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LOTRKing on Genshiken, Volume #9
by James Hunt ~ December 13th, 2007
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There’s a certain bittersweetness to the ending of a manga series. In my experience, the manga industry has refined storytelling into a variety of specific archetypes in a way western comics haven’t. Genshiken, being a manga in the “slice of life” genre, was always going to get an ambiguous, “life goes on” ending. That’s just how it works.
And, true to form, that’s what we got. The series’ major subplot - the unrequited feelings that uber-nerd Madarame holds for Saki, the only non-geek in their group of friends - is, if not resolved, at least brought to some conclusion, in one emotionally rough chapter near the end. It was always going to be a difficult moment to write, so I think the choice to make a silent chapter depicting the events after was an effective way of dealing with any expectations the readers had. Without being given dialogue, we’re free to insert our own, which, in a way, gives the story the exact ending we want, but for a series based around amusing and insightful dialogue, I’ve never missed it more than then.
Sadly, the other main plot I was hoping we’d see - the increasing trouble in Kohsaka and Saki’s relationship - never comes up. It’s the epitome of the life goes on ending - all the signs for the story are there, all the hints have been dropped, but when we leave the Genshiken cast, they’re not even thinking about it. It’s a chapter that’ll happen another day, without us.
The final volume isn’t perfect - the previous volume, in fact, is vastly superior - but it is a fitting end for the series. Most of the characters turn up for a last hurrah, and in Genshiken club tradition, a new president is chosen for the next Univesity year. As we leave, the club that began with Madarame, Tanaka, Shodai, Kugayama, Kohsaka and Sasahara consists of Ohno, Oguie, Keiko and Kuichi - the entire original cast have left the Genshiken behind, and presumably that’s why Shimoku Kio, the author, felt like it was time to wrap the series up.
I’ve said before, but I’ll say it again - Genshiken is nothing less than a must-read. Massively re-visitable, it’s up there with Scott Pilgrim as the comic I’d most like to be trapped in. You feel for these characters, not just because they’re well-written, but because you look at their actions, their thoughts, their successes and failures and you go “yeah, that could’ve been me.” I’ll never stop marvelling at how a depiction of geeks and nerds from literally halfway around the planet manages to be capture the mentality so well that it’s personally relevant to me. I’m sad to see it go, but glad that it never got bad.
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December 14th, 2007 at 8:50 pm
I’m glad to see someone else really enjoyed reading this great manga.
December 15th, 2007 at 1:40 am
Too soon. That’s the only way I can think of it. I wanted closure,I wanted more chapters,I wanted to see Ogiue’s turn as president. I’m happy that we got anything approaching an ending,I’m not happy that it just said,”Time to go” and turned off the cameras. It’ll spawn a hundred fanfics,but they’ll all be inferior - it won’t be real,canon. We won’t ever see how the author would have handled Ogiue’s first yaoi-drawing class,f’rinstance. Or Sue’s induction into the club. Or Ohno’s graduation - I won’t see that,either. Or Kuchiki gaining some sense through repeated beatdowns and exposure to norms. It had so much life left in it. One more volume,Shimoku-san? Please?
Madarame’s situation was so relevant to my own,it hurt to read it. I know what it’s like,to be trapped between your respect,ideals and morals and your love/lust for someone. Clutching at even the slightest connection,wondering,”Do I have a chance? Does he/she feel that way about me?”. The need to not freak someone out with a confession,yet you know you’d regret it for the rest of your life if they didn’t even know how much they meant to you.
And not being able to spit it out,not really,not truthfully. That was the worst.
The best,though? Anything with Ogiue. Sue’s stay with her was just too funny. Reading through a foot-high stack of BL,speaking in quotes and behaving like the weeaboo to end all weeaboos is,again,something like what I’d do - not the BL,though :-P.
Epic post-angst manga rewrite was epic.
Acceptance into Afternoon was self-insert epic win.
Finally,Kasukabe’s cosplay - whoa. I’d have been second in line after Madarame. If they show that fully in the anime,it may just beat Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann’s episode 6 for concentrated fanservice *nosebleed*. But how did Ohno-san know of Madarame’s ‘interest’?
December 15th, 2007 at 1:51 am
Despite Oguie’s later popularity, the series really is Madarame’s story. He’s the character who goes the furthest and who represents the specific otaku ideology - how do you reconcile being otaku to the core with a life that looks down on that?
The sad answer is that you have to wear it on your sleeve and hope that you find someone who understands that it’s not a part of you, it IS you. It worked out for the others, but in Madarame’s case, it hasn’t worked out so well. At least he’s made it this far.
In a way, I admire Shimoku for capping the series off in a realistic way. You can’t always find closure in life. So many of the plot threads disappear, but the characters are so well-realised, it’s like I say - you feel as if these things are still happening, just… we can no longer see them.
December 16th, 2007 at 3:08 pm
[...] did a review over on my Comics Blog but to be honest, I’m still wrestling with the fact that Genshiken has finally ended with the [...]
December 22nd, 2007 at 11:45 pm
I was a little disappointed with this last volume but it was a fitting way to end the series.
Though, I was hoping for more development between Sasahara and Ogiue. It seemed like they weren’t even going out in volume 9 when you look at all the events in volume 8, which were really fun to read the shy relationship between the two.
Genshiken was a fun read though, and I’ll miss the characters for sure.