My favourite DJ
Posted on September 29, 2008
Filed Under yaoi recs, anime/manga fandom, Death Note recs, Fullmetal Alchemist, doujinshi recs |
Another new shiny thing, doujinshi :)
See my review of the Fullmetal Alchemist anime and Death Note and other manga here. If you want my reviews of yaoi manga that I liked, click here. My extensive Harry Potter fiction recs, recs of FMA fanfiction, Death Note fiction recs. Other fandom recs are here. Or use the nav bar above.
Usual drill:
## means “loved to bits OMG!”
# stands for “liked.”
[] means “rather liked,” on the brink between “liked” and “not my thing.”
A HUGE list of DJ at Aarinfantasy forums. This is a place to find everything if you can’t get it from the scanlators’ site. The place, even.
Fullmetal Alchemist, Death Note, Harry Potter, Other
Doppelgänger (2005) []
Circle/Doujinshika: Vital Songs / Nagi Yusura
Scanlated by: DokiDoki
Pairing: Heidrich X Ed, Al X Ed
Genre: Doujinshi Yaoi
Rating/warnings: R, NWS
Status: oneshot, 80 pages
Summary: Film spoilers! Ed returns from he alterverse with Alfons Heiderich in tow… our Alphonse is not pleased, nor is he willing to be outdone.
DL: here.
My notes: wasn’t going to read this doujinshika again but got seduced with the title and summary. I really liked the beginning. Then Al abruptly went out of character (according to the authorial intent, since even Ed remarked on it — but it still was jarring), then it went into shota-ish clichés but didn’t stay there too long. Can’t tell you how happy I was! In the end, it turned out to be a pretty interesting and moving story.
Empty Shell (Kuukyo na Kara) []
Circle/Doujinshika: Kawashou Kobo/ Yokohama-ya
Scanlated by: Secret Garden
Pairing: Roy x Ed
Genre: Doujinshi Yaoi
Rating/warnings: WS but for a couple of embraces and a naked chest
Status: oneshot
Summary: Al visits the Colonel to find out more about the time he’s missing. He finds out more than he would have thought. 30 pages
DL: here
My notes: I can’t say I like how it’s drawn (Ed looks rather shota-ish), and the story is emo but I liked it. Not much but enough to save it. I also didn’t find it completely believable. But it moved me. So what worked? A couple of details, as it’s usual with me. Roy repeatedly calling Ed “bean” as if trying to cheat fate was a nice touch.
Equestrian Game (2004) []
Circle/Doujinshika: Bambi Takada / Ronno to Kallus
Scanlated by: Secret Garden
Pairing: Roy x Ed
Genre: Doujinshi Yaoi
Rating/warnings: R, NWS
Status: oneshot, 28 pages including covers
Summary: Roy attempts to give Ed a lesson on the honoured sport of dressage by having sex with him in a stable and incorporating lots of horse-back riding innuendoes.
DL: f-locked in Secret Garden LJ.
My notes: it’s a PWP in decorations. Amusing and not explicit, drawn by the artist I like a lot. Nothing much to the story but it made me smile and I enjoyed looking.
Futaribocchi Densetsu (2005) []
Circle/Doujinshika: Daen + Bambi Takada
Scanlated by: Central Library
Pairing: Roy x Ed
Genre: Doujinshi Gender Bender Yaoi
Rating/warnings: NWS, NC-17
Status: oneshot, 37 pages
Summary: –
DL: locked in CL LJ?
My notes: It’s cross-dressing rather than gender-bender. The Colonel says that Ed is bad at spying and disguising himself, so Ed decides to prove him wrong. The first half is done by Daen, the second one by Bambi Takada. I like the 2nd part better because it has actual plot where Ed has to use his newly developed crossdressing skills to do some good. The story on the whole isn’t quite my thing because I like crossdressing only when it’s done in a very specific way, not the cosplayish one like here. There’s also an awful foot at page 16. :/ But I liked how plot turned into kink turned into plot again, and one specific scene made me laugh: when Roy gives Ed cat’s ears to try. Ed’s interpretation of it is very amusing.
