Yaoi is a term used for Japanese Anime porno films that contain male on male homosexual sex. Surprisingly, this is not your typical gay porn or homosexual anime, known as Bara. Yaoi in English means Boys Love, which is commonly referred to simply as BL instead of the Japanese Yaoi. Even though this type of anime porn involves androgynous young males who fall in love with each other and make out after some dramatic near-suicide attempt over poor SAT scores, this type of porn is actually written, directed, and geared towards females. It is largely a female audience, with the exception of a few homosexual young males. Standard Gay porn is considered a completely separate genre, and is usually written and consumed by males.
The difference between a Yaoi film and typical gay porn in Japan is simple. Yaoi involves effeminate young males who fall in love. There is emotion and drama, which appeals to the female audience. Gay porn in Japan usually involves muscular older men who engage in violent, soul-wrenching sexual acts because they simply cannot control their homoerotic desires, no matter how ashamed they feel. In Yaoi films, there are some violent scenes of rape, but in Yaoi when a young male is raped by another young male, it is merely an indication of their passion for each other. It is not considered wrong or violent, but an indication of their deep love.
Another distinctive factor of Yaoi is that the characters involved in the films are usually quite young, roughly between the ages of 15 and 21. Even though it is technically called “boys” love, it never includes prepubescent males. Prepubescent male porn, directed towards pedophiles, is a separate genre altogether, known as “Shotacon.” It is very VERY important to remember that even though they are pronounced the same, Shotacon is NOT the same thing as Shotokan, which is a popular and traditional style of Japanese Karate. A few years ago, I had the opportunity to visit Japan and I wanted to study the traditional martial arts while I was visiting some rural areas. My Japanese was terrible, so I simply walked up to a local tour guide on the street and told him, “I want to study Shotokan….need Sensei.” After a long bus ride into the city, the man finally took me to the place where I could study shotokan. It took me a while to clue in, but I finally understood what he thought I wanted as we crouched behind some Bonsai bushes in the playground of an elementary school as the kids played Ro Sham Bo in the school yard.
When I tried to correct the confusion by making karate strike gestures with my hands, he smiled and nodded, and said in broken English, “You pay more if hitting kids. Hitting cost extra.” Needless to say, I didn’t learn much karate that day.
1. When my friend taught English in Japan, he became addicted to Yaoi porn. I tried telling him that it was meant for women, but I think he really liked the rape scenes and emo-looking young men.
2. If you’re going to watch a Yaoi film with a girl, be ready for some tears and masturbation. It’s like porn to them, but it’s also like a soap opera.
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