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Takopii no Genzai
Takopi's Original Sin
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Takopii no Genzai

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Alternative Titles

Synonyms: Takopii's Original Sin

Japanese: タコピーの原罪

Information

Type: Manga

Volumes: 2

Chapters: 16

Status: Finished

Published: Dec 10, 2021 to Mar 25, 2022

Genres: Drama, Sci-Fi

Theme: Psychological

Demographic: Shounen

Serialization: Shounen Jump+

Authors: Taizan 5 (Story & Art)

Statistics

Score: 7.66¹ (scored by 16,465 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #2000²

² based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #505

Members: 34,828

Favorites: 596

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Mar 24, 2022

rtil

Recommended

Takopii no Genzai, or Takopii's Original Sin, explores the human psyche through the lens of pure innocence and naivete. How do you explain suffering, loss, emotional, psychological and physical abuse to someone who knows nothing of the human condition? This manga goes to very dark places as a cute little alien with strange powers named Takopii tries relentlessly to help and understand humans in the only way he can, with no understanding of just how his well-meaning charity could be twisted and taken advantage of.

This manga exploded in popularity in Japan, and could have easily dragged on for years, but the author chose to end ...

Mar 24, 2022

cities516

Recommended

Takopii no Genzai does not pretend that it is able to provide the grand solution to social and family problems; nor does it try to sell the bloody hell till the end. It only solves one conflict: the misunderstandings between children. And that is already what the kids need… perhaps?

As the title suggest, Takopii no Genzai is a story about Takopii, and how its purely kind actions turns out to actually worsen the already fucked up situations that the MCs face: domestic violence, school bullying, academic and family pressure, etc.

What makes this manga stand out (and become the #1 trend in Japan) is its thrillers: ... how really bad the children’s living conditions were. But the one thing that makes this manga shine is its brilliant use of art and storyboard. It not only guides the readers’ emotions through the story, but also provides hints and references that link different part of the story together. For example, in chapter 1, when Takopii went to Shizuka’s home to look for Shizuka, the author draws a full page of Shizuka and her home detailedly with Takopii staying in the tiny bottom-right position. This similar storyboard later appears in another chapter, showing another home’s condition, which (IMO) accuses Takopii for the similar results. Another example is the visual effect of something getting hit in the corner.

So why don’t I rate it a 10/10 must watch?
It’s because of the story, mainly the end of it.

( * Content below have spoilers * )

I understand that nobody, including me, wants to see a story which ends with two or three kids killing each other like a psychopath. Yet that doesn’t solidify how the good end can arrive with just one outsider’s sacrifice. More precisely, I don’t think the author explains well enough how Takopii’s final act solely can guide the MCs to face their mental knot, reconcile with each other, and grow with each other’s support. Besides, this good end is in fact very fragile, especially consider how Marina family is still a mess (note that Marina still got her scar when she grows up).

( * Content above have spoilers *)

But that doesn’t mean the story is awful or anything. The journey that I went through with Takopii is still astonishing (though mentally burdening), and I wish more people can get on this ride. Just keep in mind that this is not an antisocial manga.

Characters. While the MCs are all mentally distorted, once I keep in mind that the they are still children, I find it hard to completely dislike every one of them. They are just a tragic result of irresponsible dads and maniac moms. The kids just follow their heart and go with their own will.

I think I have written long enough for a full review, consider how the end of this manga is very short, compared to its elaboration.
And the manga is also short, so I suggest you to read it yourself and see if it fits your taste.

Jan 24, 2022

taro_yanaka

Recommended

Preliminary (7/16 chp)

The hottest manga in Japan in January 2022 (a country like Nard's cave).
Takopii no Genzai (The Original Sin of Takopii)
A nightmarish synthesis of STEINS;GATE, Doraemon, and ruthless reality that has become a topic of conversation among cutting-edge nerds on twitter.

Why do nerds read manga?
The reason is simple: to escape the harsh reality.
For children who have had a bad childhood, or who are currently experiencing a harsh reality, they need a means of escaping reality such as manga.