Hagaren O.D. []
Circle/Doujinshika: Daen / Konboi Chouchou aka Dosukoi Hanako
Scanned by: catystorm @ Central Library; Translated by moumusu
Pairing: Roy x Ed
Genre: Comedy Doujinshi Gender Bender Shounen Ai
Rating/warnings: PG-13
Status: Complete. Pages: 72
DL: here.
My notes: Grabbed this DJ because of Scar on the cover. I’ll try anything once, even roasted grasshoppers. So why not a part 3 of a high school AU (part 1: Hagaren, part 2: Hagaren Maximum (DL raw here)) where Ed is called “he” but wears pleated skirt? And where he and Roy are members of Disciplinarian committee, Greed is Ed’s fanboy, and Hughes is a father figure. As I suspected when I read the preface, it’s not really my cup of tea. Even though there’s Scar, in his almost canon role. If you like the genre though, read it. It’s not bad. Even with me, while Roy x Ed skirted romance vaguely annoyed me, I found the Scar plot-line very amusing, especially its resolution. For that, half a star.
Hermaphrodite #
Circle/Doujinshika: Bambi Takada
Scanlated by: Secret Garden
Pairing: Roy x Ed
Genre: Doujinshi Drama Yaoi
Rating/warnings: R/NC-17, NWS, violence
Status: 9 Volumes (Ongoing), 9 vols. scanlated
Summary: Roy corners Ed into a sexual relationship based on the concept of equivalent exchange, ie, he offers information and protection for sex. Ed agrees for a lack of choice, and their whole messy relationship begins.
DL: f-locked in Secret Garden LJ.
My notes: unlike most DJs I’ve read, this is a proper story, not to mention that it’s drawn really nicely. The style is spare but clean and airy. Bambi Takada doesn’t use much detail but when she does, it’s precise and often meaningful, without being too accented as it tends to happen in yaoi manga. The characters look exactly like in FMA. Amazing.
The story begins with a FMA fanfic/doujin cliché: Roy coerces/forces Ed into sexual relationship. While I don’t like it, in this story it was developed enough for me to not mind at all. I underline: the relationship develops. And there’s plot. Well, it’s not something to write home about if to think of it as of general manga but if to compare it to other DJs (and quite a few of yaoi manga), it’s quite good.
I love the scene where Roy drinks with Hughes. I love the sex scenes in the later volumes. They are beautiful. The main story is finished with vol. 8, so if you are wary of WIPs, don’t be. Volumes 9 and 10 are sequels, 9 from Roy’s POV, 10s from Ed’s. Vol. 10 isn’t out yet but you can read the first nine and not be left hanging. Very pleasant story on the whole.
ETA: don’t let the title mislead you. It’s metaphorical, not literal.
Inu no Hi []
Circle/Doujinshika: Bambi Takada
Scanlated by: Secret Garden
Pairing: gennish Roy x Ed
Genre: Doujinshi
Rating/warnings: PG, WS
Status: complete
Summary: Al and Ed find Roy drenched in a park. The colonel seems to think that he’s a dog.
DL: here
My notes: this is definitely my favourite doujinshika. The story is unusual and I would even say weird but lovely and drawn very well again. Colonel on his dog’s day (see the summary), while it didn’t look quite IC for me, was interesting to observe. And as I said, it’s a lovely story. Quite pleasant.
Kagami no Nai Heya (A Room without a Mirror) (2004) []
Circle/Doujinshika: GD Mechano / Izumi Yakumo
Scanlated by: Scan Clan
Pairing: Ed x Roy, Roy x Ed
Genre: Doujinshi Drama Mature Yaoi
Rating/warnings: NWS, NC-17
Status: complete
Summary: from scan-clan: Ed and Roy find themselves trapped in a relationship they can’t control. And what’s Roy hiding from Ed? Pages: 80
DL: here
My notes: I don’t know whether it’s a problem with translation or original (more likely translation ‘cos I noticed the same thing in other Scan Clan’s projects), but Roy and Ed sound like teenagers who live in the streets. Scan isn’t very good either. I really like the drawing though, a lot, even if it’s sketch-like. GD catches fleeting expressions and gestures very well. There’s also a sort of story hidden behind all the porn. It needs puzzling out and I didn’t like the ending but I think certain images from this DJ and it’s mood will stay with me for a while. Rainy days, empty room, chalk traces on the floor.
