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Is it worth it to read? Yes. Could have been better, but it felt more like a cumbersome attempt of the author to give a psychosexual interpretation to the idea of the "other side" that aku no hana presented (which was more idealistic, about escaping the mundane restraints of a mundane life, with a fatalistic suicidal flavor to it regarding what is outside the confines of what was lived and felt so far) while adding the gender-related anguish of wanting to transcend one´s own masculinity. With that concept, the author wanted to make an story that made that idea come across, but it came off ... as empty, to not say unintentionally comical. Repeated scenes of Kei teasing the mc and he feeling oddly conflicted about it (in contrary to others, i have no problems with the sexual advances of Kai at all), increasingly so to the point of feeling uncomfortable even with his own desires, it came across as like his CBT fixation close to the ending. Him feeling self-hatred for feeling horny for the girl that he had a crush on initially was incredibly corny. The lesbian side character was just there but no complain. The concept of the "other side" on aku no hana was way more interesting, though i wont compare it to that manga because it is not meant to be the same obviously (other mangas of the author share interpretations of that idea as well). It is, ultimately, a weak love triangle that is written, more passionate between Yo and Kei, mixed with an easy to resolve (not to mention unremarkable) inner conflict Yo has that is dragged a bit until the very end, where it all blossoms into an unison of feelings between the two.

At the end, i think not even the author understood nor got to even define what the gender-related "other side" is, it felt more like an exercise of trying to understand that notion he had while also mixing the gender-related self disgust he felt with his own sexuality. I understood that he enjoyed things related to sexuality through the glance of imagining himself as a girl, but the rest was simply confusing. Seems like the what the author intended to express and that he has written about in some pages didnt translated well into the story itself.

So at the end it wasnt much, but just for the charming nature of it i deemed as enjoyable so i do not actively dislike it. Also i understand the self-disgust the author expressed about masculinity and i get how it feels to appreciate it from the perspective of an imaginary girl he imagined himself as being and that deep down that girl is part of him because he created it and conceptualized her inside himself (that "deep down" is my own personal take about the topic, it is not inserted in the texts present on the manga). It is repetitive but i liked the feel of it, as mangas of the author generally are.

It is a good and light manga that is enjoyable to follow through. Starts in a more episodic nature then becomes a cute yet entertaining enough romantic comedy with a cast of characters that are likable (some people say that the treatment of nagatoro to the MC is harsh but is far from that, i dont how can anyone reasonably think of it as an actual bad treatment), which has chapter-events with the characters that bond them even more and that progress their relations. The relationship between the two main characters is bittersweet and nice, the art is good to see and sometimes the drawing ... of characters have an "ecchi" fashion to it that is just as good to see (Nagatoro), but it is not an ecchi. Overall it is a recomended to read it to the end, especially if you want a comfortable, feel-good comedy manga with a cute romantic yet vanilla sexual tension in between the main characters. The progression of their relationship also feels natural and not forced, remaining satisfaying to the end. Though it felt boring at times, i can see why those who are more into the genre would love this slice of life romcom manga, as it is indeed great for those that are into these stories (even if you arent it is a good read). Delivers what it intends well and it is worth it to read.

Is it worth the read? Yes, most people will agree that it is and indeed it is, though for different reasons than me. The art is really good (to not 10/10), as well as the atmosphere. Often portrayed as a dark and mature story, it takes itself seriously and people consider the contents of it "heavy", which i dont consider it to be. But it is worth it, even if it doesnt deliver well the tragedy it intends, because it is a unique slice of life that manages to reflect the mundane monotony of real life in an interesting way. This paragraph and the last ... one have no spoiler. Now for the spoiler review piece below:

The supposed emotionality that someone can feel for the story and for the ending can only be felt if one takes seriously the emotional "arc/anguish" of punpun, which i cant take seriously. I dont buy it, as his life was not the awful thing most people and punpun himself paint it to be and by the time he gets to live alone that becomes even more obvious (even his school life wasnt bad and he only didnt made it move forwards with Aiko because of his own fault). People were nice with him and he was able to get a comfy yet simple job (though nothing that good), no problem getting laid (his awkward pushy situation with that girl was unnecessary and he certainly could have been intimate with her if he was a more patient), he was good at socializing in his own introverted way with others and honestly i think he could have had even found someone better than tachi (tachi isnt a good partner as much as others say she is but better than nothing). In between all of that he kept constantly mourning about aiko and life while engaging in self loathing constantly (i am not foreign to that myself, but it got obnoxious with punpun), which made his personality get really tiresome since it didnt felt in tune with the direction is life was going and his constant anguish was as shallow as the nature of his "tragedy"; His situation with Aiko is even more nonsensical once you realize that he could have had simply stayed with her after winning the bet, but the story needed for him to stay apart from her, so punpun simply decided to not to because he "felt bad" for the other boy that liked her and that lost the bet.... then drowned again in more pointless self-loathing in the longer main second half, it all feels that punpun´s problems are overexagerated. I know how it feels to engage in self-loathing due to bad decisions but in the case of punpun, he doesnt recognize the most crucial ones, which it is his attitude with aiko when he finally met her again. His ending was fitting yet expected, but equally funny in a non intended way because his whole relationship with Aiko doesnt even make sense: He treating her awfully (supposedly he "blamed" her for his "miserable" state, though even that reason is goofy by itself for a number of reasons and it comes off as forced, especially when after he killed out of rage and protective impulse for harming a girl he idealized and loved) and the reciprocated love-hate between them at the end was more funny than anything, since punpun´s violent abusive attitude comes off out of nowhere after he is shown protective yet tender feelings for her, not to mention that, again, Aiko just got even more depressed because of him and the reason it took so long for him to see her again to "make up" for the broken childhood promise was his own fault. Was it because he felt disappointed with aiko? Or because his love wasnt real? Feels flat regardless. Could have felt way more natural with some tweaks to the story. My criticism isnt because the ending is unhappy at all, because i loved how edgy it got to be, but about the execution-impact feeling weak There are two ways you can see this manga:

One is through a very serious glance, in which you read it and take it seriously as a masterpiece of "the dark nature of reality", of how sad life is (which i dont feel it is). Or with the same approach you can take it seriously to the glance of punpun, while interpreting EVERYTHING punpun does and thinks as consequence of his detached family and the incident with midori (both which are not as bad as it is regarded as being, especially the second one, which was not traumatizing as it is exageratedly claimed to be and i doubt asano intended for it to be), and then take seriously the story even harder by exagerating how tragic the life of punpun is (which it really isnt); if you look at it objectively, punpun didnt had actual bad things happening to him at all, aside from his bad family environment which was just that. Either way, one of the ways to appreciate this manga is through taking it seriously and as deeply as possible, as a profound manga about how sad life is and about human emotions, then pretend that what happens in this manga is extremely visceral and dark. These ways of appreciating the manga are how most people look and think about this manga (It has become a sensation and a lot say that it is a relatable masterpiece of human emotion). Punpun gets sad merely for existing at the end of the day while thinking about aiko. Multiple video essays, multiple discussions online yet i cant see what everyone seems to see of deep, depressing and masterful about it the manga nor why it is regarded as being "too heavy" to read. It is surprising how deeply this story is regarded by the majority of those that read it. Doesnt mean it is bad, just not deep.

Second way you can appreciate this manga is viewing it in an somewhat fun fashion, as a manga that has random yet somewhat funny situations where the characters found themselves through, in a slice of life way. Not that you will consider it a dark comedy, but that you will enjoy it for how interesting it is in presentation. Still an imperfect way to read the manga, since the manga itself mixes the few bits of humor and the engaging sexual-twisted-surrealistic moments with very strong serious undertones regarding punpun's supposed anguish, but the story of his "tragedy" is not good by itself. It is a drama meant to be taken seriously so obviously not enjoying the whole drama already makes up for a lackluster appreciation of the manga. If punpun had an even harder time with others (and his reason for being separating of aiko in his teens wasnt due to him "feeling bad" for a buddy) it could have been the spice the story needed, as i do really like the tone and whole feel of this manga. It could have been way better. The manga tries to portray the value punpun places in his sexual life, which are relatable, but the frustration it equally tries to convey of being denied that doesnt fit because again... punpun doesnt have a hard time getting laid neither... so why the frustration? For example there was a part where he shows interest in a girl he meets in the driving and a girl at a convenience store, he expresses he would not be able to be with her because she has a boyfriend, while thinking about the girl on driving school equally... then he gets to have sex with chiaki anyway, impersonating the takashi guy, not to mention that by that point he go laid before so... he does actually get laid easily, so what is the point to trying to convey his supposed sexual frustration? After having sex with chiaki and her wanting to go out at some place to continue dating him all nice, he starts hating himself further that it shouldnt be like this and that aiko ruined his life, punpun is extremely whiny for no reasonable reason which makes him loathsome... Despite the inconsistency and how cryptic and pointless punpun himself is, asano manages to write a dysfunctional and distant family setting well, as well as self loathing. The constant presence of sexual desires that punpun has, amidst a boring life, is very relatable. Even on the second half it is interesting how the author progresses with the story in a monotonous way. As mentioned before, it is an interesting manga. It is just hard to take seriously it as a tragedy because he didnt had such a bad life as everyone portrays it to be nor is such a sufferer ("mountain out of a molehill") because the supposed "harsh" aspects of life punpun deals with are not really harsh at all aside from his family background, so it brings down the weight of the story. Also, asano himself mentioned that the problem punpun has, what he lacks is friendship, that is his whole conflict... brings down the supposed anguish of it a lot more if that is analysed further. A person said that it is about punpun being denied emotionally and sexually in life... Aside from his family issues, how is he denied anything? Especially sexually? He isnt. Again, punpun complains a lot for reasons that are not understandable. Punpun also didnt cared much about his lack with his family, asano himself confirmed in one of his streams, which i agree. Most of the supposed "rich narrative" of punpun are deep interpretations others give to every pannel of the story, despite the manga itself not being as deep as it is claimed to be.

