スーパーの裏でヤニ吸うふたり

SUPER NO URA DE YANI SUU FUTARI

MANGA

STATUS
RELEASING
VOLUMES
Not Available
RELEASE
Invalid Date
CHAPTERS
Not Available

DESCRIPTION

At age forty-five, office worker Sasaki has had enough of the corporate grind. His only solace is smoking-and the friendly smile of supermarket cashier Yamada. When Sasaki can't find Yamada after a particularly trying day, a striking woman invites him to smoke with her. The despondent man thinks he's made a new smoking buddy in the cool, teasing Tayama, but Sasaki doesn't realize he already knows her!

(Source: Square Enix)

Note: On June 23, 2022 it was announced that the manga got licensed by Square Enix. It started being published in the magazine Big Gangan on August 25, 2022.

Winner of the Next Manga Award 2022 in the Web Manga Category.

CAST

Yamada
Sasaki
Gotou
Obata
Oono
Suzuki
Kami
Maezawa

CHAPTERS

REVIEWS

presence
90/100
a story about two people smoking in the back of a supermarket
"...it does a great job of capturing that distinctive feeling of smoking out the back of the shop, the intimate yet rough environment. The brevity of the moment, the relief of the cigarette."
—@Wilza

The Japanese supermarket, as portrayed in various forms of media, often presents itself as a middle ground between many different groups of people. From elementary schoolchildren looking to buy an afterschool snack with their allowance to balding middle-aged managers whose wives await them with another lecture about leaving the toilet seat up, there are nearly limitless interactions that can happen between the most diverse of people.

A Story About Smoking at the Back of the Supermarket is exactly what its title suggests. It follows the budding relationship between Sasaki, an overworked middle-aged salaryman, and Yamada, a cashier at the supermarket he frequents. Sasaki's defining trait is his unchanging nature. Every day, he works himself to death at his office job. Every day, he comes to the same supermarket to buy a pack of cigarettes. And every day, he lines up to get checked out by the same cashier: a gorgeous young woman named Yamada, who seems to be the only person in his life who ever shows him a genuine smile. Sasaki's fervent adherence to this routine leads him to develop a near-parasocial relationship with this random cashier, to the point where seeing her smile is just as important as smoking his cigarettes.

Unbeknownst to him, Sasaki's obsession has not gone unnoticed. Yamada, who spots him leaving the store, takes this opportunity to invite him to smoke with her, though not before donning a disguise. Yamada's character is predominantly defined by her two faces: at work, she is the cool and collected cashier at the supermarket, never abandoning her perfect smile and treating everyone with the same, calm professionalism. But on her breaks, she transforms into Tayama: the mischevous young woman who ties her hair up, speaks brashly, frequents the back of the store to smoke, and starts teasing the much older salaryman that she meets there. "Yamada" is the perfect girl that receives endless praise and admiration from strangers, and "Tayama" is a disguise that she uses to be her true self, if just for a moment.

"Tayama" initially confronts Sasaki with hostility, asking him about his intentions with the cashier that he idolizes so. But as they share a smoke, the two come to a mutual understanding and begin a tentative friendship. Tayama teases him endlessly, and Sasaki goes along with her antics, even when they cause him grief (both physically and mentally). This manga puts its main focus on the little things, the day-to-day conflicts that these two share with one another, the little things that they mention in passing, the gripes and feelings that they could never mention to anyone else. And really, it's in these little interactions that their relationship begins to gradually bloom. This isn't a slow burn—it's a seed in a pot on the windowsill, waiting to blossom into a gorgeous flower.

If shoujo is the flat-chested blond tsundere of manga, then adult romance has to be the mature career woman who looks amazing in a business suit. Whether you've skimmed this wordy review or simply skipped to the bottom to see my score, I hope that you will be interested enough to check her out and give her the love that she deserves.
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mits
100/100
A cigarette burns for six minutes at a time. Yet that time is all it takes for an unlikely pair to form a unique bond.
Mainstream media has long since explored the idea of human connection through a multitude of ways usually through that of direct contact. Yet, what A Story About Smoking at the Back of the Supermarket suggests is that enduring relationships can be forged through the simple sharing of space.

The titular supermarket is a prominent setting within the story as it is not only where our characters meet to smoke as the title suggests, but also as a point of contact between people from all walks of life. While this might suggest I'm framing this from a classist perspective, I'm moreso emphasizing that a large part of what makes this series unique is how it explores its age gap not as a way to alienate but to draw empathy from experience.

Sasaki, our main perspective within the story, is an exhausted yet hardworking salaryman that frequents this supermarket as his only joy likened to a "cooling compress" is seeing a smile from Yamada, a friendly cashier, the bright light at the end of the tunnel for his weary lifestyle as he then takes pleasure from smoking near the back of the supermarket. It is there we're introduced to the far more blunt, Tayama who invites Sasaki to smoke in the back with her.

Tayama dresses differently from the polite Yamada and contrasts her in a way that makes Sasaki approach her differently as he would with the former, and speaks much more freely as a result. Unbeknownst to Sasaki, Tayama is an alias Yamada has used to suss out Sasaki's intentions which she finds uncharacteristically pure compared to her past experiences with customers who had taken a liking to her. It is also through her ongoing interactions with Sasaki that she finds herself feeling guilty about her initial deception.

It's because of Sasaki's willingness to listen that Yamada is able to fully express herself freely without the scrutiny of the politeness associated with her image. There are more than two sides to a person and the way these two characters find ways to comfort each other through their shared solace makes for an emotionally cathartic experience with the way these two characters open up to one another.

Part of why this series works so much for me is largely because of how well the slice of life aspects feed into the character drama. While some might find the development of the relationship between the two rather slow burn, I feel much like in real life, things take time to develop and it becomes apparent over the course of multiple chapters, both Yamada and Sasaki have affected each other in more ways than one. As a result of this relaxed pace, there's a multitude of scenarios that can be explored which makes a lot of these vignettes feel like they're part of a much larger picture of these character's lives.

At its core, A Story About Smoking at the Back of the Supermarket, is about our eponymous pair, overworked salaryman Sasaki and supermarket clerk Yamada sharing a brief moment of respite in between the turbulence and tedium of their daily lives. Yet what makes this particular series so endearing is largely its emphasis on the quieter moments paired with its charming humor. Jinushi deftly balances lightheartedness and moments of introspection with each chapter often being largely heartwarming in moving the story forward while stressing the importance of the main pair's connection to one another.

At a personal level as a former smoker, part of what makes this series so special to me is its depiction of smoking as a form of communion. A way for two strangers to create intimacy through shared relief. As it's been explored multiple times in media, addiction isn't something easily overcome but this manga helped me in a way to stave off that desire. So for me, it felt like this came out at the perfect time in my life to really latch onto.

But I digress, as far as adult romance series go, this is my favorite because of the way it remains so effortlessly pleasing with each chapter even at a minimal level. Little by little, my investment in these characters and their lives has deepened as each shared conversation between the two has wormed its way into my heart. This is a story essentially about creating a dialogue with one another, that through shared intimacy even the most unlikeliest of strangers, a beautiful relationship can be born, a prospect so life-affirming I can't help but love it for its honesty behind that sentiment.

To anyone reading this as a way to figure out whether this is worth your time, I highly suggest at least checking out the first couple of chapters considering they're not long to begin with and I cannot suggest this series enough on my score alone. To anyone who's already reading this series, I hope you feel the same way I do! It's a series that I find deserving of the hype and
praise it's gotten and perhaps even more. : )
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