SASAKI-KUN GA JUDAN TOMETA

DESCRIPTION

CHAPTERS

MANGA ActionFujimoto Tatsuki Tanpenshuu: 17-21

REVIEWS

• 

  Douzeries

  80/100
  AHHHHHH THE SHOUNEN ENERGY IS FILLING ME UP

  __"People who don’t have much control over their daytime life refuse to sleep early in order to regain some sense of freedom during late-night hours"__

  That's litteraly me right now.

  I'm disappointed with my unproductivity of today so, to cope, I'm purposely staying up late. Somehow, it makes me feel like I haven't wasted my day and it gives me a sense of control...

  Anyways, I thought I could try and practice drawing a little to make me feel better but there's only a very restricted amount of things that terrify or hurt me more than failing at drawing so I picked something a little more comfy.

  Review writting!

  It combines what I hate: working. What I love: animanga. And my passion: content creation.

  (spoilers ig but well since the 'plot twist' of the story is in the title...yeah)

  Reading Sasaki-kun Has Stopped the Bullet was WEIRD. It was intensly weird, partly because, this being one of the first one shot of the author, it was weird to see an unrefined and less experienced Fujimoto at work (let's call that version of him Baby Fujimoto).

  But it was primarly weird because the whole story is an ode to the ideology I'm obsessed with: the nekketsu shounen 'FRIENDSHIP HARDWORK AND GOALS ACCOMPLISHMENT' values.

  Yes, the infamous 'never give up' or 'power of friendship' tropes everyone is fed up with. Fujimoto's works being the perfect example of subversion and all, it was quite shocking to read something so naive and innocent from him. I guess he really is a boy at heart...

  So, about the story: Sasaki is a middleschooler who's madly in love with his teacher, Mrs Kawaguchi. (You could already see the patterns in Baby Fujimoto's works...)

  

  While he's attending her class, something happens.

  A stalker shows up with a gun to get revenge on the teacher. Then, she accepts to let him do anything he wants to her as long as he lets the kids alive.

  Sasaki, having no intention to let his poor maiden gets assaulted, takes action and stand up between the gun and Mrs Kawaguchi.

  Inevitably, the armed weirdo fires his gun at Sasaki BUT after a random flashback about his father chilling on the moon and talking about dreams with his teacher or whatever, the student manages to do the unthinkable: he stops the bullet with his bare right hand right before the impact.

  This feat ends up being such a flex that he manages to talk his way out of the situation and everything concludes peacefully.

  This is the most shounen a shounen has ever shounened before. The scenario's believability completely is thrown away in order to let the message shine. Which makes sense though. And I'll show you why.

  ( <--- )
  

  It's more comfortable to qualify hard things to achieve as 'impossible'. Whenever Sasaki brings up his dream about meeting his father on the moon people mock him and say it's unfeasible. Solely because one thing is more likely to happen than the other, people pretend there can only be one issue. Using 'maturity' and 'common sense' to condition and crucify the dreams of a boy.

  For sure, his dream is bullsh#t and his father is probably dead somewhere but does that mean he shouldn't try? Should he abandon every of his aspirations whenever they get too crazy or out of the norm? Is he to docilely obey what others tell him to do without ever listening to his own dreams because it's more 'rational' this way?

  

  Well, this is what he does to your stupid rationality. Seriously, how powerful is this page spread? Makes no sense, it's stupid and corny but it just works for me. Baby Fujimoto pushed the 'believe in yourself ideology' to the degree where Sasaki managed to stop a whole rotating bullet just like that.

  The paneling here is interesting because if you're reading this on a physical volume, your eyes will directly see Sasaki first. But since you know that's not how you're supposed to read it, you'll pretend you haven't seen anything and your eyes will go from the first case of the right page to the first case of the left one. Put together, it almost look like a continuity of the flow of the movement. But then, you'll naturally correct yourself by looking down on the first page then your eyes will be attracted once again by the second case of the left page then you'll automatically correct yourself to read from top to bottom. And as your eyes shifts from the bullet to the hand it will truly give the impression that he grabbed it right before your eyes. It creates a weird slowed time state where everything is unitied by the drawing of him catching the bullet, his fist coming out of the panel.

  Another example of good storytelling would be this.

  

  This case that seemingly isn't really all that useful at first glance but it's actually revelant. Beyond just accentuating on the fact that she's scared, it serves as a transition and a way of characterization. We know that Mrs Kawaguchi is very nice, charming and devoted but what's not said is that she's very courageous. Her always giving her 100% to be nice and upbeat requires a lot of mental strenght. This case is right before when she announces she'll accept the stalker's conditions. It shows how despite her resolve, she hesitated a little and she still needeed a physical act to inflate herself before taking that decision. It's also a direct way to introduce her sudden decision and it gives context as to why she gets mad when Sasaki tries to save her later on. It's ruining the efforts she made and the courage she built up.

  It's also the start of the experimental 'signature' of Fujimoto, in which he tries to mimic movies frames by adding multiples panels of an action that would normally require only one panel. It's his style, it's very pelicular and you can find this a LOT in Chainsaw Man and Goodbye Eri (Goodbye Eri takes it to an unholy extent)

  

  Getting back to the plot, it's interesting how the antagonist blames all his failures on the teacher. Because he didn't manage to get into his dream school, he thinks his life is over. His lack of self confidence conditions him into thinking he can't get back on his feet. Because it is easier to dwell on himself and fetishisize his own misfortune, he'd rather tell himself he's doomed anyways

  That's why our protagonist decides to gaslight the stalker into thinking he was able to stop the bullet because he's from the future. He also says that the stalker's 'future self' will go to prison but he'll study hard there until he's freed and one day he'll eventually find a job, a house and a wife.

  Because of this lie, we can imagine the guy will actually put in the work and act as his "future self' until it becomes reality. His life might be saved simply because he believed in it. This is Baby Fujimoto's way to emphazise the importance of believing in yourself and I'm here for it. We have the power to change our fate and stop bullets as long as we believe in it and work hard for it.

  I needeed that. I'm not as hopeful as I was as kid but deep down an important part of me wants me to go out there and just BALL. To work hard towards a goal and to never give up.

  Alas,

  By deciding not to draw, I chose the easier choice. I had a sense of certainty with this review while the possibility of me having to go to bed after messing up multiple drawings sent shivers down my spine. I'm doing the contrary of what I'm preaching. But now I have the choice to use that as a demoralizing tool or as a propelllant. I'm the only deciding if this piece of fiction will serve as mere escapism or fuel to make me try harder. All I know for now is that when I see this panel...

  

  HELL YEAH, KICK LOGIC TO THE CURB, DO THE UNTHINKABLE, BELIEVE IN YOURSELF, BELIEVE IN YOUR DREAMS, PIERCE THROUGH THE HEAVENS, EAT BULLETS, THERE'S NO TOMORROW
  ... But I think I'm going to sleep now, I'm like half asleep and I have class not, even tomorrow but in some hours now???? So yeah anyways I purposely ignored some elements so go read the one shot NOW. My rating process: the scenario is inexistant, the paneling goes hard, the drawings gets the job done, + 100 BONUS POINTS FOR THE NEVER GIVE UP IDEOLOGY LMAOO (nah fr who cares about ratings)

  
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