Katasumi no Kioku - Vol. 2 Ch. 12 - memory:12

[MangaDex]

 

[BluWacky]

What a strange, imperfect little series this was. It has what I think are a lot of interesting ideas, but it never quite feels like they're fleshed out enough (although this is a feature of many a Japanese story in an attempt to make things wistful and fleeting, I realise). It's not exactly dissatisfying as it is underdeveloped - there are so many things I think could have been picked up on more, and I don't think the Tokyo arc was able to develop the atmosphere quite as effectively as the Kamakura arc did.

I don't think the visuals fully support this, but my current feeling is that Sumino massively misreads the final time he and Aoki meet in Tokyo (before they obviously get together as old men...!). He says it doesn't feel like a date, and that Aoki doesn't look at him the way that he looked at Sumino's teacher or Aoi-kun. To my mind, though, nothing about Aoki's interactions with them suggests anything romantic or caring at all. Sumino misinterpreted the teacher begging Aoki to come back to him back in Kamakura, and Aoki's own interior monologue suggests that he finds Aoi's hedonistic lifestyle frustrating with there being very little in the way of romantic implication. I get that Sumino is resolved to stop seeing Aoki because it's so painful, but it feels to me like Aoki doesn't really understand what's happening himself; perhaps this is coloured by my reading of Aoki in the Kamakura arc as being neurodivergent, but that's less developed in the Tokyo storyline anyway in my view. The story is much more about Sumino accepting himself (hence the presence of Aoi, as someone who's "out and proud") than it is about developing Aoki.

Kiyonaga-sensei has an eye for visual metaphor, a distinctive (good) art style, and can write dialogue that feels true; I look forward to seeing whether her next long-form work can build off the foundations she's come up with here.

 

[livia_silva]

I'm not good at English, but I'll try to write what I felt after this final chapter. It's a very raw work in terms of the characters' feelings; I only saw the surface of both of them, which is quite sad. The fact that in the end Sumino is only content with Aoki remembering the two of them together and nothing more actually made me quite sad. Jumping to them being very old and not showing their relationship was very cruel on the author's part. I like reading Japanese manga precisely because they're like that; not everything is a bed of roses, and there's more reality, but it's still quite cruel.... ah and thanks for the translation

 

[roymustangmeganthestallionedit]

it cannot be overstated how devastated i was by this chapter. thank you so much for translating and updating. i really hope i can support the author financially one day and im really excited to see what she makes next. i agree with the above comments that this manga was so cruel. im gobsmacked. havent stopped crying over it

 

[kamishiro]

I'm not good at English, but I'll try to write what I felt after this final chapter. It's a very raw work in terms of the characters' feelings; I only saw the surface of both of them, which is quite sad. The fact that in the end Sumino is only content with Aoki remembering the two of them together and nothing more actually made me quite sad. Jumping to them being very old and not showing their relationship was very cruel on the author's part. I like reading Japanese manga precisely because they're like that; not everything is a bed of roses, and there's more reality, but it's still quite cruel.... ah and thanks for the translation

I was under the impression that it was Aoki the one who remembers it? The other old man was wearing Sumino's hat isn't it? Still pretty sad though

Edit: Oh i misunderstood, my bad.

 

[yoshiii]

Ahhh I wanted to see Sumino happy for a while longer.

Thanks for translating until the end!

 

[Uof]

This was much more bittersweet than I thought, and realistic lol ;-; Well as long they’re happy together in the end (?? Took forever tho)

 

[yiyi453]

What a strange, imperfect little series this was. It has what I think are a lot of interesting ideas, but it never quite feels like they're fleshed out enough (although this is a feature of many a Japanese story in an attempt to make things wistful and fleeting, I realise). It's not exactly dissatisfying as it is underdeveloped - there are so many things I think could have been picked up on more, and I don't think the Tokyo arc was able to develop the atmosphere quite as effectively as the Kamakura arc did.

I don't think the visuals fully support this, but my current feeling is that Sumino massively misreads the final time he and Aoki meet in Tokyo (before they obviously get together as old men...!). He says it doesn't feel like a date, and that Aoki doesn't look at him the way that he looked at Sumino's teacher or Aoi-kun. To my mind, though, nothing about Aoki's interactions with them suggests anything romantic or caring at all. Sumino misinterpreted the teacher begging Aoki to come back to him back in Kamakura, and Aoki's own interior monologue suggests that he finds Aoi's hedonistic lifestyle frustrating with there being very little in the way of romantic implication. I get that Sumino is resolved to stop seeing Aoki because it's so painful, but it feels to me like Aoki doesn't really understand what's happening himself; perhaps this is coloured by my reading of Aoki in the Kamakura arc as being neurodivergent, but that's less developed in the Tokyo storyline anyway in my view. The story is much more about Sumino accepting himself (hence the presence of Aoi, as someone who's "out and proud") than it is about developing Aoki.

Kiyonaga-sensei has an eye for visual metaphor, a distinctive (good) art style, and can write dialogue that feels true; I look forward to seeing whether her next long-form work can build off the foundations she's come up with here.

I completely agree that it felt like volume 1 was a much tighter story, whereas volume 2 seemed more lost in the atmosphere it was trying to capture. There were so many loose story beats that weren't followed up on that originally added so much depth to the characters.

We were kept in the dark almost the entire time about Aoki's feelings, which I think further contributed to a neurodivergent reading of his character (his unclear expressions were so funny but lovely). Both characters are so charming, and while I liked how much more realistic Aoki seemed after the time skip (perhaps because Sumino has matured and come to idealize him less), he lost some of the mystique and intensity that made him so captivating in Vol 1. Sumino however was a cute character throughout, and he does look great in hats!!

While reading Vol 2, I became uncertain of what kind of ending I even wanted because a direct reciprocation of Sumino's feelings didn't feel impactful enough for how strong of a buildup their relationship contained. I really love your idea that the reason Sumino felt that Aoki looks at him differently is because he actually likes him back, even if he himself is not aware. It makes the ending chosen feel less abrupt. I'm just glad they did end up together at the end even if selfishly I want to have seen them together slightly earlier in life (the old man yaoi potential...).

I did audibly gasp at the time skip montage LOL. Sumino ending up in a lavender marriage was not in my cards, but I guess was in line with his mentality of purposefully trying to forget and move on from Aoki. The theme of memories in this story is so delicious I wish the story was developed more so BAD 😭

There was a lot of love in this work despite the imperfections! I wish there was an extra chapter at the end in the Vol 2 to close it out. Her art is so stunning to me, and I definitely plan to check out her future works!