Punpun is one of the most unlikable, stupid and yet so painfully relatable characters I have ever read in fiction. For the most part, this manga reads like a first-person narrative even though technically it is not. It is almost autobiographical in nature if not for the focus shifts into other characters’ lives and perspectives. I need to address the highly graphic nature of this manga. This series is not for the easily offended or the faint of heart. Much like other Asano works, there are themes of domestic abuse, murder, suicide, and rape. As such, there are several instances of very graphic sex and violence. Some might say it’s used for shock value, and they might be right to some extent, but to dismiss it as just that is short-sighted. These scenes, much like the extremely realistic writing and art style, are meant to show just how fucked up real life can get. And how do you really do these topics justice without showing them in their most realistic and ugly form? It is meant to be disturbing, it is meant to be shocking. These scenes are meant to really sell just how appalling humans can be, just how harrowing life can be, and how these things are happening to real people in the real world. These scenes can be hard to look at, so avoid this book if you don’t think you can handle it. Asano places such immaculate care into his wording and dialogue. It is evocative, emotional, and philosophical. It can also be funny, disturbing, crass, or surreal.Where Asano really succeeds in this manga is the way he depicts his characters, their relationships, and their situations so realistically. Asano is subtle; he never tells you how to feel about characters and events, he will simply put it out there and you will have to interpret how to feel about it. We are never told to feel bad for the characters, or relate to the characters, or feel disgust for the characters. It is never that simple. These characters are not strictly meant to be likable, they are meant to be real. All in all, this is an absolute masterpiece. Goodnight Punpun is easily his best work and it will stick with me forever. I have never cried so many times during a story as I have while reading this, and I am not usually one to cry very much at all. This is just a very cathartic series; it helped me unpack my past, act in the present, think about the future I had been dreading, make peace with my demons, and accept reality in all its brutality and beauty. It can be a tough read, it can be really disturbing, it can be very depressing, but at the end of the day the message of the story is not an inherently negative one but a refreshingly real one. Thus far, this is the only piece of media to have ever caused me to make actual changes in my life for which I have already seen results for. If that isn’t a masterpiece, I don’t know what is.