This one written by Hemingway or something? I'm reminded of all those classics still sitting on my nightstand waiting for me to pick them up and read them, along with the new novels that are scattered in stacks between. It's been slow going working my way down the list, but at least I've managed to schedule in some daily reading time recently. The biggest challenge was finding the time in between all the stuff I have to do for the stuff I WANT to do, of which sitting to read quietly is one tiny piece.
Is it just me, or does adulthood get more hectic the older you get?
But I guess I don't have much to complain about compared to this whippersnapper without a body or anything to do but contemplate the suffering of other children in the world below. Sounds miserable, honestly.
Yusuke is pondering the wails to "Jiro" on the ground, pleading for him not to die and leave the weeper all alone. It's a child who has flung himself dramatically over a dog lying just outside a doghouse, a woman hovering over them both with her arms crossed. The child is wearing a cardigan, glasses, and a simply AWFUL haircut, and is blubbering that if the dog dies, he'll die too. The dog, of course, simply looks a bit tired and run-down.
The woman all of a sudden starts yelling at the kid, claiming to know he's upset, but telling him he can't just sit sobbing here all day long. She snaps that the dog isn't feeling well, he's old, that's just how it goes. I'm sorry, is your son's grief an inconvenience to you, lady? Clearly it is, because after he recoils from her completely over-the-top irritation with him, she ushers him out of the gate surrounding the house and demands he get to school, promising to call to explain why he's late. He runs off, sniffling and blubbering the whole way.
Botan expresses sympathy for the poor boy whose beloved dog is dying and there's nothing that can be done, while Yusuke cynically comments on how broken up the kid is about the whole thing already, and wondering how bad his grief is going to be when the inevitable actually comes to pass.
At the school, the kid is confronted by a couple of classmates, the bigger of them shoving him and asking what the deal is with him being so late. The other is dressed in a preppy shorts-and-blazer sort of outfit and demands who this kiddo thinks he is anyway. Are these brats seriously bullying a boy for COMING TO SCHOOL LATE? Well, I'll give them points for uniquely combining two normally opposing roles in these kinds of stories. The little preppy brat smarms about how he heard the kid's dog is about to croak, and with a smirk, the square-jawed brat sarcastically says this is sooooo sad. He then says it figures the kid would cry about a stupid dog, betting on said dog kicking the bucket as they speak. The preppy brat mockingly yells the word "die" a couple of times, laughing, and our original kid hiccups, threatening to burst into tears again.
Yusuke's up outside and up a ways, but he hovers there in absolute fury because he can hear the taunting chants of "crybaby" and the wails of the kid with the sick dog. Botan placidly says that the sensitive ones like the kid below do seem to get picked on a lot, and that his dog is one of the few comforts he has in his life. With a mom and classmates like THAT, I'm certainly not surprised! Fuming, Yusuke growls in frustration and snaps that he's never seen something so pathetic in all his existence, having to walk back the word "life" for its inaccuracy at this point. He turns to Botan, asking why the kid doesn't just punch his bullies' lights out, and Botan replies simply that what works for him doesn't work for everybody. It ain't a one-size-fits-all kinda deal, this whole life thing. Yusuke scoffs and sticks his incorporeal nose in the air, saying the kid is better off dead, and Botan scribbles furiously in her gradebook to record that thoroughly unempathetic comment, sardonically calling it compassion.
In an attempt to reiterate his position as a realistic one rather than overtly cruel, Yusuke argues that the dog's a goner, and there's no getting around it, he's old, it's his time to go. After a pause, Botan says that the dog is truthfully just on borrowed time as it is, his attachment to this world really the only thing keeping him here.
Ah, the sorrows of our furry friends.
Over an image of the kid running back home in a hurry, Botan says that by the time he gets there, Jiro will be gone. Indeed, the kid looks on in anguish at his mother standing over Jiro's body lying on its side. He calls the dog's name in question, and then returns to fresh terrible sobs. A bright ball streaks across the next panel.
*Trigger warning for suicide discussion ahead* Yusuke asks about the kid, and if he would REALLY kill himself, and Botan answers that people usually take the path of least resistance out of all the many that exist. Then she jokes that there are also guys like himself that take no discernible path whatsoever, which kind of screws things up, and through a grimace Yusuke tells her not to remind him. Botan returns to a serious note when she looks back down at the house below and begins to speak on the path that seems the easiest for this particular boy, one that in all actuality is hard and terrible.
He's sniffling and moaning as he's huddled under a blanket in utter misery as Botan and Yusuke hover over his house in silence a moment. The silence is broken by Yusuke, who suggests that they knock him down another path instead, or kick him down it, if they have to. Botan makes a confused noise, so Yusuke whispers his plan in her ear, as though there's anyone around to hear them.
