Tell me about it...

[lore]

Ok, let's get a little happy here. While Viewfinder isn't my holy grail series, I'm really happy for the people who have been waiting for it for so long. I doubt I'm going to be able to resist purchasing the series, so tell me something about it. I understand there's 5 books so far and a lot of side stories? Is it complete? Is there some cool trivia to share?

I'd also love to read what you're feeling or thinking about finally getting to read it in English. Or maybe how you felt the first time you read it (in Japanese, of course! ).

[mo2468]

It's ongoing in Japan, with currently 5 tankoban released. The first volume is essentially a series of oneshots (the title story being two chapters long). After that volume only "KoiSuru" remained as the non-title extra story (about two high school students who suspect their fathers are gay). After a few shorter story arcs the "Naked Truth" arc of the title storyline went for a much longer stretch. This is the arc that ran through volume 5. The arc currently running just started an issue or two ago (in BBGold). I'm sure someone else can give a better summary of the plot.

[Ruby_Alexandrine]

In the beginning I was not a fan of Ayano Yamane because I purchased one of her Slam Dunk doujinshis. I wasn't impressed with the art or the storytelling. When Viewfinder first came out several years ago, I was still not interested in reading the manga because I had the same expectation. Once I looked at the Naked Truth arc and saw the improvements in the artwork and storytelling, I immediately started reading the first volume. I will admit looking at the infamous film roll scene made me a bit squeamish because it was a bit too much. I'm certainly glad that the entire series did not have more similar scenes like that one.

I'm glad that I have give Viewfinder a chance because it has become one of my favorite yaoi manga series. I purchased the Japanese version of Viewfinder, the Viewfinder character book, Love Prize mini-mangas, and the Aya art book. Also, Asami is one of the most intriguing characters in yaoi. He has a very commanding presence that's intoxicating. Love Prize shows a comedic, lighter side of VIewfinder but it maintains its signature eroticism.

Viewfinder is not complete since a new chapter was published last month. The new chapters will probably provide more insight and complexities of Asami and Akihito's relationship. I simply hope that Viewfinder will continue to be entertaining.

[Pugsley]

Viewfinder (The Finder Series) was first started out as a one-shot for an S&M style magazine, yet the story surprised her and became wildly popular, as per Yamane-sensei in an earlier interview.

Yamane Ayano has also stated that if she knew that Viewfinder was going to be as popular as it had become, she would not have started the series as controversial as she did, and thus, the beginning of the relationship between the Underworld Leader, Asami Ryuichi and the Photographer, Takaba Akihito would not have been as harsh as it was.

The series continued mainly because of the fans, and in the first volume, besides the story with AxA she also introduced the beautiful Chinese Triad Leader of Baishe, Feilong Liu, who has the long dark hair and wears cheongsam’s most of the time. He also is beloved by the fans.

Asami and Feilong have had a feud for many years, and in the second volume, Yamane-sensei listened to her fans once again, which is one of the reasons as to why she has such adamant fans as she does, and did a complete story about how Feilong and Asami's relationship started 7 years earlier.

The next volume is called the Naked Truth Arc of VF, and in this part of the story, Feilong and Asami are still fighting, yet this time when Feilong kidnaps Takaba he takes him to Hong Kong, but not before he and Asami shoot each other a couple of times.

Thus, another volume starts with volume four and the Naked Truth (Hong Kong Arc). I will not tell you all that has happened in that volume and in volume five, as well, but as of now, we have Takaba home and that is where the latest story in Japan has started from Yamane-sensei.

Yamane-sensei has been very good to all of her fans and has listened to thi, repeatedly, and that is why she has such wonderful and loyal fans, myself included, and that is why, or at least I believe it to be true, the heated discussion took place in the previous Thread about this series being licensed.

The fans of this series are wide and diverse, but we all want to see Viewfinder taken good care of, to say the least, especially when a company is going to license it, mainly because of the issues with BeBeautiful, and we do not want that to happen again nor to have the translations changed as much as they were.

