Does anyone else think this story is a little formulaic? (Spoilers up to ~chapter 60)

Feb 17, 2022 6:11 AM

Offline

Aug 2017

37

It's an abyss
you go inside, either you die or you live until you tell everyone about your experience for knowledge ofc (past)

IDK if we can say it's formulaic or not
still enjoying though

Feb 18, 2022 9:28 AM

#3

chloe5445

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Nov 2020

1

I feel the same, but for a different reason. Every arc highlights bonding between two cute characters (Nanachi/Mitty, Riko/Prushka, Vueko/Fapta's mom, Nanachi and Mitty pt2, Fapta and Reg) and then one of the characters dies before or after some sad flashback. Only Fapta escaped the cycle so far. I want a bit more variety between tragic stories, I do feel that after Nanachi/Mitty succes author is pushing this formula too much

Feb 19, 2022 10:53 AM

#4

meowmeowgaming

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Aug 2020

29

chloe5445 said:
I feel the same, but for a different reason. Every arc highlights bonding between two cute characters (Nanachi/Mitty, Riko/Prushka, Vueko/Fapta's mom, Nanachi and Mitty pt2, Fapta and Reg) and then one of the characters dies before or after some sad flashback. Only Fapta escaped the cycle so far. I want a bit more variety between tragic stories, I do feel that after Nanachi/Mitty succes author is pushing this formula too much

Yeah, I really hope the next arc changes this a bit. I was really excited when the characters were entering the 6th layer of The Abyss since it is the point of no return, I thought the events of the manga would go beyond insanity, but it is still just the same arcs as before but a different setting. It is pretty dissappointing seeing The Abyss be turned into something so formulaic.

Tezubeh said:
It's an abyss
you go inside, either you die or you live until you tell everyone about your experience for knowledge ofc (past)

IDK if we can say it's formulaic or not
still enjoying though

I am still enjoying it too, I just wish it could be better, and I don't think just because its The Abyss you can only tell people about what happened to you. There are lots of different ways you can tell a story. A flashback is just 1 of many literary devices you can use to tell a story, and that shouldn't be used every single time in every single arc to explain all the new characters.

Feb 20, 2022 7:05 AM

#5

Tezubeh

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Aug 2017

37

chloe5445 said:
I feel the same, but for a different reason. Every arc highlights bonding between two cute characters (Nanachi/Mitty, Riko/Prushka, Vueko/Fapta's mom, Nanachi and Mitty pt2, Fapta and Reg) and then one of the characters dies before or after some sad flashback. Only Fapta escaped the cycle so far. I want a bit more variety between tragic stories, I do feel that after Nanachi/Mitty succes author is pushing this formula too much

oh man, the formula would change if they meet Srajo or Wakuna.
I wish in 2-3 chapters, they would meet one of them asap

Feb 20, 2022 8:26 AM

#6

philippe9648

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Oct 2020

12

I think you bring up a good point- I've thought about the same as well.

However, and this is where my experience differs a bit from yours, in Made in Abyss the flashbacks/backstories are all extremely unique and teach us important new pieces of how the abyss works. The backstories and friendships shown in MiA are more than just means through which to advance the plot- they are essential pieces of worldbuilding, theme exploration, and opportunities for meaningful character development. Through Nanachi, we learn about the outside world, the warped nature of white whistles, and the blessing of the abyss. Through Prushka, we learn about how white whistles are made, more about the blessing of the abyss, and how the abyss captures the imagination of its people. Through Vueko, we learn about how the abyss warps the desires of its raiders, we get a story about redemption and regret, and the frightening effects of ambition. There is a new theme with each of the arcs, and as a whole, they show us how the Abyss warps the lives and desires of the people in this world, each time in a new way.

So yes, I do feel like it is a bit formulaic, but I don't think the formula takes too much away from the story. Also, I feel like we are still pretty early in the series, so I could definitely see it changing in the future.

Feb 25, 2022 4:06 PM

#7

slenderblak

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Apr 2020

262

meowmeowgaming said:

chloe5445 said:
I feel the same, but for a different reason. Every arc highlights bonding between two cute characters (Nanachi/Mitty, Riko/Prushka, Vueko/Fapta's mom, Nanachi and Mitty pt2, Fapta and Reg) and then one of the characters dies before or after some sad flashback. Only Fapta escaped the cycle so far. I want a bit more variety between tragic stories, I do feel that after Nanachi/Mitty succes author is pushing this formula too much

Yeah, I really hope the next arc changes this a bit. I was really excited when the characters were entering the 6th layer of The Abyss since it is the point of no return, I thought the events of the manga would go beyond insanity, but it is still just the same arcs as before but a different setting. It is pretty dissappointing seeing The Abyss be turned into something so formulaic.

