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Oct 1, 2017 12:17 AM
#1

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Nov 2011
127887
THIS IS A MANGA ONLY DISCUSSION POST. DO NOT DISCUSS ANYTHING BEYOND THIS CHAPTER.
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And that's the final chapter.

Tbh, I really liked the quotes from this manga including the part, "You are..a monster". Mangaka really are a fascinating group of people.
Oct 1, 2017 12:43 AM
#2

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Dec 2015
601
This short was such an amazing character study!

This chapter really stands out the most to me.

What I really appreciate about the ending is that the analysis/ observations his girlfriend made, which was neatly spelled out, had already been "shown" to us in all the previous chapters.
We already knew / had been demonstrated beforehand every part of her predictions through his actions since the beginning of the manga.
We could see how his attitude was destroying not only his own enjoyment and negatively affecting his self perception as a mangaka while simultaneously damaging the quality of his work and hindering him from forming real connections (or destroying whatever little social contact he had left)
This was a very interesting way of turning "Show Don't Tell" into "Show First, Then Tell" and it was done to great effect.

There's a lot more I want to say but for now I feel like rereading the whole thing
Oct 1, 2017 4:11 AM
#3
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Jul 2018
564612
Interesting, so I guess he finally stopped caring about his works and rehashed another formulaic love story. This felt more like a commentary on manga industry with some character study, some of the things could have been improved but still pretty decent 7/10.
Oct 1, 2017 9:21 PM
#4

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Dec 2014
7040
Sort of a unique, since I seem to be at a loss for a word here, way to end this.

Interesting way to bring up MC's character with the girl from his past and contrast it with his action over the course of the previous chapter. It's kind of a tragic ending with the way MC just decides to rehash another generic romance story. I suppose it does serve as kind of commentary on the industry itself but I did like the part where the girl said she was moved by MC's work. It almost looked like the latter felt something and if he did then good.

6/10, For what I assume it was trying to convey, I think it could've been done better or rather needed more exposition/chapters to bring it out in a more effective manner.
Oct 1, 2017 10:08 PM
#5
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May 2015
450
Reading the autobiographical notes/writings of other major mangaka, like Sorachi or Kubo or Naoko Takeuchi, both the pure joy they have in creating their work, as well as their gratefulness to have the opportunity to create, come through in their writing, which is unfamiliar but relateable.

This work was not an effective way for someone to communicate his feeling as a mangaka to his fans. Less effective than those single sentences authors scribble in printed volumes. Show, not tell. For someone so good at making us feel emotion towards random characters, Inio falls short in representing himself.
Oct 2, 2017 6:13 AM
#6
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Jul 2018
564612
"You are a monster"

I see what this is manga about. Finally this is over! I think this is not Asano's best work. I also think mangaka will understand more than we did.
removed-userOct 2, 2017 11:45 AM
Oct 2, 2017 7:27 AM
#7
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Jun 2017
1
I'm not really sure I understood the ending or this last chapter.

So I initially thought this was about a man who's depression slowly led him to self destruct and destroy his life. But he was a "monster" all along? So his old gf and the prostitute weren't cryptic mysterious people but just people he didn't really care to get to know. When he met that fan that loved his work was that happiness or guilt? Does he hate manga?

I not sure I understood him or maybe even this series for that matter.
Oct 2, 2017 8:46 AM
#8

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Oct 2013
36
It wasn't bad but it wasn't good either, it was just bleh. The old girlfriend bit felt a bit out of place to me though.
Signature.
Oct 3, 2017 6:35 AM
#9

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Aug 2012
156
KingdomKane said:
I'm not really sure I understood the ending or this last chapter.

So I initially thought this was about a man who's depression slowly led him to self destruct and destroy his life. But he was a "monster" all along? So his old gf and the prostitute weren't cryptic mysterious people but just people he didn't really care to get to know. When he met that fan that loved his work was that happiness or guilt? Does he hate manga?

I not sure I understood him or maybe even this series for that matter.


