What are you reading today?

[暁のルナ]

@Naphthalene

There’s no edit, no exclusive bonus content, no あとがき…

It wasn’t released on a rushed schedule presumably, so the author got it right the first time - but I see your point about the other stuff. Weird that there’s no あとがき

Idk I see the value as having it in book form, and having found out about it in the first place. Discovering manga on pixiv is much less likely than something that has a published book version. Personally I hate reading stuff on pixiv or twitter (especially) tho. It’s just such a bad UI for it

@Naphthalene

It feels hard to believe the story is 100% real, but I can believe it is based on a true story. That part does catch my attention

Same. I skimmed it on Mangadex, and there was a part in chapter 10 just spontaneously ordering HRT meds offline without doing any sort of real research first that hit a realism disbelief thing for me… But also the fact that the thing HRT medication for trans women was even the topic in the first place was impressive. I’ve rarely if ever seen that mentioned in JP manga.

Tbh I was really surprised when you wrote it was a trans manga in the first place, and I might just read it to support that, since afaik that barely even exists (besides magical forced gender swap TSF stories, if you count those)

[Naphthalene]

@暁のルナ

I skimmed it on Mangadex, and there was a part in chapter 10

I’m not there yet, so I’m going to wait until I get there to check the spoiled part, but at the very least I can confirm that the event in chapter 6 is (was? Someone in the comments of that chapter said something like that could not happen nowadays) a thing.

@暁のルナ

since afaik that barely even exists

I was about to say that I have read a bunch, but yeah, it’s still a drop in the sea, AND they are almost exclusively coming of age stories. It’s the second one I can think of that deals with an adult transitioning (and the first one is technically 活字 with regular 4koma inclusions so it’s not even a manga per se; it’s オカマだけどOLやってます。完全版 | L25 if anyone is curious)

[暁のルナ]

Yeah - idk about in Japan, but I’m pretty sure there are events like that in my area (NYC), and others

@Naphthalene

I was about to say that I have read a bunch, but yeah, it’s still a drop in the sea, AND they are almost exclusively coming of age stories.

Any you’d recommend? Sadly the one you linked doesn’t appear to have a digital version

[Naphthalene]

@暁のルナ

Any you’d recommend? Sadly the one you linked doesn’t appear to have a digital version

That’s too bad for the book.
Sure! Once I get on my computer, I’ll try to list a few.

[Naphthalene]

@暁のルナ

Any you’d recommend?

So, here goes (in the order of me scrolling through my Natively library; I also haven’t checked if you had read any of those):

女装してめんどくさい事になってるネクラとヤンキーの両片想い | L24 Caveat: I technically do not know if this going to be a transgender story, as the character I am thinking about has all the telltale signs of gender dysphoria but 14 volumes in is still saying “no no, I’m somehow just a guy who really really really like presenting as a girl (and have people around me treat me as such) for some reason” and I’m waiting for the realization to come but… it doesn’t? Still, a fun story.

トラップヒロイン | L21 I have a major caveat about this story but it’s a spoiler… although, I guess putting it in this list is already spoiling it People on the forum have already expressed interest in it, sooo, I’m putting the title behind a spoiler tag (how helpful).

しまなみ誰そ彼 | L25 caveat: transgender character is not the main character, so her story is only part of the whole thing. Still, a very good story overall (and very relatable).

Not sure if I’d recommend: おかえりアリス 1 | L17 titular character (non-binary) is… not a good person. And, like, I understand that being a good person or not has nothing to do with being transgender, so it’s a thing in real life… but do I want to inflict myself more psychic damage just to read more lgbt+ stuff? I think not. YMMV

不可解なぼくのすべてを | L21 Really nice and fluffy. Non-binary main character.

放浪息子 | L25 My number one recommendation on the topic. It’s been a while already, but I remember some parts being rough and I had to stop reading in a few places. Still, really forth it.

ボーイズ・ラン・ザ・ライオット 1 | L24 Transmasc main character!

Not read in Japanese, and not the main point of the story, but ホムンクルス 1 | L27 has a character transition… it might be too little for this list, though

Not read at all, but I got 海月姫 1 | L25 recommended to me before. Edit: I’ve been told the character is not transgender.

That’s all I can think of at this time.

[暁のルナ]

[Deleted cuz the reply seems to be going to the wrong previous comment]

[eefara]

@Naphthalene

Not read at all, but I got 海月姫 1 | L25 recommended to me before.

There’s no transgender character here at all, unless my memory is failing me. A crossdresser for sure, but I never got the impression they were trans.

[Naphthalene]

@暁のルナ

there was a part in chapter 10 just spontaneously ordering HRT meds offline without doing any sort of real research first that hit a realism disbelief thing for me…

I reached that part and err, I’m afraid I have to say I know people (well, one person) who did start DIY HRT really fast, without even the excuse of having a possibly terminal disease that means that they are going to die anyway. (To be fair, I don’t know much about the rest of the world, but the hoops you have to jump through in Japan to get HRT are crazy, and the stuff you get isn’t even that great apparently) Plus, it’s a narrativized story, you don’t know how long the actual person spent thinking about it in real life.

