Usuzumi no Hate

Edit

What would you like to edit?

SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links  

"Things that are now lost to us forever... all of these sights, the ways these people behaved, were all depicted with vivid clarity"

"For those who may one day follow in our footsteps... if there is even a single soul left, someone who hungers for knowledge... then there is value in protecting these books"

Bleak, haunting, melancholy, but most of all, beautiful. A barren post-apocalyptic world and a seemingly impossible, potentially meaningless task. Trying to understand the history of the world, the motivations and struggles that surrounded the collapse of human civilization, and a potential way forward - all viewed through a unique, solemn lens. I don't ... think this premise is particularly novel, but what sets this manga apart is the execution. Every scenario is set perfectly, and every chapter (so far) has been unique and memorable in its own way. Yes, it's bleak. Yes, it's somber. But that makes the little glimpses of hope that much more striking. Thirteen chapters in, and I'm more invested in this story than most manga 10x as long. I'm not sure if any manga has ever drawn me in this quickly, this completely. I don't even particularly care for this type of setting normally, I just thought the cover looked interesting. I don't know where it will go in the future, but it was already worth it.

I've always been a sucker for post-apocalyptic work, etiher be movies, games, manga and everything all around, so when i heard of a new manga with that setting i was intrigued, i dind't though that just after 11 chapters i would be obliged to write a review yet here we are.

We the reader follow Saya an artificial human fifty years into the future with the task to locate and rescue survivors if possible,
while there isn't really a main plot to follow each chapter Saya is going somewhere and doing something different although it seems that there's an arc in the making that started in chapter ... 9, still this type of narrative and storytelling reminds greatly of Aruku Hito, Mushishi and Kodoku no Gourmet where the protagonist doesn't follow the common story route in most mangas and instead explores his world, it's people and himself in a different way every chapter and as such creating way for a beautiful introspection not seen so often.

The plot is quite similar in some ways to my favourite game Death Stranding where Sam Bridges one of the survivors of an apocalyptic event must deliver cargo across the United States while also connecting the survivors to one another, in both of these media there's a sense of loneliness that follows our protagonists in this seemingly infinite and hopeless task, despair follows them wherever they go but that doesn't stop them for they never lose hope not even when the task at hand seems futile. That's something that Usuzumi no Hate does that's not seen very often in most mangas with this setting, in many of them there is a constant need for the protagonist to talk about how depressing and sad the world is which sometimes becomes infuriating but here that doens't happen with Saya and instead it's shown to us just how far the world has crumbled while also not giving us too much of a sense of depression.

With so few chapters Usuzumi no Hate captivates the reader and leaves them needing more, hope this gem continues to be updated for it's truly worth it.

This is my first review, I had to make one.
I'm very used to post apocalyptic worlds and stories, so I'm also very used to the feelings that this genre transmits. That said, this manga hits deep, deepest than any other one that I have ever read and watched.
Clearly has a narrative like Mushishi, in which you and the main character experience the world and the story together through the characters you both meet, the storytelling doesn't have any big mysteries and it doesn't hold back to tell you what happened, be that through dialogue exposition or world building and enviroment, but it doesn't stop being ... interesting or fascinating, it serves to help you understand better what people have been through and what the character really feels, it sacrifices mystery and suspense in order to build empathy and accomplish a more subjective, but deep interpretation, which is something tha lacks in this genre.
But what really touches me and makes me think that is one of the greatest is how it expresses the deepest and most tragic feeling of despair and dread a post apocalyptic world can, how each chapter left me with a sense of complete sadness and emptyness and yeah, it's depressive as fuck, but what makes it really good is his capability to be depressive without trying too hard, just being honest, complex and most of all, intuitive in his humanesque essence.