So what if the fiction depicted in the manga is the harsh reality of the child itself?
Except for the pop-art alien named Takopii, the characters in this manga live ...

Feb 28, 2022

Druser

Mixed Feelings

Preliminary (16/16 chp)

This is a manga with a pretty solid premise, and a lot of moments that are, in isolation, quite well-crafted, but overall kind of fails to develop its story interestingly or create any real weight in the story.

The biggest issue with this manga is the extremely heavy-handed short-term foreshadowing. Without fail, before some big event happens the mangaka will make sure to spend multiple pages beating you over the head with what's coming. As an example, there is one particular double-page spread in chapter 1, clearly written to be the biggest dramatic moment of the chapter (and could have been a great one) that is ...

Jun 3, 2022

NextUniverse

Recommended

(TLDR at the bottom)

Well, it's not every day I come across something as much of a rollercoaster as this. This is coming from someone who doesn't express themselves too much as well.

Takopi's Original Sin lies within the start of the manga, otherwise, it is all pretty good for the most part. I don't know too much about how unique the idea is, but I would imagine that coping with depression and loneliness is not something I think is unique in this medium. The way it is gone around in this manga, however, is probably something to take more to heart. Maybe not all the literal ... origins which build up everything, but instead, the plot progression and all the wild (and I do mean wild) turns that take place. It's a manga that has fully utilised its premise and created a story that isn't too dependent on being depressing for the sake of it, it also doesn't go into melodrama territory, which seems to be easy to fall into these days.

Alright but I need to actually speak about the start of the manga. It is very problematic and would have been the reason to give this manga a 1/10 if it kept going the way it did. I don't want to dive too much into it, the manga is at its most powerful when I don't go into spoilers (explicitly) but basically, everything seems to be really cheated in place as a means to drive on the story, and I do mean a repugnant exude of cheating, unfortunately, left for readers to process for some "story", but it's all cool and more so just jumping the gun. Despite absurd and lackadaisical startup, everything takes care of itself which ultimately does improve the circumstances of the manga once it gets rolling into the real content—it improves just a teeny tiny bit though.

The main thing to take with this manga is how powerful it can get with the ideas it plays with. It brings out a whole lot of messages about what is right and wrong, the battles people deal with on the inside, and the relationships between the things we love. It's all executed in a way that doesn't come across as eye-rolling, but rather, as a genuine expression that would very much what is said and done in this manga. It's very easy to take a touchy concept like this and bastardise it in ways that would make it become insufferable, whether it be due to a lack of real understanding of said topics, or inconsistency in characters that would create an unbelievable world enough so that it would be impossible to immerse or take seriously. This just isn't the case with Takopi's Original Sin. I don't have a ton of experience in psychology or anything similar, so I can only go off on what I understand (aided with logical reasoning) but I would love to believe that the story is not entirely off the mark in creating a believable premise with characters that are true to their motives.

Speaking of characters, I liked reading everything about them. Each character held some relevance to something in some way—whether that was the idea attached to them or just being a person in general. From how to deal with particular scenarios to the meaning of life, all of it. Simply amazing. I will start with Takopi, the main guy. He's naive, but that's a given when you get to know his origins (being a space alien often means you can't resonate with humans well). Honestly, if you are not patient, he may come across as very annoying. You may even be very close as I was into dropping the manga, but as stated before, give it some time. His lack of understanding actually works really well. You know, his journey means that he can understand human beings more in a variety of ways. Whether that be correcting tone-deaf actions or correcting the misguided actions of others. It's nice to see the little space dude grow, but also maintain what it was that made him, him. Being the friendly Happian with a mission to make Shizuka happy. This leads me nicely to my next character to speak of, Shizuka. If it is not already obvious from the first few pages, she is the extremely depressed girl who seemingly cannot hope to be happy for anything that isn't something she hasn't already established a relationship with. Her life is hard, and that is probably an understatement. Many things in her life have gone terribly wrong and it is easy to sympathise with her given her circumstances. I love how she progresses as a character, and whilst I am in no position to call for how legit it is that someone similar to her would progress in life as she has (given that the events that occurred here were to replicate in real-life hypothetically), I still believe that she is an honest character, albeit, maybe a few possible extremes to her behaviour, which I will not name due to spoilers, but you will come across it and think to yourself something along the lines of "hey these children are pretty scary…". Still, for pretty much the entirety of the manga, her character and relevance to themes like the meaning of life is nothing short of generally very good.

