Josei Ni

A Resource And Guide To Homosexuality, Bisexuality and Transgenderism In Anime

Here it is, a list of titles that I would recommend to anyone new to anime. This is a wide assortment, ranging from comedy to drama, action to romance, and most all of them with a theme of homosexuality or bisexuality. Most of them are suitable only for adults, so I would definitely recommend you not let your kids get their hands on them. ^_^

As time goes on, I'll be adding more titles. If anyone would like to recommend any for me to list, feel free to write to me, my address is at the bottom of this and all pages on the site.

List of Recommended Anime Titles

Anime Picture	Anime Title	Comments
	The Abashiri Family	The most feared crime family in the world are the Abashiris, yet they are a group of only five, and the youngest is a 16 year old with more than a hundred murders to his credit...however, he is actually a she, the first girl born to the family in 20 generations, a fact that had been well hidden. Once the crime family breaks up, the girl goes to a boarding school, but it turns out to be a training ground for psychopaths posing as teachers who practice by killing the students. The girl ends up in a short-lived but touching relationship with another of the students, a very quiet and gentle girl who is murdered. Not a happy ending, but a good movie.
	Bonds Bonds 2	A series of shounen ai (boy's love) stories about intense emotional and physical relationships between them. I don't know anything more about these, other than there being some adult content; to what extent, I can't say.
	Bubblegum Crisis	This cyberpunk series is based heavily on Blade Runner. It's gritty, dark, and bloody. At the center of the action are the Knight Sabers, a group of mercenaries fighting against the world's largest and most corrupt corporation, GENOM. I stand corrected on what I wrote here before: there are suggestions that Nene Romanova, one of the Knight Sabers, is a bisexual, though nothing explicitly says so, and one of the police officers involved, Daley Wong, is constantly making passes at his straight-and-narrow partner; if this character is not gay, he is sending out all the wrong (or right) signals.
	Cyber City Oedo 808	Another cyberpunk thriller, this one is set in the year 2808. Criminals are given a choice: spend their entire sentence in a prison, or become cyberpolice officers to work off their sentence. The catch: they have a collar around their necks that will explode, blowing their heads off, if they commit crimes or fail to report in daily. This show has a bisexual character named Benten, a male with very feminine features, yet very cool and strong willed, fully confident in himself and his sexuality. He is the central character of the third part of the series.
	Delinquent In Drag	More perversion from the mind of Go Nagai, this one revolves around a boy, Banji Suke, who ends up at a new school after his family are forced to move. (Later in the show, you find out just why they moved. 9_9) Because of his father's stupidity, Banji is registered as a girl, Banko, at the new school which is dominated by girls who dominate boys. On the first day alone, Banji ends up in five fights. (Note the pun in his name, "Suke Ban", the slang term for a female thug.) The main character bears a strong resemblence to UY's Ataru Moroboshi in looks and personality, and a lot of this show seems to be takeoffs on other anime series. There's quite a bit of hentai stuff (do we really need to see someone passing gas? ^_^) and a few scenes of pseudo-lesbian and gay attractions. It's funny in many places if you can stand the perverted stuff, though this one is only good as a one-off show, it probably wouldn't stand up to repeated watching.
	Desperate Love 1989 (aka Zetsuai 1989, Bronze)	This show revolves around an entertainer named Izumi who has a dark past involving a rock singer named Koji Nanjo and Koji's friend Katsumi Shibuya. I know little about this show other than it involving homosexual male characters in some way.
	Dragon Knight 2	The second of a series (you don't need to see the first to enjoy it) about a wandering sell-sword who has a thing for the ladies. He helps a young thief from some thugs and ends up in a fight against an evil religious cult. The thief is a girl who dresses and acts as a boy who falls in love with the hero. The thief is captured and is tortured (both in pain and sexually) by a female cult leader, then given a drug that will kill her if she doesn't have sex in a certain amount of time (soft core sex at best).
