#i really appreciate the way fujimoto writes some stuff but i think the one that mad eme insane was look back..

[wombrion]

1) your art is phenomenal and marshmallowy it makes my day when you post!

2) I’m unsure if you are still taking request but if you are in a dilly dallying mood I would <3 to see some of the Chainsaw man characters in your style? I feel like your shape language would translate onto their design really well🤎🤎

you fool............i drew em a zillion years ago

[perryhedge]

Fire Punch

This was a bit of a frustrating read, and I wasn't sure it would be worth it to actually make it to the end, but ultimately I'm glad I did. I really enjoyed the first and last volumes, which were somber, contemplative, and often times ridiculous, but always in a way that felt as weird and off-putting as it was sincere. The six volumes in between were a bit of a mess.

Comparing Fire Punch to Chainsaw Man, which I can't help but do, the first thing that stands out about is that while the latter is always fun to read, the former is for most of its run miserable, humorless, and self-serious. There is Fujimoto's trademark surreal humor, and it does have its high points, but for most of the story it is very much a standard dark action manga. Far too much of the interminable fight scenes, for example, are just reaction panels of the ugliest dudes you've ever seen.

Much like Chainsaw Man, Fire Punch tends to have really interesting panel composition. There's a lot of repetition and cinematic framing throughout, there's interesting contrasts across page spreads and striking panels are left the space to achieve their intended effect. Due to the weak writing, I started to get cynical in the middle and began to see the unusual composition as gimmicky. But looking back on it, the paneling is consistently great and only lifts up the rest of the manga, even when the dreary backgrounds or landscapes of corpses and limbs that fill those panels are, well, ugly (in an aesthetic and a moral sense).

Now, I have no problem with ugliness in a manga. I would guess that a lot of people's problem with this manga would be the copious amounts of "objectionable" content, but I think that mostly plays to its strengths. All the incest stuff, particularly, while strange, is coming from a place of sincerity and surprisingly offers some of the most poignant moments in the manga -- and this is not a backhanded compliment. Agni's pain is constant, so the few moments of peace and love he experiences, particularly towards the end, generally make an impression. But ultimately, I don't think that the constant violence is in service of a message strong enough to justify it -- it ultimately just felt bleak and nihilistic. I get that's part of the point. But at least in Chainsaw Man, the violence feels flamboyant and fun. I can't appreciate the death and destruction in Fire Punch on an aesthetic level, and it doesn't hit on a thematic level either.

There are a lot of themes that are more or less adequately fleshed out in this manga. Central to it all is the notion of "acting", cleverly framed by Togata's obsession with film. Everyone is always acting, and people will eventually become the mask. Agni plays various "roles" in his life, and the central thrust of the story is always his conflict between the roles imagined for him by others and the one he plays in the end.

There's also a throughline of fire-related symbolism, where people are concerned about various things metaphorically represented by firewood, or sometimes food/fuel [sorry, I read this in Japanese, and I don't know a less cringe way to translate this -- but these are the words that are most often used].

The manga sets up these themes more or less from the beginning and is constantly revisiting them, but therein lies the problem. The dialogue is so consistently mediocre, and explores those themes in such a basic way, that it's hard to appreciate them. Chainsaw Man has its flaws, but while it wasn't subtle about its themes, it at least had the good sense to explore them with its characters and visuals. It felt like most of Fire Punch consisted of long, unbearable Socratic dialogues that had me rolling my eyes. These scenes are extremely repetitive in content (again, this is in tandem with the cinematic flair of the manga's form mentioned above), and often amount to one or the other character explaining the ideas of the manga in an extremely straightforward way. In a way, this strengthens the theme of artifice in the manga -- and I'm sure this is somewhat intentional on Fujimoto's part -- but in the end, none of the characters feel like characters, but rather vessels through which the mangaka could explore these themes. Normally, people get to do this by writing bad poetry in high school and never have to show it to anyone. Unfortunately for us, Tatsuki Fujimoto's bad poetry is a hit manga published in Shonen Jump+. C'est la vie.

