Representation has always been a significant factor in the LGBTQ+ community, and manga does an excellent job of doing just that. Yuri, or GL manga, centers around stories involving romantic relationships between two female characters. While the genre may be slightly less popular compared to its male counterpart, yaoi, it is enjoyed by readers. Yuri manga offers various stories that will entertain millions of readers with their storylines. In that regard, here are the best GL manga recommendations.
Citrus
Written and illustrated by Saburouta, the story follows Yuzu Aihara, a bubbly city girl who moves to the suburbs after her mom’s new marriage. She struggles to fit into the conservative nature of her new all-girls school as she repeatedly clashes with the student council and its president, Mei Aihara.
However, Yuzu discovers that Mei is her new stepsister, with whom she must now share a room. Despite their rocky start, the two sisters get close to each other after learning more about themselves. Yuzu soon develops romantic feelings for Mei and struggles to find out how to manage this new relationship.
Maria Watches Over Us
Oyuki Konno and Satoru Nagasawa’s Maria Watches Over Us, originally adapted from the light novel series of the same name, has been considered one of the best yuri manga of all time. The popular series has inspired many exciting manga and anime series like Yuri Is My Job!. The story takes place at Lilian Girls School, where the student body coexists through a big sister/little sister system.
Big sisters teach their little sisters (soeurs) about school and religion. The story centers around a first-year student, Yumi Fukuzawa, and her crush and big sister, Sachiko Ogasawara. After a faithful encounter, Sachiko takes Yumi in as her soeur. Thanks to Sachiko, Yumi is brought into the student council and sees the complex relationships between roses and their soeurs.
Bloom Into You
Nio Nakatani’s Bloom Into You is a popular yuri manga that has inspired its own hit anime adaptation. The plot centers around Yuu Kaito, whose love for shoujo manga makes her wait for the day a love confession will make her heart flutter like the girls in the manga. However, after being confessed to by her middle school classmate, she struggles to respond.
She then witnesses her upperclassman, Touko Nanami, turning down a love confession and decides to ask her for advice. Touko confesses her love for Yuu but tells her she doesn’t need to respond to her. The series deals with several other subplots, like anxiety, which makes the manga more relatable.
Sister and Giant: A Young Lady Reborn in Another World
Although relatively new, Be-con’s manga has garnered fans’ support with its unique story. The story follows the life of Hinako, who gets reincarnated into another world. However, unlike most isekai manga, she refuses to accept the powers the goddess offers and decides to take a vow of sisterhood with the giant Eiris.
Despite being from two different worlds, the bond between the two is magical. Together, they work towards finding their missing siblings while avoiding the church’s attention. The manga shows how diverse the GL genre has become as it seamlessly combines the isekai genre to birth this dark fantasy story.
The Summer You Were There
Yuama, the creator behind The Girl I Want Is So Handsome!, is the mastermind behind this amazing GL manga. The plot centers around Shizuku, a shy high school girl who spends most of her time alone. She works on a novel, which she plans never to show anyone. However, everything changes when Kaori, the most popular girl in the class, reads the novel. Despite expecting harsh criticism from her, Kaori praises the novel and is excited to see what Shizuku does next. So, Kaori suggests they start dating to give Shizuku inspiration for the next book.
