more iya na yatsu (i'm only slightly obsessed, really)
I am still obsessed with Iya na Yatsu. It just won't leave my mind, even though I spent today rereading a sweet, more typical BL novel (which has one of my favorite confession scenes EVER that I do want to write about...someday). Please, anyone who can read Japanese and is interested? DOWNLOAD AND READ IT, please. I want to know what others think about it.
I found a good review of it at bk1 that does a nice job of summarizing the important bits. I love how the reviewer starts out explaining how she figured the main character would start out "hating" the other guy, but would end up falling in love...Exactly how anyone reading BL would think. There were also two "trackbacks" (<--WTF are "trackbacks," anyhow?) to blog posts. The first asks "Who do you think is the 'iya na yatsu,' Miura or Sugimoto (Kazuya)?" Yes, that is the big question of the novel, which I pondered in my rambling post yesterday. She was a resounding Sugimoto side. Just reading her go off on Kazuya (I can't help but think of the main character by his first name because that's what Miura calls him, just as I think of Miura as Miura because that's what Kazuya calls him) made me want to protest. I know that Kazuya is unpleasant and horrid, but...I can't quite be all that unconditionally sympathetic towards Miura, either. The reviewer on bk1 also seemed to feel for Miura more, and I can't help but want to push back against that expectation that love excuses all. Miura really goes beyond what a person should do to someone else. I think back to when Kazuya protests that they can't live together forever, since someday he'll marry. Miura comes back with "If I cut off your dick, then you won't be able to marry anyone." I can understand him being pushy and friendly back in their school days when Kazuya was totally deceiving him (and I felt really bad during the flashbacks at how badly Kazuya was treating him), but after he totally understood that Kazuya hated his guts and yet he still kept pushing? Why is it all Kazuya's fault? Why does a normal guy like Kazuya have to "get over" his hate and fall in love? Just because Miura's loved him all these years? There's no guarantee that a love will become requited from effort or strength of feeling (despite whatever BL novels say...^^;). And frankly, Miura's heavy-handed efforts aren't really...romantic. He was an incredible for jerk at times for no good reason (unless you accept the idea that being unrequited in your love excuses all bad behavior). Except for one or two moments when I did (despite my exasperation at his persistence) feel sorry for him, I wanted to slap him silly. Of course, I'm not defending Kazuya's behavior. He's pretty pathetic, lame, and despicable. I wish he was able to push Miura away more forcefully. But at the same time...I'd be hard pressed to escape Miura's insane pursuit. Plus, Kazuya is a bastard but he can feel guilty at times. That lingering guilt for his truly heinous behavior in their youth sometimes makes him less able to defend himself....In any case, I am so happy that there is a BL author who can write something with....complex characters who aren't all good or bad. And a very ambiguous ending.
Oh yes, before I forget, the other blog post linked from bk1? I laughed reading it because it was such a superficial fangirl reaction. I was amazed that that was all she got from reading the novel, but very amused at her fangirling (complete with Japanese emoticons and animated gifs). The line that just...killed me...just might be: でも、無理やりで、素敵です(///∇//)
Last but not least, I realized that the novel was published under Be Boy Novels...is that why it's not in print??? Damn you, Biblos, for going out of print! I really hope the new publisher reprints this. ;_;
I found a good review of it at bk1 that does a nice job of summarizing the important bits. I love how the reviewer starts out explaining how she figured the main character would start out "hating" the other guy, but would end up falling in love...Exactly how anyone reading BL would think. There were also two "trackbacks" (<--WTF are "trackbacks," anyhow?) to blog posts. The first asks "Who do you think is the 'iya na yatsu,' Miura or Sugimoto (Kazuya)?" Yes, that is the big question of the novel, which I pondered in my rambling post yesterday. She was a resounding Sugimoto side. Just reading her go off on Kazuya (I can't help but think of the main character by his first name because that's what Miura calls him, just as I think of Miura as Miura because that's what Kazuya calls him) made me want to protest. I know that Kazuya is unpleasant and horrid, but...I can't quite be all that unconditionally sympathetic towards Miura, either. The reviewer on bk1 also seemed to feel for Miura more, and I can't help but want to push back against that expectation that love excuses all. Miura really goes beyond what a person should do to someone else. I think back to when Kazuya protests that they can't live together forever, since someday he'll marry. Miura comes back with "If I cut off your dick, then you won't be able to marry anyone." I can understand him being pushy and friendly back in their school days when Kazuya was totally deceiving him (and I felt really bad during the flashbacks at how badly Kazuya was treating him), but after he totally understood that Kazuya hated his guts and yet he still kept pushing? Why is it all Kazuya's fault? Why does a normal guy like Kazuya have to "get over" his hate and fall in love? Just because Miura's loved him all these years? There's no guarantee that a love will become requited from effort or strength of feeling (despite whatever BL novels say...^^;). And frankly, Miura's heavy-handed efforts aren't really...romantic. He was an incredible for jerk at times for no good reason (unless you accept the idea that being unrequited in your love excuses all bad behavior). Except for one or two moments when I did (despite my exasperation at his persistence) feel sorry for him, I wanted to slap him silly. Of course, I'm not defending Kazuya's behavior. He's pretty pathetic, lame, and despicable. I wish he was able to push Miura away more forcefully. But at the same time...I'd be hard pressed to escape Miura's insane pursuit. Plus, Kazuya is a bastard but he can feel guilty at times. That lingering guilt for his truly heinous behavior in their youth sometimes makes him less able to defend himself....In any case, I am so happy that there is a BL author who can write something with....complex characters who aren't all good or bad. And a very ambiguous ending.
Oh yes, before I forget, the other blog post linked from bk1? I laughed reading it because it was such a superficial fangirl reaction. I was amazed that that was all she got from reading the novel, but very amused at her fangirling (complete with Japanese emoticons and animated gifs). The line that just...killed me...just might be: でも、無理やりで、素敵です(///∇//)
Last but not least, I realized that the novel was published under Be Boy Novels...is that why it's not in print??? Damn you, Biblos, for going out of print! I really hope the new publisher reprints this. ;_;