The Scale of Yuri
Posted on | March 29, 2009 | 10 Comments |
As promised, I’ve got some yuri philosophising for you this week
It’s no secret that I like categorising everything that I’m interested in. I believe I’ve already started to try and develop a classification for Yuri in some of my previous posts – most notably my final fetish month post in the Spring. However, in this post I’m going to try and definitively classify yuri and also have a stab at how this classification evolves with the passage of a storyline and spinoffs etc.
So first we have to define yuri. A definition that I will use is: “Yuri is an interaction between two girls which may be perceived as being more than friendship.” I know this is particularly vague, but since it is the loser fanboy obsession to make yuri out of mere subtext, the genre by very definition is fuzzy and ill defined.
So with this definition of yuri we can now look at the couples involved. Yuri couples can be grouped into four subsets:
- Subtextual
- Unrequited/Stalker
- Implied
- Overt
Now bear in mind that each couple isn’t defined as occupying one of these, rather that these groups define a couple’s interactions at any particular period of time and that these may change with time or if there is a significant event. Each of these stages is well defined, and there are set criteria which a couple has to fulfil on screen to move to another category from their original one. (Note that this doesn’t just apply to anime, but can be applied to lesbian couples in the media as a whole.)
I shall define each of these groups in turn:
1. Subtextual
Otherwise known as “Fanfiction fodder”, this is your basic Loser yuri fanboy couple. Generally two girls who are either good friends or mortal enemies (we all know that mutual animosity is based on sexual frustration and pent up homosexuality, after all). The two may not interact in a way that would be perceived in real life as being out of the ordinary – e.g. holding hands, hugging, flying magical battles etc. but to the loser fanboy eye, there is something there implying that either they do harbour some kind of romantic feelings for each other…though these might be hidden deep deep down. There may be some mild jealous streaks exhibited by either girl when a rival (boy) comes into the picture…
Examples in our current and previous season: The entire cast of Maria sama ga miteru, Torako/Suzume (Hyakko), Haruka/Chiaki (Minami-ke) and my favourite (and most esoteric) – Minori/Ami (Toradora!)
By definition:
- Neither girl must overtly confess their love or even hint that they wish for more from their friendship than the norm (therefore ruling out couples such as Sakura/Tomoyo)
- The feelings of friendship (or indeed mortal enemy-ship) must be mutual
- Kissing on the cheek is fine, but on the lips is a definite no-no (unless accidental), as is any other pseudo-erotic act such as finger sucking, reverse boob grabbing (unless in special cases) or shower groping
But, we can allow:
- Accidental embarrassing moments e.g. Accidentally getting too close to the other’s face, walking in on the other while changing, wardrobe malfunction.
- Touching moments of friendship culminating in hugging.
- “I love you” said with no extra implications
2. Unrequited/Stalker
This category is not continuous from (1), since unrequited couples cannot originate from subtextual couples, since the feelings are not mutual. Subtextual couples may arise from Unrequited couples, though this is rare. The more usual course of events is for unrequited couples to remain in their current status throughout the course of a storyline or have a momentous event and convert either to an implied or overt couple – e.g. Shizuru/Natsuki (Mai HiME). Stalker couples have various guises – One girl may be an overt lesbian and chase other girls to no avail (c.f. Maria Holic), or there might be a sempai/kouhai relationship between them (c.f. Azumanga Daioh). On the more normal end of the scale, the couple may be best friends, though one evidently wishes for more out of their relationship (c.f. Sakura/Tomoyo – CCS). As such, unrequited type couples often function as comic relief or fanfiction fodder (since many people like to ship non-canon couples).
By definition:
- The love between the girls is unequal or just not the same kind of love
- One girl is more aggressive in her affections than the other
But can allow:
- The object of affection may be aware or unaware of the love from the other girl
- There may be various interactions between the two girls – e.g. kissing, groping, licking necks and nipples even all the way to overt sex, but as long as the feelings remain one-sided and the sexual acts are non-consensual, the couple remains unrequited.
3. Implied
This is the start of the real yuri couples. Implied yuri is one step up from both type (1) and type (2). In this category, two girls are probably having a relationship, but this is not overtly confirmed by their words OR their actions. Since the definition of “in a relationship” is a difficult one to make, the boundaries of this category are a little hazy. Boundaries are confused even more by incest where the words “I love you” could conceivably be uttered without ulterior motive. Damn you Candy Boy.
Examples from recent seasons: Kana/Yukino (Candy Boy), Kagura/Yomi (Ga Rei Zero), Nanoha/Fate (MSLN), Shizuru/Natsuki (Mai Otome)
By definition:
- There is evidence that the two girls are in a relationship, but this is not hard evidence – e.g. they are around each other all the time, they hold hands whenever they are out, they always mention each other or think of each other when talking to other people
- Other characters may state that they think the two girls are in a relationship.
