Anime & manga that respectfully address LGBT+ themes

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Outside of explicit yaoi and yuri series that are largely fanservice, there don't seem to be that many anime and manga that feature LGBT+ characters - and when they are present, it's often just for comedy purposes. :s:

In this thread, I hope to bring your attention to a few series I've come across that do a better job of portraying LGBT+ characters and the issues they face, and if anyone knows of any others that I've left out or not read/watched, please share them here. :biggrin:

Sasameki Koto

Aoi Hana

Antique Bakery

Seven Days

Indigo Blue

Hourou Musuko

Bokura no Hentai

IS - Otoko Demo Onna Nai Sei

Let me know if you've read or watched any of the above, and what you thought of them, and feel free to suggest any similarly great series. :smile:

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 1

TroyAndAbed

What Did You Eat Yesterday? is great at giving a more realistic/respectful look at life in Japan for a gay couple. Being released by Vertical in English. Not sure what the Japanese name is.

Reply 2

AngryJellyfish

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Original post by TroyAndAbed

What Did You Eat Yesterday? is great at giving a more realistic/respectful look at life in Japan for a gay couple. Being released by Vertical in English. Not sure what the Japanese name is.

I'd love to check that out, but unfortunately don't have the shelf space for another long series, and Vertical don't seem to have released it digitally. Yoshinaga Fumi is a brilliant manga-ka, though. :yes:

Reply 3

Mr T 999

Never knew there was LGBT type anime/manga, interesting...I think most mangakas don't make them due to low demand. Plus the culture is different compared with the western society. I think it's illegal for gay marriage to happen and looked down upon by most people in Japan. :dontknow:

Posted from The Forbidden Realm

Reply 4

AngryJellyfish

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Original post by mr T 999

Same-sex partnerships are now being offered in a few wards and cities, and public opinion seems largely in favour of that. Hopefully as such partnerships become more widespread and accepted as normal, the idea of calling them marriages legally won't seem so controversial.

Reply 5

jackien1

I'm surprised the works by Shungiku Nakamura aren't listed here? (The junjou series and sekaiichi hatsukoi)

Reply 6

AngryJellyfish

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Original post by jackien1

I'm surprised the works by Shungiku Nakamura aren't listed here? (The junjou series and sekaiichi hatsukoi)

I can only include series I've read/watched. :p:

You'd say they're on the more 'realistic' end of the scale for shounen-ai, then? :smile:

Original post by Galaxie501

The cringe is real tbh.

Isnt it called LGBTQIAOXYUIHFUIHRAUIRHWERUEHW+ btw?

There are a lot of different versions of the acronym, including all sorts of different orientations and identities. I feel LGBT+ (or perhaps LGBTI) is most appropriate for this thread though, since I've yet to come across anime or manga that focus on the others. Don't want to advertise this thread as something it isn't.