Well, for me at least. I treat Yaoi like any other romance novel. I'm here for the plot, the romance and the cliches. Just like how any other romance novel goes. Chick flicks, action movie romace, shoujo etc.
Every romance has a range from light hearted plot to straight up porn. Yaoi or BL is the same.
Why is it suddenly so different that I have ...... 2 reply
I am of the opinion that as long as the reader knows it is fictional and should not be reenacted in real life then people are just assuming that yaoi fans all like to fetishize gay people. There are some people who ship real life people in that sense and I am against that but that does not mean everyone in a generalized sense should be insulted or ...... reply
I'm of the opinion that any representation that puts us in a positive light is good, even if there are some perceived inaccuracies. However, I will say I've read a few Yaois that were clearly written by straight (possibly somewhat religious) women with a low-key fetish that seemed to punish the characters for being gay with undertones of "if they w...... reply
There are a few problems I have with yaoi and how it present LGBT community, but nonetheless I still like it.
One of the biggest problems are the roles during sex scenes in yaoi. I've read maybe 2 or 3 yaoi mangas that characters were versatile and not exclusively top or bottom (I read a lot, you can check on my profile). I myself am versatile, my...... 2 reply
Depends on the author, y'know? Some of them are pretty good at representations, others are even part of the community. Some authors are actual gay men who draw their own fantasies. Anyway, I'd like to reserve my judgement. I'm unfamiliar with the LGBT scene over at Japan. Their culture and exposure are much different than in the west. To the mangak...... reply
My opinion about Yaoi & BL personally has mostly been expressed by one or two others.
I just wanted to mention one sticking point I have when reflecting on ALL manga and anime, really, and that is who the primary Japanese audience is.
Since I don't have any personal connection to Japan, what I don't know is how BL is perceived by its Japanese co...... reply
Yaoi fetishizing gay men is a percieved problem, not a real one. Yaoi readers aren't only straight girls. In fact, it originally had nothing to do with men, and was created by queer women to bypass gender roles and explore other types of sexuality. The real problem is that, like most other manga genres, nost content is supremely mysogynistic. 7 reply
finally - it's time for my unwanted opinions to shine -
Yaoi itself , in theory , isn't ' problematic ' . Gay men and BL is , in theory , a progressive art form doing well at presenting homosexual men , and portraying them in a good light -
I say in theory because we all know that's bullshit .
When people say you're fetishizing gay men , they're...... 4 reply
