Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou Chapter 140 Discussion

This was a good story but I didn't give it 5 stars because I missed the way Alpha was beautifully drawn in the pilot story. And why did Ashinano draw Alpha with granny glasses instead of sunglasses? But then, the story was meant to be more pensive than get readers to fall in love with Alpha's beauty.... it was too somber.



Also, Takahiro was in the series' first regular story (Alpha's first trip to Yokohama was the pilot that Kodansha's Afternoon magazine turned into a series after the pilot won a contest hosted by Afternoon magazine in 1994) and, in my opinion, should have been in the final story.



Ashinano produced, even with some complaints and criticisms from fans, one of the best manga series ever!

What's sad is that Ashinano went from producing a masterpiece to producing a run-of-the-mill series (Kabu no Isaki) that has none of the magic or wonder or engaging characters that YKK possessed.

I so wish Ashinano could do a YKK spinoff series that goes back to the years YKK took place and give us stories he could have told but didn't.

If he'd even do a new series in a different world with a YKK feel of magic and wonder, I'd jump for it!

Yeah, this is good, but overall it left much to be desired in terms of exploring the characters and the world. It felt like it only went halfway. Whether this makes it more ambiguous or just incomplete is up to the reader I guess.

wakka9ca said:
I'm surprised no one made a post on the last chapter (excluding the extra epilogue).Possibly because such comments tend to be posted at Cafe Alpha rather than here?



Anyway, that "twilight of humanity" is a fact of life. The elder generation passes on and with them the world of the past fades away. As the years pass, their numbers dwindle and fewer people would have memories of first-hand experiences of the World Wars, the Counterculture revolution, the Beatles, or the King of Pop even.

Re-reading the manga just to change my views for a bit. So I did initially think that the lack of narratives was very notable in the manga but to be frank, it's a light-hearted SOL about a girl name Alpha going on a travel scheme throughout the parts of the city she lives in and her motivation doesn't seem to be needed to be in-depth since it's already reaching the goal to where she wants to make a coffee shop and continue to survive through working part-time jobs to get earns and experience new stuff.



I did think the 2nd half had an interesting inner monologue from each of the character's perspective which I find truly enjoyable and somewhat sentimental because as the story progresses we get these relationships that just grows up pretty smoothly but albeit sometimes it can be a bit too quick with the time around but can't help it, and one of the things I find memorable and perhaps the highlight of this series is when Alpha and the rest trying out unique culture and technologies through demonstrative ways it gets pretty interesting in my end since I'm someone who has experienced these stuff independently.



I also did notice a decline of art in the 2nd half (again) I do think it's the change with tools that the mangaka may be using but there were some stunning shots here and there that were pretty memorable. I don't think this is the greatest SOL of all time because the author kind of lacks in the paneling process and how it could've been more added since most chapters are short in length and they tend to be a hit or miss due to the fast-paced which could've been implemented better but I did get a lot of refreshing sense of serenity that makes the essence of the series itself feel very natural. 6/10 > 7/10.

I finished a re-read for the first time in decades. It mostly held up for me, the mono no aware is strong.



The only flaw is the plane stuff. I wish it was never included. It didn't really contribute anything meaningful either in terms of plot or theme, it's just an irritating mystery. Like, at one point we see the director of the plane wearing a necklace that Alpha receives late in the story, which gives the impression that all the plane scenes are actually set in the future...but that makes little sense.



Also androids making out with each other to transfer info was bleh.

----------------------------------------

                        I'm surprised no one made a post on the last chapter (excluding the extra epilogue).



So this chapter concludes everything nicely. It's hard to describe the feeling of this series, as it is at the same time mundane but melancholic. The "night of humanity" is very peaceful. Just like an old person who has fully lived his life, humanity passes its last years peacefully and comfortably. And slowly, the humans will fade away from Earth, while the androids will witness their last moments....That's about the most soothing "end of the human world" I have ever seen....And I really hope that if we can't survive as a race, our race can at least finish our last days as peacefully as described in this series.



Many things are left unresolved...Again, humans are still there. That means that maybe human population will decline even further but they will stick around for a very very long time (gradual extinction will probably take millenniums)... As for the epilogue, it actually shows hope for humanity, at least a symbol that humanity may still persist in one form or another, mainly through the androids, which are the "children of humanity"



I would like them to actually explain the flying monitor ship that orbits the Earth, but I guess too much explanation will destroy the poetic nature of this SF masterpiece.