Other side characters aren't exactly stereotypical "side" characters in my vision, they serve more as people who come in and out of the story, but not so much so that they constantly "just exist" on the sidelines. In other words, these people are important in their respective times they receive the spotlight. As is every other character here, they too are well written to a degree that respects their intended human behaviour. They both deal with internal issues well, but again, in ways that are slightly exaggerated, also won't speak too much of them due to spoilers. These characters I speak of are only just Azuma and Marina.

Thinking about it, the exaggeration of these characters can come across as something of a cheap trick to entice readers to release some emotion just because. I don't think that is entirely the case, but the few amplifications do add up. I don't believe that is inherently a bad thing, considering how this manga is true to its word, it is just vamped a little, but it can also be said that the reason it is a little more than it says is due to the powerful imagery, panels and technicalities which bring out the most of each and every moment.

I suppose I will dwell on the point a little more here. For some reason, this manga looks like something Asano Inio would draw. The style reminds me of something that came out of Goodnight Punpun or DDDD (from the few pages I've seen from both). It is ridiculously detailed character designs, with the occasional detailed background. Most of the attention is on character detail however and solidifying a mark on this style of art. It's all very good and something that catches your attention the moment you read it. Sometimes this manga utilises great shocks via page-turning. If I could describe it in some other way, I would mean that this manga is good at making powerful images with the occasional turn. It brings out more to these already evil surroundings, which is really nice in helping read some more about what this has to offer, or just becoming more absorbed into how bad this world can get. The art is just very respectable and clearly something that was thought out.

TLDR: Good story with an idea not too unique, but one that is taken and presented in a way that makes this story a grand one. Characters here are believable and people who play their roles to the utmost standard. As well as an art style that puts everything into place and magnifies everything towards the apex.

—————
When all is said and done, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this manga. I went and read the entire thing in a night, and managed to write something down in a relatively (and I mean that compared to the other stunts I've been pulling) reasonable time. I am not entirely sure exactly why I read this or how I found it, but I did get to the end of it and it is something of time well spent if I say so myself. SJ+ is always pulling out good stories to feast on so it is nice the quality has not deteriorated for what I know of its standing at this point in time. Anyways, I don't have a lot to speak of other than I would very much recommend this if you have an hour or 2 to spare. There's no downside in reading this if I do say so myself. It is just a good psychological drama. What more do you need? Aside from the fact that the first few chapters are something that requires a lot of patience, this is all good to go.

Jan 17, 2023

MartaNara21

Recommended

This work squeezed my heart, it has destroyed me, just by saying that I had not even half of the first volume and I was already crying. I will never forget this story, every time I think about it I get a lump in my throat, it has become one of my favorite mangas.

This story hurts a lot, but it makes you reflect, and above all, it teaches you to value what you have.

I think it's not a story for everyone, the "sensitive content" label says it all, it's a painful, cruel story full of longing for hope, that is, realistic. Here you will see ...

Feb 25, 2022

Karol_At

Recommended

Preliminary (3/16 chp)

Takopi's Original Sin is not a happy manga, that much is obvious from the cover. So, is it a sad manga, that will make you cry, ar an edgy funny one, that will make you laugh at all the bs? Well, as far as the first three chapters, released for free in mangaplus on 24th of February, go, this one seems to fall into the second type, although there's still some hope. So let's look closer at what we are dealing with here.

Story: It's honestly relatively cliché, a being that doesn't understand bad emotions meets with a a very radical representation of them, and fails ...

