Two works are considered the early prototypes of Boys Love: Mari Mori's 1961 novel, Lovers' Forest and Hideko Mizuno's Fire!. This would massively inspire the independent scene and eventually assimilated into the mainstream. This movement totally redefined what was possible with manga and created a whole new aesthetic and form of storytelling within the medium. However, the term soon became synonymous with manga with a shock factor, including stories featuring violence, eroticism or other adult topics. Gekiga emerged in the 1950s and aimed to show more mature and realistic stories aimed at older audiences. This was also combined with a massive change in the manga industry with the growth of the Gekiga genre.
