I think the way I poured my heart and soul into campaigning for One Piece last year says everything about how strongly I feel for it. It’s got the best world building of any series, it’s packed with emotion and adventurous fun, and the amount of distinctive fantastic characters is paralleled by few. I went into depth about all its strengths last year and don’t have the energy this year, but that’s not to say it’s any less fantastic. This year it’s also in an arc with a lot of potential rather than one of its worst ever (Whole Cake, last year).
But honestly, I’m not the one who nominated it this year, and am slightly ticked off that the one who did (@Shobu_Yoruichi) hasn’t campaigned at all. Kinda makes me wanna vote against it just for that, sacrilegious as it may feel.
Also, I started reading Fumetsu a few days back and it’s absolutely wonderous so far. I’d place it in the same folder as some of my favorite manga/anime, Kino’s Journey and Mushishi, with the way it portrays humanity and life through a wandering main character, with hauntingly beautiful visuals and great insights into the nature of living beings.
The fact that I’m not insta-voting One Piece should be enough for anyone who knows me to give Fumetsu a try. It’s fantastic and fantastical. If it was up against any other series I would’ve likely voted it already. Now, though, it’s up against “my manga”, so I will give both campaigners time to state their cases.
Hopefully Shobu does something at least, because otherwise it’s quite possible that @Lambu will win me over, knowing how well he campaigned for Koe no Katachi last year.
Thanks @Organizized , I was sure you would like it.
I for example don't have that kind of connection with One Piece, but its a manga I hold in high regard. Its a series that, with its ups and downs, keeps ageing incredibly well over the years and has my respect.
I know Fumetsu cannot still compete with it in terms of influence, but thats why Im promoting it. I want you guys to comment in its section and spread the word!
As I promised, here's the analysis on one of the themes in the manga. It will be better if you previously read Chapter 1 to avoid any possible spoiler though.
Thanks for waiting o/
The Driving Force of Life. What to live for?
As I explained in my previous campaign post, this story is not a regular shonen. Things dont usually go in a way you can easily predict, life is a continuous turn of events after all, but even if it is... all human beings long for something and live their lives for at least a particular reason. Be it the simplest or the most ambitious, we all have dreams.
At the beggining of the series, Fushi (the name given to "It") is kind of a "sponge" that absorbs the drive of the beings that make an stimulus on him, that stimulus is usually physical but the deepest ones and truly relevant for his development are in the emotional aspect. The immortal takes the form of the being holding those feelings and it, out of instinct, carries on its wish.
As you can see in the first chapter with the dog Johann, the moment it takes its form when it dies in the tundra... what Fushi inmediately does is search for its owner, and it succeeds. The Nameless Boy will never know that his dog died, but Fushi fulfilled its dying wish... that of returning to the boy, and for that reason he wont be alone.
The greatest development and the core of Fushi's persona would come from the boy then, someone that lives with an impossible dream and yet keeps fighting for it.
"Get out of this place, I want to see the world, try out that tasty thing they call fruit". All those wishes, some with a bigger relevance to his life than others, are the drive of that boy. He wont stop smiling and facing his goal head on, not only for his sake but for Johann's too... so when he finally realizes his delusional dream is going to kill them both guilt and sorrow washes over him.
This scene is heartbreaking, but its because of the tragedy that this trait of the boy is engraved into the still young immortal's mind, that human feeling of sadness over others fates. Its simply beautiful how the author brings development to the character with each person Fushi meets, and this scene alone means a lot to what kind of person it will be as the manga progresses.
When the time comes... It will carry on the wish of the boy aswell, but something will be different. As it absorbed the will of getting to see the world a human idea surfaces on it: That of growing up and learning things. The future meetings with March: will to live, care and innocence ; Parona: determination, sacrifice, morality ; and later Gugu: empathy, family, strenght... will make Fushi love and admire humans and try being like them.
This is a recurrent topic that surrounds the story, but I wanted to make special emphasis on the first chapter to keep it brief.
Next campaign will be centered on the characters o/
Thanks for reading, I hope this gives a more direct picture of how the manga is.
I’ve seen him post in other threads, he’s just not giving a crap about this.
So yeah. I won’t be sad if One Piece advances obviously, given my feelings for it, but I feel Lambu deserves this one more. Also, Fumetsu is amazing, so it deserves to go on.
Hey, it’s a Manga War, not manga awards. (And somehow I take it a little personally when I see someone nominate OP and not advocate it as hard as I did. )
I voted pretty quickly for To You, The Immortal. Nothing against OP, I fanboy it more than anything else I read when it's firing or Zoro/Mihawk/Shanks/Kuzan go to work. Just want to see how far Lambu's pick can go and hopefully a few people read it thanks to him.
There's been an update to our forum rules to broaden crediting/sourcing to all series news/announcement, etc. Please read HERE
To manage thread loading speeds and general user experience, we'd apppreciate if volume covers could be wrapped in spoiler threads, going forward. If you have any questions, reach out to a staff member. Thanks for your cooperation.
Oscars Contest 2023 is LIVE! Click HERE for a chance to win your Oscar!
It's back! MH presents a celebration of manga/anime culture; Mangahelpers Awards 2022 is NOW LIVE!
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.