Indigo's manga / #Unrequited love(8)

No matter how the story ends or how short it is, if the mangaka succeeds at leaving a deep impression on the reader, then her work can be called successful by all means. I believe that she did just that, bringing a lot of emotions in a limited space of white paper and black ink. Though this manga has both a tragic and "fleeting love" themes but it remains an impactful story which I don't regret reading. Edited: I read this story again today (March 12, 2017). It had the same impact on me compared to the first time I've read it. I couldn't keep my tears from falling. I wonder if I will able to re-read it sometime in the far future without becoming all-emotional about it. Lesson learned from this: jump on the occasion the first time you encounter it, leave no regrets behind.

I was reluctant to push the reading further because I thought that the plot is built around a very crude theme, with very crude words at some places (especially that this is neither ecchi nor hentai), however when I picked this title again, my first impression was proven wrong. The mangaka has done a very meaningful task by connecting the MC's sexual fetishism with other themes such as being an outcast, being unable to communicate with others, bullying, counter bullying, hatred, depression but also kindness, forgiveness and crossing the wall one has erected around oneself in order to face the world and the humming diversity of humans which distinguishes it. It was a good read actually.

It is a puzzling oneshot but I think that it revolves at its core around unrequited love, symbolized by the separation wall on p. 14. It begins by the main character looking at the guy she wants surrounded by girls on p. 6, there might have been a confession on p. 7 if it weren't for the fact that the guy gave her the happy-go-lucky attitude, revealing hence that he is unaware of her feelings (he didn't show any resentment towards other guys trying to ascribe a color to her, nor did he tell her what color she resembles in his opinion). The story progressed towards the separation wall on p. 14. The girl probably cried earlier because she realized that he doesn't like her back and the fact that she ascribed the yellow color to him then took it back might be an indicator that she acknowledged that he isn't hers. For him, yellow symbolizes sunshine (the guy shares his warmth with everyone) whereas for her, he symbolized sunset (a symbol for romantic encounters between lovers); at the end, she says he isn't yellow (hence there won't be any sunset for the two of them = romantic encounter between lovers). This is how I read this oneshot anyway ... it may become more comprehensible and interesting when seen in this new light, I might be wrong though.

I never thought that I was going to read this till the end because the drawing art was bizarre but I got used to it and even came to think of it as something cool. It has a plot which sheds the light in a deep way on unrequited love between women. How much a woman is willing to do in order to have a chance with the woman she has always been in love with? How many sacrifices can she offer and is the person she is doing this for, worthy of them? This manga sheds the light too on how fragile same sex couples can be in the wake of a breakup. It is not easy to start over again and find a new partner; not everyone can face this kind of situations. Gunjou is not the usual yuri stuff. It is much more than that. It is a realistic story with an LGBT theme. You might like it if you're into realistic stories and plots.

The drawing is good but it isn't my cup of tea. It has many components which help turn it into an explosive Molotov cocktail: mad male character, gangsters' rivalry, addiction to drugs, unrequited love, scenes bordering hentai (very explicit graphic content), fidelity to a deceased lover, at least two bisexual male characters (both of them get turned on by blood), same-sex prostitution, violence and gore. I believe that the fact that two of the characters or more are (sexually) turned on by blood, gore and violence is a manifestation of one of the many types of paraphilias; it might be haematophilia, sexual attraction involving blood, but I am not sure about that). Suitable for an adult audience. The ending was rushed and unfulfilling due to its many obscure points. Note: Paraphilias describe the many instances where the sexual arousal occurs in response to objects or stimuli not associated with normal sexual behavior patterns.

Such a powerful story! I wish if there had been more!