is a Japanese

existentialist Existentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. In examining meaning, purpose, and value ...

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

series written and illustrated by Shūzō Oshimi. It was serialized in

Futabasha is a Japanese publishing company headquartered in , Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan. Futabasha is known for its manga works, and its 1967 magazine Manga Action first conceived of the manga category, decades before the other major companies tested th ...

's '' Manga Action'' from March 2012 to September 2016, and published in nine volumes. An eight-episode television drama adaptation from

Fuji TV JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as or , is a Japanese television station that serves the Kantō region as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network System (FNS). The station is owned-and- ...

was released in March 2017. The manga and television drama received a universally positive critical reception, praising its

deconstruction In philosophy, deconstruction is a loosely-defined set of approaches to understand the relationship between text and meaning. The concept of deconstruction was introduced by the philosopher Jacques Derrida, who described it as a turn away from ...

of the body swap genre and depiction of identity and

gender dysphoria Gender dysphoria (GD) is the distress a person experiences due to inconsistency between their gender identitytheir personal sense of their own genderand their sex assigned at birth. The term replaced the previous diagnostic label of gender i ...

Plot

An existential

of the body swap and '' yuri''

genre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other fo ...

s, the basic premise is initially presented as college dropout Isao Komori waking up in the body of high-school girl Mari Yoshizaki, only to find his college self still exists. As the story unfolds, as Komori bonds with fellow student Yori Kakiguchi (who is in love with Mari), it is revealed that Komori is, in fact, an alter of Mari's, who has dissociative identity disorder, who created the alter based on the real Komori while depressed.

Media

Manga

The series is written and illustrated by Shūzō Oshimi. It started serialization in '' Manga Action'' on March 6, 2012. The series ended in ''Manga Action'' on September 6, 2016. The series was published in nine ''

tankōbon A is a standard publishing format for books in Japan, alongside other formats such as ''shinsho'' (17x11 cm paperback books) and ''bunkobon''. Used as a loanword in English, the term specifically refers to a printed collection of a manga that w ...

'' volumes. In January 2014,

Crunchyroll Crunchyroll is an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming service owned by Sony, Sony Group Corporation. The service primarily distributes fi ...

announced that they would release chapters of the series simultaneously with the Japanese release on their '' Crunchyroll Manga'' service. In August 2018, Denpa announced they licensed the series for digital and print releases.

Volumes

TV drama

live-action Live action is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live action with animation to create a live-action animated feature film. Live action is used to define film, video games or ...

television drama adaptation was announced by

in March 2017. It was eight episodes in length and was released on Fuji TV's streaming service on March 31, 2017. The series was directed by Sumisu, Hatsuki Yokoo, and Hiroto Totsuka, with Yūko Shimoda writing the scripts, and Shiggy Jr. performing the main theme. Elaiza Ikeda and Ryo Yoshizawa performed the lead roles.

Reception

Jeannette Ng from ''All the Anime'' praised the series'

of the body swap genre where "instead of silly misunderstandings and even sillier shenanigans that that premise implies tswiftly unfolds into body horror and bluntly uncomfortable examinations of sexuality hile usingthis now classic set-up to explore and embody issues of identity and

". Ross Locksley from ''UK Anime Network'' praised the first volume for the story and art, calling it a "pretty fine read", with Cy Catwell from ''But Why Tho?'' calling it "a deeply discomforting story that’s very well-written n exploringwhat probably would eallyhappen if people switched bodies. That is to say, it explores the '' horror'' of body-swapping, and how distressing it would be if you woke up in a body that doesn’t align with who you are hichis a twisty first, setting up a curious story about bodies and literal out of body experiences hat arehaunting, discomforting, and curious all the same". Nicholas Dupree from ''

Anime News Network Anime News Network (ANN) is a news website that reports on the status of anime, manga, video games, Japanese popular music and other related cultures within North America, Australia, Southeast Asia and Japan. The website offers reviews and ot ...

'' also offered praise to the story as an "intense journey through thorny, provocative topics".

References

External links

Official website
* {{Manga Action 2017 Japanese television series debuts Crunchyroll manga Dissociative identity disorder in popular culture Drama anime and manga Existentialist anime and manga Fiction about body swapping Fuji Television dramas Futabasha manga Manga adapted into television series Mystery anime and manga Seinen manga Shūzō Oshimi