Shitai Katsugi no Nemu - Vol. 1 Ch. 3 - The Reason For The Request

[zawarudo]

I don't see a problem with Garen being the foil to Nemu's stoic characterization, and in this chapter we already get to see him grow up a bit. Even Nemu starts opening up.

 

[mayu_hojo]

Writing-wise, I honestly get why he's included as a character. If you let the story just be somber and stoic, then a lot of the pages would get reduced down and we don't get to see much of the protagonist's personality aside from maybe her inner-monologue; In which each chapter could just have a rinse and repeat of retrieving the body and delivering it to an ungrateful client. Like yeah he's an annoying character and I do hope he stops himself, or that he could be written to be more meek, but he is providing a lot of spice that opens up how the world works in context of the protagonist. Once he's done that he'll probably mellow out more.

 

[Yuyu_yusha]

Tbh, when I first read Dungeon Meshi, I found Marcille to be utmost annoying. But slowly she stop bitching about the food so much. So, I would say Garen is the same type of character design. What should be volume 2 chapters will introduce

Spoiler: Spoiler

a new companion. So that will offset Garen's character. But he does stop being so goddamn annoying. Promise

Yeah, Marcille is annoying like in several early chapters, but at least she contributes something and she's useful. Her bitching mostly logical due to her background and for comedic relief aspect of the story. It would be weird afterall if the whole team suddenly gung ho in eating all of the monsters they meet.

Garen tho ugggh insufferable with no major contribution. Not even funny at all. I'm gonna take what you say as a promise and bear it for several chapters. If he's still unbearable, i am gonna drop it.

Kudos the superb work.

 

[bobleponge]

"no major contribution" you folks are funny. Just cuz you hate a character doesn't mean you get to create a narrative in your head to justify hating him more.

HE'S THE ONE WHO WENT TO RETRIEVE THE CORPSE

His execution isn't perfect but it was still a big contribution. without him Nemu would have had to find a completely different way to deal with the INFINITELY respawning ghouls before retrieving the body.

 

[LorantheWise]

Thank you very much for translating this. I can't overstate how much I love these sort of fantasy comics. Please keep up the good work!

 

[Mitsu13]

Both sides are at fault. He shouldn't be too cheerful with a grieving family, and the family shouldn't blame him. Then again, someone important to them just died, so it's quite understandable.

 

[Basic_human]

Oh I'm with him on this

Reasonable crash out tbh

 

[IrregularPerson]

this reminds me of the actual practice of sin eaters. where during funerals, simple rations are made and a sin bearer is called to eat the sins off the deceased. they were reviled as they were part of the mourning process, and the people who usually fulfilled those roles were at the bottom-end and desperately needed the compensation or food. they lived outside of towns because they were rejected

 

[piratesgoyarrrr]

"If you hadn't brought him back my son wouldn't be dead"
Excuse my french, but fucking what? That is the most retarded thing I've ever read.

 

[Epic_GamerXD]

Y'all hating him way too much, just act all tough in the comment section.

Would you be angry, if YOU help someone because of job or not and THEY TREAT YOU LIKE CRIMINAL.

Have you all been even in that job or hell in that situation before? figure it out yoruself.

 

[RuiRuiKren]

Really happy he resolved not to let Nemu take shit for just doing her job, despite how "reasonable" the clients crashing out may be.

 

[Forkuth]

I like nemu. Id like it a lot better if it was just nemu and not the moralizing idiot.
Japan's weird relationship to corpses notwithstanding hes insufferable.

 

[Forkuth]

Tbh, when I first read Dungeon Meshi, I found Marcille to be utmost annoying. But slowly she stop bitching about the food so much. So, I would say Garen is the same type of character design. What should be volume 2 chapters will introduce

Spoiler: Spoiler

a new companion. So that will offset Garen's character. But he does stop being so goddamn annoying. Promise

This info right here keeps me willing to read it. If he stayed this bad id probably catch up then drop.

 

[Forkuth]

Reasonable crashout.
Do people just normally start blaming murder on the ones who just retrieve corpses?
I don't think people start screaming at the morgue workers when they confirm a body.
Kind of fucking stupid.

Oh, but it makes sense to be pissed off when the dude is all happy talking about the corpse of your loved one but it's something else entirely when you blame him for his death.

She isnt literally blaming him for the death or accusing him of murder. Shes blaming him for removing the hope that the person is still alive.

 

[I_love_Spring]

I like nemu. Id like it a lot better if it was just nemu and not the moralizing idiot.
Japan's weird relationship to corpses notwithstanding hes insufferable.

