Sekai no Owari to Yoakemae

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La siguiente reseña está en Español e Inglés (traducida con el apoyo de DeepL)
La versión leída es la traducción al español por KOT7K perteneciente a "GoFansub"

Cuarta antología de Inio Asano, el título traducido es “El fin del mundo y Antes del amanecer”, son 11 capítulos en el que cada uno es una historia diferente, 4 relatos están directamente interconectados y en otros hay inferida una conexión aunque está más disposición de que lo considere así el lector. Las temáticas son varias, entre ellas tenemos la nostalgia, cotidianidad o amistad, sin embargo, hay una constante, sean los personajes adolescentes, jóvenes o adultos, y es sobre crecer.

Un ... adolescente a las puertas de la adultez mediante el contacto con el sexo opuesto, jóvenes aspirando a un sueño o dandose cuenta de que sin proponerselo están consiguiendo una vida común y corriente, o el adulto quien ya habiendo conseguido lo que “esperaba” de él, esposa, casa e hijos, se encuentra a sí mismo en un nuevo inicio. Diferentes personas con diversas edades y personalidades, se enfrentan a la encrucijada de qué hacemos con nuestro presente para corresponder al futuro.

Es inevitable que de evaluarlas individualmente consideremos una historia por encima del resto, sin embargo, contrario a cualquiera de sus anteriores antologías, no considero que ninguna sea “menor” a las otras. Es decir, a nivel semántico, hay una “mejor” pero no “peor”, no hay relato que entorpezca la consistencia, cada cual tiene una reflexión interesante por sí misma y que realiza eco sobre otras historias, y por eso, le considero la mejor antología de Asano hasta ese punto de su carrera.

No sólo hay una refinación en la narrativa individual para conseguir la general, está la forma en cómo sucede cada cual, las reflexiones provienen desde el personaje y sus vivencias en el momento, dándole el toque de naturalidad en vez de sermón o pretensión desde el autor. Como también la definición de cada personaje, hay una escala de grises en que al observar a fondo a una “mala persona” se develan sus problemas y conflictos, no justificación o redención, sólo consideración en que cada quien tiene una vida.

La mencionada historia interconectada es donde Ino mejor demuestra su aprendizaje, cada punto de vista aporta desde la consideración de su personaje para demostrar que aún un suceso cualquiera se construye desde la vivencia de diferentes personas, con sus conflictos y expectativas, aportando entre sí con el mero contacto.

También es generalizado el optimismo de Asano en cada capítulo, sin importar la situación en la que se encuentre, la esperanza de un futuro algo mejor es lo que siempre persiste. Porque aún en el fin del mundo, también es interesante la persistencia de un apocalipsis en sus trabajos, deberíamos esperar a que el próximo día sea mejor que el actual.

Si hay un elemento aparentemente disonante es el curioso primer capítulo, cada par de viñetas compone una minihistoria de todas las índoles imaginables, en el profundo de la noche la vida continúa para quienes estén despiertos. Es una excelente introducción a la composición que pese a deshacerse de los elementos sobrenaturales, explora su atmósfera de cotidianidad y convivencia.

La constante mejora en el dibujo de Asano está en el sentido del encuadre en los momentos determinantes de la narrativa, de amplios escenarios que amplifican las vivencias de los personajes, como también en las situaciones más cotidianas experimentando con ángulos y planos que no había utilizado, o delimitando el ritmo de diferentes maneras. En especial, me gusta cuando se entremezcla cotidianidad y sobrenatural en la misma viñeta, ya presente en sus anteriores trabajos, más por la esencia sobria de está antología destacan todavía más, la combinación de lo común con lo representativo.

Considero está antología su primer gran trabajo, todos los puntos que estuvo desarrollando hasta entonces llegaron al estado que aspiraba sea en narrativa, consistencia o dibujo. Es calificable, para cualquiera, que cada trabajo es sólo un paso hasta el próximo, y que seguramente los consecutivos puedan regresar a ideas y formas aquí presentadas, más eso ni disminuye el valor de su antología, al contrario, se volverá más notable por sí misma y para referencia de lo venidero

English

Fourth anthology by Inio Asano, the translated title is "The end of the world and Before dawn", there are 11 chapters in which each one is a different story, 4 stories are directly interconnected and in others there is an inferred connection although it is more up to the reader to consider it that way. The themes are varied, among them we have nostalgia, everyday life or friendship, however, there is a constant, whether the characters are teenagers, young people or adults, and it is about growing up.

A teenager at the gates of adulthood through contact with the opposite sex, young people aspiring to a dream or realizing that without intending it they are getting an ordinary life, or the adult who has already achieved what society "expected" of him, wife, house and children, finds himself in a new beginning. Different people with different ages and personalities, face the crossroads of what we do with our present to correspond to the future.

It is inevitable that if we evaluate them individually we will consider one story above the rest, however, contrary to any of his previous anthologies, I do not consider any of them to be "lesser" than the others. That is, on a semantic level, there is a "better" but not a "worse" one, there is no story that hinders consistency, each one has an interesting reflection on its own and echoes other stories, and for that reason, I consider it Asano's best anthology to that point in his career.