Kaleidoscope (2006) []
Circle/Doujinshika: K2 Company / Kodaka Kazuma
Scanlated by: gretchen8642 and moumusu
Pairing: Hughes x Roy
Genre: Doujinshi Yaoi
Rating/warnings: NC-17, NWS
Status: oneshot, 16 pages
Summary: –
DL: ? I forget where I found it.
My notes: I still haven’t tried Kizuna, a very popular thing by this mangaka, even though I downloaded it. I really liked how this DJ is drawn except for one page (page 2: proportions! OMG Hughes thumb half Roy’s face in size). It’s neither whispy nor too bold, just wonderfully contrasted and sure, with a few really good details which is what often makes or breaks it for me. For example, Hughes in his boots on the bed or the entire page 10 — it’s so funny. I can’t say I liked the clichéd yaoi sex talk (or talk on the whole — to much repetition of canon), this is why it’s half a star. But now I think I’m going to try Kizuna sooner rather than later. OTOH, I don’t much care for Kodaka Kazuma’s Sex Therapist (my review here…. We’ll see.
Kanohi (2004) []
Circle/Doujinshika: GD Mechano / Izumi Yakumo
Scanlated by: Scan-clan
Pairing: Roy x Ed, Ed x Al is really gen
Genre: Doujinshi Drama Shounen Ai
Rating/warnings: PG, WS
Status: complete, Pages: 84. Film spoilers!
Summary: An absolutely gorgeous representation of Ed’s relationship with Al. This frame story outlines some of the brothers’ past and present, with more of GD Mechano’s stunning art. (from Scan Clan)
DL: here.
My notes: A very unfortunate cover, sort of anti-cover even, in its scanned form. I suspect it looks nicer on paper ‘cos it seems embossed? The story is surreal. I’m not sure I quite get it, except to guess [spoiler:]that all that leads to the last panels is Ed’s trip down the memory lane, a metaphorical journey consisting of recollections and coloured in sadness. I like GD’s drawing and I like trains, so I found this DJ interesting and even pleasant, on the melancholy side of things.
Kenja no Propeller (Philosopher’s Propeller) (2005) []
Circle/Doujinshika: Daen / Konboi Chouchou aka Dosukoi Hanako
Scanlated by: Central Library
Pairing: Roy x Ed
Genre: Doujinshi Shounen Ai
Rating/warnings: PG-13, mild NWS for kisses
Status: oneshot. Pages: 23
Summary: –
DL: here.
My notes: awfully cute and romantic. Will make your teeth rot. Roy kissed Ed when they were having dinner in a restaurant. Ed is pissed off ‘cos it was embarrassing. More kissing ensues. If you like cute fluffy stuff, go for it. Daen’s fluff is really well-done. Surprisingly, it even got to me and I usually hate fluff! But there must be an exception to every rule. Apparently, this DJ is it for me :)
Linus []
Circle/Doujinshika: GD Mechano / Izumi Yakumo
Scanlated by: Scan Clan
Pairing: Al x Ed
Genre: Doujinshi Yaoi
Rating/warnings: NC-17, NWS, should I even warn for incest?
Status: complete
Summary: In this book, Edward is twenty and still belongs to the military as a national alchemist. Alphonse is still armor. They still continued to study the human alchemy. One day, Alphonse completed his dissertation of human alchemy -Human Alchemy is impossible- Pages: 80
DL: here
My notes: This isn’t a story I should have liked. Truth be told, I think I should have been either spooked or disturbed. This is suit-of-armour incestuous porn, that is: Al is the armour, Ed wants him and gets him. With lots of graphic details. I find it stretching my belief as far as the premise/characterisation goes but I liked the drawing and there’s something moving in this story. I’ll definitely remember it.
Lovely Cool Fake (2005) #
Circle/Doujinshika: Bambi Takada / Ronno to Kallus
Scanlated by: Biblo Eros and Secret Garden
Pairing: Roy x Ed
Genre: Doujinshi Yaoi
Rating/warnings: R, NWS
Status: complete, 36 pages
Summary: Film spoilers! Takes place after it. Ed attends university and meets a person who looks like his beloved colonel. He’ll just have to forget him and start a new story with this lovely and cool fake.
DL: here.
