From Eroica with Love

From Eroica with Love (エロイカより愛をこめて) is a long-running shōjo manga by Yasuko Aoike which originally began publication in 1976 by Akita Shoten. The series ran irregularly in the Japanese anthology magazine Viva Princess from December 1976 to April 1979, then moved to the sister publication Princess beginning in September 1979. It was featured regularly in Princess, with several later side stories appearing in Viva Princess, until August 1989. It went on hiatus for several years, then reappeared in Princess in May 1995 and ran irregularly through December 2007. As of January 2009, it is once again regularly featured in Princess Gold. The English translation by CMX began publication in 2004.

The series revolves around the adventures of Dorian Red, Earl of Gloria, an openly gay English lord who is an art thief known as "Eroica", and Klaus Heinz von dem Eberbach, an uptight West German NATO major.

The series is driven by frequent inadvertent encounters between Dorian and Klaus, with Dorian often disrupting Klaus's missions. Dorian has developed a fondness for and flirts incessantly with Klaus, who typically reacts with extreme disgust. Other reoccurring characters include Dorian and Klaus's respective subordinates and Klaus's enemies from the Russian KGB.

The series is generally comedic, although it involves violence, theft, and bizarre international incidents. Much of the series spoofs spy stories, as indicated by the title, a play on the James Bond novel From Russia, with Love.

Dorian Red, Earl of Gloria
Dorian is the protagonist of the series. His name is a play on the Oscar Wilde character Dorian Grey, whilst his pseudonym Eroica is Italian for "heroic" and the title of several pieces of art and music. Aoike physically modelled him after Robert Plant of the band Led Zeppelin, of which she is a fan. A major aspect of his personality is his flamboyant homosexuality, which is viewed with various degrees of disgust by those around him. In the series, Dorian is a successful art thief, a profession arising from his natural talent for stealing and his passion for beautiful objects. After performing a theft, Dorian leaves behind ransom cards signed with his catchphrase: "From Eroica with love. Good luck."

Dorian is aided by his gang of thieves, who also manage his household. These characters are also inspired by the band Led Zeppelin. Prominent among them are Mr. James, a miserly and jealous accountant, and the reliable, middle-aged Bonham.

Klaus Heinz von dem Eberbach
Klaus is a protagonist who acts as a foil to Dorian, and, later, as his love interest. He is a West German intelligence agent serving in NATO. He is nicknamed "Iron Klaus" by enemy characters for his notoriously high number of successful missions. Klaus's missions involve averting international incidents and collecting intelligence, and are frequently disrupted by Dorian. Klaus reacts to Dorian's flirting and confessions of love with violence and pronounced homophobia. Despite this, he is occasionally cordial with Dorian when they have worked together on a mission successfully.

Klaus's crew of 26 subordinates are each named after a letter of the alphabet: A, B, G, and Z appear in the series most frequently. A is in second command, B is generally portrayed as a bumbling clown, G enjoys cross-dressing, and Z, the youngest, is Klaus's favourite. All of Klaus's subordinates live in fear of his ire and his constant threats to reassign them to Alaska.

Mischa the Bear Cub
Mischa is a reoccurring antagonist in the series. A member of the KGB, he is a previous Olympic Gold-Medallist boxer. He and his successors have attempted to assassinate Klaus or foil his missions several times.

Saleem Al Sabaah
Saleem is a reoccurring minor character in the series. He is an extremely rich Kuwaiti oil magnate who is also an arrogant, handsome young man. He comes into competition with Dorian over various works of art they both wish to possess. Dorian finds Saleem's view of artworks as investments as repugnant, whilst Saleem later holds a grudge against Dorian for tricking him after he had been his accomplice in an art theft.

Caesar Gabriel
Alongside his friends Sugar Plum, a talented art student, and Leopard Solid, a successful athlete, Caesar Gabriel appeared as a protagonist in the beginning of the series, but failed to reappear after a few chapters. A young British man, he is a genius university professor in London. He falls in love with Dorian after being pursued by him. He and his friends are gifted with the ability to communicate telepathically with each other.

Reception
As of the mid-1980s, fan translations of From Eroica with Love began to circulate through the slash fiction community, creating a "tenuous link" between slash and shōnen-ai. From Eroica with Love is more popular with slash fans than it has been with dōjinshi artists. The series has been described as an example of a movement in shōnen-ai and yaoi to depict more masculine men, as part of the audience's increasing comfort with objectifying males.