“What are little girls made of?
What are little girls made of?
Sugar and spice
And all that's nice,
That's what little girls are made of.”
According to this popular rhymes, the famous genre referred to as “cute girls doing cute things” so deeply ingrained in the media of japanese animation doesn't sounds nearly as much preposterous as many want to believe. Yet there are certain occasions when the concept is simply turned upside-down and girls suddenly become interested in “snips and snails”, be it for the sake of including in the story a stereotypical tomboysh character or to justify the existence of said character in its apparently sugar coated
...
world.
This review won't be so assumptive as to think that A Lollipop or a Bullet is the first or the most successful story using such plot device, it will be made clear though how Kazuki Sakuraba, better known as the authoress of the mystery/romance Gosick series, managed to give great care and balance in her own coming-of-age story.
A Lollipop or a Bullet starts in a very by the book way, presenting in the first page the protagonist of the story, Nagisa Yamada, seeking a “dessert for nobles” in the mountains, then shifting the scene one month prior to narrate the events that eventually lead to that search. Nagisa is a middle school girl without much faith in the world or in life; during an age when most of the children are too busy having fun to think about their future she already chose that none of that matters to her. People would find her country town to be a pleasant tourist destination, yet she can only think about the nuclear plant, the reformatory, the prison, the mental hospital and the military base located in the outskirts, places everyone avert their eyes from.
Having had a troubled family past, she resolved to stop dreaming of the sugary exi average girls live in and devote herself to become an adult as soon as possible, already planning her job and her career as a soldier in the above mentioned military base, relying only on her own forces and taking reality face on, like a real “bullet”. Everything seems to go according to her plans until, during the last year of middle school, a transfer student suddenly appears in her class. The name is Mokuzu Umino and at first glance she's just a plain weirdo, costantly drinking water everytime she's nervous and calling herself a mermaid in search of a true friend. Despite avoiding as much as possible to be involved with such a troublemaker, Mokuzu gets interested in Nagisa precisely because she's the only one who's not curious about her circumstances, and one-sidely resolves to make her become the friend she needs.
From here on the setting is developed like a stage play, where each act stricly links with the previous and following, with the focus revolving around the strange relationship that develops between the two protagonists and the world around them. Nagisa soon gets tired of that eccentric liar, but Mokuzu's enigmatic character and behavior only furtherly drag her in the deep of her own childish world and troubles, slowly shaping the psychology of a young girl whose flawed logic goes far beyond a traditional seek for attention.
Being an adaptation of a one book long novel, A Lollipop or a Bullet focus is more oriented on the character development than on an all-round story. The narration of the events and the relationships between Mokuzu and Nagisa is told from the latter's point of view, adding a curious yet well-placed aura of mystery behind the plot. The title of the second chapter “Heavenly Creatures” can be taken in this case either as a curious coincidence or as a well thought reference to a similiar and more famous title.
The fundamental use of several recurring images and dialogues is aimed to properly convey the feelings behind the messages of the tale, as well as outline the two conflicting view of the world: the realistic and disillusioned act made up by Nagisa is the childish attempt of a young girl to be prepared to endure all the hardships in the world. Against this conception there's the dreamer and happy-go-lucky Mokuzu, whose facade of joyful lies is simply a proof of escapism, ultimately designed to avoid said hardships and convince herself that everything has a meaning, even the worst things in life. To prove this, she's not content with just sharing her stories, she also want to drag everyone in her world, as her own way to scream for help and flee from the solitude and harshness of the existence she's bound to live.
While the story can be redundant and slow-paced due to the deliberate repetition of certain parts, what really strikes to the reader is the growing sense of anxiety painted by the unveiling of the events, and this is where the ability of Sakuraba as a writer is made clear to the reader.
Likewise, the art from Iqura Sugimoto, better know for her manga Variante, are without any doubt appropriate for this kind of story. The rough and skinny design of the characters depicts the “dirty” atmosphere right from the first pages and keeps increasing its effectiveness as the story gets darker and darker after each chapter.
Being a shounen with the psychological growth of a shoujo and the themes of a seinen, A Lollipop or a Bullet might really turns off a lot of readers, expecially those who can't bear stories that deals with realistic drama in a hopeless and absolutely believable style. That being said, it still serves its purpose as a full fledged bildungsroman, so the more seasoned readers will be easily get caught by its depressing stance on an usually more light-hearted genre of narration.
It might sound preposterous to compare this title with equally dark yet more cryptic and symbolical tales such as Gogo Monster, Goodnight Punpun and Wings of Vendemiaire, but the differences in storytelling and the similiarites between the themes of a tragic growth of characters are indeed what makes each of these manga unique and stunning in its own way.
 Alternative TitlesSynonyms: Satou Kashi no Dangan wa Uchinukenai, A Lollipop or a Bullet, Sugar Candy Bullets Can't Pierce Anything Japanese: 砂糖菓子の弾丸は撃ちぬけない A Lollypop or A Bullet InformationType: Manga
Volumes: 2
Chapters: 13
Status: Finished
Published: Jan 9, 2007 to Jan 9, 2008
Genre:
Drama
Demographic:
Shounen
Serialization:
Dragon Age Statistics Ranked: #10082 2 based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded. Popularity: #1134
Members: 16,525
Favorites: 496 Resources | Reviews
Filtered Results: 10 / 12
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Oct 18, 2013
“What are little girls made of?