The worst offender is Togata, whose entire character feels completely inorganic, at least to me. I will refrain on going too much into depth on a certain arc of their character in volume 4 and 5 (if you've read it, no doubt you know what I'm talking about), but it felt completely artificial and trite. Yes, it does strengthen the "acting" theme, and in a way I wouldn't have expected for this genre of manga, but it really comes out of nowhere and adds such thick melodrama to a skeletal, uninteresting character that the effect is lost. In general the character drama all suffers from this problem -- and unfortunately, a huge chunk of the manga is exactly made up of this kind of navel-gazing pablum. I also tend to hate anything that approaches "meta" -- and the self-referential nature of this manga made most of Togata's dialogue and the entire framing device of the movie itself incredibly irritating to me. I can appreciate the cleverness of it on some level, yes, but meta gets old very fast, and art that is this self-conscious very rarely has anything interesting to say. And indeed, almost from the page Togata is introduced, there is really not much of substance to be had for the next few volumes.

There is also an insistence on social commentary via the constant story element of religion. This stuff was probably the most insufferable bit of the manga for me, and one of its largest components by weight. There's really nothing clever to be said in any of these scenes, especially those surround a plot twist in the final volume. Again, it feels like very amateur writing that I've seen a billion times before, writing that one often finds in works that insist themselves to be exploring deep and universal themes, but in an extremely shallow way. This is really no better than Zack Snyder's Superman, or any JRPG where the final boss is the Catholic Church -- it's complete shlock. It may be addressing philosophical themes, but it's still shlock, and the fact that it aspires to be something else makes it worse. I'm not one of those people that thinks something like One Piece is a revolutionary work of political fiction, but I think the contrast is evident when you examine how unpretentiously that manga explores similar territory, while still managing to be engaging and emotionally resonant. Funnily enough, in the early volumes I almost caught myself thinking "this is kind of like Attack on Titan, but good" -- but ultimately it isn't much different in its didactic treatment of slavery, religion, and other such topics.

Ultimately, Fire Punch has finally convinced me to swear off any manga that sports the politics or philosophy tags, but before I end this rant I'd like to maybe throw an olive branch to any fans of that stuff by pointing out that it may just be me -- I've always felt this tension with a traditionally pulp genre (like whatever dark action series genre this manga is in) attempting to handle themes like this that are better suited, in my opinion, for the format of prose, or even philosophy. I can't think of a single example where it really works, at least an example where those themes are the focus. In the end, something like Fire Punch is still a weekly serial published in a magazine aimed at teenagers -- and that's not to say that it can't be a great work of fiction or discuss those kinds of topics, but I think if you're looking for kind of existential pondering that this manga is preoccupied with, you would be far better off reading Crime and Punishment or something -- something that can actually examine them in depth and perhaps bring you to some novel understanding of those concepts. Manga is a visual medium, its powerful at conveying strong visual ideas, ideas that transcend language itself -- and so to lock a manga down to such basic, pulpy dialogue seems like a waste to me.

In that sense, I have a philosophical bias against something like Fire Punch from the start, as opposed to Chainsaw Man which is primarily a sensory experience. Chainsaw Man is funny, bloody, nauseating, and appealing all at the same time, it's an orgasm of a manga (please forgive me for saying that, holy shit) and I think that's why it's great. It's not hard to see why someone could think that the brooding Fire Punch, by comparison, is dull. But Togata says penis, you might say -- and that is true, it is pretty funny that Togata says penis. Unfortunately, that's where the fun ends. And I might have said that this beef I have is philosophical -- but really, in the end, I just like reading manga to be fun. It's a preference at a very primal level for me. Jumping from this series to something like Call of the Night really made that stand out all the more -- that manga is funny, dynamic, and just a joy to read, and in general that's what I prefer a manga to be.

Despite my fundamental issues with it, I think Fire Punch is still an exceptionally well constructed manga. There are high points just as much as there are low points, and I think it's worth reading. The last scene gave me some pretty strong goosebumps, which only happens with art I care about. In the end, Tatsuki Fujimoto remains a bold and interesting figure in current manga, and if I find his cleverness to border on grating at times, there's no doubt that he can draw the shit out of a comic.

