Customer Reviews

Games with Me Volume 1 (Yaoi)

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Downloaded this even though there's no description...hello Amazon, anyone home?

First I must say, as someone reading manga from other companies on the KINDLE, you must download the free MANGLE application: foosoft.net/mangle/ because this'll help your viewing experience 200%! If not, the images will be so light they're invisible (or so dark it's black) and the text will be hard to read.

I have no clue why the author isn't promoting this edition. "Games With Me" is only available in print the German language, but I've been hearing about it because I follow her work, and discovered this while searching for "yaoi" on the KINDLE. One of the reasons I've always enjoyed Anderson's work is because I love the manly, non-androgynous flavor her illustrators tend to bring to the genre. They look like real men, not pretty boys; so when I first got a gander at the artwork here, I was a bit put off. Obviously Anderson decided to give in to the "beautiful club", and create something with an artist that fans of the "pretty" would enjoy. Despite this, I dug in and read this volume, twice. The art grew on me even though it's not a style I tend to enjoy, but it's unique and the artist is very talented. I was happy to discover that this story is typical Anderson, plenty of angstish drama, set in the past.

A bit spoilerish, so be prepared: The book takes place in San Francisco in the late 1860's, and the characters are from two of the most discriminated against groups of era - the Irish and the Chinese. George Calahan was a doctor in the Civil War, but he's since become an opium user and supports his addiction by working as abortionist for Chinese pimps. He decides to finally go into a brothel of male whores (I don't think there were Chinese brothels for gay men, but this is yaoi, so anything is possible) and asks for a boy named Jun. I got the impression that George has been looking for "Jun" or another young Chinese man, and so this was his reasoning for going into the brothel. Now this may bother some readers, but Jun seems to be mentally challenged and at first glance, underage. As I read it I was bit put off because Jun looks very youthful, and he's obviously mentally handicapped, but I tolerate this in many a Narise Konohara story, so I won't throw stones at Anderson for it. However, he looks like he's 12. I discovered later, as George visits him on another occasion and asks him questions about his mother, that Jun arrived at the brothel when `he was walking', and he's spent `16 summers' there. Most kids walk at age 2? I suspect this places him in the 17 years old range and likely saves Anderson from having to explain why she's got an underage uke in her book. It may not though, because the artwork and Jun's child-like nature, give him the feel of a child. This might disturb some readers, so you have been warned. Two other characters round out the cast: another Irish American, a bouncer named Roan, who's in love with Jun in his own weird and twisted seme sort of way. Then there's exotic Sung, George's opium dealer. Sung is Chinese/Japanese half-breed and quite frankly, he's sex. Why George isn't playing with him instead of Jun is a mystery to me but there's always Volume 2.

The sex in the book is tasteful, you won't see any real genitalia, but there's full on sex, and it fits in with a serious storyline, not something illustrated to `turn on' readers. This volume covers George's entry into Jun's life, and shows us the state of their lives, but then ends abruptly. I suspect the main drama is coming in Volume 2, which according to the artist and writer's notes, has been ordered, written, and currently in production for a German language release. Let's hope Volume 2 makes it KINDLE as well because overall this is the best OEL yaoi manga I've read in a real long time. The art is lovely, the story affecting, and despite having to struggle to read it on the KINDLE, it was worth the price I paid. I'd love to see it in print.

Tina Anderson writes challenging yaoi. Not for her are light, cheery stories of schoolboys declaring eternal love, of stepbrothers awkwardly living together, of sensitive old oyaji-ukes finding hot sweaty love with some young stud(ent). The two main characteristics of her work are her intricately researched historical settings (Anderson's personal reinvention of an old yaoi standard, since many early yaoi were set in 'romantic' places and times like 19th century European boarding schools) and the dark streak that runs through her work, a black air of regret and tragedy and hopeless loves.

"Games with Me", although not as bleak as "Only Words" (her manga set in Nazi-occupied WWII Poland), continues these themes. The setting of 19th century San Francisco is lovingly detailed, not an idealized Jane Austen 19th century, but an Alan Moore "From Hell" 19th century, a world of back-alley abortions, prostitution and drug addiction. It feels real, it feels grim, but unlike the gory and unforgiving 19th century New York of Anderson's "Gadarene," it doesn't rub the reader's face in it. Perhaps reflecting the viewpoint of the developmentally disabled main character, "Games with Me" has a strange air of innocence. The idyllic neverland of the cover, where the two main characters can be with one another in peace -- despite the very unpleasant realities that stand in the way of their relationship in real life -- may not exist in the story, but it exists in the protagonists' hearts and minds.

In short, this is an engrossing picture of a time and place; a taboo BL story of a retarded Chinese prostitute and a troubled white doctor; and a dark and touching and, in some ways, unresolved and unresolvable romance. The love interest's mental disabilities pushes the already taboo story's power relationships into areas which will be uncomfortable for some readers, but what did you expect from the author of "Only Words"? Lynsley Brito's excellent artwork is the perfect accompaniment for the story.

Written by Tina Anderson and illustrated by the talented Lynsley Brito Games With Me is a historical drama set in the late 1860's. The story follows the life of George Callahan as he deals with his demons past and present and his encounters with Jun, a male prostitute.

