What is this manga even about? That's hard to pin down but if you read it you'll feel it, that strange sense that something ineffable is occurring. It's kind of scifi, kind of mystery, kind of philosophical metaphysical something, and it's a little gay on top of that. It is a story about a man losing his friend to something and he cannot stop it. The rest has been swallowed by time.

I'm gonna start by saying that the paneling is the story. Uchida is a magnificent illustrator but the things she chooses to focus on and the amount of time she spends focusing on them is what brings everything together, with white space washing away any physical thing you could hold onto and small seemingly insignificant motions like blinking getting strings of panels that pull you back to earth. The narration and the contents of the panels don't always synchronize which tells you so much more than simply saying the thing outright, like the main character describing his childhood but his gaze is lying elsewhere... As reality begins to break down so do the panels and so does time, and it makes me remember just how amazing comics really are.

SNOWBY's comment makes me laugh quite a bit because yes, there's a lot of that (vague hand gesture) philosophical namby-pamby talk, and if you're not cool with that then you probably won't vibe with this work. But if you've read old shoujo then you'll be right at home. Shoujo isn't just romance, it's an examination of our inner worlds and so spiritualism and honest-to-god metaphysics go hand in hand here. Yes, it comes off very conspiratorial, but the exploration of what could be is perfect for a work like this. It also features that good ol' western-filtered-through-a-japanese-lens setting, which helps the work feel even more out-of-time. And everyone is stylish. Nice sweaters.

If you want a straight-forward story with a start and conclusion then you're not gonna get it but if you want vibes, then there has never been anything better. The way it captures the flow of thoughts and memory is unmatched, how happy I am that we can take a glimpse into such a strange but intriguing little world.

This manga is like being trapped in a Starbucks in a snowstorm with two dumb teenage boys discussing philosophy, and you can't get out because of the snow. So you suffer. ("Duuuuude, what is Mars is made of WEED and the government is hiding it from us, bro?" "Buddha was totally a stoner and time-traveling CIA agents killed him." "WHAT IF USING CARS SEPARATE US FROM THE PSYCHIC ENERGY OF HORSES AND ROBBED HUMANITY OF ITS PSYCHIC POWERS?&quot😉

I've seldom seen Japan produce something that so accurately captures the obnoxious navelgazing of wealthy American elites. The author is either a really extreme Westaboo, or lived in the United States at some point.