Mar 17, 2022

The_Arbitrator

Recommended

Preliminary (16/16 chp)

Takopi's original sin or Takopii no Genzai a manga described as too Dark and too cute for a being a shounen manga
Its a manga with bullying as its main theme and how an innocent creature who nothing about it sees it,

A manga called to be too similar to Doraemon and Oyasumi Punpun which are totally different from each other and yet there ideas seem to blend too well together in the manga
The mix of reality and fiction is done in a really impactful way in the manga, the line between realism and fiction is really thin a way not really seen in any manga, ... A piece which feels to not be enjoyed by a lot but would honestly be loved by those who stay with it
The first chapter of this had me unsettled for a quite a bit but also very intrigued for the future of the manga and the story

In the first chapter we meet the happiest alien who comes from the "Happy planet" in the entire universe whose life's purpose is to spread happiness and after he reaches Earth and meets a depressed child called shizuka who has no one other than her dog as a source of happiness he attempts his all to cheer her up. But it ain't easy to cheer up the tormented girl Shizuka who is badly mistreated by bullies at school. Even Though he tries his best he can't really do anything for her and his act of even giving her a tool to seemingly help her, results in a tragedy. The tragedy which was partially overshadowed, but it happening was still not very expected. the way takopii sees bullying which is tolerated in japan to the point of being encouraged is something of the essence of story

The end of the chapter 1 really reminded me of the chapter 139 of Oyasumi Punpun a chapter which really breaks a person but unlike oyasumi punpun the existence of takopii the cute alien who doesn't have a speck of negativity and is full of optimism still make you hold on and not really get depressed by the way story goes on. takopii's lack of understanding of human emotions and experiences really makes it a unique way to see the situation as the story is also meant to be seen from his point of view

The Art of great it can be called messy but the way it blends with background is dangerously great and overall pacing of the story is great too It is still too early to give an overall score but its 8.0+ for now for me

There is a saying "BROKEN CAN'T BE FIXED" and I do Hope this statement becomes false as the story progresses and eventually ends

Edit : After reading all the chapters of it I would say that The story really isn't at all that simple as I was expecting it to be even giving you an absolute mind fuck at times
Like how a seemingly act of kindness may have a different outlook to other ppl and how the social environment of a person affects their mental state and can even have them make rash and irrational decision
still its makes for a pretty good read and end is satisfying too if You infer it as such
I wanted it to be a little bit longer but it is what it is
Its 8 overall for me

Apr 7, 2022

CrystalMountain

Mixed Feelings

Takopii no Genzai had a really intriguing premise.It's a series that contains many problems that our society is facing constantly, such as domestic violence,bullying and kids being overpressured by their parents.There were many shocking scenes and fucked up situations.Unfortunately the ending felt kinda rushed ,I think the manga should have been a little longer like an extra volume or so. If it wasn't for that I would give it a solid 7 or even an 8 who knows.

The art is pretty good ,I really enjoy the author's unique artstyle and the widespreads were fantastic. I extremely liked how the eyes were drawn, it is said ...

Dec 2, 2023

Biisoo

Recommended

I really randomly found this manga and it definitely was a memorable one.
On the surface it looks really simple and short having only 16 chapters but it actually has a multi layered and complex story involving abuse, bullying and death.
I will definitely say that when I started reading this, I had thought that things will turn out the usual way but I was pleasantly surprised when it actually exceeded my expectations. Any work involving time travel has the chance to be either a hit or miss and it's really easy to mess it up but Takopi's Original sin is one which perfectly concludes its own ...

May 15, 2023

Okamii_JA

Mixed Feelings

Another bullying and abusing manga that reveals the true nature of humans when they get pushed to the edge , the story at some point didn't make any sense but after few chapters we got it and honestly I've no clue why the author tried to complicate it like that , well his plot twist didn't impact me that much for like I said we didn't get what's going on however this manga gives me mixed feelings like I hated all characters and I felt bad for em at same time , I guess the story not recommended to everyone it's a bit dark so ...