I think the fans help him felt closure, he got jinx by his old girlfriend statement all along
Oct 3, 2017 7:45 AM
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Apr 2011
8
Disappointed that this ended so early.. was it just me who expected the series to go on for a lot more?
The plot was just meandering about everywhere, and though I liked the occasional emotional outbursts, it didn't leave me with an impression of much significance or thoughtfulness.. though the art was amazing as always
Oct 4, 2017 2:26 AM

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Aug 2012
156
@antherinasuraka
I think end girl is mangaka loyal fans, since she broke his old girlfriend curse.
Oct 29, 2017 6:04 AM

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Dec 2015
12
Basically this manga is a kind of criticism of the manga market?
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Dec 15, 2017 7:38 AM

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Jan 2013
14160
So... The old girlfriend was Chihyua all along? (Prolly spelt her name wrong)
Jan 8, 2018 4:28 AM
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Jan 2018
2
i think that seems like the fan girl at the end make him think of the old cursed words of that girl and give him peace but it seems to me that the true meaning behind that is that he is equally desolated by the fact that another person found significance and comfort in a work that he maked corny and bad on purpose, so he takes a hand to his mouth as a sing of disgust, what do you think?
Jan 29, 2018 8:59 AM

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Jul 2012
1299
I really like how the protagonist look like Asano, and he even put his office into this manga. It wasn't as great as his other stuff but i still enjoyed it.
Feb 4, 2018 1:06 AM
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Feb 2018
1
Registered to post here. I think the words of the fan are more like.. the protagonist is an unreliable narrator and what we see of him is filtered by how he sees himself, which is largely negative. But the way the rest of the world sees him, he has inherent kindness that he refuses to let himself see. Even within saccharine and trivial works, there is a kernel of emotion and understanding that gets communicated to someone else. He lets his feelings about manga and his disillusionment poison himself and his relationships.
Mar 10, 2018 7:40 AM

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Jan 2013
19
Honestly I feel like the entire manga was a self loathing rant. Sure he did go into so issues with the industry, as well as how people including his charactor project their negative emotions on others. Still it just dragged on and on.
May 21, 2018 12:37 PM
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Sep 2014
49
I can really understand the way the protagonist is acting. It’s a bit too close to home to be honest. Most of Asano’s works are looking for the meaning of life in some way, and I always can see myself as one of the cast. That’s maybe why I enjoy his stories so much. I love how he can make such a bland story interesting.
May 22, 2018 3:22 PM

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Aug 2013
2267
Well, this was mildly interesting, although I have a hard time figuring out whether it was a confession-ish work of sorts or just another mockery attempt at the manga industry/fans. It's as if he wrote it more to himself than to anyone else, as a means to sort out his own feelings at the moment.
Oct 4, 2019 7:47 AM

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Jan 2014
975
I'm sure a lot of people who works in the entertainment industry can relate to the mc, definitely something you need to read to the end to get the "message". I loved it. It's short and straight to the point, 8/10.
"This is boring...I'm bored..."
Jan 20, 2020 5:27 PM
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Jul 2019
55
jesus christ inio asano sure knows how to fuel your depression.
loeyeolJan 20, 2020 10:39 PM
Feb 20, 2020 1:49 AM
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Jul 2018
564612
This was the best chapter.. was intense.

I felt a little pinch when the main character says he made simpler for even 'idiots' to understand and 'feel', and then the fan arrives and pours her heart out to him and his massive influence on her life.. it's true, some of us do feel 'saved' by fictional works of art.. and perhaps artists may never know the significance of their works in our lives..

I really liked this little manga, realistic and honest.. it constantly made me wonder if this was in some way a reflection of the author's own experience. Artists do lead a lonely harsh life.. in this life where value of an artist is weighed by the sales, the conflicting struggle to be original/sincere to work and desire to retain image.. And the loss of motivation can be so paralyzing.. Are manga artists self-absorbed? I still don't think they are.. for some reason, it's wonderful to me how artists just lose themselves in their work, sometimes losing everything around them.. they aren't self-absorbed, they are selfless in a way, by being committed to their dream..

