Discusses all 9 volumes of THE STORY OF SAIUNKOKU, written by Sai Yukino and illustrated by Kairi Yura. ASHLEY: I'm like, 'I could have been a better person if I'd read [The Story of Saiunkoku] 10 years ago.' DEE: That's how we should have ended the no spoiler section! 'Read this manga, it will change your life.' In this episode, we're going to historical China for a semi-supernatural, extremely feminist manga adaptation of a light novel series. Dee, who makes the Josei Next Door blog and...

A discussion about the two-volume manga FLOWER IN A STORM by Shigeyoshi Takagi Wife and husband duo Ashley and Asher are back to talk about the short comedic manga Flower in a Storm. While neither would say they really loved the story of rich-boy Ran going after super-strong Riko, Ashley, at least, thinks it shows lots of promise from the author, and is a funny parody of mid-2000s shojo manga tropes. But the real standouts are the two unrelated short stories that are included.

Covers the entire series of PLANET LADDER by Yuri Narushima. Wife and husband duo Ashley and Asher discuss the wild ride that is PLANET LADDER. They're not quite sure what happened, but they both know Bambi is the best. Also, there's a giant chicken. Surely you want to know more?

A discussion of volumes 7–12 (the second half) of SHORTCAKE CAKE by Suu Morishita. Ashley and Olive are back to process what the heck happened in the back half of Morishita’s series. They discuss Rei and Riku's family drama, Riku and Ten and Chiaki’s relationship (how is Riku not canonically confirmed bi??), the use of tension in Morishita's works, and much, much more. Because so much happened in these six volumes, and the reader is definitely not prepared for all of them.

This episode covers volumes 1–6 of SHORTCAKE CAKE by Suu Morishita. The duo that makes up Suu Morishita burst onto the English manga scene in recent years with SHORTCAKE CAKE and A SIGN OF AFFECTION. In this episode, Shojo & Tell host Ashley and manga reviewer Olive discuss what makes SCC a breath of fresh air, from Ten's kind frankness, to Chiaki's dorkiness, to Riku's fumbling sincerity. Then again, there's also Rei, who's been going Goblin Mode since before it was cool. Why??

We discuss all three volumes of AFTER HOURS by Yuhta Nishio. Welcome to the club. Emi knows nothing about dance music. Kei is a DJ with manic pixie dream girl energy. Emi gets sucked into Kei's world in this series that's basically a 101 lesson in EDM. "Isn't this a seinen manga?" Yes, yes it is. But Shojo & Tell host Ashley has a soft spot for these lesbian DJs, so we're covering it anyway! Ashley and her husband, Asher, discuss the particular moment in music time the series is in...

Covers volumes 10–18 of TAKANE AND HANA by Yuki Shiwasu (that's the second half of the series). Takane is 27. Hana is 17. They're arranged marriage partners, and they're finally read to admit that they're in love. Shojo & Tell host Ashley and librarian Kelly are back to discuss how this age-gap romance wrapped up its story with a blissfully minimal amount of squick but still a high amount of disappointment. THAT'S what the drama was between Takane and his mom and the whole Takaba...

Covers volumes 1–9 of TAKANE AND HANA by Yuki Shiwasu. Hana is a perfectly average high school girl. Takane is a 26-year-old scion of a conglomerate. Together, they are arranged marriage partners (but they're definitely not dating!!). Kelly returns once again to talk about an age-gap romance — one that both she and Ashley are highly positive on. In this episode about the first half of the series, Kelly and Ashley try very, very hard to articulate how the series never (well, almost never,...

Covers all 10 volumes plus the 10th anniversary side stories of THE ROSE OF VERSAILLES by Riyoko Ikeda (that's the five omnibus volumes released by Udon!) It's hard to overstate how significant THE ROSE OF VERSAILLES is to the history of shojo manga and beyond. In this episode about Riyoko Ikeda's masterpiece, Erica Friedman, the editor of the English edition of the series, details the legacy of Oscar François de Jarjayes, the ultimate girl prince. Erica answers listener questions about the...

Covers both volumes of SP BABY by Maki Enjoji. We're back with another Enjoji title! This time, it's a classic bodyguard romance, full of tragic backstories and sexual harassment. Tamaki joins the Security Police for Kagetora, the prime minster's nephew, against her better judgment (she really needs this job) and of course, romance ensues whether the heroine wants it or not. Ashley and Asher discuss how Tamaki's extreme form of accountability is actually refreshing, while Kagetora manages to...

Covers all 7 volumes of AN INCURABLE CASE OF LOVE by Maki Enjoji. We're back with a cute josei series! It's like GREY'S ANATOMY, but with a more contained cast and a lot more sexual harassment from the patients. Sakura has had a crush on Dr. Tendo since she saw him save a stranger in the streets, but when they finally start working together, he's not exactly the kindly doctor she imagined him to be. Shojo & Tell host Ashley is joined by Alex Yates of The Yona Podcast to talk about this...

Covers volumes 16–23 of HANA-KIMI by Hisaya Nakajo. Welcome back for the final HANA-KIMI episode! The Ashleys are back to discuss how wild this ride has been: The strange results of the final character poll, what the series says about gender, how it compares to other gender-bending series, and of course, finally, the ships. Also: Can you believe this manga kept up the premise of Mizuki's gender being a secret the ENTIRE TIME? We just don't get manga like this anymore!

Covers volumes 9–15 of HANA-KIMI by Hisaya Nakajo. Welcome back to Osaka High and the middle third of HANA-KIMI. Shojo and Tell host Ashley is joined by Manga Librarian Ashley to talk about all the hijinks that ensued here. What’s the tone? Gil’s still here?! How can Mizuki assume Sano doesn’t know she’s a girl when she sleeps with him in the same bed half the nights and she’s got her boobs pressed up against him? Mizuki grew up in Berkeley, California? You know what, that makes a lot of...

