NOTE: This is an article I wrote for a previous project and am migrating over to this personal project.
I just completed A Silent Voice by Yoshitoki Ōima. The manga is simply wonderful. I have started the manga off and on. But over this past week, I read all seven volumes from start to finish. Having watched the film prior (which everyone should watch), my perspective is unchanged. Both are wonderful in their own right. However, I am here to talk about the manga and the wonderful use of the medium it was produced in.
Ōima used the medium to its fullest advantage to tell an unconventional and under represented story. The characters are life-like and make readers feel the characters: their emotions, their thoughts, their story. I love the use of silence in the manga, the lack of speech and text in beautiful sequences told through action, perspective, and emotion. This is a manga for anyone who is looking for a heartwarming story, a story that can put you to tears with saddness and laughter (I know I shed a few).
The manga itself will not change my life, but it has touched my life for the better and given me many gifts. With these, I hope to change my life and not take life itself for granted and death a solution to anything. I know I have personally experienced some what these characters have thought, done, and wished. For anyone who is in a similar, dark place, please learn from these characters and reach out, listen, and live. Afterall, even a silent voice can be a beautiful one.
P.S. I also drew Shoko a few years ago and wanted to to share. It’s a bit rough, but I love the series to much not to share!