Gunjou

Gunjou is a trip. People will romanticize the concept of "toxic yuri" when referring to famous and fantastical pairings like Madoka and Homura, but Gunjou blows that shit out of the water and into the stratosphere. The women of Gunjou are foul, cruel, selfish, callous, and violent, and they treat each other reciprocally with kindness unafforded to anyone else and rancor they themselves struggle to stomach.

The realism in Gunjou is up for debate and ultimately can only be determined by someone who has actually lived what Gunjou depicts. MC's lifetime of abuse completely fucks up her psyche and her ability to feel and act compassionate, her actions as a result prove sometimes baffling and oftentimes disgusting. Similarly, the rich girl MC who could "have anyone she wants" and throws away it all for a pathetic, broken husk of a human being, might confound the majority of the readers.

At some point, Gunjou isn't about relatable human interaction so much as it traverses the deepest, disfigured state of potential relationships. These women are the extremes. If it isn't realistic to you, that's a wonderful thing.

An interesting aspect is how the manga doesn't even use characters' names for the bulk of the story. Nakamura stresses the bared sense of excess in her characters by not even letting them be characters. They are, by and large, conceits, concepts. "Rich girl" and "abused girl" do not come across as Nakamura's OCs so much as the results of a painful agglomeration of very different experiences.

Also of note is that, unlike a lot of angst and tragedy manga, Gunjou never runs on cheap shock value. The events hurt and sting and the twists follow the harrowing but consistent spirit that the manga establishes in chapter one. Gunjou's fucked up, but it never tries to lull you into a sense of security. You know what you're getting into, and if you get your heart turned and torn and stepped on, it's your own damn fault for expecting anything different. It's not a cheap "you thought it was sweet, but actually, it's tragic!" plot. You know what you're getting into. Nakamura doesn't need to mislead you.

Gunjou is, to say the least, a roller coaster and an adventure, and one you have to be ready to delve into.

Was this comment useful? Yes

Bad

by Sburator
3 years ago

Rating: 4.0 / 10.0

Could have been good, but the lack of focus on the main story ruins it for me.

Was this comment useful? Yes

The plot is interesting, but that's its only redeeming quality

by CheeseJohnny
9 years ago

Rating: N/A

It lacks in realism in my opinion. There's not a chapter that I read and didn't think that one, the character was lacking in dimension anyway and two, the cycle is repetitive and -like a cycle- predictable. For example,

the devoted killer is still hung up on a woman on the basis of the fact that she didn't persecute her for being gay. The straight woman deserves none of the loving feedback I'm sure she'll receive because the author tries to excuse her manipulative and abusive personality as an effect of her own suffering when in reality being abused doesn't give people the right to be terrible little spawns of satan. The lesbian has no sort of reason to exist other than she's gay and basically a rapist obsessed with her victim. She's an idiot and too easily swayed. The straight woman is sociopathic and irritating to read. I'd much rather read about the lesbian and her former girlfriend continuing their relationship than waste time on this flimsy work pretending to be deep or gritty. It is in no way realistic.

... Last updated 9 years ago

Was this comment useful? Yes

Hits you like a sack of bricks

by transbikes
10 years ago

Rating: 10.0 / 10.0

This is a rough read. It's brutal, raw, and dark - steady spiral of self-destruction. And it is exceptionally compelling. As I'm writing this there are 21 chapters currently translated, though I've only read 16, I had to take a break. I might not pick this up again until after its completed, but only because I don't want to open myself up to this world of hurt prematurely. This manga deals with heavy topics and intense emotions and doesn't pull any punches but not once does it feel forced or over-the-top. The characters and are real, raw, and enrapturing, and it has my highest recommendations. Just. Be prepared.

Was this comment useful? Yes

A strong psychological drama

by MangaGhost
11 years ago

Rating: 8.0 / 10.0

The art by no means is bad, maybe some people only like cute characters. It can be a bit rough at times (some characters got giant ears too), but its still pretty decent and hey at least everyone looks distinctive and not like some manga where its the same face with just different hair. It also has a more naturalistic look to it unlike some generic manga style, which adds to the drama and seinen qualities. The story is some heavy stuff with what's going on with the characters. You can't really assign blame to any single character as they've all made mistakes and some have done some pretty bad things to each other. There's also emotional and psychological consequences for the things that people do. All of this makes for a fairly complex story and how it ends up should be interesting. I also thought some of the dialogue was good. There are some weaknesses in the story. It has a few moments where its choppy and it feels like it skipped a few scenes. Also to kill someone for another I think you need to be more than in love. It should be almost obsessive which I'm not sure was conveyed (she had after all pretty much moved on with her life so I disagree with the obsessive love category) or she should have been shown to have great rage for what was going on otherwise it feels maybe too casual. I'm giving this an 8 right now at chapter 11 and depending how it finishes up I might bump it up or down a point.

... Last updated 11 years ago

Was this comment useful? Yes

Art and story

by natsu347
13 years ago

Rating: 2.0 / 10.0

usually i dont care about the art but for this one its really bad. All the females are ugly and they look like males and the turns u off and the story doesnt make sense because the rich girl could have the other girl but she wants the ugly one instead.(btw they are all ugly)

... Last updated 13 years ago

Was this comment useful? Yes

one of the best!

by phanata
14 years ago

Rating: 10.0 / 10.0

WOW! Usually I don't read yuri, but I could never imagine that the most deep, emotional and captivating story I've read last months will be yuri! It's really incredible, the art is absolutely realistic, I feel like I watch the movie. totally recommended!

Was this comment useful? Yes

Cannot be rated yet...

by mibrainisdead
15 years ago

Rating: N/A

The first time I read the synopsis for this manga I thought it would just be another yuri manga with a twist. After the second chapter, it was clear that I was wrong. The art is simply gorgeous, and the story is very engaging. Some elements might not make sense (like how the cops haven't caught up to them yet) but they can be overlooked given that there are only 4 chapters out right now. Despite all the manga I read, I cannot predict what will happen, which is surprisingly pleasant. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who likes seinen manga and I hope to see more of this in the future.

Was this comment useful? Yes

Great

by HayateSK
15 years ago

Rating: 10.0 / 10.0

i had to write a comment given the only other comment here. this is a REALLY good manga! no joke.. its heavy.. very heavy but filled with deep emotion and wonderful character development. i just read the 1st 3 chapters and i'm screaming for more! if you want to read a yuri on a whole other level read this one!

Was this comment useful? Yes

The ratings...

by tnt_tnt
16 years ago

Rating: N/A

After having read chapter one of this series I defiantly think its too early to evaluate this series. It could become either very good or lose it all quickly.
I usually don't write reviews but I would just like to clarify that the 1's which have been assigned to this series are probably some child's rating as one has to be beyond immature to give this series a 1, utterly disappointing...
I would say that it is probably around 6-8 rating currently, but will wait to see where it goes before voting.

Was this comment useful? Yes