My notes: it’s really, really lovely! I love Bambi Takada’s DJ because she tells stories beside drawing characters so that they make me melt and drawing sex so that it makes my heart flutter. The story is romantic but not saccharine at all. I liked it so much that on finishing it sent an admiring letter to the artist. Which is a first for me. One thing I disliked was that Ed moved his metal arm, which he shouldn’t have in these settings. But it doesn’t really matter in a story so wonderful. I wish it were longer so that I could stretch the pleasure.
Memento Mori (2004) []
Circle/Doujinshika: Vital Songs / Nagi Yusura
Scanlated by: DokiDoki
Pairing: Al x Ed
Genre: Doujinshi Yaoi
Rating/warnings: NWS, incest
Status: oneshot, 65 pages
Summary: Al worries that if Ed regains his arm, he’ll forget the price they paid for everything… foolishly, Ed pursues his final victory anyway. But Al’s right: there’s always a price.
DL: here.
My notes: Half a rec, with a caveat. I’ve read one DJ by this artist (Stigma, review here) and didn’t like it because the Elric brothers are shown as religious, Al in particular. Which I wouldn’t mind in and of itself were it, say, Scar who’s a religious fanatic in canon and whom I love to bits. But Al and Ed?? What the fuck? In Memento Mori, it’s just a short scene at the beginning, and strangely, I find it all the more annoying for it. It’s not necessary for the later story, it never appears again, so why make Al pray and be very religious at all? Gah. I want to read about my favourite characters, not about the author’s issues. The story itself is interesting (amnesia cliché, pretty detailed for a DJ), and the drawing is pleasant. But I don’t think I’ll be reading more Vital Songs’ DJ.
Munich 1921 (2005) []
Circle/Doujinshika: NINEKOKS / Kyuugou
Scanlated by: Deja-vu, Lost Heaven (yaoi), Secret Garden
Pairing: Roy x Ed
Genre: Doujinshi Drama Yaoi
Rating/warnings: PG, WS for part 1-2; NC-17, NWS for 3.5
Status: 5 Volumes (ongoing), 2 vols scanlated
Summary: Vol.1: I’ve Met Him Again. In a book shop in Germany in 1921, Otherworld Ed runs into our world Roy. After helping him retrieve a book (which leaves Ed ticked off) Roy develops a relationship with Ed. 64 Pages.
Vol.2: Shut Your Eyes and Squeeze the Trigger
Vol.3: I Still Had the Foolish Dream
Vol.3.5: He Is Wandering in the Black Forest. Roy watching Ed (who’s in our world) having sex with his own counterpart.
Vol.4: It Keeps On Us Like the Still Blue Sky
DL: vol. 1 (or here), vol. 2
My notes: There were several things that annoyed me in this DJ. One has to do with the scanlation of vol. 1: quite a few errors, including chapter titles and “Mastung” on the inlet. The other has to do with the contents: Kyuugou draws Ed with a non-functioning arm (as well she should) but somehow both his legs are working fine. I mean, one couldn’t stand on tiptoe on a prosthetic leg, especially one made at the beginning of the XX century, but Ed does. Huh. Then on page 35 suddenly he gestures with his right arm. Also, I doubt Ed could hold a crutch under his metal arm ‘cos his arm is amputated right at the shoulder and the metal prosthetic is just a decoration at that point, unlike automail. But I like Kyuugou’s drawing on the whole (both DJ and original manga). As in other DJ by the same artist, here Ed looks relatively like Ed from FMA, Roy looks a lot like the mangaka’s original characters, and Hohenheim looks the most like himself.
There’s also a story. I don’t want to read a DJ that is just sex scene because I want to be told how they got there, how they live, how they love or not-love each other. Just a sex scene isn’t enough. I can imagine it in my head just fine, if not better. I want to be told something interesting, unusual, moving. Kyuugou succeeds here. With only two volumes scanlated, it’s just a beginning of a story but it’s intriguing and detailed enough for me to want to read more. I sneaked a peek at part 3.5 (since it’s only raw yet). Looked nice, in the context of what I know of the story at this point of time. I’ll be looking forward to the next volumes.
