PunPuns journey as a character is one of mainly sadness and depression but there are moments where you can find some happiness. The main source of happiness in this manga comes from when he was a kid and discovering what porn is and saying that hes gonna discover a planet that he and everyone can move to once the world "ends." But for a majority of the story its depressing and it all starts from the moment he meets Aiko.
Aiko and PunPuns journey together is truly something that you could very well experience but at the same time you will never experience. There are the moments where you will experience it like the first time falling in love and sometimes you might fight with each other and maybe youll make up lies to please the other person. But you probably will never experience killing your lovers mom so that you can leave and live on the run together. But sadly you very well could experience the suicide of your loved one. I love that aspect of how it starts off very realistic but then spirals into holy shit territory.
The story itself is so basic yet so compelling and so amazingly crafted. On paper it looks basic as its literally just about a kid growing up but its the fact that for a majority of the manga you very well could experience what PunPun goes through which for the most part is very fucking depressing. Stuff like domestic abuse, divorced parents, finding your first love, losing your friends and a bevvy of other things that just suck in life.
The art work in PunPun is just so fantastic. Inio Asanos character designs are just so expertly crafted such as the case with characters like Pegasus and God. His landscapes are just so beautifully done with several panels showing the crowded city and the forest. It has some of the most beautiful artwork in manga and should be talked about significantly more.
The characters are nothing short of amazing. PunPun and Aiko as of writing this review are my 2 favorite characters in all of fiction. Their dynamic with each other is perfection and their symbolism with the famous Japanese "The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl" is beautiful. I cant leave out Sachi when talking about Punpun characters. She is absolutely outstanding and easily a 10/10 character. The rest of the cast is just as phenomenal, like Yuichi, Midori, Pegasus, Seki, Shimizu, Mama Onedera and many other great characters.
Everything about PunPun is done expertly but in my opinion, the greatest part of the story is the character conclusions specifically PunPun and Aiko. They are such polar Opposite conclusions and thematically its makes perfect sense. Aiko realizing that she is becoming to PunPun what her mother was to her she doesnt wanna leave that burden on him so she kills herself because she loves him and wants him to live without the burden of her. PunPun finally being rid of the burden of Aiko finally is able to live a somewhat happy life with Sachi and in the last panel we see PunPun he is crying tears of joy.
Overall, this series is true perfection. From beginning to end it is absolutely flawless. I could spend the rest of my living days trying to find a flaw with PunPun and I genuinely would not be able to find anything. It is depressing, it is fucked up but damn is it incredible