What i liked about this manga was the entertaining uniqueness of it. It makes up for an enjoyable good manga with a beautiful melancholic edge to it. The pegasus crew was dull and the moments of the story that werent with Punpun varied in quality (seki and shimizu plot was not interesting at all, while the ones from Punpun´s mother and his uncle were a good read, though the drama of the uncle is still corny regarding his supposed sense of guilt aside from the cheating, because that girl wasnt innocent neither). Still a good read, even if i dont see what is considered dark about it, but ultimately there is way less to unpack in it than people paint it to have (which isnt an issue, just pointing that it isnt as deep in symbolism as it is thought to be). The characters are enjoyable to read through and since the story of this manga are the characters themselves. Punpun´s lust is relatable, the character of God as a side of him resonates when it rarely appears. As i made clear, my problem with it isnt even that i disagree with bleakness and "nihilism", as i do agree with it, but how hard it is to take seriously some of the drama with punpun, especially the supposed "tragedy" story of punpun which is severely exagerated in discussions about the manga. I like the format of the story, how well written the perspective of the characters are presented in the dialogue and panels, which is what character-focused SoL manga should strive to do well. Love how raw the sexual scenes looked as well, the art is great. Unfortunately the story itself is very flawed (as a serious drama) and most interpretations of it come off as worse than what the author may have intended. At the end it is a charming manga, but held back very much so. The panneling and how some things progress has its own charm, so even if it misses the mark to be great it still is unique in the way it is written. Again, the worst flaw of it is the problems the drama related to punpun has. But i cant deny that despite the flaws, it was a comfy read to follow these characters plus 10/10 art. Oh, and it has really good quotes. If viewed without trying to force any meaning nor narrative on it about what it is about and simply view it as being the story of punpun´s life and snippets of other characters it does that role well. In conclusion, the supposed "suffering" of punpun and the tragedy aspect of it is where it is the most flawed, while the panneling, art and the depiction of the mundane tinged with a flavor of melancholic presentation (in a unique SoL way) is the are the best part of the manga, which arent enough when the rest is so flawed. Would be a perfect manga if punpun actually suffered and was denied things more, it would make his relation with aiko more impactful, underdeveloped as it was. The story doesnt feel as dark nor tragic as it is meant to be understood as being.

Would be rated lower if it wasnt for the unique way it is written and the very charming melancholic art. It could have been the perfect type of story and manga but it fails at accomplishing that. Would be a great read if punpun had a way worse life and problems with getting girls, as it would make the role of aiko much more impactful.

I am a Hero is a good manga to follow from the beginning to the middle, but the more it goes on the good of it starts to sour even if not awful. It has a good iteration of a zombie apocalypse scenario in japanese urban areas and has a nice pacing that manages to make it engaging enough to follow through. The relations between the characters were nice (monotonous in a realistic manner) and the sexual parts of it arent the flaws of it (like many say), as it is quite likable/right the attitude of the author regarding certain topics (which is always refreshing ... to see). The romantic relationships themselves were fine, though nothing special or interesting to see. It is good overall.


