Citrus (manga)

Citrus

Company type	Manga series
Industry	Manga publishing, anime production
Founded	November 17, 2012 (2012-11-17)
Founder	Saburouta
Headquarters	Japan
Products	Manga, anime television series
Parent	Ichijinsha (manga publisher), Passione (anime producer)

Citrus (presented as citrus) is a Japanese yuri manga created by Saburouta. It was published in Ichijinsha's Comic Yuri Hime magazine from November 2012 until August 2018 and was officially licensed for English release by Seven Seas Entertainment. The series received a 12-episode anime adaptation produced by Passione, which aired between January and March 2018. Following the original, a sequel manga titled Citrus Plus started its serialization in December 2018.

Plot

Yuzu Aihara, a trendy and impulsive girl from the city, enrolls at a new high school after her mother remarries. More interested in boys and fashion than academics, Yuzu finds it difficult to adjust to Aihara Academy, a traditional all-girls institution. She frequently encounters conflicts with the student council and its president, Mei Aihara—who also happens to be her new stepsister. Mei is diligent and emotionally reserved. Sharing a bedroom forces them into close quarters, gradually easing their initial hostility as they get to know one another, leading Yuzu to develop romantic feelings towards Mei.

Main characters

Yuzu is a self-described "gyaru" and Mei's older stepsister. Following her father's untimely death, she dyed her hair blonde and transferred to Aihara Academy after her mother's remarriage. Bold and outspoken, she often alters her uniform against school regulations and frequently clashes with the student council. Although she acts like she has relationship experience, she admits to never having had a boyfriend.

Mei serves as the attractive and serious Student council president, an honor student, and is the granddaughter of the school chairman. She appears stern and composed but has a quick temper. Respected yet sometimes harsh, her manipulative advances toward Yuzu add complexity to their evolving relationship.

Known as Harumin, she becomes friends with Yuzu on her first day at school. Calling herself a "gyaru in disguise," Harumi helps Yuzu navigate school life. Like Yuzu, she is also a transfer student but differs from the conservative atmosphere at Aihara Academy and shows little regard for Mei's authority. Frequently breaking rules by using her phone during class and sneaking out after hours, Harumi is cheerful and supportive, offering comfort when Yuzu faces difficulties.

Aihara Academy

Himeko is the vice-president of the Student Council as well as Mei’s childhood friend and closest ally. Coming from a wealthy family, she has access to personal staff including a chauffeur and at least one butler. On weekends, she favors lolita fashion. She is strict and temperamental, fiercely protective of Mei while feeling jealous of Yuzu’s presence. She owns a small dog named Pucchi.

A reserved second-year Student Council member who shares a close bond with Harumi’s sister Mitsuko. Previously serving as vice-president before Mitsuko’s departure, she casually refers to Mitsuko by nickname and harbors romantic feelings for her despite teasing her about immaturity.

Shō is Mei’s grandfather and father of Shō’s father; he initially disapproves of Yuzu due to her rule-breaking behavior and temporarily expels her following a misunderstanding. After Yuzu saves him during a heart attack, he forgives her. During his absence, Mei took over his responsibilities as Chairman.

Nene is an enthusiastic first-year student who looks up to Yuzu as an example of courage. She is also an avid yuri fan who especially supports the pairing of Yuzu and Harumi, appreciating their acceptance despite her tendency to cause trouble.

Suzuran is an observant third-year student from an affluent family that emphasizes emotional restraint to avoid vulnerability. She is infatuated with Mei but struggles to understand her personality. Suzuran spends much of her free time watching Mei and attends supplementary summer classes. She has an older stepbrother.

Sayaka is a strict yet composed first-year member of the Student Council who questions Mei’s leadership style and disapproves of new school policies. Skeptical about the possibility of romance between two girls, she maintains a close friendship with Miyabi Sakuraba.

Miyabi is a kind-hearted first-year Student Council member who has been friends with Sayaka for some time. Warm and accepting, she supports the new rules and believes that love between girls can exist, providing a contrast to Sayaka’s more doubtful stance.

Others

Kana, a friend from Yuzu's middle school days, lost touch after Yuzu changed schools but they reconnected while working part-time in their former hometown.

Manami, another of Yuzu's middle school acquaintances, also reestablished contact during part-time employment in their hometown.