Tezubeh said:
It's an abyss
you go inside, either you die or you live until you tell everyone about your experience for knowledge ofc (past)

IDK if we can say it's formulaic or not
still enjoying though

I am still enjoying it too, I just wish it could be better, and I don't think just because its The Abyss you can only tell people about what happened to you. There are lots of different ways you can tell a story. A flashback is just 1 of many literary devices you can use to tell a story, and that shouldn't be used every single time in every single arc to explain all the new characters.

i disagree completely, its not the same at all,the formula is there but the execution isnt the same at all, the thing about mitty and nanachi differs from faputa's story with reg, the flashback was longer and introduced way more information and made compelling characters to care about in that village, coupled with how beautiful the long scales have gotten the characters arent the same and the flashback set up a different vision in each layer, mitty and nanachi is like a tragic sister hood and shown the struggle of nanachi seeing mitty in a disastrous form, the prushka one is more of a philosophy of a family with bondrewd's ideology on using others to advance human research to keep them from the curse of the abyss that've gotten in their relationship as a father and daughter and riko is pretty much the second person prushka trust after her father hense her becoming a white whistle, the last one about faputa is too complex to explain about the village people who went to search in the abyss without expecting the tragic faith they struggle, losing their human common sense with time to result in losing their humanity completely in the sake of survival, faputa had been the first child of her mother to never die and she fullfills her mission to finally let her rest from years of pain, a formula is used by authors to keep their story consistent and not ruin their pace with a good execution like this and adding even more crazy ideas its what a masterpiece is, the story doesnt need a change of tone yet since it all set it up since the beginning

Apr 4, 2022 6:27 AM

#8

CQLLIST

Offline

Jul 2021

9177

i mean isn't it obvious that it's already formulaic in the first place? just saying and something formulaic doesn't mean it's an all over cycle and as long as the execution is there then it should be fine tbh

Jul 27, 2022 3:34 PM

#9

KuroNekoAlchemy

Offline

Mar 2020

772

No, that's not he formula

The formual is like video game. Mainly, dark souls.

In the beginning, several white whistles were ominously mentioned. They are the bosses of this story.
And consequentially, every time the main characters bump into some kinda barrier preventing them from proceeding forward, they find a level location to explore nearby and a white whistle boss to fight if they want to go further.

First it was ozen, guardian of passage to l3. Then it was bondrewd, guardian of l6.
Now there is a maelstrom blocking passage to l7, and I bet reg will fight Srajo soon.

Then wakuna boss fight, and lyza being the final boss.

Over the course of that, Reg unlocks power ups and shit.

Oct 31, 2022 1:57 AM

#10

Bacharal-Assad

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Oct 2022

13

KuroNekoAlchemy said:
No, that's not he formula

The formual is like video game. Mainly, dark souls.

In the beginning, several white whistles were ominously mentioned. They are the bosses of this story.
And consequentially, every time the main characters bump into some kinda barrier preventing them from proceeding forward, they find a level location to explore nearby and a white whistle boss to fight if they want to go further.

First it was ozen, guardian of passage to l3. Then it was bondrewd, guardian of l6.
Now there is a maelstrom blocking passage to l7, and I bet reg will fight Srajo soon.

Then wakuna boss fight, and lyza being the final boss.

Over the course of that, Reg unlocks power ups and shit.

yeah its Boring asf and too cute and childish

Oct 31, 2022 4:26 AM

#11

KuroNekoAlchemy

Offline

Mar 2020

772

Bacharal-Assad said:

KuroNekoAlchemy said:
No, that's not he formula

The formual is like video game. Mainly, dark souls.

In the beginning, several white whistles were ominously mentioned. They are the bosses of this story.
And consequentially, every time the main characters bump into some kinda barrier preventing them from proceeding forward, they find a level location to explore nearby and a white whistle boss to fight if they want to go further.

First it was ozen, guardian of passage to l3. Then it was bondrewd, guardian of l6.
Now there is a maelstrom blocking passage to l7, and I bet reg will fight Srajo soon.

Then wakuna boss fight, and lyza being the final boss.

Over the course of that, Reg unlocks power ups and shit.

yeah its Boring asf and too cute and childish

I never said it's any of these things, so don't yeah to me

Dec 15, 2022 6:06 AM

#12

APolygons2

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Oct 2019

6783

I feel like that's a very unfair point to bring up.

the abyss is very intentionally designed to be an EXTREMELY dangerous place where a lot of bad things happen. and the deeper they go, the more true it becomes.

it wouldn't feel right for a character to be deep in the abyss, without having experienced something terrible at some point.

be honest, can you imagine someone in layer 5 or below who hasn't had an at least a semi-depressing backstory?

to me characters having horrible shit in their past only makes sense. I would be glad to see 1 character that breaks this pattern, but I also do want that character to be the exception. I even go as far as saying it wouldn't make sense if most characters didn't have a tragic past in one way or another.

