Sep 4, 2023
I don´t want to be mean with this review, but the manga certainly makes that hard.
Seishun Soukanzu is centered on Nanasaki Aoi, a third-year student who is new in his class, who found a girlfriend there, some friends, and a relatively normal life. Things changed when his girlfriend, Nikaido Haru, fell from the school´s roof in an incident labeled as suicide; Haru nearly didn´t make it but ended up in a coma afterward. Aoi later learned that his new classroom was not as good as it looked after hearing so many people shaming his girlfriend for wanting to commit suicide, and things got even worse
...
when he found a concept map with several nicknames made by Haru which diagram the relationships between the students, from romance, annoyance, friend, and extortion. After watching the pictures of five Clowns on the map, he realized those five people were the ones who pushed Haru from the roof in an attempt to keep her shut; now, after making enemies with everyone in his class, Aoi is set to find the Clowns and get revenge for Haru.
End of Chapter 1.
Honestly, the first chapter was a complete and utter mess from beginning to end; for some reason the first pages repeated like three times, one in black and white and the other in color, and some interactions were weird. At some point, I thought the place where I read the manga had the chapters messed up with, but then I confirmed the chapter was released like that.
This manga reminded me a bit of Fukushuu Kyoushitsu, mainly because in both series the main characters are constantly beaten, belittled, and bullied by almost everyone who surrounds them. Yet, Fukushuu Kyoshitsu in fewer chapters was able to use most of its characters and felt a bit more realistic. Moreover, the way the MC constantly put himself in the bad guy's place reminded me of Hachiman from Oregairu.
After reaching the final chapter it was more than clear this manga was axed because several hints clearly indicated the story was going to be a bit longer. For instance, the MC's past was supposed to be developed more, especially because he always got nervous and anxious when somebody asked him how was his life in his previous school, or when his past was brought up overall.
The most disappointing aspect in the manga is regarding eh 5 clowns, since two of them don´t even appear; moreover, the mother of one of the clowns was introduced in a way she was going to have more relevancy, but after some panels, and interchaging phone number with one of the MC allies, she never appeared again.
In all honesty, the story tried way too hard to be deeper than what it really was, and the MC's deep and wise moments felt like coming from a kid's cartoon, especially when he compared issues someone doesn´t feel comfortable doing or talking about with eating vegetables.
On the good side, I can say the art is pretty and neat, and I enjoyed how it was easy to distinguish the characters, even the smallest ones who barely appear; moreover, I liked how it portrayed the easiness with which people change sides when they feel they will be exposed for who they are. Finally, the characterization of bullying and how the victim, in a society kike Japan, is mostly shamed and blamed was spot on.
There were some interesting plot twists, to be honest, including the friend-to-enemy and enemy-to-friend; which were actually shocking and unexpected. There were also some heartwarming instances that felt very realistic, such as the relationship MC had with his best friend after the latter came out of the closet.
Finally, as much as I enjoy revenge and dark stories, I cannot say Seishun Soukanzu is a good recommendation; it has plot holes, a huge lack of development for a lot of side characters, a too-rushed ending, and a way too unlikeable main character who wanted to be edgy and in the end solved everything with the power of friendship. I wish the authors were able to develop the story a bit more, especially since is common the final bosses are the most despicable ones, yet nothing can be done about that anymore.
Reviewer’s Rating: 4
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