Bokutachi ga Yarimashita - Vol. 9 Ch. 87 - If That Day Comes

[zevenate]

Togio never had a strong inclination toward life. His guilt for the incident only served to destroy any possibility he ever had for gaining one. It is impossible for mundane happiness to paper over this deficiency: it can only prevent him from actively seeking death. But if the barrel of the gun were in front of him, he would never dream of moving aside.

As well as an exploration of guilt, this story, to me, is about the fragility of a man's drive to move forward. While aspiration and perseverance are exalted in this world, they are not to be taken for granted.

 

[etriuswimbleton]

so nothing is wrapped up as much. they all have to live with the guilt and Tobio still cant move on.

 

[bluecat1]

some details that i noticed.

a) tobio ended up being a manager of a idol company. similar to how idols are twofaced and display a different exterior, tobio is also suffering on the inside but playing a normal character.

b) paisen turned to comedy. paisen's birth was an accident, so he was fundamentally a burden from birth. his entire existence is a constant chase for love. even through materialistic means and having sex with a prostitute brought him nothing but emptiness. so him turning to comedy is a brutal ending for paisen, as its his constant need to be validated through his internal desire to feel validated but that will never truly lead to love.

c) maru ended up being a sales representative for a scammy drink, showing that he never really escaped his superficial nature and will always succumb to greed

now my thoughts on the final panel. its tobio smiling. tobio knew that paisen put the bomb near the gas tank. he was sort of expecting this outcome deep inside. its sort of a curse he put on himself. his sole desire was to chase normalcy, and every hint of happiness he receives from now on will be hindered and swayed, he's in a constant cycle of hell. but if murder brought him happiness, was tobio just fundamentally broken from the start? whats with his settlement for medico-racy? should he confrom to what society thinks is immoral if that truly brings him solace? its an intricate conundrum for sure.