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Mar 17, 2023 5:00 PM

#13

Tyon

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Jun 2007

90

Apolygon2 said:
I feel like that's a very unfair point to bring up.

the abyss is very intentionally designed to be an EXTREMELY dangerous place where a lot of bad things happen. and the deeper they go, the more true it becomes.

it wouldn't feel right for a character to be deep in the abyss, without having experienced something terrible at some point.

be honest, can you imagine someone in layer 5 or below who hasn't had an at least a semi-depressing backstory?

to me characters having horrible shit in their past only makes sense. I would be glad to see 1 character that breaks this pattern, but I also do want that character to be the exception. I even go as far as saying it wouldn't make sense if most characters didn't have a tragic past in one way or another.

But bad things don't really happen.
I think it's pretty obvious that the main party will survive till the end of whatever happens then.
Till then they are all save.

So all you see are complete randos being killed, which adds nothing to anything.

So the village was destroyed, so what? Any repercussions on the story?

The story has another problem: They breached the point of no return, everything that has happened since then is entirely meaningless for everyone outside of the group of 4.

The Abyss also used to be something of venturing into a wondrous world. Now they immediately met the next whistle.

Mar 17, 2023 5:42 PM

#14

APolygons2

Offline

Oct 2019

6783

Tyon said:

Apolygon2 said:
I feel like that's a very unfair point to bring up.

the abyss is very intentionally designed to be an EXTREMELY dangerous place where a lot of bad things happen. and the deeper they go, the more true it becomes.

it wouldn't feel right for a character to be deep in the abyss, without having experienced something terrible at some point.

be honest, can you imagine someone in layer 5 or below who hasn't had an at least a semi-depressing backstory?

to me characters having horrible shit in their past only makes sense. I would be glad to see 1 character that breaks this pattern, but I also do want that character to be the exception. I even go as far as saying it wouldn't make sense if most characters didn't have a tragic past in one way or another.

But bad things don't really happen.
I think it's pretty obvious that the main party will survive till the end of whatever happens then.
Till then they are all save.

So all you see are complete randos being killed, which adds nothing to anything.

So the village was destroyed, so what? Any repercussions on the story?

The story has another problem: They breached the point of no return, everything that has happened since then is entirely meaningless for everyone outside of the group of 4.

The Abyss also used to be something of venturing into a wondrous world. Now they immediately met the next whistle.

i mean, reg lost an arm in the movie, and riko almost died in season 1.

this arc was the most stand alone one so far, but i just really loved the story of the village. true it won't matter from now outside of adding a charactet to the party, but the story of the village was more than strong enough to stand on its own imo.

this may have not been the most important arc in the overall story, but it still managed to be my favorite.

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Jul 26, 2023 4:11 PM

#15

Zehennagel

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Jul 2017

1755

meowmeowgaming said:
Note: spoilers up to ~chapter 60

Throughout every arc in the story, it seems like what happens is you meet a character, they are nice to Reg/Riko, then a flashback happens where we learn about their tragic past. In the first arc, we meet Riko, then Reg and Riko go to the seekercamp, where Ozen tells them about Rikos past. In the second arc with Nanachi, Reg and Riko meet her, she is nice to Reg and Riko, then Nanachi tells Reg about her tragic past. In the third arc, we meet Prushka, she is nice to Reg and Riko, then after she dies she gets a flashback about her past. Then in the fourth arc, we meet Veko, Veko is nice to Reg/Riko, then Veko tells them about her tragic past.

This seems pretty formulaic, but maybe I'm just looking at things wrong. I'd like to hear other opinions on this.

it's just some flashbacks, it isn't alwais important in the arc. flachback about riko's birth was important in the whole story. the other ones I guess are important to understand what happened and to understand the world. Also, prushka's flashback wasn't really important in the arc(they happen but don't neccesarily have much importance), so I don't think it is as you said. or not as much as this.

what I want to say is : even if there are indeed flashbacks, it doesn't mean the story in each arc is the same and repeats itself. it's just a tool, not a part of the story in itself.(am I being clear ?)

but indeed everytime they meet people nice to them but that also isn't formulaic I think. it's natural that it happens.

Sep 9, 2023 8:19 PM

#16

ItsaMeAMario

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Nov 2014

112

Reply to chloe5445

I feel the same, but for a different reason. Every arc highlights bonding between two cute characters (Nanachi/Mitty, Riko/Prushka, Vueko/Fapta's mom, Nanachi and Mitty pt2, Fapta and Reg) and then one of the characters dies before or after some sad flashback. Only Fapta escaped the cycle so far. I want a bit more variety between tragic stories, I do feel that after Nanachi/Mitty succes author is pushing this formula too much

@chloe5445 Well, Prushka is still sorta in the story as the white whistle, both Vueko and Irumyuui died, Mitty was never really alive for pt2 and both Faputa and Reg are alive. If anything the formula is painful story + collecting cute loli.

The whole point of the series is the world and how dangerous it is, seems reasonable to be able to explore complicated back stories. I agree though with some people that the author seems to be just trying to create the most painful stories he can.

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Does anyone else think this story is a little formulaic? (Spoilers up to ~chapter 60)

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