36 - Vol. 3 Ch. 17 - Aliens

[MangaDex]

 

[UdenEmpati]

That was several whiplash moments all at once.
Which, par for the course for this series.
Shunpei found his survival instinct, though. He's very much the "studious" one of the three, the only one who's put-together, the single "cerebral" member of The Happy Meals. But also, both the most structured, and the most constrained.

Which is why he was entirely at a disadvantage. He was chasing the dream in front of him, forever looking forward and never at where he was. It's corny to say 'journey before destination', and it's also not entirely accurate.
He just took everything too seriously, to the detriment of everything. Which is why I like the interplay between his near-death experience and his sudden "understanding" of how to actually keep up with Anzu and Ikoma. The moment he refocused and started looking at it as his dream, and not something that he could simply leave to others and their talents,

He bloomed.
But true to this series, we can't end on a high note all the time, and so Shunpei's triumph in making a deal with his own personal devil had to be undercut by Miyako's "traitorous-ness". Going to Anzu's mom, ratting her and those around her out, is going to crack this story wide open. Now it's not just Anzu being threatened, but those who have put their support on her.
I don't blame Miyako--she's a kid, and she didn't really ask for any of this. Anzu has been turning into her mother, bit by bit, in a sense, and Miyako's the one who pushed back and refused to be sucked in. Woe to her if Anzu finds out about her part in things, I guess.
Which...might be what that flashback scene is also alluding to. Anzu seems to have done something in the past that put a fellow student in the hospital, when her dad was still around. Her attitude is interesting; when we see her at the start, she's much more 'beaten down' by her mother, but has progressively come out of her shell with the help of Ikoma. But to see so "willful" when she was younger and both parents were present, that she'd run roughshod over her dad like that, is a shift in attitude and demeanor that raises questions about the trajectory of her life and what all happened between when her parents were "together" and when the narrative begins.

Next chapter will hopefully expand on that flashback, because I want to know more about how Anzu ticks. To know her past, to understand her present, and the way she is and why she's only now trying to truly break away from her mother, and in the manner that she's chosen.



Thanks for the immaculate TL work as always.

 

[skywardgem]

that "Your body remembers." page and the one right after it is stellar, I'll always love the art in this manga and it was a joy seeing Shunpei revel in his own selfishness a bit lol

aside from that, ough, the other shoe had to drop eventually but I was still dreading the moment. I'm worried about the mom going to Natsumi first too, because I feel like all the signs we've gotten up to now show that she isn't the kind of person to fold so easily when it comes to helping Anzu and crew live out their youth in peace... would be heart wrenching to see her lose something important trying to stick up for the kids. And that's not even touching on what's gonna happen to Anzu and the band now too, it's all probably gonna get a lot worse before it gets better...

Fight on, Happy Meals! Fight on, Natsumi!!

thanks for the chapter!!

 

[EnFiveFour]

Thank you for the translation!

 

[outinthegardener]

Shunpei has gained: The Power of Being an Asshole. They should change their bandname to Three Asshole Fire.