Covers volumes 1–8 of HANA-KIMI by Hisaya Nakajo. We're throwing back and throwing down with a big-time, gender-bending shojo classic: HANA-KIMI, aka, the precursor to OURAN HIGH SCHOOL HOST CLUB. Mizuki Ashiya moves all the way from America to Japan, in high school, without express permission from her parents, just to be with her favorite high-jumper, Izumi Sano, a boy she's never met. Even better: She has to disguise that she's a girl so she can attend Sano's all-boys school. Who approved...

Covers all of RG VEDA by CLAMP. This hyper-violent fantasy series was CLAMP's first traditionally published work — and it shows. Shojo & Tell host Ashley and her boytoy Asher talk about the highs and lows of this high-concept series about destiny and the power of love (what else is new?). All good boys are praised, and Yasha is not on the list.

Covers all of EARTHIAN by Yun Kouga. Anime Feminist writer Vrai Kaiser joins Shojo & Tell host Ashley to discuss this late 1980s boys' love hot mess of a manga. EARTHIAN starts off as a sort of mashup between PET SHOP OF HORRORS and THE GOOD PLACE and ends somewhere way, way off from that. Vrai and Ashley discuss all the religion that is (and isn't) happening with the Catholicsploitation, how sweet Chihaya and Kagetsuya's relationship actually is, how many of the ideas the series...

Covers volumes 8–14 of WAITING FOR SPRING by Anashin. We’re back to talk about the second half of WAITING FOR SPRING, aka, Girly Kuroko's Basketball. Kelly and Ashley discuss how Towa and Aya are in a philosophical fight over what strength is, how well-handled Ryuji and Nana's relationship is, and just what about WAITING FOR SPRING makes it so special. Also a lot of complaining about Aya. He's 17. He doesn't know anything!

Covers volumes 1–7 of WAITING FOR SPRING by Anashin. The wait is finally over! We're FINALLY talking about the basketball boys! WAITING FOR SPRING is one of the most wholesome shojo series around and will have you smiling like a fool. Librarian Kelly and Shojo & Tell host Ashley discuss why Towa is THE BEST, why Aya does not deserve to be in second place in the character poll (rude to Mitsuki and Ryuji), how you shouldn't write real-people fanfiction, and much more. It's basically...

Covers volumes 8–13 of AO HARU RIDE by Io Sakisaka. One year after recording about the first half of AO HARU RIDE, we’re back on the bandwagon to talk about the ending. Shojo Beat Senior Editor Nancy and Shojo & Tell host Ashley talk about every single confession and rejection scene, consistently compare the series to WE WERE THERE, bring up one too many times that [SPOILERS] it’s annoying that Kou was hit by a car, and so much more. Like, get out of here, Kikuchi. Kou and Futaba forever.

Covers all the short stories in REVOLUTIONARY GIRL UTENA: AFTER THE REVOLUTION by Chiho Saito For the 20th anniversary of REVOLUTIONARY GIRL UTENA, we were gifted this volume of short stories (one for Touga and Saionji, another for Juri and Shiori, the final for Miki and Kozue) that function as a "sequel" of sorts to the UTENA anime (not the manga). Anime scholar Rose Bridges comes back on the Shojo & Tell to talk about UTENA without Utena (sort of?). Rose and Ashley debate which story...

Covers all 10 volumes of the original PET SHOP OF HORROR series by Matsuri Akino. Welcome to Count D's pet shop, where you can find the rarest pets that will make your dreams come true — and might just murder you, too. Horror fan, Yen Press employee, and Manga Machination's co-host Morgana Santilli explains why this wish shop fantasyland appealed to her so much growing up, and what makes Akino's work so special. Morgana and Shojo & Tell host Ashley also discuss: What IS Count D? Is he...

Covers all of TOKYO MEW MEW and TOKYO MEW MEW A LA MODE by Reiko Yoshida and Mia Ikumi. In the early 2000s, this series about a team of five young girls infused with the DNA of rare animals fighting aliens bent on reclaiming the Earth became a phenomenon. TOKYO MEW MEW is supposed to get a new anime adaptation in the year 2021, so we decided to read the original magical girl series and its sequel. MEW MEW superfan Mercedez Clewis expounds on why the series left such a lasting impact on her...

A discussion about the manga adaptation of SOCRATES IN LOVE by Kyoichi Katayama and Kazumi Kazui Get ready to cry at this one-volume melodrama about a teenage couple torn apart by a tragedy. SOCRATES IN LOVE follows Sakutaro and Aki as they go from being friends to lovers, but have their happiness cut short through illness. Chaplain-in-training Asher Sofman and Shojo & Tell host Ashley discuss how love and death are intertwined, how people grapple with suffering and illness, and other...

Covers ALL MY DARLING DAUGHTERS by Fumi Yoshinaga This one-volume manga about three generations of women in a family is masterfully told and extremely relatable. Shojo & Tell host Ashley and boytoy Asher discuss their favorite stories from this collection of five, dwell on the theme of love being a form of discrimination, and fret about how to avoid some of these parenting pitfalls when raising children. A content warning for the second story: There's an age-gap romance between a...

Covers volumes 6–10 of AFTER SCHOOL NIGHTMARE by Setona Mizushiro Welcome back to discuss the second half of a manga that is full of twists and turns. This episode, cartoonist Mouna Toure and Shojo & Tell host Ashley have more questions than answers after that whirlwind of an ending. Like, was there ever a real Ai?? Were there two Mashiro Ichijos? No, seriously, _what was up with Sou and Ai_? Mouna and Ashley reprise certain topics, like intersex representation, in light of the ending....