Haha - I suspect you're trolling and trying to get a reaction from people saying 'Asami doesn't look like a uke - how dare you!' as though being a uke was a bad thing.
However, I'll play along. I don't think Asami looks like a uke lately. He's wearing his hair ungelled more often - in universe because he's been shown in more casual situations - out of universe Yamane Ayano has said it's because the gelled hair is a pain to draw. He's also wearing more causal clothes, in universe only for the last couple of hours because it's night time, though out of universe it's been for about two years.
However, he's still tall, he's still heavily muscled, he's still dark-haired and he's still showing very little facial expression/ emotional reaction despite being in the middle of a gun fight - those are are pretty stereotypically seme characteristics. He's also wearing a shoulder holster and carrying a big gun, just to underline the point.
IF he was. just saying he would put all the others to shame. He would be the best damm uke ever with that fine butt. Asami would turn a straight man gay for life damm.
Now this is getting into something that has always pissed me off since since I first began reading BL manga.
Why being a uke considered to be so degrading?
Why would a male who chooses to be on the "receiving" end of m/m sex, be considered to be lesser and weaker than the one doing the penetrating?
And I wholeheartedly agree with Reality bites-- Asami has the capability of enslaving ANYONE... regardless of what position he takes.
Heh. He would be absolutely terrifying, oh my god. Without the constraint of having to play the self-controlled seme he'd be like Akihito on the aphrodisiac drug, but all the time. Cutting a swath of destruction across Japan and leaving a trail of exhausted semes behind him.
I think it's straightforward. Ukes are seen as effeminate. Women are seen as inferior to men. Taking the 'female' receiving role is therefore degrading because it puts the man in the woman's role.
I don't agree, but women being seen as inferior is very common, sadly probably the default, across cultures and throughout history. It's not a specifically a BL manga issue.
Ideally there shouldnt be a problem about it, but having a guy on the receiving end is against the common perception of masculinity. Most gays dont really bother about these roles (at least not as much as the people around them). I think it kind of makes sense that the wrong message became a recurring theme in yaoi mangas seeing that most of yaoi mangakas and yaoi readers are actually women, who may or may not have contact with gay men, and who are probably straight.
Yaoi manga is actually a very "straight" genre in my opinion (straight mangakas, straight readers), therefore the common idea of masculinity may fit better.
If Asami was really a uke or a seke, he would probably not be half or even a quarter as popular as he is now. Right now he is seen to be one of the top seme and I think part of the allure is the dominating, controlling part of his character. It's just another yaoi trope but a trope that's effective anyway in drawing the fans in.
Asami would be dominating and controlling as a uke, as others have said. It's a change in sexual position not character. But I agree Asami would be less popular as a uke even if his character stayed the same. Semes are seen as higher status and more masculine because they penetrate rather than are penetrated. It's the bizarre reasoning behind that thinking which is interesting.
Pardon me if you think I'm a troll. But if you read the latest chapter, when he sees Takaba's panic face, his face a bit softer if I compared to him in vol 1-6, which is much more musculine. He even a lil bit looks like Takaba. Sensei draw His eyes bigger than before.
Have you read Cs? Havi even looks a lil bit girlier....
Sensi is drawing emotion, not sexual position or orientation. That is supposed to indicate he is open to a given situation or person to hear what they have to say . It's like saying come into my personal space. Sensi is drawing initimacy. He is giving comfort to Takaba.
Actually I was just noticing that same panel earlier today and thinking the same thing. People were complaining that Akihito is being drawn more small and less manly in recent chapters and now you mentioned Havi looking girlier as well. It could be that sensei's drawing style is changing to a softer style, maybe.
Our adorable Asami would be the King of ukes! He would be so incredible sexy to dethrone the current King: The tyrant Souchi Tatsumi. :) :) :)
Sensei's over all drawing style has certainly grown more feminine since the beginning of this manga, less sharp lines and angles of faces etc. Her work in general has become a lot more 'pretty' over the years. I think also with how Akihito's and Asami's relationship is developing his eyes betray a lot of his emotion and genuine feeling for Akihito - not something we really see in a lot of Yaoi with our seme's - it's normally wham, bam, thank you ma'am and feelings become second billing to sex scenes.
I think that's what you mean by he looks like an uke? The level of emotion which which he expresses himself? The softness of his features?
I know people pretty much hate fan fic lol - but I'll always remember one of my fave fics of Viewfinder by Sunflower. It's perfectly IC and to me sums up their relationship, and what being seme and uke means. Asami as an uke is just ლ(´ڡ`ლ) and Akihito as his seme is likeヾ(☆▽☆)
crikey. Definitely worth a read!
Isn't it sad? I always think that too. That people see the Uke as the 'feminine' position in a relationship, therefore submissive and of a lesser position that the Seme. But I reckon that for these judgemental people, it says more about how they view themselves (in a relationship) if they think that (pardon the expression) taking a dick is any less than um, giving a dick…
I mean, have they ever watched gay porn? You watch that and tell me those Uke's aren't any less of a man just because they have a cock (or two) up their asses!
Ehem. I drank too much last night, please excuse me...
See, this is the problem behind the whole question. I realize you are just reflecting something others have mentioned: society can have some really weird ideas about ukes and semes relating to "masculine" and "feminine", and it all links back to sexism which values females less and assigns restrictive and often inaccurate gender role stereotypes.
As anon and others have said, in real life, how someone looks reflects nothing about their sexuality or preference in sexual positions. Having a softer side doesn't make someone feminine and being "feminine" doesn't make someone a uke. But in yoai it too often it does, so I understand why you might think that way.
My favorite yaois are the ones that don't play into those stereotypes much, but I have to admit that sometimes Finder does. I still like Finder for many, many reasons, but those restrictive views on sex roles and sexual positions still exist, and it is probably because a large portion of the fan base likes it that way. One would think yaoi fans, of all people, would be open minded and embrace diversity--however, one would probably be disappointed.
But to answer your questions, I didn't interpret Asami allowing more feeling to show as him being softer, or growing new sex organs, or wanting different sexual position. I saw it as the relationship progressing and Asami letting his guard down a little. I guess that is just a matter of interpretation though.
Actually there is evidence it is not the default, but this probably isn't the forum to debate that. Sexism is certainly present in most dominant cultures of our time and recent history--much like it is present in the dominant religions of our time (which I do not believe is a coincidence).
Dammit f****g typo's again! Stupid hangover, I mean "are" not "aren't" - lordy, talking about miscommunicating my own point ^^'
I find this quite funny too. I have two friends (gay - of course) and the one with more feminine mannerisms (In tease him that he is a screaming queen) is a top, and the furry, bearded and more muscle-bound friend is a bottom (they are not a couple). So when I see a huge dichotomy in the way the top/bottom characters are illustrated, it seems to me that the mangakas are trying to depict a more tradition male/female type of imagery while still writing m/m relationships. I am not really bothered by it, but the imagery tends to be fairly blatant.
The writers are producing for an audience who are rather trad. minded JPN.( mostly women) who want to see their ideal strong Seme ( male) lover in the main character. We westerners are secondary.
True!
Is it only me or not..Asami looks like an uke lately....