Butterflies, Flowers
Encyclopedia
is a manga
series written and illustrated by Yuki Yoshihara, serialized in Petit Comic
and published by Shogakukan in bound volumes
between 2006 and 2009. It is about a young woman, Choko, whose family lost their money, and her entry into the office lady
workforce, working for her former servant and childhood crush, Domoto. It is published in English by Viz Media, in Taiwanese by Tong Li Publishing, and in French by Soleil Productions
.
. Nick Smith felt that although it was well-written, there were many offensive scenes in the first volume, and noted the erratic behaviour of Domoto. Leroy Douresseaux describes it as " a high school romance masquerading as an adult, workplace romantic comedy and drama". Alexander Hoffman praised the humour in the relationship, and enjoyed the secondary cast. Casey Brienza compared the funny, yet not idealistic depiction of Choko's working life to the depiction of Sumire's in Tramps Like Us
, and feels that the sexual harassment shown in the series is not condoned by it. Katherine Dacey praised the manga's "elegant artwork", "colorful supporting cast and melodramatic plot twists", but was disappointed at the use of the "stalker-as-great-romantic-prospect trope". Johanna Draper Carlson felt that it was necessary to understand some aspects of Japanese culture in order to fully appreciate the work. Melinda Beasi felt that the characters became more sympathetic, and their situation more humorous, as the first volume progressed.
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
series written and illustrated by Yuki Yoshihara, serialized in Petit Comic
Petit Comic
is a Japanese josei manga magazine published by Shogakukan, aimed at young women over the age of 18. Many series in this anthology magazine are romance-oriented and some are well-known for featuring frank depiction of sexual situations...
and published by Shogakukan in bound volumes
Tankobon
, with a literal meaning close to "independently appearing book", is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series , though the manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series...
between 2006 and 2009. It is about a young woman, Choko, whose family lost their money, and her entry into the office lady
Office lady
An office lady, often abbreviated OL , is a female office worker in Japan who performs generally pink collar tasks such as serving tea and secretarial or clerical work. Like many unmarried Japanese, OLs often live with their parents well into early adulthood...
workforce, working for her former servant and childhood crush, Domoto. It is published in English by Viz Media, in Taiwanese by Tong Li Publishing, and in French by Soleil Productions
Soleil Productions
Soleil Productions is a French publisher of both original and imported comic books.-Partnerships and collaborations:In 2004, Soleil and Delcourt created a joint venture called "DelSol", a partnership distribution society for France, Belgium and other Francophone countries.In 2008, Marvel Comics is...
.
Reception
Deb Aoki describes the manga as "spicing up" shōjo manga humour and plot conventions, but found the portrayal of sexual harassment off-putting, and felt that readers looking for sex scenes would be better served with yaoiYaoi
In careful Japanese enunciation, all three vowels are pronounced separately, for a three-mora word, . The English equivalent is . also known as Boys' Love, is a Japanese popular term for female-oriented fictional media that focus on homoerotic or homoromantic male relationships, usually created by...
. Nick Smith felt that although it was well-written, there were many offensive scenes in the first volume, and noted the erratic behaviour of Domoto. Leroy Douresseaux describes it as " a high school romance masquerading as an adult, workplace romantic comedy and drama". Alexander Hoffman praised the humour in the relationship, and enjoyed the secondary cast. Casey Brienza compared the funny, yet not idealistic depiction of Choko's working life to the depiction of Sumire's in Tramps Like Us
Tramps Like Us
is a Japanese josei manga series by Yayoi Ogawa. It is about Sumire, a young professional woman who takes in a younger man as a pet, and her attempts to keep her coworkers and conventionally-perfect boyfriend from finding out about her pet...
, and feels that the sexual harassment shown in the series is not condoned by it. Katherine Dacey praised the manga's "elegant artwork", "colorful supporting cast and melodramatic plot twists", but was disappointed at the use of the "stalker-as-great-romantic-prospect trope". Johanna Draper Carlson felt that it was necessary to understand some aspects of Japanese culture in order to fully appreciate the work. Melinda Beasi felt that the characters became more sympathetic, and their situation more humorous, as the first volume progressed.