Fool Night - Vol. 5 Ch. 44 - Connection

[MangaDex]

 

[noelbee2]

thank you for the translations!!!

 

[punpunpun]

at first this gave me chills - what other manga would humanize an antagonist like this?

and then they hit you with the backhand that he knows he's being monitored in this scene so we're right back to questioning just how sincere he really is.

hard as fuck manga even in its soft moments.

 

[Oured]

I wonder what's going on in Antarctica. The panel that shows the place in chapter 2 seems to have a clear sky but the sky has been dark for over a century.

 

[Goyal99Raj]

god it fucking hurts.

Ivy killed a lot of people, and some of them were innocent. I get that she needs to go down. But making her a lab rat is just so cruel.

We trap people under horrific cycles and then turn them into villains when it's convenient for us. Their rage against the injustice is washed away in their blood.

Even if Kudai is killed and no one else can become a living plant, I don't have any faith that anyone will do something about the horrors of Austercity that led to all of this.

 

[Doomroar]

at first this gave me chills - what other manga would humanize an antagonist like this?

and then they hit you with the backhand that he knows he's being monitored in this scene so we're right back to questioning just how sincere he really is.

hard as fuck manga even in its soft moments.

He is the antagonist, but if we consider what everyone is fighting for, and the end outcome of their goals

He is the anti-hero trying to change things, by using extremist means, and the protagonist and his group the villains trying to perpetuate an unfair and predatory system, due to convenience, comformism, lack of vision, and a refusal to think, seek, and strive towards a different state of things

Neither of these groups can be called good guys, but the antagonist, at least, despite all his schemes and terrorism, is trying to make things better

And by showing his dream sequence/flashback, something that only he and us the readers can have access to, we can see where he is coming from

One of his core memories is about his dad fucking up an abusive father who refused to become a better person despite being given extensive help and opportunity, so now as an adult he too uses violence to enact change in order to help others

It is that sequence what let's us know how sincere he is about things

 

[nutjob]

@Sugarixe
Typo on page 2:
still abusing our own child. > still abusing your own child.

 

[Kushikime]

Thanks for the chapter

 

[ErikTheRed]

This is so good at characterization

 

[zevenate]

It is that sequence what let's us know how sincere he is about things

Yeah, he's definitely genuine, just remains to see how far he's willing to go in pursuit of his goals. Often we see these types compromise on their ideals as they become more obsessed/desperate, but I hope we don't go down that route. I quite like his character.

Antarctica is definitely a key piece to the puzzle here, Yomiko's friend wanted to go there (and ended up as a spirit blossom iirc) early on too. Also, I don't think Toushiro will actually be able to kill Ivy, but we'll see. He might end up betraying the Transfloration Institute if they capture Ivy, though I don't know if he would try to set him free or just kill him.

 

[Mocmeo01999]

"I have to be the one to kill him" bro it's back to where all this mess started

 

[punpunpun]

He is the antagonist, but if we consider what everyone is fighting for, and the end outcome of their goals

He is the anti-hero trying to change things, by using extremist means, and the protagonist and his group the villains trying to perpetuate an unfair and predatory system, due to convenience, comformism, lack of vision, and a refusal to think, seek, and strive towards a different state of things

Neither of these groups can be called good guys, but the antagonist, at least, despite all his schemes and terrorism, is trying to make things better

And by showing his dream sequence/flashback, something that only he and us the readers can have access to, we can see where he is coming from

One of his core memories is about his dad fucking up an abusive father who refused to become a better person despite being given extensive help and opportunity, so now as an adult he too uses violence to enact change in order to help others

It is that sequence what let's us know how sincere he is about things

sure. he's definitely got conviction. he certainly believes he's the good guy, and he could make a good argument that he really is. that's generally good antagonist writing, but not unprecedented.

It's the heartfelt, tender moment that gives me pause and makes me wonder what he's really all about. there's a warmth to his smile that's entirely absent from the stony look on his face in the dream sequence preceding it. it's very easy to read him as jaded and closed off in every other scene he's shown up. that one page gives an entirely different perspective on the character. it's a single page sandwiched in between checking his traps for signs of interference & attending a conspiratorial meeting. and i stand by saying it's not clear how genuine it is.