and tries to suggest that Rio would have more fun at an upcoming hero live-action show if he took a girl with him.

Rio refuses, saying that he prefers Shigemi's company. Shigemi, however doesn't get it, and he even tries to talk up some fangirls during their 'date' at the live-action show. Rio gets peeved, thinking Shigemi is hitting on someone during their 'date', and they finally put everything on the table.




Because I can't think of a more romantic place for a confession of love than a hero show packed with four- and five-year olds.