Nov 27, 2022

bossunhimeswitch

Mixed Feelings

I rated this a 7 but I think a 6.5/10 is more accurate. I liked the exploration of innocence and experience, naivete and trauma. I liked that each section had a clear stop and start point without it being too obvious so that jumping around from timeline to timeline didn't make the narrative too confusing or convoluted. It was also interesting watching the story explore the worst possible timeline, a middle ground, and the best possible timeline as well. It had a lot to say and I'm glad I read it.

If you're looking for something thought provoking, don't mind triggers like domestic violence, suicide, ...

Jul 7, 2022

ZangBang

Mixed Feelings

Takopii's Original Sin is a delightfully crude yet endearingly hopeful study on human empathy, and lack thereof. It cleverly blends whimsical, lighthearted fantastical elements typically seen in children manga with brutally mature themes and scenarios: it sometimes does feel like the most violent, darker elements are taken a little too far for the sake of shock value and spectacle, but for the most part the two halves manage to coexist harmoniously and complement each thanks to the story's emotional earnestness working as a strong connective tissue. The clashing of opposing themes also reflects the story's message: the clashing of people and their conflicts. Takopii's Original ...

May 9, 2022

Fguyretftgu7

Recommended

Doraemon but a hella more dark, that's probably the perfect way to describe Takopii's Original Sin.

The manga revolves around a magical alien with special gadgets that lands on planet Earth, before meeting a young girl who is, well, let's just say she has a pretty rough life. It sounds eerily similar to that of Doraemon's premise, but it takes this concept and explores some really dark and depressing themes of suicide, bullying. inferiority complex and more.

The plot flows really well, considering the fact that it only has 16 chapters. However it doesn't drag the story out and waste time on pointless moments; its snappy, ... thrilling story makes every chapter feel poignant and emotional. It does feel rushed at the end, but it's not too big of an issue personally.

The characters are also extremely well rounded. No one is presented as truly evil, or truly good. Takopi, the alien, is initially just a happy go lucky, sickeningly naiive creature, however as the chapters roll it's increasingly clear that Takopi isn't good; he just doesn't have a concept of good or evil, at least in the human sense. Shizuka is also a well done character; instead of being framed as an object of pity so that readers will root for her, the author shows her as a very human character. That being a human that has feelings of jealousy, of hatred, and of revenge. Other characters of note that shine very brightly despite the short span of the manga include the boy character, whose name eludes me at the moment, and the bully character, who serves as a believable foil and parallel to Shizuka's character.

The themes are also explored well for a 16 chapter manga. Violence and bullying will only beget more suffering, and the endless cycle will go on and on. The effects it has on people, especially children, is made extremely clear with its main three human characters, and it serves as a cautionary tale for parents to never ever treat their children in such a way, even though it might be understandable for them to do so. The final chapter of the manga presents an answer to the endless cycle of violence, and it's such a simple yet effective answer that it ultimately shows that this manga isn't a manga that is meant to simply shock you and horrify you. It is not mere despair porn. This is a manga meant to say something, and personally I think it worked.

The art is also impressive. The facial expressions are very expressive, which works wonders on the more emotional scenes, and the mangaka's ability to convincingly draw both light hearted and cute scenes and the more dark and harrowing moments is also worth commending. Some of the double page spreads do look wonderful.

Overall, give this a read. Looking at the MAL score, it's clear that not everyone seemed to love it, but I definitely did.

Dec 9, 2022

mistressmadi

Recommended

It's a bit rushed, however, it had a beautiful story that contained self righteousness taking wrong turns and had in depth messages about those who don't exactly see the consequences of their actions. It's easy to see things in a one way street, though difficult to see it in other's perspectives. When you read this, you expect yourself to empathize with the main character, though you can see the main character demoralize themselves with such short solutions, as this story shows that sometimes, you do need trauma and you need to face them head on instead of short temporal solutions. It's a wonderful story with ...

Jul 31, 2022

joaseusx

Recommended

A Disturbingly Beautiful Retailing of Reality

Takopii no Genzai or Takopii's Original Sin has a relatively simple foundation. The manga is about a Rousseau-adjacent alien who meets a depressed teen and tries to understand the sadness when stripped away from plot twists and character backstory.