The flaws of I am a Hero are all due to, however, it losing track of where to go and how to end it, a lack of cohesion that makes it less entertaining and engaging Chapters dedicated to the worldbuilding regarding how the outbreak affected other parts of the world/country (which though good at the start, at the end dont add anything and feels repeated), the "everyone will be one/stream-of-consciousness" development of the zombie virus (which made the whole final volumes incredibly lame), the whole ending portion and how the story ends (the chaos at the top of the tower was somewhat fun but for all the side characters to get there it dragged a bit). Again, the "melting pot" thing of the infections with the big creature and characters, the finale of Hideo and whole conclusion was very unsatisfaying and not even in a "satisfaying", good kind of unsatisfaying, it seemed simply like a waste of time after all the volumes end length it took to get there, which would have not been a problem it the manga was shorter. The ending is not good at all and bring the story down.

The reactions of characters to people turning to zombies was lackluster, as if it was all too normal when it wasnt was odd but gave it a surreal charm. The repetitive nature of the tasks hideo did with other companions to survive was to be expected and inevitable so not a flaw itself, realistic and sometimes contrived as it was. The first portion of the side characters (the section from the 2chan loner to the school) was nice. The monotonous tone of it was good when it was well paced at the start and the beginning was not as flawed as some point out, it was a GOOD monotony. The scenery of the typical areas of japan visited were well drawn and the arr itself was really good in a realistic fashion. The quality, entertaining part of the story is evenly balanced with the quality of the characters, the mc Hideo himself is a nice average guy that wishes he was something more, be it as a hero (which other self proclaimed "losers" on the story want as well) or as a sucessful manga artist, while having his own low sense of self and desires carried along, somewhat relatable (not to most people though) but nothing special as a character at all, there isnt any conclusion to this "character arc" of him. The characters are realistic in the way they are monotonous and not standing out, but it is unfortunate that their relations are not well developed. He gets lucky plenty of times. It also manages to be a refreshing zombie story. Despite my criticism, the ending on the tower is good enough, just lacking in the conclusion to hiro. While i criticized the 2chan users chunks, they were good at the same time and added worldbuilding.

Is it essential to read? No. Is it a good read a some of the few zombie mangas available? Yes, but dont expect much of it unless you love stream of consciousness stuff by the bad end. Could have been way better. Feeling unrewarding is the worst thing about it and i see why it can be regarded as bad based on that alone. It is very unfortunate, because the charming aspect of it and what i find cool about the manga was wasted and could have been a favorite of mine if it wasnt for the empty feeling in a lackluster way it gives off regarding not only the underwhelming conclusion of how even the story as a whole could have had a bit more to it. A better ending to the story and characters, better last chapters would have done wonders. I liked it at the end is worth it. My main dislike tmis that it could have been way better.

Non-spoiler part of review: Skyhigh is a short manga, so it is worth it to read since it ends quickly but recomended in the sense of being essential or worth it for the quality? No.

The story is episodic, following what the characters will decide after their deaths (following what is presented in the synopsis already) and their reasons. It is a type of story that is known for being told by jogoku shoujo, which by itself is good since it has the potential to make up for a good manga or anime. However, what makes Skyhigh very supbar and lackluster is how unintentionally dull ... and funny the stories are in a totally not intended way, ultimately ruining not only the atmosphere but the whole fun/quality of the manga. The reasons are mostly very weak and shallow, the attempts are telling a message are void of a context that makes them resonate with the stories (i dont care for deep messages and deepness at all, but it just feels forced when it happens here for no reason). The whole plot feels very boring, jigoku shoujo (anime) came after this manga and is a much better rendition of this type of episodic story with a main character that navigates through it, the reasons that lead people to use the services of the hell girl are way better and engaging (not to mention the atmosphere is charming and not wasted).

End of non-spoiler review. Now some spoiler mentions of the bad in this manga below:

In one of the stories, the man kills his fiancé because he thinks she doesnt love him for real.... but because he has money (though there is no context for that, he is ugly but she seems like she really likes him. Still a goofy start). He kills her and then puts her below the bed of the hotel room where he killed her.... then he commits suicide out of regret. Then on spirit she sees him doing that.... then, at the end of that story, a random couple borrows that room with the bed where her body was placed and they start intercourse... so instead of going to heaven this killed woman decide to choose eternal damnation to... kill the couple.... for "having fun on top of her".... then it ends with her with a creepy face going to hell and the purgatory keeper girl tells her how bad it will be there. As it can be seen, it was a boring, goofy story that intends to be very serious and the other episodic stories follow the same route of quality (the one from the nonsense vengeful school girls, the melodramatic pointless brothers, the guy that saves the "asshole" woman and etc). The last story was the only one that was slightly better, though still bad. So that is it. I do not know if the other manga sequels to it are any better but i dont feel motivated to read neither. I will still read other works by the author that are not of the skyhigh series.