Not only is there a refinement in the individual narrative to achieve the general one, there is the way in which each one happens, the reflections come from the character and his experiences in the moment, giving it the touch of naturalness instead of sermon or pretension from the author. As well as the definition of each character, there is a scale of grayscale in which to observe in depth a "bad person" reveals their problems and conflicts, no justification or redemption, only consideration that everyone has a life.

The aforementioned interconnected story is where Ino best demonstrates her learning, each point of view contributes from the consideration of her character to show that even a random event is built from the experience of different people, with their conflicts and expectations, contributing to each other with the mere contact.

Asano's optimism is also generalized in each chapter, regardless of the situation in which he finds himself, the hope for a better future is what always persists. Because even at the end of the world, it is also interesting the persistence of an apocalypse in his works, we should hope that the next day will be better than the current one.

If there is an apparently dissonant element it is the curious first chapter, each pair of vignettes composes a mini-story of every imaginable nature, in the depths of the night life goes on for those who are awake. It is an excellent introduction to the composition that despite getting rid of the supernatural elements, explores its atmosphere of everyday life and coexistence.

The constant improvement in Asano's drawing is in the sense of framing in the decisive moments of the narrative, of wide scenarios that amplify the experiences of the characters, as well as in the most everyday situations, experimenting with angles and shots that he had not used before, or delimiting the rhythm in different ways. I especially like when he mixes the everyday and the supernatural in the same vignette, already present in his previous works, but for the normal essence of this anthology, the combination of the common with the representative stands out even more.

I consider this anthology his first great work, all the points he was developing until then reached the state he aspired to be in narrative, consistency or drawing. It's qualifiable, for anyone, that each work is only a step until the next, and that surely the consecutive ones may return to ideas and forms presented here, but that does not diminish the value of his anthology, on the contrary, it will become more remarkable by itself and for reference of what is to come.

After Oyasumi Punpun this might be my favorite Inio Asano work. This is a collection of One-shots and each one of them could easily be a story. Not sure if he developed some of these into later works but every time I finished one of them it left me wanting more. Inio Asano is a master at creating very emotional and human characters that not only feel real but also relatable. His works tend to be on the sadder side but it feels so real and human that you don't want to stop reading. Combining that with his beautiful and very distinguishable art style, it ... makes the experience very immersive and you just don't want to leave.

Highly recommend.

No spoilers.

"Sekai no Owari to Yoakemae" or "Before Dawn and the End of The World" is a volume with 9 one-shots by Inio Asano. Mostly it is about young people or people in general with their problems in everyday life, as is the case in most of Inio Asano's mangas. Sekai no Owari convinces with the very good stories and with a lot of variation between the different one-shots. So you might even find yourself in one of the one-shots and let Inio Asano's creativity convince you. Yes, I am a big fan of Inio Asano.

1. Yoakemae (Before Dawn)
Before Dawn is about the night and ... what things happen in nights, but you still wake up every morning and start a new day. Miracles happen, tragedies happen, accidents happen ... and people keep waking up to find out what happens next without realizing it. Inio Asano has this story in every way and this one-shot has a special place in my heart. 10/10

2. Alfalfa
Alfalfa is about a typical day in middle school. The special thing that stands out again is what Inio Asano has perfected: the realism. The realism in friendship, relationships or simply to discover. Often you see yourself again or think that it could have gone that way. 9/10

3-5. Nichiyou, Gogo, 6-jihan. (Sunday, Afternoon, 6:30.)
Sunday Afternoon 6:30 is about a father who is missing and his two children. These 3 chapters are about unfulfilled dreams, dreams that develop and dreams that have been given, from the perspective of each family member. Inio Asano represents this family perfectly and shows the different points in time of relationships. Beginning of relationships, in the middle of relationships and after a long-term relationship. Also with a breathtaking art style. 9/10

6. Chou Mousou A-ko no Nichijou to Yuuutsu
A Day in the Melancholy Life of A-ko the Daydreamer is about the attempt to always show happiness in public and what makes it easier and more difficult. Everyone knows that sometimes you try to be nice to people, but you notice that they are not interested and it was all in vain. Good short one-shot. 7/10

7. Kyuujitsu no Sugoshikata
How to Spend a Day Off is about this strange, melancholy feeling that Inio Asano wants to convey to the reader, to spend the last day off or the last day of vacation. On the one hand sad, maybe stressful or you just don't know how to spend this unique time. Inio Asano gives you these feelings during this chapter, which he did very well. 8/10

8. 17
17 is about the "desire" of young people of all kinds and their consequences. Especially with adolescents, every kind of desire can become an addiction, illegal action, wrong action or simply depression. Inio Asano is a specialist in this field, you can approach these issues at Inio Asano with high expectations. 9/10

9. Subarashii Sekai
What a Wonderful World is about current feelings that you feel and writes yourself a letter and asks how you are. A very abstract, philosophical story by Inio Asano that I liked very much. 7/10

10. Tokyo
"Tokyo" is about Inio Asano's self-portrayal. About his career and what it's like to be a mangaka. Similar to Reiraku (Downfall) but was even more personal and a very good background story. 7/10

11. Sekai no Owari
"The End of the World" is about a dream that either Inio Asano or one of the protagonists of this story had. What feelings do you have then? Who cares? Who would you like to be with? What would you like to do? These questions are asked in the final chapter and were sensationally presented. One of the best stories you can read and very philosophical. 10/10

Overall: 8/10