Shō is Mei's father following his divorce and serves as Yuzu's stepfather.

Ume, Yuzu's mother who has lost her spouse, acts as Mei's stepmother.

Amamiya, a homeroom teacher at Aihara Academy, was once engaged to Mei but was dismissed after Yuzu revealed his misconduct.

Matsuri is Inori’s elder sister and was Yuzu’s childhood companion prior to her relocation to the Aihara household. Currently a second-year middle school student, she shares traits of intelligence, cunning, and manipulation with Mei. Matsuri earns extra income through the sale of online adult content under false identities. Eventually, she develops romantic feelings for Harumi.

Sara attends a different school and initially develops feelings for Mei; however, upon discovering Mei and Yuzu’s relationship, she becomes supportive of their bond. She is superstitious and has a younger twin sister named Nina.

Nina, Sara’s taller twin sibling, holds doubts about fate and backs Sara’s attempts to connect with Mei while opposing Yuzu’s involvement.

Mitsuko is Harumi Taniguchi’s elder sister and formerly led the Student Council at Aihara Academy. She maintained close connections with Kayo, a current council member.

Ichika is a schoolmate of Nina and Sara who introduced Nina to Momoiro Shimai. She serves as the Student Council President and contrasts with Mei’s style of leadership.

The café manager where Yuzu worked part-time to save money for a ring supports her relationship despite not knowing her partner’s identity. He was briefly engaged to Mei in the past.

Inori is Matsuri’s younger brother.

Manga

Created by Saburouta as both writer and illustrator, Citrus appeared in Ichijinsha's bimonthly publication Comic Yuri Hime from November 17, 2012 until August 18, 2018. Ichijinsha released ten collected volumes between July 18, 2013 and October 31, 2018. To promote the third volume, a promotional video summarizing the story was posted on Ichijinsha's YouTube channel on November 18, 2014. A drama CD was included with the fourth volume on July 18, 2015. The manga is licensed in North America by Seven Seas Entertainment, which published it from December 16, 2014 through July 23, 2019. Additional licenses exist in Germany, Thailand, and Taiwan.

The sequel series Citrus Plus (stylized as citrus+), began serialization on December 18, 2018 and is also licensed in North America by Seven Seas Entertainment.

Anime

The anime adaptation of Citrus, directed by Takeo Takahashi and produced by Passione, aired on AT-X from January 6 to March 24, 2018. Naoki Hayashi handled script supervision while Izuro Ijuuin designed characters. Music production was managed by Lantis, with Infinite producing the anime itself. The opening theme "Azalea" performed by Nano Ripe and the ending theme "Dear Teardrop" by Mia Regina contributed to the series' promotion. Crunchyroll streamed the show with original Japanese audio and English subtitles; Funimation released an English dub which later transferred to Crunchyroll following Sony's acquisition of the platform. The series saw Blu-ray releases in North America on January 22, 2019, and in Australia on May 8, 2019.

Reception

In 2015, Citrus was featured on The New York Times manga bestseller list on five separate occasions. Rebecca Silverman from Anime News Network commended the series for its emotionally layered characters and Saburouta's steady progression in character development, likening the dynamic between Yuzu and Mei to a "yuri reinterpretation of the twins from Arisa." Nevertheless, she pointed out the presence of unsettling non-consensual themes, which contrasted with more tender yuri manga previously available in English.

Juliana Failde of CBR criticized the narrative for portraying a "deeply toxic relationship" marked by "disturbing sexual assault" incidents between Mei and Yuzu, describing the romantic storyline as "poorly handled." Failde further emphasized the problematic nature of the sibling relationship, where two step-sisters develop feelings for each other following an involuntary kiss. Erica Friedman, founder of Yuricon and author of Okazu, condemned the work for treating "sexual assault [as] humorous," considering it insensitive in light of the Me Too movement. Vrai Kaiser from Anime Feminist recognized its melodramatic qualities but found the non-consensual physical interactions troubling, noting that these controversial elements partly explain its popularity beyond typical yuri titles.

Nicole MacLean of THEM Anime Reviews proposed that Sara’s character might symbolize pansexuality, demisexuality, or bisexuality; however, the series does not delve deeply into this aspect.

External links

• Official anime website