This manga deals with mental health, familial issues, and socioeconomically topics.

The heaviness of the topics within this web manga snowballs with each chapter, growing in depth, causing me to rate the story 9. Taizen 5 did beautifully at telling an entire story while leaving space for your moral commentary to be placed while reading. The characters were well-rounded and showed ...

Sep 16, 2022

Hazbyn

Recommended

I binge-read this a while ago, and I did not know what I was getting into.

Takopii no Genzai, or Takopi´s Original Sin, follows the story of a squid-like creature who arrives on planet earth. He meets Kuze Shizuka, a girl who is relentlessly bullied by her classmate Kirarazaka Marina over different issues, which I am going to omit to leave this review spoiler-free.
Takopi is an alien who does not gran sadness is, so he is unaware at first of what is wrong, or what causes, the issues between the two girls previously mentioned. But he is determined to spread happiness throughout the world and ...

Jun 15, 2022

sofia_55

Recommended

The story began with a dark situation of abandonment and bullying. I was afraid that it was going to be a heartbreaking development, but the more the story progressed, the more the setting shined and then I thought it was wonderful.
Also, the "Tacopi"'s easygoing character annoys me until the latter half of the story, but there are many good scenes of him from the end of the story, so don't worry about it.
The story is interesting, but the beautiful contrasts in the pictures and the foreshadowing techniques that keep the reader interested are wonderful. If you have read "Shinkage no Kyojin" and "Kingdom," you will ...

Jun 14, 2022

scxrvd

Recommended

Takopii no Genzai or better known as Takopi Original Sin explores the interesting human nature in human beings and the lengths humans will take for complete freedom. The strive to make anyone, for someone to have a happy life what length's will you go through to accomplish that ideal. The story basically revolves around 3 kids who suffers from abuse and child neglect all in different ways from having parents who don't acknowledge you to having parents who doesn't give you a drop of attention and throw you away like trash. These 3 kids meet a distinct alien named Takopii who comes from an alien ... planet named happy planet to spread happiness to individuals on planet earth. The good and bad side of humans is discussed very clearly throughout the story on the actions made when realizing that not everything is meant to be fixed and that when met with that sense of freedom, human beings will do anything in their power to make sure that freedom isn't taken away from them.

Story - The story itself isn't bad but I know a lot of people who like the dark fantasy and the more realistic side of animanga will compare this manga to Goodnight Pun Pun since both stories both similar topics at hand. Now I'm not comparing both mangas together because we all know Goodnight Pun Pun is one of the best mangas made, the difference between both Goodnight Pun Pun and Takopii no Genzai is that while Goodnight Pun Pun does a great job at portraying depression and self-regret in humans, Takopii no Genzai does it in a way where depression is looked at in the eyes of someone who never experienced depression before. While Takopii can be annoying at times with how he doesn't notice the elephant in the room even in minor occasions I still gave this story a 9 since both story and characters were outstanding.

Art - The art isn't too much to talk about, but it fits for what the story has going for it. I don't know how to explain it but there's a lot of close-up panels where the main characters or side characters just show their expression not saying anything or absolutely screaming and that is something that fits right with the plot of the story.

Characters - I can't say much because I want to refrain from spoiling, but the characters are amazing even the minor side characters who doesn't get that much screentime as the others they fit into the story 100% and without them and the actions they take i don't know how this story would've progressed the way it did.

Enjoyment - I think my previous reviews on top said what I'm going to say here but I enjoyed the story a lot definitely broke my expectations i had for it.

Apr 12, 2022

Runasius

Not Recommended

Octopi are a curious and fascinating species. Out of all the animals residing on planet Earth, they are probably the closest to extra-terrestrials. Many documentaries such as “My Octopus Teacher” have brought awareness to these creatures to show that they are in fact, smarter than we give them credit for. These cephalopods are capable of displaying a wide array of cognitive abilities ranging from being able to solve mathematical problems to even using their limbs to fashion makeshift tools out of coconut shells. Don’t be surprised if in the future, humanity’s downfall could end up at the hands of these creatures. Octopi Skynet is closer ... than we think, people! Be warned!

