Ranked #724

White Clouds (Manga)

During my trawls through various manga on the internet I've managed to come across some absolute gems, both as series' and one-shots. Only a few have tempted me to actually want to write a review for them though, and only one manga (so far), has actually compelled me to write one.

That manga is White Clouds.

As some people have noticed, I like odd anime and manga (especially comedies). White Clouds manages to fulfill the odd part, but not in the way you'd expect.

The manga is the work of Hisae Iwaoka, and it adopts a very unusual art style which is more reminiscent of some surrealist western cartoons and comics. Although this may be off putting to purists who like their manga just so, I found the style to be quite nice (and a little quaint), and it worked surprisingly well in the context of the story.

One thing that surprised me about the manga was Iwaoka's impacting use of white space, and the fact that some panels were removed in favour of a line of text. This actually helps heighten the emotion and atmosphere in the manga, and I'm rather pleased to see such techniques being used in a one-shot.

The story in White Clouds is, for want of a better word, unusual. Not unusual from it's actual content, but from it's perspective. The story, you see, is told from the perspective of the family pet (a dog). This may seem odd at first, but it has been done before (Massugu ni Ikou and Shiawase Sou no Okojo-san are two anime that adopt this format). That being said, the story is actually very touching.

I won't go into detail about the story though, as the manga is only 16 pages long so I don't want to spoil it for anyone.

With this being a one-shot manga, there is little scope for character development. However, I found myself sympathising with the characters by the end of the manga, especially the dog. There is a great deal of simple emotion packed into the 16 pages of the manga, and a sense of calm throughout, mainly brought on by the narration from the dog.

This is a very simple, touching, and bittersweet story, and will appeal to anyone who's ever owned (and loved), a pet. The art style may not be to everyone's liking, but my advice is just to accept it and follow the story, as it is a very rewarding read.

It's a rarity for a one-shot manga to display the kind of quality and story telling I'd expect from such noted series as YKK, Mushishi, Kino no Tabi, and the like, yet this one delivers the goods. It's a bittersweet story that's told from an unsual perspective, and because of this it has a very different atmosphere to other similar manga. read more

Life and death, though they are on opposite ends of the spectrum, both share one thing: they can make you cry.

White Clouds is a short one-shot that takes us through lives that go on even after death, and the beauty and sadness of going on, of seeing another day. There is something very special about the plot: it gives us pieces of events that take place in the lives of a family who are hit by expectant tragedy. The story is narrated from an interesting source, and looks at the deep sorrow through the most innocent of eyes.

The art is very good. It doesn't look like commercial manga, but the lines are clean and details for the backgrounds are there. The character design is very pretty or cute in a gentle way. There is something rather comforting about the art style.

A family and their dog are the focus of this manga. The characters are all very real, and deal with their tragedy very interestingly. They don't wallow--they accept, and try to move on. The extent of their sadness is best seen from an elderly grandfather who masks his sadness, a grand-daughter who is too young to understand but is also affected, and the dog who seems to vacillate from pining for his loss to supporting his owner by remaining active. Their characterisations and the way the story affects them is very touching.

Honestly, I had to stop reading at one point to wipe my eyes. It may be sentimentality on my part, but anyone who experiences loss will be able to relate on some level with this manga. It is deeply moving and uses lighter tones to deliver what generally is a depressing theme.

The greatness of White Clouds lies not only in the sad moments, but also in the moments of beauty afterward.

Definitely worth a read. read more