Netsutai no Citron

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How do you feel when a story, whether it be manga, anime, book, movie, etc., captures you long after the story is done? There is a thrumming in the head and a recall of how those simple scenes grab you in the most profound ways; it's a... sensory experience. Netsutai no Citron is one of those tales, a page-turner that starts free-flowing, promising a world of sex and discombobulating psychedelics called "soda pop." Soma jumps from scene to scene, searching for purpose in the jungles of Vietnam while trying to escape the town that keeps him in place.

The plot thickens as the haze of dreams ... and drugs takes shape and the story becomes something: not just a boy searching for his "next" trip but a coming-of-age story. He navigates magic, gods, witches, destiny, freedom, and individual vs. collective identity to defeat the rabbit and save March Town. Ironically, Soma discovers that Mako, the witch, is not controlling his actions through magic or drugs and that he is free to make his own choices. Choices and actions that he can make in March Town, the original town he was stuck in, Vietnam, or anywhere. That is the true magic of this work, Soma is free no matter where he goes, wherever he can share his talents with the world. To fight the rabbit, practice his art, and live his own way, in the face of death, is what makes his character arc so satisfying. He doesn't owe march town anything, but this is where he makes his stand. This is where he chooses to fight.

This is what makes this manga so great. It's not afraid to jump into divisive or contentious topics as the author is unapologetic in telling the story. And the narrative takes a deeper step into the idea of freedom with feelings. The feeling of cool water streaming past your hands, the taste of your favorite home-cooked meal that you haven't had in so long, or the heat of the citron tree in the tropics. The sensations and the experiences of life are the ultimate freedom. And as Soma was able to live a full life in such a short time, I believe Jiro Matsumoto wishes the same of us, wherever our circumstances take us.

Vice influenced hallucinatory journey which draws inspiration from Alice in Wonderland. Frustration is to be expected with first few chapters as little elucidation is offered and it remains borderline nonsensical. However, the pay off is worthy.

Matsumoto's art is as sketchy and vivacious at the same time. Perfectly suits his aberrant narrative style. Have to add that he has a tendency to implausibly undress his female characters which could not be everyone's cup of tea, albeit it really never feels to be there for the sake of untasteful satisfaction.

Black humor and his uncanny sense for slapstick comedy synchronize well with this labyrinthian plot thus ... never make it too strenuous for the brain. I mean, there's a dictator rabbit who commands an army of witches, ey?

Netsutai no Citron is definitely pretentious, but it also isn't that bad.

The underlying themes this manga establishes are very controversial, the concept of freedom being one of them. Compared to works like one piece and AOT, both series had more time to explain said theme and work with it along the story, though I do believe netsutai no citron does it better than One piece, the amount of contradictions this manga has is crazy. This manga does in fact happen in a dystopia-like setting, and it does a good job in showing the downsides of a dystopian society.

Another downside I experienced while reading this manga ... is its use of intercourse, the mangaka really does use it a lot throughout the story. Although I was ready to see a lot of it, a lot of the sex scenes brought up in this manga can be deemed unnecessary especially because some of the scenes have some relevance to the storyline. I am definitely not trying to say all the scenes were meaningless, because some did show the axiom of addiction to sex, one of the main characters problems, but it also undermines the value of intercourse and I definitely cringed while it did. While art doesn't bother me, if you're an art enthusiast you will dislike this manga.

Overall, it isn't a bad read, but you come out with more questions than answers, and in some cases it might be good, in this case, it is definitely not great.