Oboreru Hanabi

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Debut manga "Drowning Fireworks" by Minenami Ryou (Shounen no Abyss) tackles various dilemmas regarding sexual frustration, intimacy, and the temptation of infidelity—which, in my opinion, is reminiscent of many Suizou Oshimi's manga.

Eita struggles greatly with the concept of "depth" in a romantic relationship, especially in the eyes of his bedridden girlfriend, Koaki. She believes that meaningful connections will always be limited due to her weakened and worsening conditions. Eita somewhat agrees but denies reality, thinking that a soul-to-soul connection is sufficient without considering material aspects, as people are flesh and blood.

Problems arise when he meets Koaki's cousin, Kasumi, who has returned home after a work ... transfer. He sees her as an identical person to Koaki but without any health issues; she is "normal." What unfolds throughout the story is intriguing to me for a few reasons. I appreciate that both female characters are antithetical to one another—Koaki is weak and frail but expresses a lot of love and politeness to Eita, while Kasumi is free and independent but does not reciprocate any romantic feelings towards Eita, which becomes one of many struggles.

There is also a lot of social pressure, worsened by the fact that nobody at his university is aware of his current status and keeps this information secret. Torn between his desire for sexual intimacy with his first love and a nearly identical relative whom he believed he loved, Eita becomes entangled in a web of secrets.

It's honestly quite tragic—venting one's lust on someone who looks exactly like the girl you claim to love, only to have your actions meet an unexpected ending. The cousin of the girl you thought you loved turns out to be the person you constantly needed to keep sane, while she herself has no concept of love.

One thing I wish was expanded upon within these characters is logic and reasoning, especially for Eita. Often, it seems as if he simply goes along with the scenarios to keep the premise going without much thought, which bothers me as this story could have had more depth and even been longer. Eita doesn't hesitate to be drawn into the lust of another woman, particularly in the second half of the volume when Kasumi becomes pregnant or when he becomes overly clingy with Sao. It's strange considering his sense of morals and his quiet and reserved nature. I think the biggest flaw of this series lies with Koaki—by the end of the story, she becomes an absolute mess and resorts to the lover's suicide yandere tropes... sigh.

The art style is fairly simplistic and easy to understand, and it's quite solid for their first work, all things considered. I believe Ryou also has a good eye for meaningful gestures and how they are framed on the page, which is best reflected in her current manga, "Boy's Abyss."

Overall, I still had fun and enjoyed this manga. For Oshimi fans, I suggest giving it a read if it interests you. It was a decent debut work and is short enough to read in one sitting, so you won't be missing out on too much!

STORY: 4

Meet Eita and Kaoki, a couple in their first relationship at 19 years old. Eita, the boyfriend, is an average bland university student. Kaoki, his girlfriend, has a frail body and she has to live in an hospital, potentially most of her life. She is sadly stuck in a room while people her age enjoy the “peak of youth”. Now, guess who is the story going to focus on and empathize with?
..
Right! Eita!
And guess what is the main problem in that story?
..
The right of Eita’s weewee to access a vagina! Oh my god you must be clairvoyant!


... ART: 4

The only thing noticeable here is that breasts are a bit more realistic than usual. Oh, the author is a woman, that might help. Besides, panels are quite generic and empty.


POLITICAL POTENTIAL: 3

Just the same masculinist protagonist as usual: feeling sorry about himself and far from being able to do anything collective.


FEMINISM: 3

Here we go: our male hero is a pathological liar, sleeps around, and is a selfish coward. He treats Kaoki terribly and the scenario is totally ok with that.
Have you noticed how many manga have that kind of characters as main protagonist?

As the story progresses, the author even uses some convoluted events to make us more understanding of Eita’s actions, while showing the two main female characters as more and more manipulative. Masculinist manga often use that kind of development, where the male hero starts off as a jerk, but, women characters then act even worse so that, in the end, the reader’s sympathy goes to the male hero.
I wonder how many manga are centered on a girl who sleeps around while her boyfriend is having a hard time at the hospital?

Eita has a lot of sex and, if you are expecting a bit of subversion because the author is female, you will be disappointed. For example, one scene has Eita come in the mouth of his coworker and she teases him “I’m going to kiss you before I wash my mouth”, which makes him look disgusted and saying “I’m not into that stuff”. We are supposed here to adhere to the virilist view that women tasting cum is totally ok (even ‘natural’) whereas real men should not be subjected to that (otherwise they would be gay).

The gold for unfair narration comes when Eita gets beat up by the boyfriend of the kind coworker he was banging for four days. When that happens, the girl already has bruises all over her body and face, which points to a very serious situation, but Eita does not care at all:
He is only feeling disappointed that she is looking away when he gets attacked.
Did Eita call the police after the attack, if not for himself, to protect the girl from further abuse? No, our hero simply erases her number and, in less than two days after the assault, has sex with another girl he had bonded with by pretending he was a virgin like her.


CONCLUSION: 3

Even if you can ignore the masculinism spoiling this average story, just skip it. There’s much better titles out there, and, if you are ok with that kind of story, just read Boys on the Run by Kengo Hanazawa.