When people think of anime, manga, and Japanese light novels, the first things that come to their minds are the classic shonen titles. The ones full of jaw-dropping action and violence, themes of never giving up, and just good old pure awesomeness. Of course, anime and many other popular Japanese media are very diverse. And while some have reached international fame, several have become so iconic that they basically became the mascots of said media.
In this little article of underrated literary artists, let us meet a revolutionary writer who changed anime as a whole, and whose achievements are still being emulated today.
The Japanese author Yuyuko Takemiya may not look that much from the start. Not much is known about her since she seldom shared about her personal life. That being said, her writing career began with her debut novel Our Tamaru-kun. The story wasn’t really that unique, being a traditional sci-fi comedy prevalent in manga, light novels, and anime at that time, like Urusei Yatsura and Daa Daa Daa. During that time, many tropes taken from shonen manga and anime have taken root, such as bizarre humor, surrealistic plots, and of course, action. These tropes would then be combined with popular tropes from both shoujo and seinen, thus becoming the building blocks of many popular anime of today.
Takemiya’s time was also heavily influenced by Haruhi Suzumiya, Beelzebub and Hayate the Combat Butler. Everything was weird. Everything was humorous.
However, Takemiya continued to develop her own writing. Soon, she created a story-telling style that was either slightly or fully in contrast to the pervasing styles at that time. Takemiya opted for a more realistic story-telling, one that is balanced and can be as funny, as it is sad and hopeful. A story-telling that has no aliens, martial arts, or magical superheroes — a clear reflection to the modern world and all its issues and dilemmas.
The first light novel series Takemiya wrote that gained a ton of praise was Toradora! It is a story about two troubled teenagers who became friends and attempted to navigate the complicated world of adolescence, before eventually falling in love with each other. While the series was still quirky, what made it amazing is the fact that it tackled themes that many teenagers went through, such as ostracization, family problems, and first love. Another novel series that was also praised was Golden Time. In it, an amnesiac boy in college meets a sassy and sweet — albeit emotionally reactive — girl, and the two fall in love. It may sound simple, but there’s a level of realism that people relate from the many issues it tackles, from relationship problems, past loves, and many more. It also takes place in college and deals with its difficulties, a very rare one in anime.
Takemiya’s stories contributed to the rise and popularity of realistic but deep romance novels like My Little Monster, Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun, and Gamers! This also led to the increased popularity of television series of this genre. Above all Japanese authors out there, Yuyuko Takemiya stands out amongst the rest.
