Yesterday wo Utatte
Sing "Yesterday" for Me

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"Yesterday wo Utatte" is a manga series written and illustrated by Kei Toume. The story follows the main character, Rikuo, a young man who gives up his dreams and decides to work in a convenience store, where he meets other characters who also have their own stories and dreams. The series has as its central theme the difficulties and challenges of adult life, and how the choices we make can affect our lives and our relationships.

Some of the main messages of the manga include the importance of following your dreams, even if it is difficult, and the importance of learning to deal with disappointments and ... failures along the way. The series also highlights the importance of finding friends and true love, and how these relationships can help sustain us through difficult times. The series also highlights the importance of finding meaning in life and pursuing happiness.

In my opinion, it is one of the best works in the Slice of Life and Romance genre.

All the characters presented are well constructed, even those who have little screen time, but have some relevance.

We, the readers, feel that the characters have feelings, and can understand them. Their actions, interactions, doubts, all are understandable, making it a great read, where it is possible to identify with the occurrences presented.

A real nice read. It's a character driven story that has a blend of calm and drama. What's interesting is that the calm has a sort of melancholy attached to it, and the drama isn't super heavy-handed either which is an interesting mix. It's mellow, blends optimism and melancholy, and introduces drama selectively. I don't think realistic is the most apt term for the story, but it does have a "down to earth" kind of feel to it. The core cast of characters are in a transitionary sort of period of their lives, with some going in to college, some not attending, and some just ... leaving, which comes with grappling with the topics of life direction and relationships. The theme and focus of the story isn't that unique, but the characterization and their respective approaches to it all make this worth reading.

I found myself changing my opinion on characters multiple times while reading. Feel like at some point, it's less about which determining which characters are explicitly "right" or "wrong," as there are consistent reminders that point out "why" a character might have developed or behaved in certain ways. Of course this argument only extends so far and shouldn't be used to justify really shitty behavior, but for the most part, all the characters undergo what what can commonly be described as typical human struggle - touching on romance, death, personal direction, etc, but done in a manner that feels convincing. There's a wide cast of characters, each with their worldviews that attempt to shine line on the events that unfold, which adds interesting perspectives.

Admittedly some of the developments / events feel a bit forced, more apparent for the sake of plot progression and such, but they still serve their function of presenting interesting "what would you do" situations involving relationships, responsibility, obligations, etc.

The art can be really gorgeous, especially the cover art / "eye catch" illustrations at the start of volumes and chapters. Some of the ones in the later chapters are really striking, no doubt as a result of the author and reader having stuck through all the character development (15 years of serialization). Think these illustrations also made me think more about still life(?) paintings of people and portrait photography.

I was really disappointed with this. It was repetitive. Characters I liked were largely ignored in favor of characters who did not progress despite an abundance of screentime. Relationships were forced and drawn out to a point where I could no longer suspend my disbelief that nobody was calling bullshit. Around chapter 60 things had gotten a bit over the top and pathetic. Shinako is one of the most repulsive characters I've come across in a manga like this. She's excessively toxic and part of the ending, while ambiguous, has some upsetting implications. It left a bad taste in my mouth and soured what goodwill ... I had left for the series. I don't think these situations are "just like real life". I think these at least two of these characters have serious problems and need professional help. I don't know how it took the author so long to complete this, because the writing wasn't very good.

I thought the character designs are good, despite some rough art in some spots, especially at the beginning. I liked Shinako and Haru's designs the best. Simple and memorable. I enjoyed a lot of the interactions throughout the manga, but I felt that the progression (or lack thereof) and payoff of the various relationships were underwhelming at best and disturbing in one case.

If you like it, that's great. Nothing against you. Maybe I'm wrong about all of it. I just wanted it to be different than it was.