KOWLOON GENERIC ROMANCE

[There is no such thing as an objective review. Interpretations and opinions of all forms of art and expression are subjective.]

In times of tribulation and strife, it can be very difficult for people to process new information. Thus, people seek out the expected, revisiting things they already know. The familiar can be a comfort. Rereading a beloved story from long ago can be just like greeting an old friend. But human memory is fallible. There will always be forgotten details—perhaps a misremembered event or character. What if that misremembered character was a deceased loved one?

Kowloon Generic Romance presents a story that seems simple on the surface: In the peak of summer, two office workers in the walled city of Kowloon take slow steps to get to know each other. But Kowloon has rules, mysterious and unknown to both the audience and the characters. Its secrets are not easily deciphered, and each character holds a different bit of knowledge. Cracking the code is a team effort, but there’s another case that needs solving.

Kujirai Reiko has no past. Her earliest memories are simply living as an adult in Kowloon. Yet she and her coworker, Kudo Hajime, seem to have a deeper connection, even if she doesn't know why. After finding a photograph of Kudo side by side with a woman who is identical to her, Reiko takes the concept of imposter syndrome and launches it into the stratosphere. With help from friends and insatiable curiosity, the tangled threads of Reiko’s existence are slowly unraveled. But Kowloon itself is resisting her will. The city wants to keep her inhabitants here, happy and complacent. Why burden yourself with such knowledge? Why wish for more when you can live a perfectly fine life in the safe walled city where nothing changes?

Kowloon Generic Romance has a small cast of characters, and they all have something they can’t let go of, something that’s keeping them from moving on. Their pasts are key to their journeys, but there are no tragic backstories to be found here. Unlike Reiko, it’s not a matter of what they’re struggling with--It’s whether or not they will be able to confront their problems and leave the labyrinth for good.

The past is no place to wander, and those who linger too long are sure to become lost. It can be nice to feel nostalgic about something. But it’s not a feeling people are meant to be addicted to. After all, nostalgia and sentimentality can be forms of escapism, too. The well worn roads of the past may be tempting. But in order to grow and move on, new paths must be traversed. Relationships may change and companions may depart, but such is life. It's okay to let go. Sometimes the one person you can rely on is yourself.

A sweet layered cocktail of sci-fi, mystery and, of course, romance, Kowloon Generic Romance is quiet, queer, and full of heart. Marching to the beat of its own drum, it serves as a reminder that nostalgia is not always good for us. Change is inevitable and it can be scary. But sometimes the bravest thing we can do is rise to the challenge and face those changes head on.