When I first read this, my immediate reaction was "omg this was so good"; I immediately rated it a 95. (I rate on vibes.) I wanted to write a review, but I wasn't sure anything I had anything specific to say. Now that I've let it marinate in my head and I've read some other stuff, I don't think it's 95-worthy but was still quite enjoyable.
The first thing that I'll mention is the art and the character design. I thought the main two characters were drawn quite stylistically -- those eyelashes, man -- which I quite enjoyed. Nothing about the art was particularly groundbreaking, I think, but it was still quite beautiful. Yet I think the way the mangaka portrayed a sense of tranquility and the overall atmosphere (combined with dialogue and narration) was really well done, and I think is one of the major benefits of the manga.
Regarding the plot, it's really quite simple, and there's not much more to it than in the summary. (Assassin who doesn't like killing meets a blind guy who once encountered him post-assassination.) To be honest, the plot was not particularly attractive to me when I first read it, and I only picked this up because another person elsewhere on the Internet was raving about it. I'm still not sure how I feel about the blind guy's character. I didn't like how he was much smaller/stereotypically designed as a bottom, in part because I generally don't like that vibe but also due to his role in the story being centered around not being able to see, even though perhaps his shelteredness is realistic due to his circumstances. Beyond that, neither of them are particularly deep characters, I think; I think they and the plot could have been fleshed out more, or the story could have at least alluded to more. The conflict with the assassin's (Chinatsu's) family was wrapped up rather neatly, in a way that left me wondering "really, is there not going to be any retaliation?". Nonetheless, I can't complain to much; there are only 6 chapters, including the epilogue. For the space that it took, it was good!
I think the reason I really liked it immediately walking away was in part due to the atmosphere (mentioned above, largely due to the art and framing) but also because the sense of escapism. At the end of the day, the two characters are trying to experience a new world in each other; Chinatsu escaping from having to kill and his family trauma by taking Kasumi around, and Kasumi from being able to experience more of the world than the sheltered and boxed-up life he led living in his family's home. Despite the dark-sounding summary, it was really a rather sweet story. So while it wasn't quite a game-changing manga for me, I do think it was a nice read to pass the time.
9 out of 10 users liked this review
