Loving You Till Dawn

love this story

the ending was soo sweet. very good book ^_^

🥺🥺🥺😭😭😭😭all of this time it was here n I thought it's on web novel . 🤧🤧sorry for starting late yet I'll read it .
👀hope u still remember me 😂

Tribulations of love are frequently immense, and in this work, they reach cosmic proportions. Our somewhat villainized protagonist is sent on a metaphysical journey as punishment for his heinous sins.  
  
It's a mix of psychopathy and sexuality intended to delve into love as the central theme—not the idealized version, but rather a raw, even atavistic portrayal in parts. Given the era it was written in, this approach is understandable, though it may not resonate with some more open-minded audiences of today.  
  
The pacing is chaotic, yet the conveyance of its themes is direct and unadorned, despite hiccups in the narrative structure. Panel-to-panel transitions aren't smooth, and conversational flow suffers from clunky translations. Tezuka's art remains mostly clean and polished, though it should be noted that, by contemporary standards, it's a period piece.  
  
Side characters function primarily as plot devices. Conversely, the main character's development feels somewhat credible. Although his chances for redemption are dashed from the outset, this aligns with the overall pessimistic tone and stays true to the source material that inspired Tezuka.  
  
An impactful piece, indeed. However, its effectiveness largely depends on one's belief system.

Osamu Tezuka is undeniably the god of manga. The level of detail he incorporates into his work is astonishing, and he produced hundreds of thousands of pages of manga over the decades through sheer hard work. Sometimes, while reading his work, one simply has to pause and marvel at the art, even in the midst of the most captivating stories.

"Apollo's Song," given to me by a friend, is truly epic, whether considered on its own or alongside Tezuka's other creations. It showcases Tezuka's unmistakable comic drawing style, paired with a dark, profound narrative about eternal punishment. The contrast between the story and its presentation is itself something remarkable, and it must be experienced firsthand to be fully appreciated.

What happens to a man who despises the very concept of love? What must he endure to embrace the idea that even a troubled, abused individual like him can learn to genuinely love someone? The fate of our tormented anti-hero is nothing short of brutal and unending. His transformation into the person he became cannot entirely be blamed on him, yet he faces eternal retribution for rejecting love itself.

Shogo's journey is sometimes sweet, sometimes violent, and occasionally sprinkled with hope, but it is always a struggle. This story is a tragedy of epic proportions, spanning from the past far into the future, with the only constants being his name, his appearance, his punishment... and the face of one particular woman. Despite the changing details, his travels form a downward spiral leading to the abyss.

This manga was created during a time when sex education was no longer taboo in Japan, and it fully exploits the newfound freedom this afforded the medium. This isn't one of Tezuka's family-friendly works. There's blood, nudity, and content unsuitable for younger audiences. It features plenty of highly unlikeable characters supporting two deeply flawed, yet ultimately likable individuals whose tragic story unfolds against backdrops as harsh as the Holocaust.

"Apollo's Song" isn't for everyone. But for those who appreciate a solid story and the unique craftsmanship and style of Osamu Tezuka, it's an essential read.

Apollo’s Song – Spoiler Free – Recommended  

TLDR  
Story – 7/10 – 7 x 0.275 = 1.925  
Art – 7/10 – 7 x 0.2 = 1.4  
Characters – 6/10 – 6 x 0.225 = 1.35  
Enjoyment – 7/10 – 7 x 0.3 = 2.1  
Total: 6.775 -> 7  

Story – 7/10  
Apollo’s Song is Osamu Tezuka's exploration of mental health and the profound effects that love and trauma have on the education and future of children. The narrative introduces us to Shougo, a young boy grappling with childhood trauma who finds a twisted form of solace in killing animals that display affection toward one another. This behavior leads to his admission into a mental hospital, where his deteriorating mental state and delusions are recounted through a series of interconnected short stories. Much of Apollo’s Song adopts this episodic structure, functioning almost as a collection of short tales centered around themes of love. These vignettes depict the protagonist experiencing romantic feelings, which he perceives as punishment for his earlier actions—a retribution born from the treatments he undergoes. Thus, the story transcends mere mental health issues; it becomes an odyssey of redemption and atonement, marked by struggle and suffering. The pacing is brisk, leaping from one tale to the next. While these individual narratives hold interest, they lack the gripping intensity typically associated with Tezuka’s work. Furthermore, Tezuka infuses moral ambiguity into the protagonist, portraying him not as inherently evil but as a deeply troubled child burdened with unresolved issues.  