@暁のルナ

But also the fact that the thing HRT medication for trans women was even the topic in the first place was impressive. I’ve rarely if ever seen that mentioned in JP manga.

That’s true. With the exception of オカマだけどOLやってます。完全版 | L25 (which, again, isn’t even really a manga) it’s the first time I see it take a role. (But, at the same time, the stories I mentioned before always involve minors, so they wouldn’t have access to it anyway).

Anyway, it turns out I really liked the story so far. Considering it seems the author is relating her story, it’s a lot easier to excuse the way the main character is drawn (same for the love interest). I’m considering buying the 単行本 since it seems to contain an essay by the author and I am curious to know more.

@eefara

@Naphthalene

Not read at all, but I got 海月姫 1 | L25 recommended to me before.

There’s no transgender character here at all, unless my memory is failing me. A crossdresser for sure, but I never got the impression they were trans.

Ah, I guess I misremembered. I will edit it.

[暁のルナ]

As my ADHD runs unrestrained (sry for repost, I like to point my comments to my previous comments so there’s a change, and it went to the wrong comment)

ロックは淑女の嗜みでして 1 | L24??

After reading a review of the most recent episode, I finally decided to check out the manga , to see how it compares. It’s a one-to-one adaptation, one chapter per episode. Turns out it’s easy enough that I could read it without lookups (and miss a word here and there, while still understanding), which is nice. The lack of audio isn’t making a difference for me so far.

The part I’m actually interested in is in the next volume, but may wait a bit before continuing, cuz I don’t wanna get grumpy about adaptation

瑠東さんには敵いません! 1 | L24??

Light 4-koma yuri (8 panels). Good balance of being just dumb and silly enough that I don’t lose interest, and an easy read for me

それが君になる | L24??

This one has an odd hook… adult bumps into high school student who looks exactly like her ex from high school (who she apparently never totally got over being hurt by) and breaks down crying… Turns out the girl is the total opposite of her ex, personality-wise, and things go from there. Mostly wanted to read it in JP for the sake of logging another manga… it’s somewhere between sweet and weird

ルミナス=ブルー 1 | L23

@seanblue recommended it earlier, cuz I asked about poly ending yuri, which there’s not a lot of

Anyway, hopefully I’ll manage to finish these + Yurihime before starting more new books and then make progress on トーマの心臓 | L24?? - which I learned earlier is different from modern BL in that (like most school yuri), it’s set in a single-gender school

[暁のルナ]

Thx for the recs

@Naphthalene

I have a major caveat about this story but it’s a spoiler…

What’s the caveat spoiler? Like the name already has トラップ in it

@Naphthalene

しまなみ誰そ彼 | L25 caveat: transgender character is not the main character, so her story is only part of the whole thing

That’s actually really cool

@Naphthalene

Not sure if I’d recommend: おかえりアリス 1 | L17 titular character (non-binary) is… not a good person.

I forgot (?) MC was nb, but it’s actually on my list for this reason Totally sympathize with what you’re saying tho, I just also like reading messed up stuff sometimes

@Naphthalene

不可解なぼくのすべてを | L21 Really nice and fluffy. Non-binary main character.

Oh wow that MAL synopsis sounds interesting!

@Naphthalene

放浪息子 | L25 My number one recommendation on the topic.

Oh yeah, I still need to read that… I stalled in the middle of vol 1

@Naphthalene

ボーイズ・ラン・ザ・ライオット 1 | L24

On my list already thx

[cloverff]

@Naphthalene

しまなみ誰そ彼 | L25 caveat: transgender character is not the main character, so her story is only part of the whole thing. Still, a very good story overall (and very relatable).

I love Shimanami Tasogare… I think I cried at least once a volume. Putting it on my to-read list in Japanese because I’m curious how they handle pronouns for Someone-san…

[暁のルナ]

@Naphthalene

err, I’m afraid I have to say I know people (well, one person) who did [spoiler]start DIY HRT really fast, without even the excuse of having a possibly terminal disease that means that they are going to die anyway.

Sure, but like you’d at least have to look up what the drugs and dosages are first, and like read about possible side effects and stuff, I’d imagine

@Naphthalene

I don’t know much about the rest of the world, but the hoops you have to jump through in Japan to get HRT are crazy, and the stuff you get isn’t even that great apparently

it’s like that in a lot of places - though I think usually once you get through the hoops, the meds are normal/effective. In the US there’s a thing where trans women can only get Spironolactone (a blood pressure medicine) instead of the anti-androgen that doesn’t suck, cuz of FDA nonsense. In NY transition related care is very accessible. In some other states it’s practically becoming illegal to be trans at this point

@Naphthalene

Plus, it’s a narrativized story,

Sure. I’m only responding to how it’s depicted in the manga

@Naphthalene

I’m considering buying the 単行本 since it seems to contain an essay by the author and I am curious to know more.