But enough of this biology lesson. Anyways, this manga really does capitalize on the otherworldly-ness of octopi. Here the octopus is an alien lifeform from the planet known as “Happy Planet” and is imbued with a gift that allows it to cure the sadness and despair of other individuals and disperse happiness across the globe. Upon arrival, the alien – or Takopii in this case – winds up being targeted by the authorities and narrowly escapes their devious clutches. It is then that Takopii comes across a child named Shizuka wallowing in her own despair. Being inherently kind hearted, humble, and good natured, it aspires to help the child and the two strike an odd friendship. It all seems to go just right for the two until things take a turn for the worst.

The premise sounds like a light-hearted romp, kind of like something out of a whimsical comic strip like all those “Doraemon” comics I’ve been accustomed to reading when I was a wee little lad. For a more modern analogy, think the Isobayan segments from Inio Asano’s “Dead Dead Demon’s Dededede Destruction”, where an otherworldly creature comes to comfort a lonely child and help them find their footing in life while hilarious and wacky hijinks ensue. The connections to that and “Doraemon” hit even closer to home as Takopii even attempts to gift the child various different gadgets, including one very familiar one that will enable them to fly freely in the sky. But whimsical this manga is not. In fact, it’s a very raw and depressing look into how children cope with abuse and trauma, from both their parents and their classmates from school. The cover of the first volume – a close up of a crying child – is a huge giveaway of what the manga is actually like. However, what I was not expecting, was it to tackle darker subject matter such as child abuse and abandonment.

Takopi’s Ambition is kind of similar to manga such as ~Erased.” It uses the template of a coming-of-age story into almost deluding the audience into thinking it would be just that, only to reveal some disturbing and ominous imagery buried beneath the narrative. There are depictions of child abuse and murder that would not look out of place in your average seinen manga. Let me warn my fellow viewers about this: this is not a manga for children. There’s imagery in here that is not for the faint of heart.

Takopii itself is a creature brimming with curiosity; it knows nothing about humans and human nature in general, and wants nothing more than to learn more about them as a species. It also has a goal of spreading happiness across the worlds it visits and offers its gadgets as means to aid others. It’s an innocent creature that’s pure and selfless with none of the flaws and volatile emotions that human beings possess. This is what makes it different from other similar characters of its kind. Whereas Isobayan acts like your teacher and Doraemon acts more like a best friend, Takopii feels like a little sister who’s constantly questioning the wide world around her. And no matter how much it fails at doing its job, it will never stop at anything to bring joy to the world. In spite of this, its bounded by a set of rules, and in its desperate attempt to help the poor child, it breaks many of those rules.

The best thing about the characterization in this piece is that no one is presented as being nothing but pure evil. It seems to be a common trope in anime and manga, where the abuser or the bully just torments others just for the sake of it. However, the manga highlights that even the tormentors have shades of grey to them. Marina for instance, viciously bullies Shizuka on a chronic level everyday she heads to school. But it’s also revealed, that she is a victim of her mother’s abusive behaviour towards her, and she merely takes out her anger on Shizuka because Marina’s father cheated on her mother and found himself infatuated with Shizuka’s mother instead. As a result, she blames Shizuka for all her troubles even though she’s completely innocent in this regard. As someone who’s tired of over-the-top bullies in anime/manga, it’s refreshing to see one that isn’t completely one-dimensional or a stereotype. There’s also another character that ends up being introduced – Azuma. He finds himself attracted to Shizuka due to her resemblance to his mother and whom also harbours his fair share of troubles, albeit less traumatic compared to the other two. He is constantly living in his brother’s shadow and his mother constantly bribes him in an attempt to have him earn the best grades possible. Even a score of 95/100 isn’t satisfactory to her; its either full marks or he loses some provisions. This isn’t unheard of in Asian countries as a lot of parent’s desire for their child to get the best grades possible so they can either work as doctors or engineers in the future and secure a comfortable, rich livelihood. While these are good scenarios for your main characters that present a conflict and give you a reason to care for their predicament, the characterization is fairly weak.