[aesthetic-bastard]

Media Interaction 2022

November

Fire Punch - This is Fujimoto's other work besides Chainsaw Man and I felt that I liked Fire Punch more than Chainsaw Man but that might just be out of spite.

Fire Punch is significantly darker than CSM and lacks elements associated with most Shonen. You are instantly thrown into the barren wasteland that is Earth after entering its second ice age and there is no sugar-coating how awful society has become (huge trigger warning for this manga and its nonconsensual subject matter) super powers are a big theme in this manga and the unique way Fujimoto writes it as part of the plot often leaves me wondering realistically how society would react to humans born with superhuman abilities. Long after Earth entered the second ice age and froze over humans began to develop superpowers and often those who were born with them are called "blessed". There is a cruel irony to being born blessed because whatever superpowers you may have whether it's regeneration, fire, electricity, or mind reading you will go your entire life being exploited for resources due to your superhuman abilities. I enjoyed the protagonist of Fire Punch, Agni, a man of few words and out to seek revenge. I seem to be particularly attracted to anti-heroes and not only does Agni express his anti-heroism through his actions but also through his design. Agni is perpetually engulfed in flames due to his regeneration powers, it is not humanly possible for him to wear clothes. He is completely naked at all times with his flesh burned and charred, there is no iconic super suit he is just "the fire man". Like most works by Fujimoto the side characters are simply written to serve their purpose and nothing really else but I greatly enjoyed the secondary main character which is Togata. Fire Punch is not only a fantastic manga because it acts as an antithesis to the superhero genre but also because of its sincere depiction of male-oriented representation. I deeply appreciate Fujimoto for making not one, but two manga series that depict LGBT-friendly characters that are important to the plot and are never used as fan service or come off as homophobic presentations.

Onanie Master Kurosawa - I think this manga has some of the best character development I've ever encountered. Still, there is no way I can even begin to recommend this to anyone when trying to describe its initial premise. Kurosawa the protagonist is an anti-social schoolboy that holds a deep resentment for his classmates and spends most of his free time sneaking off to the girl's bathroom and jerking off within the bathroom stalls. This manga IS NOT a hentai and neither is it a slice of life. Onanie Master Kurosawa really takes a deep psychological turn when Kurosawa decides to stand up to the local school bullies and by doing so he spreads his semen all over their uniforms and stuffs them into their gym bag for them to find an awful surprise that puts them in their place. Kurosawa does this as a selfless act to stand up for one of his female classmates that is the primary target of harassment that Kurosawa is sick of seeing tortured every day in class. Things go smoothly for the next few weeks until Kurosawa is approached by his female classmate Kitahara who figures out what he's been doing all this time in the girl's bathroom. Kitahara asks Kurosawa to get back at every single one of her school bullies by spreading his semen all over their uniforms which sends Kurosawa into a downward spiral. What went from being one of Kurosawa's treasured pastimes in the girl's bathroom is now an agonizing chore that leaves him constantly thinking "I pray that I can finish this day without dirtying my hands." At only 4 volumes this manga takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions with no filler that drags anything out. Each character is written exceptionally well and feels like an actual tangible person. By the end of this manga, Kurosawa has one of the biggest redemptions I've seen in character development that leaves him reflecting on his attitude towards his peers and learning to overcome his cynical anti-social behavior and reach out to his classmates to form a meaningful connection. I think this is a fantastic series that proves that not everything with sexual themes is inherently fan service or straight-up porn and instead shows an essential aspect of developing sexuality.

Kuso Miso Technique - This is the very manga that spawned the yaranaika shit post and probably one of the greatest things I've read. This is a short explicit one-shot about two men that fuck each other in a public bathroom at the park. Kuso Miso Technique in English translates to "shit soup technique" so I bet you can never guess what goes on between these two men. Besides being rather silly and gross, I genuinely enjoy Yamakawa Junichi's art style and how they draw men. I hope to find more translations of their work even though most of it is just one-shots of gay men fucking each other.

