About

I love books, writing, anime, manga (mostly Shoujo and Yuri*), Hello Kitty, Transformers, Star Trek (TOS movies! especially), Star Wars (there are only 3 movies and Han shot first!), gummy bears (Albanese for the win! NEVER Haribo, yuck!), LGBTQ+, unicorns, late 19th Century/Early 20th Century realism in painting, My Little Pony (Friendship is Magic), thinking about the tathāgatagarbha and prajnaparamita, and lots of other things.

This blog will probably talk about most of these things most of the time, but I reserve the right to post other cute things, links to thoughtful things that I find important, and anything else I please.

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yuristargirl/

Q*: What is Yuri*
A: Yuri, at its most fundamental, is about close relationships between women or girls, often with a strong emotional side but also possibly a physical/romantic side. It DOES NOT denote hentai or pornography. IT IS NOT the same as girls-love or shoujo-ai (which in America often means something VERY different than the problematic genre it represents in Japan). For a great article that summarizes this: https://yurimother.com/post/185438570644/yurivsshoujoai or http://www.yuricon.com/essays/#Yuri_History

Q: What rating scale will you use? *
A:  a 10 point scale:
10/10 - "An instant classic"
9/10 - "essential"
8/10 - "highly recommended"
7/10 - "recommended"
6/10 - "read/watch/listen with reservations"
5/10 - "probably don't waste your money on this one"
4/10 - "very problematic"
3/10 - "a waste of time and/or unacceptable content"
2/10 - "avoid at all costs"
1/10 - "a travesty and/or deplorable content"
Things I review should be shooting for a 7 or higher. You'll notice that once we get to 4 we're talking about both production values (writing quality, animation, plot, etc...) as well as the messages being delivered by the content to the point where something could be brilliantly designed and executed but so offensive that it gets significantly demoted based on the communicated message. I reserve the right to judge whether the reviewed content is promoting a message which supports the values I hold dear.
* as of my return from hiatus in early 2022, I am not using a rating system at all. This is subject to constant change at my whim! :)

Q; What kind of gummy bears do you like?
A: Because it's true, not just any will do. I used to prefer Wegmans 12 flavor gummy bears but they changed suppliers. I now love Albanese (which I bet was the original OEM maker for Wegmans). I do NOT like Haribo (I know that's sacrilege to some). I like mine sweet and soft. Haribo tend to be hard, have some weird coating on them (corn starch?), and are pretty flavorless. But each to their own.

Q: Subs or dubs?
A: Subs, absolutely. The only time I make any exception to that is for Studio Ghibli films where the dubs are actually pretty good (I also don't mind the dub for "The Girl Who Leapt Through Time). But even those films, I still prefer in their original language with subtitles. I really really can't stand to watch any episodic anime with dubs, it's just funny and/or creepy. (Update 6/24/18 - I tried to watch a dub of an anime show and it was just god awful, I just can't do most dubs still, the show shall remain nameless because the sub was okay).

Q: Sailor Moon or Sailor Moon Crystal?
A: Sailor Moon Crystal...It's okay if you want to fight me over this. But we are each allowed to like different things for different reasons. And that's a good thing to remember on this blog. Reviews are meant to highlight how I personally responded to manga/anime/books/movies/etc... They are also meant to highlight things that I believe may be of significance to others (particularly when I look at representation and equity). But that doesn't mean you can't like something I like or find problematic. And liking it does not make you a bad person just as disliking it doesn't make me a bad person. I like problematic things. Hell, I really like Sakura Trick and that's tons of problematic. Processing through why you love something in spite of its toxicity is an important step in media consumption. And tastes change over time, things age poorly (or get better with time), and so nothing I liked today must be liked tomorrow and vice versa. These reviews are snapshots in time meant as much as an insight into my head as the item itself. And finally, my hope isn't to convince you of looking at a media item my way. My hope is that as you think about what did and did not work for me, it can be informative of whether it will or won't work for you. Disagreeing with me is just as powerful a way to decide which media to consume, as agreeing with me is. Go forth and support creators creating things that resonate with you!

Q: Are you transgender?
A: Yes I am. I am a proudly open and visible transgender woman. I welcome any and all questions from people earnestly looking to learn more. I also will have no tolerance for any form of bigotry, oppression, marginalization, hate, etc... on this site (or out there in the world), so please only bring thoughtfulness and loving-kindness to this site (and to your fellow human beings).

Please support content creators. That means no fansubs or scanlations!
    With that, because we talk about anime and manga, please respect the creators' rights and only watch legally streaming anime (or purchase the DVDs or Blu-ray) and only read those manga that you have bought legally or borrowed from the library or from a friend. 
    Please do not talk about things you have read in scanlation or watched on illegal streaming sites with fan subs/dubs. Scanlation is illegal and absolutely destroys the market for legally translated works which both hurts the creators who barely survive on meager earnings and reduces the liklihood that more manga will be translated and available legally. I will not have a debate about your belief that scanlations/fansubs actually help creators. It does not, cannot, and has not - and that is coming from actual content creators. 
    I too wish there was more ready access in the US because many manga/anime I would probably enjoy will never be released here, but that's life. We can't have everything we want, all the time, for free, with no consequences. So to keep anything of value being translated and released, please only purchase, rent, borrow, or stream legally available anime/manga. <3

In conclusion:
I would love to hear from you, but please remember to always practice loving kindness. I have no problem with strong opinions on things, but I will insist we are always kind to all people.

I reserve the right to remove any posts or comments that do not conform to loving kindness.

Follow me on Instragram: https://www.instagram.com/yuristargirl/

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Remember: please talk about the work, and offer counter points to others' analyses but DO NOT ATTACK THE PERSON whose analysis you are countering. (no ad hominem comments) Thanks! <3