It was a engaging reading. It goes for a slow approach that has its charms and that makes good use of the repetitive nature of the monologues (because some of the dialogue between the characters are monologues themselves, due to the nature of the main character), though it is still flawed due to the same repeated motifs it insists upon. Regardless, it was an entertaining manga, has a good atmosphere of winter and is written nice. I dont think it had a deep message about society as a goal (just occasionally talked about topics), but the writing of such a type of character like Nakoshi, ... which can be glanced at when transposed to reality optionally. This manga is another type of manga that proves how thrilling the appeal of character-focused stories can turn out, as that type of story is uncommon. The art was also satisfaying in a seinen fashion, even amazing at times. However, it is flawed and i get why it can be unsatisfaying the more it goes on, but fortunately the flaws dont ruin the experience. It is a great manga about a guy wanting to understand not only others but mostly oneself, self-analysis, and it delivers what it intends in such a way that it doesnt make it less entertaining, which could be very easy. Recomended.

An spoiler-filled analysis of the main character and more review: He becomes obsessive with being seen and have his heart recognized by others after doing so with others and seeing the heart of others, because the own manifestations of what people's hearts are (and their "distortions" carry psychological elements that can be traced to himself), so he got eager to know himself and who he really is, which is what he truly wanted when he began soul searching in the first place. He then aimed nanako as the one who will do that, who will see his heart, just like she did when she accepted him when he was ugly but she wasnt capable of that anymore nor there was any cloud in his face, no homunculus....

His obsession with the self got him to abandon her in the past and do the cosmetic surgery, but now, unsatisfied with the fakeness that he chased after, his obsession with the self turned to him chasing after the opposite: The raw, true self he did forgot, but at the end he only got to see his own ugly self of the past on nanako and saw her as just a means to eventually get to truly see what his homunculus, "heart distortion" is. Nanako saw the demon, which is what his obsession triggered even further by the post-trepanation homunculus "seeings".... he wasnt a cloud anymore, but a self obsessed demon. What that means? He eventually cant see the homunculus of others anymore, their hearts, only himself, at the end the distortions all become mimics of himself because his perspective got so ingrained in his own desire/obsession with seeing others as ends to his goal of knowing who he really is that the psychological elements that made the distortions resonate not only with him but with others got erased.

Another component, in second place of the self obsession, that made him become very eager regarding the perspective of others was loneliness: he saw what was ingrained within others but no one was capable of the same with him. Even before he the whole ordeal with the homunculus, he never felt seen and found.

He eventually likely kills nanako in his attempts at being seen, get multiple trepanation holes in his skull and in a delusional fashion continues on to search for an answer to his own sense of self, clearly realizing his own insecurities and ugliness wasnt enough.... maybe you can interpret him being unsatisfied with what he got as him being narcissistic to the point of not accepting that his whole "anguish" was just a matter of not being genuine, and that indeed that his true homunculus and problem regarding his dicotomy of truth and lie, fake and genuine wasnt his main flaw and what could compose a homunculus of his, but his own self-obsession in the first place, which is what drove him since before the cosmetic surgery..... which can be indeed interpretated as the demon. But it is fundamentally Nakoshi in his search for his true self. The image issues nakoshi has, as well as his own sense of shame regarding his looks was a nice theme to see. At the end, the main theme of the manga is Nakoshi and his character. His desire to be seen as what he really is (which he himself doesnt know but has an idea of what he would like for it be, even if that idea itself is equally not clear) is relatable, as well as his inner self-loathing. Of course, the woman might as well not be nanako at all (which is very likely), but it is intereting to pretend she was for the sake of discussion.

It becomes, at the end, a very enjoyable story to think about from time to time. The story gives the impression that it loses track of what to develop and do after a certain point (after nakoshi is done with yukari, then even more so after the hole closing), which makes it waste the build-up even more so further. It would be more fun and entertaining to see the main character in more entertaining situations like he was from the start to yukari, but it was good enough how it was fleshed out, given that the author probably lost track of where to lead the story after Ito's homunculus was figured out. Would be better if it had a more twisted, gory edge to it and added more "spicy" scenarios (more than the ones it had, which were few), but the whole package was cohesive and great even if still flawed. The best about thing manga is that it is simple in presentation and not complex to figure out and follow, yet it has enough to think about and remember about in a fun way. It would have been way better if filler repetitive segments were cut and the ending was more gruesome and violent, because even though it ended up as realistic as it could be, it still felt as if the sense of buildup wasnt satisfaying enough.