Yakuza in Love

Greased-up hairstyles, loud shirts, and monkey-faced hulking henchmen make a quick flip through Shiuko Kano's Yakuza in Love, published by Deux Press, a somewhat frightening experience. At first glance, the guns, bad hair, bad fashion and awkward posing make this look more like a shonen manga circa 1985 than a stylish yaoi manga from 1996. The first few scenes are cluttered and difficult to follow with an immediate introduction of several characters -- two of which matter to the story, the rest of whom don't. Before page 20, I was ready to give up on this title, bored with the confusing Yakuza politics and explanation of alliances.

Then, midway through the first chapter, something changed. The main character, Aoi Ichimura, is revealed to be not quite the careless tough guy he seems to be in the first few pages. When Aoi meets his new Yakuza mentor, Yuji Sakiya, the instant chemistry between the two of them starts to light up the pages. With his scarred face, greaser hairdo and tough appearance, Aoi is overwhelmed by the steady calm of underboss Sakiya, who has just emerged from a prison sentence and is in danger from rival Yakuza clans. As his student and bodyguard, Aoi has to keep Sakiya protected from his enemies despite his inexperience, and what is revealed to be a very tender heart inside the outer shell of a mafia ruffian. Sakiya's gentle determined resolve very quickly warms Aoi's heart, and the bonds of camaraderie and brotherhood rapidly develop into something more tender and romantic. Most deliciously, their relationship builds tantalizingly slowly, evolving bit by bit as the two of them move through the Yakuza world, surrounded by a heartless, immoral Don, scheming colleagues and evil apprentices. Everyone in their world is out to get something and serve their own interests, and against this backdrop of greed and sin, Aoi and Sakiya's developing relationship seems even more innocent and pure.

"Innocent" does not describe the other relationships in the book; Yakuza in Love is one of those wonderful yaoi manga where everyone in the cast seems to be gay, or at least gay enough to indulge in plenty of hot sex with other guys. Other members of Sakiya and Aoi's Flower Gang indulge just enough to keep the yaoi reader interested and excited by Shiuko Kano's studly guys and fantastic sex scenes. From a single panel of Aoi's past experience with a childhood friend, to several scorching pages of the Flower Gang's Don having his way with a subordinate on his desk -- shirts half-buttoned, ties askew, papers fluttering, delicious -- Shiuko Kano has the exacting ability to evoke just the right feeling of sexual passion between her characters. When the sex is tender and gentle, we feel that warmth; when it's rough emotionless, we feel the sullen anger of the uke being used for sex.

At times, the Yakuza politicking and plotting threatens to overwhelm the romantic relationship aspects of the story, but consistently, just when the gun battles and internal politics threatened to bog down my interest, Aoi or Sakiya would reveal another new memory or aspect of their personality, and I would be hooked into their story again. Shiuko Kano does a masterful job of plot and pacing, enhancing this love story of manly guys in the most dangerous of occupations to something beyond the everyday yaoi manga. Yakuza in Love fully lives up to its title, weaving love and sex into a Yakuza story that is remarkably interesting all on its own. Even if gangsters aren't really your thing, give Yakuza in Love a chance to win over your heart.