	El Hazard	Makoto is a brilliant student who invents a machine that can warp space. His main rival, Jinnai, tampers with the machine causing the two of them plus others to be pulled into an alternate dimension, the world of El Hazard. Makoto is a very feminine looking boy, and at one point in the series ends up dressing as a woman to impersonate her after she has been kidnapped. As well, one female in the series names Alielle has a severe attachment bordering on lesbianism to any beautiful woman. Later in the OAV series and through all of the TV series is a woman named Fatora who actively chases other women, even those uninterested. There's no sex here, just simple crossdressing and heterosexual romantic triangles.
	End Of Summer	Wataru is infatuated with Mai who has eyes for someone else, while Miho is in love with him. Even worse, there's two other girls who make his life hell. Oh yeah, and Wataru's got a friend with even less of a clue about women than he does. Okay, I'll admit that everyone in this show is heterosexual (except perhaps the owner of the coffee shop O_-), but the way the two sex scenes are so beautifully done makes it worthwhile, this is the best pornographic movie I have ever seen. (Not that I've seen that many, you understand. ^_^) This also has a great theme song, "Wake Up To Your Love".
	F3: Frantic, Frustrated, and Female	Hiroe Ogawa is a young woman with a problem: she can't have an orgasm. Alone, with boys, with girls, she can't get off no matter what she tries...and she tries a lot! I haven't seen it, but from what I've heard, I definitely want to. ^_^
	Gall Force	The all-female race of Solenoids are waging a war against the all-male race of Paranoids in a genocidal war in space. But behind the scenes, some on each side realize the futility of the war and work toward joining the two species...but at what price? The protagonists are of an all-female race who reproduce by cloning, so it would be safe to assume there would be lesbians; however, there are no such relationships but there is some nudity in the series. It's not overly hentai, but a good view regardless.
	Genesis Climber Mospeada	For those of you who remember Robotech, this was translated and dubbed as part of that TV series. One character, Yellow Belmont (Yellow Dancer in the Robotech version) is a crossdressing, possibly bisexual man who is one of the central characters and possibly the most likable.
	Gunbuster	In the future, humans are defending themselves from annihilation against a race of aliens. Our main weapons are young soldiers in large mecha, overmatched in a battle for survival until the development of the Gunbuster units. Noriko Takaya is the central character and one of these young warriors who must find herself and the courage to go into battle and eventually save the world. There's a few scenes of female nudity and emotional attachment that comes close but doesn't quite deserve to be called lesbianism. Still, this is a good ride emotionally.
	Here Is Greenwood	Kazuya Hasukawa has left home to attend a boys boarding school after his older brother married Sumire, the girl that Kazuya loved. It turns out that Greenwood Dorm is full of the most crazy, wierd, and oddball group of people in the whole school, and to top it off, Kazuya's older brother gets a job as the school nurse! There are large suggestions of homosexuality throughout (especially involving Mitsuru and Shinobu), plus one of the four main characters is a boy who looks and sounds like a girl, even able to pass for one for short periods. There's no sex, but a lot of suggestiveness to what's going on. Beautiful boys abound.
	Heroic Legend Of Arislan	A partially fact-based story of a medieval European kingdom and its young ruler Arislan who comes to the throne after his homeland is invaded and his father is thrown into prison. There's much action and adventure with a great plot and animation. There's no homosexuals here, but there are suggestions of one and more beautiful males to be found.
	Homosexual White Paper: A Man's Decision	Yukichi is a gay man uncertain about his feelings whose friend Dan falls in love with a girl named Miki. Yukichi tried to gather his courage to approach Miki, but to do what, ask her out to fight his gay tendencies or to ask her to leave Dan to himself? I haven't seen this, but it definitely contains gay characters. ^_^
	Iczer 1: Fight!	Nagisa Kano is an ordinary schoolgirl, or at least she thought she was, but when the Cthulhu come from the skies her inner abilities to fight are brought out. She is reluctant at first, but when her family is killed before her eyes, she finds the will to battle against Delos Theta. The bad guys in this are human looking females who are all lesbians, and includes a lot of nudity. This is cliche ridden and cheesy, but it's still popular.