Oooh interesting… purchased, and might start tonight… I finished ロックは淑女の嗜みでして 1 | L24?? just now, so it’s OK to have another impulse start

[seanblue]

@Naphthalene

不可解なぼくのすべてを | L21 Really nice and fluffy.

The translation of the synopsis on Natively from Deepl says “boy-girl café” for 男の娘カフェ, which is funny. I’m not hugely surprised it can’t translate it properly. I tried Google translate and it gave “male daughter cafe”, which actually sounds worse. To my surprise, ChatGPT gave “Boys in Girls’ Clothing Café” (also known as an “otokonoko café”), so correct translation (if weirdly phrased) and giving the literal Japanese in romaji for some reason. I’m generally not impressed by these AI chatbots, but figuring that out from minimal context is actually pretty good.

[Naphthalene]

@暁のルナ

What’s the caveat spoiler? Like the name already has トラップ in it

So, here is the mild spoiler version:

The whole story is about trying to figure out the gender (? more like sex, in this case, I guess) of the titular character. While the titular character is claiming to be a guy, they behave and present as a girl the whole time, leading some of the cast to believe that they are in fact AFAB.

And here’s the following full spoiler, which gives away the very end of the story:

The fact I mention it in a list of transgender work does give away that the character is indeed AMAB. A further spoiler is that, by being treated as a girl, she (changing pronoun usage on purpose) realizes that she feels much happier this way, leading to her, in the very last chapter deciding to transition.
The caveat I have about this story being a transgender story is that, well, technically, the character is officially transgender for only a couple of pages. Like, literally 2, probably.

@cloverff

I love Shimanami Tasogare… I think I cried at least once a volume.

Well, I know I did.

@cloverff

Putting it on my to-read list in Japanese because I’m curious how they handle pronouns for Someone-san…

I actually don’t remember… I think they just bypassed it entirely by using their name instead? Probably some あの人/あの方 as well, but I don’t really remember. Nothing gendered, anyway.

@seanblue

I’m generally not impressed by these AI chatbots, but figuring that out from minimal context is actually pretty good.

I wonder if there’s ever going to be an actual translation of that term in English? I guess people are just going to use it as a loanword.

[Naphthalene]

@暁のルナ

Sure, but like you’d at least have to look up what the drugs and dosages are first, and like read about possible side effects and stuff, I’d imagine

Ah, yeah, sure. The person I know did blood work first too, and then did some analysis to check the purity of the thing they got (I don’t know the details, but it can’t be that advanced since they did it at home, though). Again, though, I’m okay with that level of shortcut for the sake of pace. It’s not supposed to be a transition step-by-step.

@暁のルナ

In some other states it’s practically becoming illegal to be trans at this point

Yeah… the situation in the US looks really scary from here.

@暁のルナ

Sure. I’m only responding to how it’s depicted in the manga

For me, the biggest disbelief part was the fact that ロロさん shows up with a Ferrari and stuff. Like… what are the odds.

@暁のルナ

Oooh interesting… purchased, and might start tonight…

Oh! Let me know if it was worth it, then I’ll probably buy it anyway, though.

[seanblue]

@Naphthalene

I wonder if there’s ever going to be an actual translation of that term in English

AniList has the tag “femboy” for it, which isn’t great but is probably the best you can get.

It would be sort of hilarious if otokonoko gets directly brought into English because you’d have anime nerds learning it in that context before the standard usage of 男の子. Imagine them then learning Japanese and being sooo confused.

[暁のルナ]

@seanblue

It would be sort of hilarious if otokonoko gets directly brought into English because you’d have anime nerds learning it in that context before the standard usage of 男の子

I have seen English speaking fans do that before… Actually that’s how I learned the other meaning besides 男の娘

@Naphthalene

I wonder if there’s ever going to be an actual translation of that term in English?

Dictionary app uses Trap as one of the definitions… I’m not sure if that’s the same or not tho

[Naphthalene]

@seanblue

AniList has the tag “femboy” for it, which isn’t great but is probably the best you can get.

Ah, true. Yeah, I’m not an expert but I’ve heard that the term is kinda sexualized nowadays.

@seanblue

Imagine them then learning Japanese and being sooo confused.

That would lead to interesting stories, I assume And you’d have a bunch of gloating about how they are “real” Japanese learners for knowing the actual basic meaning.

@暁のルナ

Dictionary app uses Trap as one of the definitions… I’m not sure if that’s the same or not tho

Trap is considered negative or even pejorative as far as I know. It implies an intention to deceive that really doesn’t feel nice, on top of denying the gender of the person (when used for a transgender person).

[cloverff]

On the topic of trans manga, a friend recommended to me カノジョになりたい君と僕 | L24 which I haven’t read, but I trust this friend’s taste.

[Naphthalene]

@cloverff

a friend recommended to me カノジョになりたい君と僕 | L24 which I haven’t read, but I trust this friend’s taste.

Turns out I already own this manga? It vaguely rings a bell too.