Even if he messes up a lot and his patronizing isn't needed, he's still an extra pair of hands that makes Nemu's work easier.
I think that's how she sees things anyway.

 

[Forkuth]

S

Even if he messes up a lot and his patronizing isn't needed, he's still an extra pair of hands that makes Nemu's work easier.
I think that's how she sees things anyway.

Sure but I mean story wise I dont care for his character at all. And with him being basically the primary voice since Nemu doesn't talk too much it grows tiresome. More characters should even that out.

 

[Avi9]

Why do you think you avoid contact? Because it's annoying and takes up time. Don't insert yourself into the story of their brooding and misery. Just let it all just flow over you without affecting you, because it's just a job, and there's already going to be a next one. There's a reason only certain people can take jobs like handling the dead.

Fuck that...you being sad and grieving or whatever doesn't give you any right to treat the person who brought your close one's dead body risking their own life like that... that's just a fucking excuse to being a shitty human....and if you think Nemu not conversing and avoiding is a good thing, then you're wrong... it's not 'just a job'... it's a job where she's being discriminated and treated like a lower lifeform for doing it and her allowing people to walk all over her gives them and others the ego boost to treat others like that too who might do the same job

 

[Avi9]

The peope who think he's being annoying and should quit need get a grip.... it's not normal to get treated like that for your job, he's not wrong... y'all just want any reason yo treat a person like shit....Nemu being treated like shit is her own fault and she's egging them to treat others who might take this job the same way... she's the sole reason why she's being discriminated against....I hate people who can't take a stand for themselves... people who don't ask for help or at least struggle like being humiliated, it's like a kink for them at that point

 

[Ystivisom]

To be honest, the author didn't know how to integrate the profession he created into his own story; instead, he resorted to cheap Manichaeism to cover up all the gaps.
The treatment this profession receives makes no sense; they are basically treated like criminals, even though the job description is "being called upon to recover a body, thus providing some comfort to the family that has lost a loved one," which is a noble profession. Even with the monetary transaction, it's still a profession that demonstrates compassion; the recovered body is treated with respect to be returned in the best possible way.
The modus operandi is that of an honest profession, It would be the same as saying "paramedics are criminals because they get paid to go after the sick and take them to the hospital," which doesn't make sense, from the client's point of view, they wanted to recover the body and received it back, feeling sad about the loss but grateful to be able to mourn their loved one.
But what happens in the story is that all the contexts treat this profession as if they were criminals, as if they were doing something immoral, but that's not what happens, everyone treats the profession as if they "collected every body they saw and only returned it to the family upon payment, being able to discard it if they weren't paid." In this way, the profession would be ambiguously immoral; there would be the good deed of collecting the body while at the same time there would be the bad deed of demanding payment for it, functioning as a kind of "body kidnapping." If it hasn't been paid for, there's no chance of recovery.
There's a big difference between "collecting the body and demanding money to return it" and "being hired to collect the body." As I said, the profession is wrongly treated as a profession of criminals, and this affects all the opposition to the profession, making everything more silly. The old woman's grief in the chapter becomes ridiculous; she hired someone to retrieve the body and now she's complaining that the body has been found.
The profession shouldn't be seen as perverted, like criminals, rejected even by their own clients and assaulted, but rather ostracized, dealing with bodies is dirty; they are dealing with death, they are constantly dirty and surrounded by an aura of death; strangers would simply avoid this type of person; nobody would want to interact with you because of the stigma inherited from the profession.
Situations where shop assistants are disgusted at having dealt with you in stores, even though they can't refuse service, a relationship of respect/rejection, where the individual is rejected for dealing with death, with people passively not wanting to interact with them, and on the other hand respected, because this individual is your last chance to have a dignified burial, should you die in a remote place.
Basically, less "throwing things when you enter the bar" and more "everyone being silent when you are present, always being alone, with nobody wanting to interact in a friendly way.".
The closest thing to this idea was the previous episode, where the family didn't want to make contact because it's a dirty profession, but that was overcome by the respect generated by receiving the stone the daughter picked up.
I really hope the story doesn't get lost in Manichaeism; it has a good premise, but it requires a lot of skill to extract all the dramatic power it possesses. If the author gets lost in Manichaeism, it will be a shame.

 

[golestar]

I like this dynamic. She bear their grief. He shares her burden. This line of work tears down a person, until you won't feel like a person anymore. It's good that she'd found someone to ground her