	Kimagure Orange Road	Kyosuke Kasuga has three problems: 1) he is in love with Madoka Ayukawa, 2) Hikaru Hiyama is in love with him, and 3) he and his family are espers with supernatural powers. Kyosuke has a cousin named Akane who appears twice in this series, once trying gain Madoka's attention and once asking Kyosuke to pretend to be her boyfriend. Akane is not a lesbian, though she certainly comes across as one in her pursuit of Madoka; in Japan, girls who admire others sometimes become infatuated to an extent that it appears to to be a lesbian relationship. Anyway, lots of fun and romance to be found here.
	Magical Girl Pretty Sammy 2	This is a spinoff from the popular series Tenchi Muyou! In this episode, Sammy battles her enemies who have decided to work with Biff Standard, owner of the world's largest computer company who wants to standardize the world. Truly evil. (The only alternate operating system to the Standard is being forced off the market: Mach 8. ^_^) The show itself is not remarkable for any non-hetero content, but the end theme song, "Your Hiroshi", is about a woman who is dumped by her man...for another man. ^_^ It's funny, yet romantic and tragic.
	Neon Genesis Evangelion	Shinji Ikari is a fourteen year old boy brought to Tokyo-3 by his father Gendo to pilot a mecha called EVA against angels sent to destroy the Earth. With each new battle against an angel, new elements, characters, and conflicts fill Shinji's life until the culmination of the Human Completion Project: the joining of all humanity with God. This two year TV series and following movie "End Of Evangelion" are closely based upon the Book of Revelations from the Bible though the religious aspects are clearly shown from a non-Christian viewpoint. Late in the series, Shinji meets a young boy who appears and shows Shinji kindness that he needs at his lowest emotional point. While many would argue that Shinji and Kaoru Nagisa are not gay (likely not), but there is love between them that goes beyond simple friendship in a very touching way. Their relationship is deeper than most in anime, yet lasts less time than a single episode of this series.
	Plastic Little	Young Captain Tita is in dock for supplies when she meets a young girl on the run from a band of thugs; it later turns out the girl's father made war weapons that she may know secrets about. Also known as Plastic Nipple for the gratuitous 3 minute nudity scene and the females ogling each other's naked bodies. There's no lesbianism, but there is the sense of adoration amongst girls.
	Please Save My Earth	Alice Sakaguchi is a teenager who has recurring dreams of when she once saved a world; she realizes these dreams were true and that she and six others she knew have been reborn as humans. The Earth is in danger of being destroyed and they must remember how they did it before to save their new home. Two of the teenagers in the series are boys who in their previous lives were husband and wife; as the series develops, they remember more and develop a loving platonic relationship.
	Project A-ko	Eiko Magami and Shiko Kotobuki are new students at Graviton High School for Girls where they Biiko Daitokuji who falls desperately for Shiko. Constant battles between A-ko and B-ko for C-ko's friendship and attention are occasionally interrupted by D and the other aliens who want to kidnap C-ko and take her back to their planet. There are no lesbians, though the relationships suggest that; again, females idolize one another to the point of infatuation. This series is violent, stupid, and fun.
	Ranma 1/2	Ranma Saotome is a young martial artist forced into an arranged engagement to Akane Tendo who hates boys. But that's okay, Ranma is cursed so that when he's hit with cold water he becomes she, and hot water turns her back to him. Lots of excessive violence where no one gets hurt. Although no one is actually homosexual or bisexual in the series, there are literally dozens of innuendos and suggestions of people being gay, boys falling in love with boys and girls falling in love with girls due to curses, magic (transsexualism), or mistaken identity (plus, it has several transvestites ^_^).