In the house, a door opens with a creak and the kid's mom looks through the crack into the dark room beyond. She turns to the father (I'm guessing), who asks how the boy is doing, and she answers that their son cried himself to sleep and it's best to leave him be. Certainly better than screaming at him for having inconvenient emotions, I should think.
The boy lays in bed conked from emotional exhaustion, and hears barks in his dream. He's certain it's Jiro's barking, and wanders a wasteland full of stacks of stones calling out for his dog. The kid stops when he sees in the distance two figures, one humanoid and the other unmistakably canine. Shouting Jiro's name, the boy runs toward the figures with a fresh sob and the happy exclamation that his beloved dog is here. As he throws his arms around Jiro's neck and resumes his hiccups, the human beside them tells the brat to back off because he's in a hurry.
It's Yusuke dressed in a cape and classic villain mustache, and it's absolutely hilarious. At least, from an audience standpoint. The kid is taking this very seriously, and jumps up, demanding to know who this stranger is and where he's taking Jiro, ultimately insisting that his dog be given back. Yusuke shoves him away with a command to shut up, and the kid flails backward.
The boy is back on his feet, tugging on Yusuke's cape, begging him not to do that, because it's not fair and not Jiro's fault. He insists that he'll be strong and won't cry anymore from now on, but Yusuke just scoffs, pushing him over again and expressing skepticism. Yusuke says it's far too late, and empty promises don't cancel one-way tickets to Hell. Tears emerging again, the kid starts to protest, getting up to plead for another chance. Yusuke yells that the kid is wasting his time, and yanks on the leash to drag the mutt along with a shout to come along. Jiro whines pitifully, resisting, so Yusuke complains that he's had enough trouble from the dog too, and KICKS the poor thing. Yikes, even in a dream scenario that's not a great look. Jiro yelps, and the boy yells at Yusuke, grabbing hold of the cape yet again to insist he can't treat Jiro that way. After a small questioning noise, Yusuke shoves the kid over once more, telling him to get his hands off the cape.
While the kid cowers on the ground, Yusuke turns up the drama some more and shouts that the dog is his now, and whether he kicks of eats the creature is his own business. To punctuate his point, Yusuke lays a few more kicks on Jiro, the boy watching in breathless horror. At first, he can only softly stutter for Yusuke to stop, and then...
Yeah, Yusuke, knock that shit off.
The kid dashes forward and starts punching Yusuke in his fury, tearfully shouting that Jiro is a good dog who always made him feel better when he was sad, asking why he has to go to Hell, then asserting that Yusuke can't take him, offering to take Jiro's place if Yusuke has to take anyone. He doesn't really wait for an answer, though, and continues to land his little fists on Yusuke, who doesn't seem to react. He calls Yusuke a bastard and says he hates him, multiple times. Finally, the placid Yusuke smiles.
Okay, that's genuinely adorable.
Yusuke gets back to his feet and points at the kid, telling him that the next time he whines and breaks Jiro's focus on Heaven, he'll be back to drag Jiro to Hell again. Wait, are we not trying to make the kid feel a sense of agency by rescuing his dog? Are we trying instead to get him to push down his feelings and not express them anymore for fear that his friend will be tortured forever??
Considerably LESS cute, I gotta say.
The kid delivers a flying kick to Yusuke's chest, which seems to actually send him backward, while swearing not to whine anymore ever. He unleashes a fresh volley of punches on Yusuke, further asserting that he won't cry even when they pick on him, and that this villain will never ever get Jiro. Yusuke has to admit himself that this kid's hits are really starting to hurt. Who's whining now, jerk?
The boy only stops and turns when a light shines from above him and a voice says that this is just what its owner was waiting for. He has to shield his eyes from the bright light, uttering a noise of awe as Yusuke sits behind him, squashed with lumps on his lumps. Another human figure next to the figure of Jiro assures little Shota that he's going to be fine. FINALLY! I was beginning to think this kid didn't have a name at all.
It's Botan, of course. She says Jiro agrees, translating his canine thoughts into a message that he's content and can find peace in Heaven. Jiro's tongue lolls, his doggy grin looking absolutely sincere. Shota stares at him with a tear in his eye.
At the very least, you know you're capable of defending yourself now, what with beating the shit out of the Lord of Darkness and everything.
The next thing the kid knows, he's standing up in the middle of his bed, tears still in his eyes, and making his dream promise in the waking world too. He looks out the window opposite him and thinks on his precious Jiro, who he imagines among the stars out there. Shota promises that though he'll miss Jiro, he'll do his best, so he asks the old dog not to worry and just keep watch over him from Heaven.