I just wonder how and where they find motivation to push through and make stories on blank sheets of paper, wish the manga dived into that.. liked the way it ended as well.. here, we see a phase in an artist's life..
removed-userFeb 20, 2020 1:55 AM
Mar 8, 2020 8:19 PM

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Sep 2017
11
Asano is really great at writing these pathetic unlikable characters that the reader can't help but see parts of themselves inside of. It's this way in all his work. I don't particularly like any of the characters- but I absolutely can relate to them.
Mar 17, 2020 12:15 AM

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Oct 2015
4124
I always come back to reading this short manga whenever I need these feelings of mine validated. Never does it disappoint
Jan 3, 2021 12:57 AM

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Apr 2017
760
Still not 100% sure how to interpret the ending (Fukazawa crying at the Akari's confession), but what I did get is that even if he breaks out of his depression now, it's just temporary. At this point he's too far gone to have a "normal", socially-acceptable life; all that's left is the ambition to make sales quotas to rise above the rest, even if making manga no longer brings him any joy. The competitiveness and pressure to succeed in manga creation is insane. Oftentimes I've seen fans complain about a title being canceled as if the mangaka made this decision. Not to mention the expectation that mangaka will pump out more works without taking breaks, each one better than the last.

Fukazawa chose to become a mangaka, yet hates other mangaka. But at the same time doesn't want to leave the manga world, even when he's exhausted all ideas. He is self destructive and pushes people away when they get too close, when they discover his true self — yet he longs for companionship. He places value on sales and demands others humble themselves before him, yet is arrogant enough to believe he doesn't need to research classic manga published before him, by authors who most likely have sold more copies than him.

I'm curious whether he actually harrassed Tomida (his female assistant) or not. Their next discussion, she confesses to wanting to ruin his credibility in advance out of fear that he would undermine her the moment her manga started selling better than his. Makes me wonder if she was secretly recording their conversation and planning to take it to her supposed lawyer friend as evidence, if he confessed. And considering his behavior...yeah, I could see him harrassing her.

I felt sorry for Nozomi (his wife). She saw something good in him, that he wasn't seeing. Or maybe she was blinded by her expectations and didn't want to admit that the relationship had been a trainwreck all along. They were both running away from each other: Nozomi was also expecting him to magically turn into the ideal self she wanted him to be and claimed she didn't want to divorce, but wasn't actually trying to spend more time with him.

At the end, I think Fukazawa was taken by surprise that Akari displayed her emotions so openly and admitted to having suicidal thoughts — which IMO was alluded to in the panel of him standing on the balcony. But the thing is that Akari only knew him as a person from their occasional cheerful-but-fake online messages. She wasn't supporting Fukazawa the person, she was supporting Fukazawa the mangaka — who, in her mind, were one and the same. But that just reinforces the fact that he needs to put up a wall, to build a fake persona, in order to be liked. Like his university girlfriend said, he is a monster to most people he interacts with (especially women) on a deeper level.
Sep 6, 2021 8:38 AM

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Dec 2019
631
This was definitely a great character study, but it was sickening. I love it but in an extremely unconventional way.
Apr 4, 2022 5:52 PM
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Dec 2020
5
This was a nice manga to read, though, it was depressing. It feels like I'm viewing the life of an average manga artist and what they may go through, I feel that could be the overall message here. Anyways, great manga would recommend it!
Mar 26, 2023 5:35 AM
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Mar 2021
3
damn... well that was something
Sep 27, 2023 9:54 PM
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Sep 2023
123
this is the 2nd of the only 2 inou asano's works that Ive read and this one is the bets by far. the emotion & overall relationsip within this story is just so raw & real. I actually know a few people personally who are just like this & I myself know the hardships of feeling like the industry you wanted to work in for so long feels like its a depressing dead end industry once you work in it

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It’s time to ditch the text file.
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