The feel of the book is very distinctive and after reading it several times I can safely say this is certainly not a light and fluffy story. Despite the bleakness of the setting Jun's warmth seemed to add to the narrative and especially George's character. George struggles with his past, his addiction and his growing attraction to this young man who seems so innocent. Because Jun is a prostitute and a little slow, the power dynamics in the relationship seemed very one-sided, but George's feelings for Jun make me wonder a little who is really in a position of power.

The artwork is beautifully done and moves the story with strong expression and crisp, gorgeous historical detail. I loved how George was depicted. Elegant and kinda austere. Jun is seriously cute, pretty and that hair! The sex is hot and tastefully done, but not as explicit as some of my recent reading! I think one of my favorite panels is near the end with Jun kinda smooching up under George's chin. Loved it.

There is plenty of depth to the story and I am looking forward to seeing where Tina Anderson and Lynsley Brito take it. The secondary characters were also interesting and I wondered at times if there was more going on with Sung than met the eye.

This was an enjoyable read and definitely worth a look if gritty historical drama is your thing. Check it out at emanga or get it through Amazon Kindle.

Set just after the US Civil War in the San Francisco, Games With Me follows Dr George Callahan and his search for a Chinese woman who once worked at his childhood home and who fled with her young son one night, never to be seen again. The horrors of war sit heavily on the young surgeon's mind, and haunted by the ghosts of his childhood past, he finds solace within the opium dens of Chinatown, where he searches for clues to his lost maternal figure. His use of opium, Irish descent, and frequenting of the Chinese Quarter in general has come at a high cost to himself, as no one of any social standing wishes to openly associate with him, and so he is reduced to using his skills to give illegal termination procedures to women, rich and poor.

One day, his contacts give him information that leads him to a brothel, where he discovers the woman he searches for had worked as a laundress after fleeing the Callahan mansion. She has long since died, and he is sorrowed to discover that the child he considered his beloved little little brother is working as rent boy there. To make matters worse, Jun is o the slow side, which along with his slender figure and lovely face means he is an easy target for bullies. Bullies such as Roan Baxter, an overly aggressive bouncer who works for the establishment, and who has developed a fixation for the boy. Never allowed out of the confines of the brothel and unable to understand any relationship beyond playing games with toy trains or those the other workers and staff tell him are love games. Jun is perplexed by Callahan's kindness and wishing to pay for his time just to talk. He does understand one thing though, Georgie is kind, and doesn't hurt him. He longs to see Georgie again, and when Baxter discovers this, trouble begins. Can George save himself and Georgie from their mental and physical imprisonments, and can he answer Jun's innocent, pure love?

Volume one introduces us to the character and plot and it is one with an interesting setting. The art is well done and the characters refreshingly different from those normally encountered in Boy's Love. The art style is a unique mix of pointy faced bishounen Chinese and unidealised Western types, with well detailed backgrounds whose shadings perfectly impart the sordidness the shining, innocent Jun and fallen Callahan find themselves in. The angst is adult in nature, with the mature Callahan and his associates worldliness and experience providing a stark contrast to the youthful, poignantly twisted innocent existence that is Jun.

Originally seen in print in the German language magazine, The Wild Side, this is quite simply one of the best original pieces of Boy's Love I have read lately. It is admittedly not the fluffiest read, with realistic settings, drug addiction, prostitution, violence, bigotry, and the sexual abuse of a vulnerable person. It is instead a story of substance depicting people who very well COULD have been, perhaps in an alternative time and place, real, making this a tale filled with meaning, and well worth the reading. It should be noted that the English edition is only available electronically. Seeing as it is the first volume and the story is not yet over, I sincerely hope that mangaka Tina Anderson and LynsleyBrito put out the second volume quite soon, as I am dying to find out what happens next.

This book was one of the most beautiful gay mangas I have ever read. The art style in which it was drawn in almost kept me from reading it because I was a little put off by what I saw. There was minimal shading, the faces weren't very descripitive, etc. But as the story progressed, these negative attributes didn't bother me at all anymore. I applaud the book for it's use of mature ADULT looking characters. As much as I love reading about gay male characters, most gay mangas I have come across feature a bunch of baby faced men who look sixteen at best even if the characters are meant to be in College or running their own corporation. Another thing I applaud this book for is that it avoided the cliche of the two main characters magically bonding for life after sharing their difficult and painful pasts to each other over one night. I actually focused on the two characters for who they were and not for the sex that they could have especially when the two had the intimate moment of playing train games together. What is even more endearing is that Jun, the male prostitue, has a sort of mental handicap. I understand that some readers will be put off instantly for having a mentally handicapped person in such a dirty and comprimised position in society but that only adds to the beauty of the book. Many Yaoi (and Mangas in general) fail to account for so much diversity present in society. The thing is though, there are male prostitutes in society and there are people with mental difficulties in society, so it is was very enlightened of the author not to avoid this. People who aren't really beautiful, really tall, really talented or really young can have feelings of love for each other. With this said, I am glad this author kept out of the manga cliches and made a manga that was more earthy than nearly all the manga I have read. I loved Games with Me a lot.