But graduation to “Overt” status includes:
- A kiss on the lips (Generally not a problem, but with all the implication, it is sufficient evidence)
- Getting out of bed naked with the other (Duh)
- Saying “I love you” with a heavy heart, especially if tears are involved.
- Overtly stating that “Nanoha is mai waifu”
- Light embraces with staring deeply into each other’s eyes.
- Any actual sex (Duuh)
- Implying that there will be sex later (controversial)
So we can see that implied couples are just waiting to be tipped over into…
4. Overt
Overt couples are couples that state and act as though they are a couple. This usually involves kissing or doing things that only couples do – stare lovingly into each other’s eyes, nibbling lightly at the nape of the neck and being caught completely naked straddling her on her desk. The only thing barring implied couples from becoming overt couples is often that anime or manga authors shy away from actual lesbianism in their storylines. In manga possibly because it’s considered a vulgar topic – outside of dedicated yuri manga, of course and in both due to the need to target it to the audience age range, which may be “young and impressionable”. But hell, I knew about lesbians when I was 10. Probably. So the conversion from implied to overt happens only rarely, with most animators sticking to the safe side of the fence. Conversions do occur in OVA adaptations, of course, since these will go direct to video/DVD with no TV censorship to worry about.
I can’t think of many overt couples from the recent seasons off the top of my head, but here goes:
Yaya/Hikari (Strawberry Panic! – manga only) Himiko/Kaon (Kyosora), Himeko/Chikane (Kannazuki no Miko)
So there you have it – the Scale of Yuri! (Not to be confused with the Scale of Evil). I think pretty much all yuri couples can be slotted into one of these categories and now you can adequately describe to someone else over the phone the level of yuri in a particular anime with “Oh, I wouldn’t watch that, there’s only Type 1 stuff, you wouldn’t be interested” or “You’ve got to read/watch Strawberry Panic cause it’s full of Type 3s!).
Well, that’s what I envisage people will be doing before long…
Or not…
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10 Responses to “The Scale of Yuri”
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March 29th, 2009 @ 4:22 pm
how would you categorize nana?
and then there’s simoun….
March 29th, 2009 @ 4:43 pm
Great post!! Very entertaining to read! I couldn’t help but laugh when I saw this: “Accidental embarrassing moments e.g. Accidentally getting too close to the other’s face, walking in on the other while changing, wardrobe malfunction.” LOL Good one!
March 29th, 2009 @ 6:14 pm
Interesting post. I never thought of categorizing things that way, but you do make a point. Maybe the actual Yuri out there is so slim and uncreative that they automatically slot into very specific categories? A lot can be said for that I guess.
Also, I have a hard time believing that Yomi/Kagura from Ga Rei Zero are anything but sisters, and believe me I do tend to pair people together, and even I didn’t think there was anything more than sisterly love. Also, consider Yomi’s engaged and what happens in the manga after the events. I may be reading too much into it of course.
Still, question for you: who are the characters in the last picture? I’m trying to rack my brains to figure out who they are.
And final question: where do you think Setsuna/Konoka from Negima stand? It’s not quite implied, as we don’t know if Konoka reciprocates, but it’s not unrequited either because Setsuna is really strange herself :)
Chi
March 29th, 2009 @ 9:18 pm
I would totally use the scale for that purpose over the phone if anyone I knew was into yuri anime like me.
March 30th, 2009 @ 9:02 pm
Hendayo – I haven’t seen Nana, so you tell me – probably “Implied”. Simoun is a heady mix of “Unrequited” and “Implied”
Chilipop – Yeah, I know – I have a thing for Ga-rei zero…I think I was going through a yuri drought at the time. With regards to Konosetsu, they’re implied, since they never kiss or allude to anything more than friendship. I’m sure Setsuna would be a lot more embarassed if they were actually having sex
March 31st, 2009 @ 4:24 pm
hmm, i suppose. nana’s somewhere between “implied” and “double unrequited”–best as i can tell, they both want it, but are hung up/busy with other people. simoun is complicated by not actually being girls, of course.
April 4th, 2009 @ 3:58 am
The ‘Scale of Yuri’ – or: ‘What strength should you set your yuri-goggles to?’
Though most the examples in the Subtext section seem to be more fanboy-dreamed-up-one-lonely-night-with-a-copy-of-Megami-magazine couples.
Except for Torako/Suzume – they are so all over each other off-camera
*hides his copy of Megami magazine*
April 5th, 2009 @ 9:29 pm
Hi to you. :) I’m new to Yuri and just recently found your blog and wanted to say thanks for all the info. I’ve been reading it for a couple days now and am much more informed than before. Thanks!
~Sara<3
April 13th, 2009 @ 2:46 pm
Great rating system!
April 13th, 2009 @ 2:49 pm
Don’t forget Negisa/Shizuma, they did kiss at the end of the Strawberry Panic and did the dramatic I Love You’s. So I think we can say that they are an overt couple.