sanet

Today I'd like to write about Fujoshi no Hinkaku, or "The Dignity of Fujoshi." This semi-autobiographical manga-essay was written by an office worker/artist going under the pen name "Kusame," a pun on the characters for "rotten woman" in the word "fujoshi." It introduces readers to the world of Boy's Love fan culture through the character of Fujoko, an office lady and secret fujoshi who discovers that her strong, smart, fashionable boss Takayo also harbours a hidden passion for BL. Fujoko declares that if great women like Takayo can be fujoshi, she too will aim to become just like her. She will become a fujoshi with dignity!

Kusame. Fujoshi no Hinkaku [腐女子の品格]. Libre, 2008.

Overall, this manga is a crash-course on fujoshi culture that's part satire, part manifesto. It works through a series of short vignettes in which Takayo teaches Fujoko (and also the readers) how work and play are more fun if you just apply a few imaginative fujoshi* "delusions." In one episode, for instance, Fujoko is going crazy with boredom trying to memorize all of her company's office equipment sales catalogues. Seeing her distress, Takayo suggests applying the tactic of gijinka, "person-ization" or "anthropomorphization," by imagining that each product is a cute guy with a distinct personality, and constructing pairings out of chair and desk sets. Outside of work, Takayo teaches Fujoko about everything from navigating Comiket to making "moe nails" with manga images sealed onto fake fingernails. It can get very silly, since Fujoko often takes Takayo's advice too far and embarrasses herself in front of co-workers and customers. But it's relatable in that way.

The really interesting thing about Fujoshi no Hinkaku, though, is that it's not just manga strips. The graphic narrative is interspersed with maps, travel guides, BL character type diagrams and even statistics on what percentage of their earnings women in different age ranges and income brackets spend on fujoshi-related products. (Apparently, it's ideal to spend 12.4% of your monthly wages on BL novels and DVD box sets. Who knew?)

On one hand, these info dumps clearly demonstrate the commercialization of female fan culture. The manga encourages spending with charts illustrating how even low-income women can save enough money to buy lots of BL goods (instead of, say, food). Trading or borrowing works is only recommended for students/part-timers. It also features shopping guides of female fan neighbourhoods like Otome Road, listing stops at specific restaurants, malls, and major stores like Animate and even The Body Shop.

But at the same time, I don't think this manga is actually a push for big businesses. It doesn't have a manipulative "corporate sponsorship" feel at all. It seems to me like a woman's honest and comical account of her experiences of the subculture. This includes commercialism, because Japan is a highly commercialized society. But it includes a lot of "do it yourself" tips as well.

Maybe more importantly, Fujoshi no Hinkaku also encourages a sense of empowerment and connection among women. In one comic about travel, Takayo recommends that Fujoko practice her English by reading slash fiction online and making friends with slash authors abroad. "Yaoi is really global, isn't it?" Fujoko remarks (57). In fact, the manga gets a little too utopian about global fandom sometimes, with an introductory page proclaiming that fujoshi's love transcends all languages and national borders (54). But the positivity and desire for connection demonstrated in the travel storyline is not often found in critical discourse on otaku subculture in Japan. I find the emphasis on (global) relationships to be a valuable part of fujoshi culture, when approached carefully and reflexively.

Speaking of relationships, I was relieved at the stance on fujoshi and romance in this manga. When Fujoko gets it into her head that she wants a boyfriend, Takayo talks her through two options that are set up like a "choose-you-own-adventure" book. If you flip to the "yes, I still want a boyfriend!" pages, you'll find discussions of practical matters like whether fujoshi should hide their BL hobby from potential partners, or when and how to bring it up (76-7). Flipping to the "actually, I changed my mind" pages, however, there's an affirmation that fujoshi aren't required to have boyfriends to be happy. They aren't necessarily "women who can't get boyfriends," but "women who don't need boyfriends" (78-9), as their passion for their hobby and the friendships it generates are fulfilling in themselves. To me, this is a refreshing way of looking at fujoshi relationships beyond heteronormative strictures, and one I would support.

There aren't any official translations of Fujoshi no Hinkaku that I know of, and I haven't been able to find the small-budget half-hour anime OVA that came out last winter. There is a second manga volume called Fujoshi no Honkai (The Desire of Fujoshi), but it features totally different characters and more sequential narrative, without all the informative materials scattered through. So as a consciousness-raising effort, you could say this manga-essay hasn't been too successful. Still, all the more reason to spread the word. For fujoshi with dignity!

*For the record, Kusame's tongue-in-cheek definition of fujoshi describes them as "lovely maidens who, in their excessive fondness for boy's love, yaoi and other same-sex male love materials, pursue their delusions ceaselessly, and so live with vigour in these modern times" (2).