I Married My Best Friend to Shut My Parents Up - This is a very short yuri romance consisting of one volume that is about two adult women that are best friends that live together and decide to get married. The protagonist of this story is a woman constantly bombarded by her parent's expectations. As a way of lashing out and standing up for herself, the protagonist decides to marry her roommate, her best friend. At first, their marriage is meant to be some facade made up by the protagonist to use for her own convenience but instead blossoms into a true romance between each other. This manga was unfortunately way too short for me to feel invested in it and I felt like there weren't enough scenes with each of the girls showing their intimacy for each other to make me satisfied.

Yume Niki (manga) - Apparently there is a manga adaptation of everyone's favorite rpg maker game. This is only a single volume with 9 chapters but it's not canon to the game. The art is very nice but the story wraps up too quickly, I'd say it's fine at best.

Kemono Friends: Welcome to Japari Park - This manga is an adaptation based on the first Kemono Friends gacha game and was published just a little before the anime adaptation aired in 2017. The story of Welcome to Japari Park I would assume happens way before the events of the first season of the anime. We are introduced to a human protagonist named Nana who is a new caretaker at the recently founded Japari Park. Nana is tasked with taking care of Serval-chan and Ezo Red Fox and the 3 of them have all sorts of hijinks. This manga is very basic but surprisingly has a lot of crumbs to offer up as lore within the Kemono Friends timeline so I found it entertaining to read in that aspect.

Kemono Friends: Comic à la Carte - this is another Manga adaptation of Kemono Friends based on its first anime adaptation. Comic à la Carte is more of an anthology with various comic strips featuring the cast of characters from the first season with each comic strip illustrated by a different artist. I, unfortunately, could only find the first volume of this comic anthology translated into English. I know there is a localized physical release of each of the volumes so I hope that someday I will own them so I can continue to read them.

Supinamarada! - This is Noda's other work before Golden Kamuy which is also set in Hokkaido Japan during the winter season. Supinamarada is 6 volumes but unfortunately, I could only find translations up to volume 3. Like anything Noda makes, I got surprisingly attached to this manga and I am absolutely devastated at the lack of translation for Supinamarada. I've never read a sports manga before but I feel that Supinamarada has turned me on to the sports genre and piqued a new interest in me. I dearly hope this series gets some sort of attention in the future and receives the translations it needs.

The Munsters (2022) - I've never seen a Rob Zombie movie before so this was my first time experiencing one. I thought it was ok, it wasn't terrible but it wasn't excellent either. I think Rob Zombie is talented when it comes to costume design, makeup, set design, etc. He has a very good artistic vision but the writing was very bland and I think I laughed at one joke throughout the whole thing. I do think the Munsters (2022) is a very acceptable origin story for how Lily met Herman Munster and how they moved from Transylvania to their house in California where they would then begin their family from the original show. I have noticed Rob Zombie has this intense desire to give his wife the lead role in every one of his movies when his wife cannot act. Something very weird about this movie that bothered me while watching is that I think this whole film is filmed in real-time. There is no motion smoothing and it's very odd and noticeable during the film.

Azumanga Daioh (manga) - A year back I had a 25-dollar gift card to Barns & Noble and found the complete Azumanga Daioh omnibus but it wouldn't be until November that I actually read my way through this incredibly massive book. Azumanga is probably one of my favorite animes so owning a physical copy of the stellar source material was an excellent investment. I think Azumanga has the most appealing art style I've seen out of the entire slice of life genre because it's so iconic without being too "moe" and simple without being too uninspired. Something I appreciate about Azumanga is the subtle realistic changes over time in any of the girl's physical appearance, whether it's styling their hair or switching from their winter school uniforms to their summer uniforms. I deem Azumanga as the true "slice of life" because isn't about cute girls doing cute things but rather 6 girls that navigate their way through high school. Azumanga ends with each of the girls graduating high school and moving on to college which I think is an extremely heartwarming ending and a major achievement for all the characters to end on.