Welcome back to Guest Review Wednesday on Okazu! This time of year is always too-busy here and this year I have complicated matters for myself by trying to squeeze out one last video for Yuri Studio before the end of the year, as well as the Okazu Patron Holiday Party! So thank you, as always to Journaliste/Chroniqueur Laurent Lignon for taking time to share this review of Soulmate, Volume 2 . Laurent reviewed Volume 1 last spring. So, let’s jump right into it – take it away, Laurent!
It is time for us to go back to the story of Qi, a Chinese lesbian teacher whose mind has been switched in time with her past teenage self. Will she then be able to save the woman she loves from the disease that is slowly killing her? Soulmate has been released as a webtoon, in Mandarin Chinese by Kuaikan Manhua and the printed version in French by Nazca Editions.
IN THE PRESENT : The relationship of Yuanzi and Qi was anonymously revealed on social networks, and by no one other than Xinjue, Qi’s student assistant. As the homophobic flame starts to rise online, Qi is temporarily laid off by her administration until the rumor calms down. For Teenage Qi, who is still struggling to adapt herself to an adult life in an adult body, the blow is hard. Her lover Yuanzi tries to calm her down by organizing a meeting with their old high school friends, only for Qi to ask to meet the only person she remembers from her teenage years that was supportive to her : her father. However, Teenage Qi learns that she hasn’t seen her father for seven years : when she came out to him while he was in a middle of his divorce, he overreacted and rejected her, pushing her to cut all ties with him in order to stay with Yuanzi. As Teenage Qi confronts her father about accepting her life of Yuanzi, she has an unexpected encounter with Chen Shuo, the boy who was in love with her during high school and was unable to express his feelings for her. Unknown to them, this encounter lead to a sudden change…
IN THE PAST : Adult Qi is still actively trying to date Yuanzi years before they became an official couple, in order to push her to be diagnosed and treated for the disease that will kill her 10 years later, and which Yuanzi is yet unaware she has. However, Adult Qi starts to see that things are changing from her memories and not in the way she expects it. First, a painting done by Yuanzi and inspired by Qi is stolen. Then, Chen Shuo confesses his love to her, something he never did in the original timeline. Hearing this, and thinking Qi may actually love Chen Shuo and think of her as nothing more than a friend, Yuanzi run away, leading to Qi chasing after her and hurting her ankle in the process. This accident allows for a long conversation between the two girls, in which finally Adult Qi confesses her true feelings for Yuanzi, further changing their past.
Let me be clear : a lot of things happen in those 200 pages. The story written by WenzhiLizi is gripping, rooted in everyday life and will speak to everyone, with all the characters being well developed and having a distinct personality. Most importantly, this development sheds a new light on the personality of two characters : Chen Shuo, who is finally revealed to have spend his whole life in the shadow of the love between Qi and Yuanzi, and is unable to move forward with his life ; and Xinjue, who is revealed to be secretly in love with Qi and, behind a friendly and helpful face, a manipulative personality who anonymously reveal Qi’s homosexuality online out of spite when she understands that her love will never be returned.
The struggle of Teenage Qi to adapt to adult life is paralleled in the way past Yuanzi learns to accept her own sexuality : both girls hide their true feelings and personality behind the mask of shyness, until they manage to accept their love for each other. In some ways, this is a classic ‘master and student’ story, with each of the main characters playing the opposite role in each of the different timelines. This is a story that had me totally hooked, the thin veil of sci-fi never hiding the beautiful slice of life I’ve read here.
ART : 7 – Keranbing’s art is still good looking, even with computer-colors (mind you, it was first designed to be read on cellphones and e-readers). It suits the story well, the only flaw I can find is that nearly all adult male characters don’t seem to have aged a bit during the 10 years gap between the two timelines : lucky bastards!
STORY : 8 – Even better than the first volume, with higher stakes and many twists. However, I think that the part about the forced coming out on social media is important but not as developed as I had hoped it would be. This is quite a problem in the real world, and it would have been interesting to see it tackled more deeply here.
CHARACTER : 9 – All characters get more fleshed out, even the secondary ones. More importantly, all motivations behind actions get explained. The past is changing, and with it the way each people see themselves and their place in the present little play.
SERVICE : 0 – Not even a kiss.
YURI : 10 – A lesbian time-traveling into the past to save the life of her lover and live happily ever long after with her : how more Yuri can you get ?
OVERALL: I won’t lie, I read it in a single take. While the sci-fi nerd that I am is quick to point out some small inconsistencies (time paradoxes, all the way!!), it never distracted me from the fact that this is a well written story, with charming characters that are easy to get attached to.
I can’t wait to read the third and final volume, for they all deserve their happy ending (yes, even poor Chen Shuo and jealous Xinjue!)
“to answer your question: the person I love is currently carrying me on her back.”
Erica here: Fantastic. I wonder what Volume 3 will bring! Thank you again, Laurent.