What are little girls made of? Sugar and spice And all that's nice, That's what little girls are made of.” According to this popular rhymes, the famous genre referred to as “cute girls doing cute things” so deeply ingrained in the media of japanese animation doesn't sounds nearly as much preposterous as many want to believe. Yet there are certain occasions when the concept is simply turned upside-down and girls suddenly become interested in “snips and snails”, be it for the sake of including in the story a stereotypical tomboysh character or to justify the existence of said character in its apparently sugar coated ... 
Apr 15, 2015
Yeah, this is really a 8-10 material, no attack of fanboys/fangirls here. Unexpected, but true. And no shoujo-ai, seriously.
I think there’re two main topics among the more serious manga – the fear of loneliness vs. fear of opening up and the fight against the world. This falls more in the second category, but from my pov it stands out a lot, because of its total lack of self-indulgence and the down to the ground mood. You won’t tell from the description, but here the peter pan syndrome plays out as it usually does in life – very badly. As you can see most of the other ... 
Aug 1, 2014
Ok, so let's start from that that the "Cynd" in my nickname is a shortcut from Cyndaquil and I am actually a pokemon. Just like Team Rocket's Meowth I managed to learn human speech and now I'm sitting beside my pc and writing this review.
What? You don't believe me? You think I'm joking? You say pokemon don't exist? Of course they do. You think the Game Freak games were based on pure fiction? Even armies worldwide hire pokemon trainers to fight as mercenaries against foreign trainers. You say it's not possible? That PETA wouldn't approve of having pokemon fight? That conventional weapons are way more effective ... 
Feb 19, 2021
This is my first review so sorry if it was inconvenient.
Dear reader , if you're gonna read this manga think twice because your heart will be broken... Because of a story like this one , Myanimelist.com must have a tag of "Tragedy". The art style is magnificent and the characters' expressions touch the heart. I felt like sometimes the characters act illogical but this is a coming of age story so it's okay. ... 
Aug 7, 2016
This is actually one of my favorite manga, hands down. I first came across it in 2012, in which I became enamored with the main protagonists. There was something about these girls that had me enraptured and really invested in their lives, the choices they face, and the struggles they will eventually have to overcome.
It sort of takes that "weird new girl" thing to a new level and I could not have possibly even fathomed the outcome of this little story. That was part of why it was so compelling. What comes next? What comes next? The beat of the manga is so subdued, ... 
Oct 1, 2016
I’m sure a lot of readers could relate to Nagisa at the beginning of the story. She’s matured enough to see that she needs to start living in this world and thinking of her future despite what her classmates are doing around her. In other words, she’s the typical pre-teen who’s starting to get a grasp of reality. Then, in drops this freaky transfer student who’s captivated everyone because she’s the daughter of a famous singer and has a pretty face. That’s not as relatable, but it’s quite typical to manga of the school genre: a new kid comes and changes the protagonist’s life.
Despite that ... 
Dec 1, 2019
Even though this is a very short manga, only 13 chapters long, I sped through this series at the speed of light. The reason being? I just could NOT put it down.
[Spoiler free review] Why did I find Satougashi no Dangan wa Uchinukenai so unputdownable? (Yes, it's a word, Google it). Firstly, the story is so much more than the synopsis gives away. I went into this expecting perhaps a rather cute tale of friendship and school difficulties, maybe even some Yuri undertones? But instead, I was met with riveting drama, intriguing mystery and fantastic character development. The character of Umino Mokuzu is fascinating and it is ... 
Jul 6, 2020
This is a story about two girls, who look cut out of a "cute girls doing cute stuff" and both are in middle school. Saying that, this is not a beautiful story, it is an ugly and real one. And thats what makes this so good.
Drapped behind the veneer of what I said above is a story that really pulls at fears we all may have. The fear of isolation. The fear of being who you are and being rejected for it. The fear of growing up. The fear of existing in a pain that you dont know ... 
May 27, 2021
Overall- 9/10
Art- 6/10 The art is subpar, there's nothing too special about it. It's pretty average. If the art were better, I'd give the entire manga a 10/10 overall. Characters- 10/10 The characters are amazing, the two protagonist are a 13 year old girl and a "mermaid" who are oblivious to life as a whole. They are extremely well written, the author really makes you feel their thought process, and it shows how different children view the world compared to adults. Story- 10/10 This story is one big metaphor, even the title. This story is amazing in every sense, the story really shows how oblivious children are ... 
Aug 9, 2022
this is one of the best mangas i have ever read!!! it is very underrated and more people need to read it. it's honestly a masterpiece
the plot is good. the ending was unique and unpredictable. it really shocked me and others i know who've read it the 2 main characters are very likeable. a few side characters are likeable as well, such as nagisa's brother. i love the mains -- mokuzu and nagisa. i read this manga over a year ago and i feel like those two will always have a place in my heart the art style and character designs are great too!! i realise not ... |