Here I go again.
Day has broken when Shota is asked if he's SURE about this, his dad and mom standing outside their home's gate as he's walking away, the latter telling him that he can stay home from school today. Oh, I'm glad she grew a bit of empathy over night and realized that her son probably needs a little room to mourn. But little Shota assures her that he'll be fine, and hesitantly tells her that he made a promise. His mom responds with puzzlement, so Shota explains that the promise was to Jiro, and that his bravely venturing to school today was equally for both their sakes. Mom sighs an "oh my", and lets him trot off determined to school.
He's still on his way when his name is called, and he turns to see his bullies from the day before grinning maliciously at him, chuckling and asking sarcastically how his old dog is doing. The little one says they have a great plan for when he dies, and the husky one says the plan is to chop Jiro up and put him in a dog stew. What's with everyone joking about eating this dog??
Shota is ignoring them, so the husky one reaches up to ruffle his victim's terrible hair, and Shota smacks the bully's hand away, much to said bully's shock. In the same motion, Shota grabs a fistful of the husky one's sweater and gets right up in his face, daring him to say that to him again, just one more time. All the dazed brat can do is make confused noises.
The husky one just continues to gape and fails to form a response, but his friend shouts that they get it, a bit quicker on the uptake. A moment later, Shota is marching off once more, leaving his little bully to ask what just happened, and the husky one to wonder aloud why HE'S being asked. I'll tell you what happened, you pushed your victim a little too far this time, that's what happened. But they're kids and lack the breadth of experience to quite understand that yet.
Yusuke and Botan hover overhead nearby, the latter looking at the other with pleasant surprise, expressing amazement at what just transpired. Yusuke says that the old shock treatment works every time, explaining that when you get thrown in the deep and it's sink or swim, you swim, stroking his chin in an exaggerated caricature of intellectualism. Botan sweatdrops, asking how that's the same thing, but immediately tells him to never mind, complimenting him instead on playing the villain to perfection. Yusuke puts on a weird kitty-face, saying he's been told that he's not all that likeable to begin with. Botan says that he's not THAT bad, but he laughs that flattery will get her nowhere. I suppose it won't since SHE'S not the one taking the life-saving test, and therefore has nothing to gain by buttering you up.
On the way to becoming as emotionally constipated as Yusuke, maybe.
So, what did I think of this chapter overall? Well, as you probably picked up from above, I'm not STOKED about the lesson they taught little Shota. I think it was a fine line to walk, and they crossed into less-than-ideal territory a couple of times. Showing the kid that he's actually strong enough to defend himself without Jiro around is good, showing him that defending Jiro and the other things that he loves is a necessary and important part of his life is better, but linking these things to refusing to cry? It's not awesome. There have been entire generations of men who have grown up believing that crying makes them weak and therefore consciously restrict their range of emotional expression to great detriment, both personally and in the societal sense. Shota should be able to shed tears AND be strong enough to stand up for the things he cares about in life, these are not mutually exclusive things.
On the other hand, I can see how Yusuke, as a character, would be sure to impart these values onto Shota, seeing as how he's the embodiment of them. He's got a "toughen up, don't show weakness" kind of attitude, specifically because of YEARS of having to win fights with gangs of hooligans, on his own a lot of the time, since his only friend and ally seems to be Keiko (so far). His statement about sinking or swimming seems like a hint to his own need to rise to the challenge that bullies were forcing on him or crumple under their abuse. And, as stated above, since whole generations of men have grown up seeing crying as a sign of weakness, even if you don't personally believe that, any enemies you have may use it as an excuse to lay even more blows on you if you are unwise enough to cry in front of them. It's a catch-22.
And regardless, it does seem that all Shota needed to do was put his foot down in order to get his bullies to lay off. In fact, they appear to be trying to catch up with him in that last panel, probably even to hang with him. My hope is that Shota doesn't have to actually start hitting people to get his point across, and may even have made a couple of new friends as a result of just taking a stand. That would certainly be a nice epilogue.
Random holiday posting: Happy St. Patrick's Day to those who celebrate!
I think it would've been nice if Botan gave Shota time to hold Jiro at the end and let out his grief, but also to remind him that he has his own strength and that Jiro wouldn't rest well knowing that he was intent on living in sorrow the rest of his life.
ReplyDeleteI think that would have been better for sure. At the very least, there should have been a lot less emphasis on "crying bad" rhetoric to minimize the toxic masculinity seeping in too deeply.
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