A surprisingly beautiful manga with tons of transfemme rep
A surprisingly beautiful manga with tons of transfemme rep
High school student Tetsu Iwaoka notices that his classmate Mogumo is always alone at school. Wanting to give Mogumo a chance to make some friends, Tetsu invites Mogumo to work at his family’s maid cafe. Although Mogumo is initially enthusiastic, there is just one problem: this is a cross-dressing b...
You're viewing a single thread.
I read this manga a while ago and was really conflicted about the story and representation (non-binary rep specifically). A lot of those worries went away in the last two volumes or so, but regardless of my overall feelings, the trans rep gave me a big dumb smile and I actually cheered when ::: she worked up the courage to wear a bra for the first time :) :::
A few recs if you're hungry for more trans rep in manga after reading this:
Skip and Loafer: cishet romance but the main character's aunt/guardian is a trans woman, and has some of the best introspective scenes and subtle characterization that felt intensely relatable to me, in a very sobering way.
Hourou Musoku/Wandering Son: this one's about two trans kids, and while a lot of people are very critical of it (myself included), I haven't really seen any manga that follow the lives of trans people so closely for so long. It also has an anime, which I haven't seen, so I can't really speak to its quality.
Bokura no Hentai warning, this one is HEAVY, but it stuck with me for a long time. It was thought provoking and had just enough wholesome moments to make it super memorable for me, I sometimes go back to specific chapters just to smile. CW for: ::: sex, abuse, and rape :::
And if you're interested in reading some manga that are memoirs about the authors' own trans experiences:
Hanayome wa Moto Danshi/The Bride Was a Boy: The auhtor shares her experiences as a trans woman in Japan, from childhood, coming out, getting health care, and eventually marrying her husband. Includes a lot of information about Japan's views and laws (at the time of publishing) on LGBTQ culture.
Umareru Seibetsu wo Machigaeta!: An autobiographical essay/manga about the author's experience getting sexual reassignment surgery in Taiwan. This has less to do with the broader transgender experience, and focuses instead on a more detailed account of what the surgery and recovery was like. Lots of details here that I hadn't read anywhere else before, and the author is very charming! There's also an insane Grappler Baki reference that made me laugh so hard I almost cried.
Otokonoko Doushi Renai Chuu: former porn star Kaoru Ooshima shares the story of his life and career as a popular cross-dressing porn actor. I was skeptical about this one since its kind of about cross-dressing porn, but I actually really enjoyed it and found it super interesting (and there are also trans people, and we hear a bit aboit their experiences too!). Also, it was illustrated by Fumiko Fumi, the author of the aforementioned Bokura no Hentai, and I love her art :)