I think this manga is a work of art, I really do.
However, I noticed that the story is so slow and it is taking its time. I am not sure if that is a good or a bad thing. I mean there's no particular event that has a major impact. So I wonder if there's no real conclusion to the story. Is it just following the lives of the characters with time. It works, but the pace is slow. I think that it is a creative approach and I like it but I don't like that it is inconlusive, at least so far.
Anyway, thanks for the translations and effort, they are really good.
- Hamad Al-Abbas
Wednesday, August 13, 2003
Howdy,
You are right, YKK does not have much of a plot. However, they are many of us who are very happy with the story just as it is. Chalk it up to personal preference.
For me, the pacing of the story is just about perfect. I really like the way the details of the world and the characters are slowly revealed over time. I find the way the Author slowly seeds hints into the story, then pulls seemingly separate threads together is fascinating. I like how much detail Ashinano has put into the world, and I like how he needed so few words to do it. The YKK universe forces you to pay attention to the details, and that is one of it's charms for me.
There are a lot of good manga available out there, so I hope you can enjoy YKK for it's own merits, while finding other more plot driven stories to enjoy as well.
Best,
Dave
- dDave
Wednesday, August 13, 2003
On the other hand, the author can, at any moment, reveal the backstory and collapse the whole thing... he can end the series at any point.
- Z
Wednesday, August 13, 2003
Sometimes the pacing of anime or manga stories can be way... slower... than we are... used to! (The "elevator scene" in Evangelion comes to mind...)
There's no way you could get away with that in an American movie or comic. Stuff has to be HAPPENING, stuff blowing up, etc.
- whispersnlace
Thursday, August 14, 2003
> However, I noticed that the story is so slow and it is taking its time.
Well, there's nothing particularly wrong with that in my point of view. YKK is not an instant gratification style manga (where you can sit down, read it, then move on). It is best read over a long time, where the series can really take some time to sink in and be appreciated.
The best books and manga are those that don't get into the "explain everything" trap and let the reader decide on what's going on. YKK fits into this category (as shown by the amount of discussion recently) as people like to expose their points of view about it, which has produced some interesting viewpoints.
> There's no way you could get away with that in an American movie or comic. Stuff has to be HAPPENING, stuff blowing up, etc.
Unfortunately that is the case. Hollywood seems to lack some really good ideas, but every so often a good movie comes out that obviously didn't have a producer breathing down the scriptwriter's neck.
In any case on the manga front, just waiting for more of Mahou Tsukai ni Taisetsu na Koto and YKK... (Mahou Tsukai ni Taisetsu na Koto has hands down some of the more refreshing manga artwork I've seen for a while now...)
- PC
Thursday, August 14, 2003
One thing I've noticed about YKK is that while the pacing is very slow, it's also very steady. There is almost no filler at all; nearly every chapter contains some element which either advances the plot or casts new light on a situation.
Nothing much happens in chapter 108, for example...until right at the end, when we get a new view on Alpha's relationship to Owner. (And a bit of foreshadowing for chapter 109.)
Events of immense significance can be remarkably subtle, too. While anyone can tell that something like [v7, p112] is going to have a lasting impact, the simple words "I want to live here" [v9, p109] may eventually prove to be more significant. (And then, of course, there's the shopping trip to Yokohama, from which every event in the series has proceeded.)
In contrast, I recently read through all the published volumes of Naruto. While each chapter is filled with action, there is often less change in the overall story and characters over the course of an entire volume than you can find in a single chapter of YKK.
- dn
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Slow and steady wins my race : ) I must say that while YKK is slow it is truly a reflective piece. I look forward to every chapter and drop whatever I'm doing to settle into my YKK mindset. When I first came across this site online I was listening to Pat Metheny's Bright Size Life". It was a perfect companion soundtrack to YKK. Even the cover depicts view of a country landscape that mirrors some of the panals of YKK. I would suggest anyone who enjoys YKK to pick it up, but I've wandered off the topic a bit...sorry. I must thank the trasnlator and everyone who was involved in making YKK available to everyone. You have done a great service to manga lovers and art lovers everywhere.
Best regards,
Daniel Beatty
Houston, TX
- Daniel Beatty
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
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