Art – 7/10  
The artwork adheres to Tezuka’s signature style—minimalistic yet expressive, cartoonish yet distinctively personal. Landscapes remain breathtakingly beautiful, consistent with Tezuka’s usual excellence. Characters are easily distinguishable, and panel transitions flow smoothly. However, this isn’t Tezuka’s most visually impressive work. The content also includes graphic elements such as nudity, electro-shock therapy, and scenes of animal cruelty, adding a layer of mature complexity to the visual storytelling.  

Characters – 6/10  
Character development takes a backseat in Apollo’s Song, as the primary aim is to provoke reflection on love and the protagonist’s journey of redemption. Consequently, we gain insight primarily into Shougo’s background and interactions with minor characters whose sole purpose is to serve his arc. This limited focus detracts slightly from the depth of character exploration.  

Enjoyment – 7/10  
Engagement levels in Apollo’s Song are moderate. While the story is coherent and thought-provoking, the short story format can be distracting, dividing attention between the central plot and various subplots. Despite clear distinctions between the main narrative and supporting tales, the overall experience feels somewhat disjointed. It’s not Tezuka’s finest work, but it remains compelling enough to warrant consideration. Themes of love and moral agency are skillfully woven throughout, with certain segments—such as the Holocaust-related storyline—standing out as particularly memorable. For these reasons, Apollo’s Song earns a lukewarm recommendation, leaving readers with mixed impressions.

By all appearances, Osamu Tezuka worked himself to an early demise. His final recorded words were a request to a nurse, who tried to take his pen, allowing him to continue working. Despite this, he left behind a substantial amount of unfinished work, and it's easy to suggest that he should have managed his pace better, potentially leading to a more content life. However, there was at least one compelling reason for his urgency: he was revolutionizing his medium. He, along with some of his contemporaries, saved manga from being confined to the limited subject matter and audience ranges that western comics and cartoons often find themselves trapped within.

In this context, Apollo's Song can be described as "literary - for manga." It examines themes such as love, tragedy, and trauma but maintains a tonally cartoony style. Tezuka's art is cutesy and low-detailed, with characters acting in the manner of a comedy or melodrama. The trustworthy doctor figure immediately straps Shogo down and administers electro-shock therapy upon meeting him. This scene unfolds this way not because it's the most artistically accurate or believable option, but because Tezuka aims to swiftly move past the introduction.

To his credit as a writer, he conveys information in an efficient, fast-paced manner. It's never slow or dull to read. Combined with its short length, many readers likely finish the manga in one sitting.

Tezuka certainly possessed a genius for narrative structure. Shogo's curse causes him to experience an infinity of lives marked by tragic love. These stories fade in and out as his true life progresses, transcending time and nationality. And it's not just a framing device for an essentially episodic series: Shogo truly experiences and remembers these extra lives, and their relevance to the plot runs deeper than one might initially think.

They also serve to explore the theme - love - from various perspectives. There isn't much concern for genre, and Tezuka examines not only human love but also that between animals and even robots. Appropriately for a story like this, Tezuka frequently uses nudity in his artwork. Of course, given Tezuka's sensibilities and art style, it remains mostly tame. One might even call it tasteful. Certainly, it has relevance to the stories: Shogo and his lover wear fig-leaves, like Adam and Eve, in one story, and in another, the mechanization of the future reduces his body itself to a physical, reproducible commodity unworthy of considerations such as privacy.

A defining feature of character writing in "literary" works is the careful use of malice and evil - they demand a precise psychological explanation. With some exceptions, Tezuka achieves this here: Shogo's violent reactions to love stem from deep negative associations with his mother's meaningless romantic pursuits - and her cruelty towards her son. This is enough to make him an engaging protagonist, and the emotional core of a series of effective little stories, one of which stands out as strong and memorable. Although the ending is somewhat overly pessimistic and the story can be excessive - even contrived - at times, there's sufficient depth and entertainment value in this manga for it to stand alongside the greatness of its creator.

<p>Apollo's Song is a fascinating manga created by none other than the God of Manga, Osamu Tezuka. The narrative begins with Shogo, a boy who despises love to such an extent that he kills animals displaying any affection. Due to this behavior, Shogo is admitted to a mental hospital where he undergoes electroshock therapy (remember, this was written in 1970). During one session, Shogo has a vision of conversing with a Greek goddess, who then curses him for his crimes against love. He is condemned to love a woman repeatedly, but tragically, one of them will always die. This is precisely what unfolds throughout the rest of the book. The comic is akin to a short story anthology filled with tragic love tales. All these segments are interconnected by the theme of romantic love and how it can be profoundly depressing. The story is excellent for a comic but relatively average for Tezuka. Despite its quality, I would suggest reading Phoenix or another Tezuka manga before diving into Apollo's Song.</p>