Comics Alternative

This month Shea and Derek look at two tonally different works of manga. They begin with Yoshitoki Oima's series, A Silent Voice, the final (seventh) volume of which was released from Kodansha Comics at the end of May. It's the story of an elementary school bully, Shoya Ishida, and his attempts to atone for his past behavior after he enters high school. The object of his ridicule was Shoko Nishimiya, a deaf transfer student who was pulled out of her elementary school because of Shoya's insensitive mocking. Now teenagers, Shoyo and Shoko establish a relationship that is spottily therapeutic for both, and with the help of their former elementary school classmates with whom they reestablish contact. While the guys both enjoy this title, there are times when the narrative is worn a little thin. Derek feels that there is excessive emotional wallowing in places, and Shea is not thrilled with the series' quick ending. A completely different kind of manga is Rokudenashiko's What Is Obscenity?: The Story of a Good for