Aug 24, 2023
What a soothing, leisurely-paced story taking place on a peaceful, rural small island. Short and crisp, with a minimal character cast and a healthy mix of interpersonal episodes and beautiful scenery -- it's a solid 8/10 series.
At first, I thought we're getting something like 'Barakamon'. 'Yasashii Hikari' deviated from my thematic delivery expectations pretty quickly. Luckily, it didn't deviate from the quality I expected! Compared to 'Barakamon' you don't have the wild episodic comedy and the ultra-genki, boisterous characters. You will, however, get the same soothing and warm-hearted feel, wrapped around the placid (but not dull!) cast of characters.
If you're looking for drama or suspense,
...
you won't find any here. This is a slow-paced slice of life where spoken words play as big of a role as the unspoken backdrops of scenery and internal character monologues. There's something poetic in this mix of spoken/unspoken and shown/implied fragments.
The series focuses on finding solace by running away from an urbanized world that's just too busy and noisy. The conceptual thread starts with our male lead making the Tokyo -> Inaka jump; however, a few side characters making similar decisions throughout the series just solidify the message. It's not shoehorned in any way - the mangaka manages to deliver the point in an organic, fluffy way without being overly sugary either.
For some, 'Yasashii Hikari' might be too uneventful, or too laid-back. The enjoyment you can get out of this series can also be dependent on your mood/current life stage. To me, though, this is a serene and easy-going take on rural life and sticking to your own 'flow' regardless of external pressures.
Definitely give this a read, especially considering it's only 14 (slightly longer-ish) chapters.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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