The characters jump straight to the worst possible conclusions when it comes to handling their own situations. Every resolution just seems to involve murder for some reason. Without spoiling much, there’s a really messed up scene early on involving a murder and a character views it as a blessing upon the earth. This character is one the audience is supposed to be rooting for. There’s no shock or revulsion regarding the event, just nothing more than joy. And then the body is just dumped there in the woods to be forgotten about. It just feels so out of place that I could have sworn it was a parody or something.

The amount of deus ex machinas is also problematic. Oh no, someone just committed suicide, here’s let me whip out a gadget that would help resolve that issue. Whoops, I just made some middle schooler go on a rampage. Oh no whatever shall I do – aha I have a gadget that can reverse time. My dog just died? No problemo! I’ll just get out my nifty little – hey, that’s weird, the gadgets a little dented the last time I used it. Nevermind, here’s a magical solution to fix all of that! The manga also introduces one of my most hated and one of the most overdone tropes in all of anime/manga: time resets. Apparently, there is a device that can wind back time. Well, there goes any sort of tension. Who cares about these characters when a time reset can occur and they can be brought back to life and everything can be resolved with a single push of a button? Seriously, what is it with manga and time resets/travel/loops anyways? Its like these writers either are obsessed with this concept or are worried they’d end up killing too many characters or something.

The second half of the manga is a mess. I don’t know if its because the mangaka was under threat of cancellation, had to rush to meet deadlines, or just had no clue how to end it, but it just ended up getting worse page after page. We get certain questions popping up, but barely any answers to satiate our curiosity. We get a short glimpse of the alien’s home world, but barely any sort of exploration into what its society is like and so on. There is one moment towards the end where during a tension-filled event, the manga then just decides to include a “what if” scenario in the middle of it. It comes right out of nowhere, without any rhyme or reason. It disrupts the flow of the manga to yet again to expose our poor octopus friend to more trauma and hopelessness. All for the sake of more emotion turmoil and forced shock value. All of this culminates in what is essentially an ending that feels contrived and hastened.

There are a lot of issues this manga tackles. Bullying, abuse, bribery, suicide, companionship, trying to meet the demanding and high expectations of your parents. All these are relevant to today’s climate and are issues many people would have faced on a daily basis. These would be great topics to dive deep into… in a better manga that is. Takopii only touches upon these very superficially, never going into detail about any of it. It feels like window dressing and what we end up getting is only a surface level exploration of these issues.

It’s just a shame that the manga ends in 16 chapters. By the end of it all, I felt like there could be a lot more. The last stretch of the manga feels rushed as if the mangaka is trying desperately to tie up loose ends and finish everything in a hurry. This manga was serialized in a shonen jump magazine and it almost felt like it was under threat of cancellation because very rarely do you get manga that run for such short a length. Sure, we had “Red Hood,” but that got axed by the committee. This one didn’t. I did feel like it should have run on for much longer than what we got.

The art is also awkward to say the least. Its presented almost as if its some kind of children’s colouring book with rough sketches and outlines. It doesn’t look ugly, but it doesn’t offer anything of beauty to the human eye. It’s kind of like Hajime Isayama’s initial drawings for “Attack on Titan” - very unkept and rudimentary. That being said, the mangaka does a decent enough job at capturing the expressiveness of the characters. It’s clear whenever characters are tearing up or trouncing about in a fit of rage, he goes all out with visually depicting the emotions as vividly as possible.

For its length, Takopii no Genzai is a manga you could finish in literally a day – no, make that a couple of hours in fact. For that alone, it’s worth reading. Unfortunately, its rushed pacing along with the superficial approach to its themes really bogs this down to yet another standard, emotionally manipulative tearjerker with a plethora of plot conveniences and magical resolutions. Had it been much longer and tried to focus more on what mattered, it would have been an unforgettable romp. By the end, I was just indifferent. Indifferent to all the crying, to all the attempts to emotionally manipulate me, to all the constants moments of sheer shock value. Make of it as you will.