Mr. Fuyura must have a great memory. This collection of stories varies in subject matter but is tied together by an acute sense of his teenage characters' feeling out of control, swept away, discombobulated, and/or confused. What I remember best about being a teenager was right along those lines: always being upset or otherwise intensely emotional over something, and being clueless about why, or how to deal with it. The translated title of the collection "Chronical of the Clueless Age" expresses that perfectly.

And Mr. F. makes great use of visual symbols to express these interior states, which was a terrific idea, because by their nature feelings are hard too pin down or take the measure of. The symbols in these stories clarify the various characters' feelings better than a ton of dialog could have done.

This kind of story is where manga really shines.

... Last updated on December 14th, 2016, 10:54am

This is a great manga that doesn't get the love it deserves. Every story takes on problems most teenagers have to deal with, but with a surrealistic point of view. A lot of readers find it disappointing because of this weird perspective, but it really is all about symbolisms.
Usamaru Furuya is a must read mangaka for those who this kind of interesting short stories, written with a very unique style.

... Last updated on January 28th, 2015, 4:03am

just from summary and the tags, im sure you know this manga is all about teenage problems. studying, dieting, bullying etc. the stories individually, they are nice. with such clear art melding the real and the fantastical making the readers enjoy seeing the wild imagination of teenagers. but the ending chapters kinda threw you off. the stories make you think they are all imagination, but the last chapter question that idea. is it real or is it imagined? honestly i really dont like the last chapter since it felt shoehorned and forced in there. however, if you find different meaning for it, good for you.

Add Furuya's surrealism and unique brand of storytelling, throw some shoujo and shounen plots, a pinch of shoujo-ai and shounen-ai plots, and this is what you got.

And it's done well. The stories come across as unique, even when the matter being told is just...well, your ordinary shoujo/shounen friendship/love story (with a teeeeeny bit of shonen-ai and shoujo-ai mixed in, more especially within the 'geeky' characters).
The characters are pretty well-told, even in the stories with less development. It's seinen, so not everyone's going to have a happy ending, but, some of them who did, are completely awesome in a teenager way.

I have to say, though, the stories goes better as oneshots. Not that the last part is bad, per se, but I don't really like the fate of the last character. >_>;

I loved this manga very much... just really cool how they were all oneshots, kind of, but they still tied together at the end. It's very touching and realistic, I liked the characters and could relate to them. Surprising because it's different from the rest of Otsuichi's works, but to be expected in a way since it's got his mix of sci-fi/fantasy/realism. Very, VERY interesting and worthwhile. <3

I love how the manga portrayed the problems that the characters experienced through spectacular art and surrealistic style. I had been engrossed to each end of every chapters; extreme abstract elements together at how each individuals adapt to those were amazing visually. All of people were ultimately intertwined at the denouement of this one volume work of Furuya and Otsuichi.

A rare gem, I'll say.