I do hope that everyone who is part of DMP or Juné will understand the possessiveness that most of the Viewfinder fans feel for this series. I am not saying that is an excuse for us to get upset, but most of us have been with the series since the beginning, and all of us love this series and Yamane-sensei very much and we only want the best for it and her, and hope that the licensor wants the same things.

Well, that is a small synopsis of the series, and I hope that you and all that read this will enjoy the series as much as I and the other VF fans do!! (｡◕‿◕｡)

[sun22]

Thanks for the interesting info, Pugsley.

Re: this:

Yamane Ayano has also stated that if she knew that Viewfinder was going to be as popular as it had become, she would not have started the series as controversial as she did, and thus, the beginning of the relationship between the Underworld Leader, Asami Ryuichi and the Photographer, Takaba Akihito would not have been as harsh as it was.

- I really wonder if the series would have become so popular if not for that harsh, controversial S&M-ish beginning. If not for that, I wouldn't have liked it for sure. I think many would think otherwise, but somehow they're still drawn in since the first volume, "despite all that harsh scene". Hmm...

[lore]

Sun22 wrote:

- I really wonder if the series would have become so popular if not for that harsh, controversial S&M-ish beginning. If not for that, I wouldn't have liked it for sure. I think many would think otherwise, but somehow they're still drawn in since the first volume, "despite all that harsh scene". Hmm...

Well, I'm just one perspective, but I know I'm going to check out the series despite the harsh opening. Because I've been well informed of it, I'm mentally prepared to deal with it. I'll probably try to skim through it as fast as possible.

Probably, there's people drawn to the series by the allure of some intense explicit scenes, and there's people drawn to it because beyond that scene there appears to be a longer story that has already drawn in thousands (or millions?) of loyal readers.

Thanks, everyone, for the synopsis and Puglsey for the more detailed history. I hope more people will come by with their thoughts, too! This is the fun part of such an exciting new license!

[mo2468]

To touch on the "insertion" scene issue, I think you are right, lore. There probably are people who fell in love with the series because of that scene, but I bet you there are an equal number who checked it out because they heard about that scene, but fell in love with it because of the story, art, etc. that came in later volumes. I think I'd qualify in the latter category.

I think I would compare it to the "cob" scene in My Sexual Harassment. That OVA has a lot of hype about it, but outside that one particular scene there isn't much more to the series. It's actually a rather bland, cliche salaryman BL drama with a cold, abusive seme with few redeeming qualities and a weak, passive uke, with few redeeming qualities of his own. Asami and Takaba are far richer characters, who exist in a far richer story, and I think that's what has carried VF through for so many years.

[Hiyoshimaru]

To touch on the "insertion" scene issue, I think you are right, lore. There probably are people who fell in love with the series because of that scene, but I bet you there are an equal number who checked it out because they heard about that scene, but fell in love with it because of the story, art, etc. that came in later volumes. I think I'd qualify in the latter category.

I think I would compare it to the "cob" scene in My Sexual Harassment. That OVA has a lot of hype about it, but outside that one particular scene there isn't much more to the series. It's actually a rather bland, cliche salaryman BL drama with a cold, abusive seme with few redeeming qualities and a weak, passive uke, with few redeeming qualities of his own. Asami and Takaba are far richer characters, who exist in a far richer story, and I think that's what has carried VF through for so many years.

LOL. But the "cob" scene was unique.

[sun22]

I think I would compare it to the "cob" scene in My Sexual Harassment. That OVA has a lot of hype about it, but outside that one particular scene there isn't much more to the series. It's actually a rather bland, cliche salaryman BL drama with a cold, abusive seme with few redeeming qualities and a weak, passive uke, with few redeeming qualities of his own. Asami and Takaba are far richer characters, who exist in a far richer story, and I think that's what has carried VF through for so many years.

Well, to each their own. I liked the characters in this OVA regardless of that corn scene, and I think they're quite well-developed and atypical (for yaoi genre), and the plot has some subtle meanings. By far I'm not alone in liking this OVA. In fact, I think I liked its characters as much as characters in Finder if not more, but it's hard to judge as Finder is not complete yet.

[mo2468]

LOL. But the "cob" scene was unique.

That it was. XD