The Story of Saiunkoku (with Dee of Josei Next Door)

Discusses all 9 volumes of The Story of Saiunkoku, written by  Sai Yukino and illustrated by Kairi Yura.

ASHLEY: I'm like, 'I could have been a better person if I'd read [The Story of Saiunkoku] 10 years ago.'
DEE: That's how we should have ended the no spoiler section! 'Read this manga, it will change your life.'

In this episode, we're going to historical China for a semi-supernatural, extremely feminist manga adaptation of a light novel series. Dee, who makes the Josei Next Door blog and writes/edits for Anime Feminist, joins to discuss why this series never got its time in the spotlight in English like it deserves, why Shurei’s journey to fulfilling the seemingly impossible dream she has of becoming a civil servant is one of hope, and how Shurei's dad may just be the best dad in all of anime/manga, despite being a killer. We also, of course, talk about the gaggle of hot men in Shurei's life and her badass boss, Kochou.

REFERENCES

• The Story of Saiunkoku manga is available from Viz Media's Shojo Beat line
• The only version of the anime that's available legally in English is dubbed and is called Corlourcloud Palace
• Other series mentioned:
  • The Apothecary Diaries
  • Culinary Chronicles of the Court
  • Basara
  • Ouran High School Host Club
  • Fushigi Yuugi
  • LoveCom
• Anime Feminist articles mentioned:
  • You Don’t Have to Kick Ass to Be Kickass: Shoujo fantasy and the value of the noncombatant hero
  • Fire Balls & Ice Rinks: How My Hero Academia reflects inequality in competitive sports
• Outro song: "The Streatham Hill Gods" by Danosongs

CONTACT US

• You can find Dee's writing on Anime Feminist and Josei Next Door
• Follow Dee on Twitter: @joseinextdoor
• Shojo & Tell on Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram
• Ashley's Tales of Xillia fanfic: Well Suited