	Riding Bean	A clear take-off of the Ryan O'Neal movie The Driver, Bean Bandit is a courier who will drive anyone or anything anywhere, no questions asked, if the price is right. But when a sociopathic criminal sets him up for a kidnapping and murders, it's more than he can stand. No actual sex, but the sociopath has a early teen girl as her sex slave, with suggestions of forced lesbianism.
	Rose Of Versailles	This centers on an only child of a noble French family in the court of Marie Antionette who dresses as a man, becoming an officer in the French army. Her position is challenged when she falls in love with a revolutionary, this love threatening her identity.
	Sailor Moon	Okay, I said forget SM on the front page, but in the second season of the show, you may have noticed that the character Zoecite has very small breasts... ...because Zoecite is a HE, in love with the very male Malachite, both fitting the beautiful boys mold. This was obviously changed for North American TV. What, let a show for girls age 8-12 get on TV with openly homosexual characters, even if they're bad guys? Not likely. Also in this series, though not in any of the episodes on North American TV as of yet, are two "Outer Sailors", Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune. In costume they are both girls, but in civilian clothes, Sailor Uranus is either a very effeminate man or a woman who is in love with the civilian Sailor Neptune. (Due to arguments I'm hearing on both sides of this issue, I'm leaving it alone; watch the series and decide for yourself.)
	The Slayers	A screwball swords and sorcery comedy adventure about a sorceress named Lina Inverse. There are two series of this, the TV episodes where she and Gourry, a mighty warrior with a mighty small brain, travel through several lands chased by an evil priest and bounty hunters. In the OAV series, Lina travels with another warrior named Naga with whom she develops a close relationship; there is no open lesbianism, though I am told it is quite openly suggested. At one point in the TV series, Gourry is forced to dress as a woman (including makeup) to hide from bounty hunters and ends up being propositioned for marriage by a ship's captain, who still wants to marry even after finding out Gourry is a man. Lots of silliness to be found.
	Sukeban Deka	Saki is a sukeban (female gang leader) who is forced to work with the police to take down a crime ring run by three twisted sisters. Saki ends up meeting a very shy girl who paints, going through a brief and non-sexual emotional relationship with her.
	3x3 Eyes	Yakumo is swept up in a chase when he meets a young Tibetan girl named Pai whose body is host to the last of a race of immortals. The two end up on a the run from people who want to capture Pai to manipulate dark forces for their own end, while Pai simply wants to become wholly human. Though the character and the background is not there for long, Yakumo is raised by a group of crossdressers for years after his father disappeared. Overall, this has little transvestitism, but does portray it in a positive way.
	Urusei Yatsura	A ridiculous comedy about a lecherous pervert named Ataru Moroboshi and the alien who falls in love with him, Lum. (Lum is the green haired girl in Matthew Sweet's video "I've Been Waiting".) The series begins with Ataru saving the Earth by defeating Lum in combat, but by mistake, she assumes by winning he wants to marry her; the long series involves numerous crazies and idiotic situations, with lots of screwball comedy. Throughout the series there are several crossdressers and suggestive situations, though to my knowledge no one is actually homosexual. (Note: Urusei Yatsura translates roughly as "Those Obnoxious Aliens", but by changing urusei to urusai, you get the equivalent of "SHUT UP!", the series title becoming a pun.)
	Wind and Trees Song	This is a romance story set in a boys' school in the late 19th century about a failed relationship between two teens, one unable to overcome his feelings that is it "wrong", and against his religious beliefs.
	Yotoden	In 16th century Japan, warlords rule the lands, but evil monsters have arisen and there is only one way to stop them: three ninja who each hold a magical dagger, sword, and spear. Ayame is a female ninja who holds the dagger and changes her name to Ayanosuke and living as a boy when the rest of her clan are killed. Sakon who holds the sword and Ryoma who possesses the spear come together to fight the demons and finally face the wizard who has been summonning them. An intense and beautiful series, the three main heroes each fall in love with other people, two of them into short-lived homosexual relationships. Touching, though the romances end too quickly.