Night Flier []
Circle/Doujinshika: GD Mechano / Izumi Yakumo
Scanlated by: Scan Clan
Pairing: none. or you can see it as some sort of Al x Ed
Genre: Doujinshi
Rating/warnings: PG
Status: complete
Summary: Ed had a bad dream. The night like today, Edward sleeps in the Alphonse’s arms. Pages: 28
DL: here
My notes: The scan and translation could be better; there are quite a few errors. But it’s a sweet scene. It’s all about sleep: Ed has a nightmare, Al sleeps on the floor, flashbacks of how they slept when their mother was alive, and how they end up sleeping. Aww :)
Off Limits (2004) []
Circle/Doujinshika: Cinnamon
Scanlated by: uiggu
Pairing: Roy x Havoc + Archer
Genre: Doujinshi Yaoi
Rating/warnings: NC-17, NWS
Status: complete, 19 pages
Summary: Oh sweet Jesus my prayers were partially answered with this doujinshi. It features the following: Roy topping; pulling rank; military uniforms; office!sex; threesome(ish); Archer being totally 100% Archer; and ARCHER DOING PAPERWORK. (by uiggu)
DL: here
My notes: it’s an amusing and kinky PWP. There’s nothing to like in the story because there isn’t one, but I liked the way it’s drawn and the power balance. Or I better say imbalance :)
Pavane (2004) []
Circle/Doujinshika: Kitakami Ren
Scanlated by: Attractive Fascinante
Pairing: Havoc x Roy
Genre: Doujinshi Yaoi
Rating/warnings: PG-13, mild NWS for naked chests and a kiss
Status: complete, 32 pages
Summary: Havoc is kinda jealous that Hughes holds a special place in Roy’s heart. But is that really what happens?
DL: here (use find option of your browser).
My notes: This is weird. I can’t say I particularly like the drawing. There are some things in the anatomy (ears, the proportion of hands to body) that drove me spare all the way. I can’t say I much care for the story told here either. But somehow the end result is that I rather liked this DJ. There’s something sweet in Havoc’s expressions. Note: The story follows the manga canon in what concerns Maes’ military past.
Quiet Reunion (2005) []
Circle/Doujinshika: Jackpot / Toomine Kuuya
Scanlated by: Secret Garden
Pairing: Roy x Ed implied
Genre: Doujinshi Drama Shounen Ai
Rating/warnings: PG, WS
Status: complete
Summary: from SG: his one also plays after the movie. Very pretty art and a bittersweet story.
DL: here
My notes: I liked how it’s drawn. Mind that the characters are much less girly inside than on the cover. The story is poetic and emotional, a bit too much of both for me. But pleasant. And it resonates with me somehow. I know this feeling of Ed’s when you’re so deep down the memory lane that you chase a stranger in the street, mistaking him or her for somebody you knew a long time ago; somebody who, if you think of it, would look very different by now.
Traumerei (2004) []
Circle/Doujinshika: Idea / Seina Rin
Scanlated by: Deja-vu
Pairing: gennish Al and Ed
Genre: Doujinshi Drama Psychological
Rating/warnings: WS, PG
Status: complete
Summary: Al seems to have disappeared, giving his soul to let Ed have his arm and leg back. Ed seems to be dreaming the whole time, Al always at his side. In reality Ed won’t accept that Al is gone, and sees him. No pairing, Just Ed missing his brother. 100 pages.
DL: here
My notes: Ok, it seems I get it by now but I’m still going to read what DJ by Idea I downloaded. What I get? That their style doesn’t always agree with me. Not the drawing style. That I like. The storytelling style: lots of poetic inner speech, ellipses, etc. But in Traumerei, where this story picks up and the author lets the character actions and words speak for themselves, I like it fine. Traumerei is sad or maybe bittersweet, depends on your angst tolerance level. I cried a little.
Comments
One Response to “My favourite DJ”
Leave a Reply
-
About
Hello,
this is pj's fannish place made with the goal to be a sort of public library of (or a gateway to) fanfiction. I read mostly slash, I love sex and various kinks, so if you are underage and somehow wormed your way here past net nannies and warnings, please surf responsibly and go somewhere else when you are asked to!
Click on the links below to get to:
Anime/manga fandoms:
Doujinshi are often too brief for me - some of these look more in depth/very interesting; will have to check out!