Mizushiro Setona - After School Nightmare, vol. 10 (Chi. trans.)

[oyceter]

Wow, end of the series!

Huh. So if everyone in the school is there waiting to be born, why all the self-growth stuff involved in the dream class? Especially since unborn people theoretically don't have life experiences to have issues with. Unless ... I have no idea.

Having Ichijo choose between being male or female made much more sense once I realized s/he was twins, and that makes me less unhappy with Ichijo being forced to make a choice among binary options. Plus, born!Ichijo may grow up identifying as very androgynous or deciding to go MTF, though the latter seems less likely, given that presumably born!Ichijo will subconsciously remember choosing to be female and thereby have less disconnect? On the other hand, born!Ichijo may very well also subconsciously remember being very conflicted, so who knows.

I very much liked the stress on making the choice that is right for the individual, not the choice that conforms to gender roles or what the sex of the person you like is.

And Kureha! I am SO GLAD she gets stuff to do! I loved it so much when she yelled at the copy-cat guy to find his own strength, and her joke about having the chops for the acting part because she has been a tree before, and her general ease with herself and with others. And I love love love that Sou, Ichijo, and Kureha end up hanging out together.

I am still trying to figure out how I feel about the whole unborn baby thing. In that case, why is the nurse Ichijo's mother? Or does the nurse look different depending on who sees her? I do like the black moon turning out to be a hole in the sky. And I will hopefully have more thoughts about the gender issues once I reread in English.

Comments

[flamika.livejournal.com]

I just recently got into this series (mostly on account of your meta on it ^^), and I like it a lot. I'd seen raws for Volumes 6-10, but, of course, I hadn't the slightest what was going on. Now I'm really intrigued to see everything that happens because all these developments seem really cool. I can't wait for the ninth and tenth volumes to be released in English.

[oyceter]

Yay! I love it when people read things because of my recs! I cannot wait to read the English translations as well, because I'm sure I missed a lot of nuances in Chinese.

[the_rck]

Especially since unborn people theoretically don't have life experiences to have issues with. Unless ... I have no idea.

Is there any indication that there's reincarnation involved? That would make the experiences and such make more sense.

I'm still several volumes back, so I've less information for speculation, but I read spoilers for most things as spoilers help me overcome anxiety about texts.

[oyceter]

I don't think that the series has hints re: reincarnation, though I'd have to reread to be sure. I.e. good excuse for me to finally get vols. 1-4 ;).

[shewhohashope.livejournal.com]

WILL. NOT. LOOK.

YOU ARE AN EVIL TEMPTRESS.

[oyceter]

BWAHAHAHAHA!

[kate_nepveu]

*averts eyes from spoilers* So do you recommend the series overall?

[oyceter]

Yes, definitely! It's a very interesting look at gender roles, plus it has gorgeous art and atmosphere and I love the main characters.

(I'm not sure how much you want to know and can comment more if you want?)

[kate_nepveu]

No, that's fine; I'd just seen some people expressing doubts about where it was headed based on early volumes and wasn't sure if it ended up being sporkworthy or not.

[buymeaclue.livejournal.com]

...whoa.

What?

[tatterpunk.livejournal.com]

Right there. Where you are.

[oyceter]

Yes! It was very odd! I need to reread and see if there is more foreshadowing that makes it make more sense.

[joopawoopa.livejournal.com]

Wow, where did you find the Chinese translation of volume 10? I only found the Japanese scans, and thus had to guess what was going on *sad face*.

From what I read from other sources, the dream was actually the purgatory or something, so I guess they were reincarnating? I don't know...

[oyceter]

I, uh, bought it in Taiwan.

Oh, huh, reincarnating makes more sense... Cannot wait for the actual English translation...

[marfisa.livejournal.com]

That would make more sense, although if there was any reference to reincarnation in the English translation, I missed it. Unless the nurse (I think) telling Ichijo something to the effect of, "You were supposed to be two, but there's only enough fate left for one" (presumably due to the problems with his/her mother's pregnancy which render it impossible for both babies to survive) counts.

Not having thought of the reincarnation angle, I thought perhaps the problems the other students besides Ichijo were struggling with were possible scenarios which might play out with the families they were originally scheduled to be born into. The final scene appears to indicate that Sou, at least, also managed to get born somehow, although it looked as if his circumstances might be pretty different from the way things turned out in his pre-birth "life."

Up until near the end, Kureha's assumption that the fire that broke out in the maternity nursing home meant the rest of them wouldn't be getting a chance to "graduate" seemed likely to be accurate. But Ichijo's mother seemed to be assuming that at least some of the other patients were not dead, but only unconscious due to smoke inhalation (which she presumably wasn't due to having fallen on the floor trying to get out of bed). And something about the way the Go!Comi translator translated the dialogue after her cries to the firefighters that "We're here!" seemed to suggest that she might be right.

[oyceter]

I have finally reread in English! But yeah, it does seem as though the other classmates are not born, even though Ichijo meets a Sou analogue briefly in her new life. I'm hoping that all the others survived as well, because it would kill me if Kureha didn't make it!

kool

[(Anonymous)]

I love the ending 'cause it's absolutely out of anybody's prediction, & made more sense on something as well!
Though I want a happier & clearer ending ^^ but it must be Mizushiro Setona-sensei own style.
There're things still wondered me:
1, Only mashiro graduate & born in real life ,& then we saw her walking along the street & meet Sou by chance, what does that mean? Sou was graduated & born in real life too?
2, kurosaki-senpai :(( I still not find any clue about this guy since everybody only consider 'bout sou-mashiro-kureha :D! Can you give me some hints? His past, his feeling for mashiro, the way he graduate...He's the dark knight who did terrible things to mashiro rite?

[rachelmanija.livejournal.com]

So if everyone in the school is there waiting to be born, why all the self-growth stuff involved in the dream class? Especially since unborn people theoretically don't have life experiences to have issues with.

Two thoughts:

1. As someone else said, they're in between reincarnations, so there's still hangovers from previous lives.

2. The important part wasn't so much the specific issues, as the idea of gaining emotional strength through struggle and suffering. They won't recall the specifics, but the strength will stay with them when they do face problems in their lives to come.

Maybe there's also an element of seeing the future, so their experiences are keyed to help them get through events that will occur in their next life.

[oyceter]

Yeah, thinking back on it, I think it must be reincarnation, as it totally makes no sense otherwise. Also, wow, I really need to reread this. And doing so in English will be greatly helpful!