In Volume 1, we met Tasuku, a high school student who was being bullied for being gay, finally admitting to himself he is gay. In Volume 2, Tasuku reaches out to a young trans kid and ends up hurting and being hurt, depite good intentions.

In Our Dreams at Dusk: Shimanami Tasogare, Volume 3 Tasuku must deal with real-world consequences of “being gay” in public. As Tasuku starts to to parse his feelings about a classmate whose erratic behavior leaves him constantly unsure of the intent, he also watches as association with the Cat Clutter group gives him a reputation for being one of the queers. Every time things get ugly, Tasuku has to figure out how to respond in a way that causes himself the least pain without betraying himself and others. In the end, it’s Utsumi-kun who provides him with a role model who understands what he’s supposed to be, and knows that sometimes, as a human, he’s not that.

When things come to a crisis in his own life, Tasuku takes an important step forward, carving  his own space out of his world. He takes a stand with Tsubaki-kun, demanding respect for himself and the other members of the group. Once again, accompanied by magnificent art that blows the borders of the page wide open, Tasuku takes a forceful step out of the closet.

In the final pages, Tasuku finally decides on a direction for himself, and the others of the group. When Volume 4 hit shelves in December, we’re getting a wedding! ^_^

I’ve praised this series so much, but haven’t really managed to convey just how profound and intentional it has been. There’s a lot of emotion uncovered in this series:; from the isolation of queer kids,  to confusion at an unfair society and anger at and pity for homophobic assholes. The art is epic in ways that are usually occupied by music in visual media, forcing us to sing songs inside our heads of discovery, of epiphany…and, ultimately, of joy.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 9
Characters- 8
LGBTQ – 10
Service – 2 Things that might be considered service exist

Overall – 10

This was and remains one of the most compelling series I have ever read. I keep trying to put it down and failing to do so.

As a tangent on my review of Sexiled last week, one of the things I like in this volume particularly is how it addresses the anger of queer folks at the aggressive cluelessness of  people who just will not listen to them.  The anger of queer people and the anger of women and people of color and religious minorities in every nation and the anger of any marginalized group in any environment is real. We’re being given a chance to hear that anger expressed. Next up is to change the systems that are responsible for that anger.  Onward, friends. Let us dismantle the master’s house with our own tools of art and words and music and protest and turn that into law and policy that creates a more welcoming world.

Every once in a while in any media, something comes along that is so radical, so once-in-a-lifetime, so game changing that even if the buzz around it is hyperbolic, it cannot be enough. (Except for television, which talks about every show as if it is a masterpiece, no matter how banal.) When it comes to queer manga, we’ve had a relative glut the past few years with manga like My Brother’s Husband, My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness and now this extraordinary story.

In Volume 1, we met Tasuku, a young man being bullied for his sexuality, something he wasn’t sure about at all. At the Drop-In Center, he meets a group of LGBTQ individuals, who change his life, Haruko and her wife Saki, Chaico, an elderly gay man, Nanami-kun older than Tasuku, but young and attractive to him, and Misora, a young trans girl.

In Our Dreams at Dusk: Shimanami Tasogare, Volume 2, Tasuku tries to understand Misora a little better. She’s struggling with mutually exclusive gender identity and puberty. She’s so alone that Tasuku’s attempts to get closer are seen as insults. And Tasuku only has so much time and attention for the youngest member of the Drop-In Center, as he’s finally starting to admit to himself what the people around him have known…that he is gay. He is learning to accept that he has a crush on a classmate, to figure out what he’s going to do with the house he’s been given to rehabilitate and, in the few empty spaces, he’s trying to be there for Misora, who isn’t making it easy. Misora’s struggles are equal or greater to Tasuku’s, but he only has so much of himself to spread around. A friendly date to a local festival ends in disaster.

Haruko takes several opportunities to make important points about LGBTQ people and life, and is, as she has been from the beginning, the strong backbone of this circle.

Beyond the drama that is stirring at the Center, and unbeknownst to Tasuku, his crush may have learned his secret.  Volume 3 will be explosive.

The art is excellent, at times breathtaking. The representation of queer people living their lives, dealing with both society and individuals who seek to harm them, or make them invisible, and the internal struggle with acceptance and understanding that every individual must work through, is handled in very real, very nuanced strokes.

Creator Yuhki Kamatani and the series deserve all the praise they received. I also want to take a moment to note the folks who have worked on the English adaptation: translator Jocylene Allen; adapter Ysabet MacFarlane, both of whom I consider masters at their craft; Kaitlin Wiley, who did lettering and retouch – one of the most difficult jobs in manga; KC Fabellon whose cover design is true to the original and legible and striking; original designer Hiroshi Nigami, a credit I am very pleased to see here; proofreaders Kurestin Armada and Danielle King, editor Jenn Grunigen, and Production Manager Lissa Patillo the unsung heroes of great works. Amazing job, every one of you. Please note that Seven Seas credits every single person who brought this amazing manga to you. Not every manga company does and I want to say that this is definitely one of two things that has set Seven Seas apart from every other company since the beginning.  I’m also going to shout out to Lianne Sentar who is Marketing Manager for Seven Seas, and Jason and Adam at the top who make the choices. This was a really good one.

I hope to see this book break records, like Nagata-sensei’s work has, because if there is a manga series that I consider more important to LGBTQ folks than Lesbian Experience….it’s this one.

Our Dreams at Dusk: Shimanami Tasogare is a masterpiece of LGBTQ life in Japan and a masterwork of a manga.

Ratings:

Art – 8
Story – 9
Characters- 8
LGBTQ – 10
Service – 0

Overall – 9

It has been just shy of a year since I reviewed the Japanese edition of this book. Even knowing what will happen in Volume 3 (slated for a September release, whoo!) and Volume 4 (which hits shelves in December!), I cannot wait to read them all over again!

When I reviewed the Japanese edition, so many of you said you couldn’t wait for it in English. Well…here it is! This series will make a great  holiday gift for your young queer friends and relatives. ^_^