One of the most bittersweet manga in recent memory makes its English language debut in A Brief Moment of Ichika. At the age of 16, Ichika Sendawara learned that she only had two years left to live. Now a 2nd year college student, she lives a busy, upbeat life, despite never knowing when the end will come. Everything changes when Ichika meets Professor Yurugi – for the first time she feels she has something to live for. But then Yurugi quietly leaves the university, and Ichika is left wondering why, and what could have been…
There have been several strong manga and anime releases in recent years focusing on terminal illness such as Your Lie In April and I Want To Eat Your Pancreas. It would be an understatement to say it’s a delicate subject matter, so it is always interesting to see how creators approach the topic. Whilst not necessarily light-hearted, manga artist Natsu Tadano give readers a protagonist who is far more upbeat than she has any right to be.
Given how stories like this typically go, it’s easy to forget that Ichika is living on borrowed time. But it is her approach to her circumstances that she has been dealt that carry the story. Her optimistic approach and desire to carry on life as normal acts as a strong contrast to that of her crush Yurugi – who also turns out to have a terminal illness. There is obviously no right way to handle a situation like these two are in – but Tadano does create a moving look at how people react differently to knowing they don’t have much time left, with Ichika wanting to carry on as normal as possible and Yurugi wanting to shut himself away so not to burden anyone with potential grief.
Tadano’s art is well suited to the subject at hand. There are plenty of sad moments in this opening volume, but the contrast with Ichika being a classic female manga protagonist with the right dosages of clumsiness and optimism against the more serious subject matter creates a surprisingly fun reading experience. The characters are all expressive and the art has a clean touch to it without being too sleek.
A Brief Moment of Ichika may sound like a tough read, but it succeeds in balancing some delicate topics with humour and hope that make it well worth reading.
A Brief Moment Of Ichika 1 is out 23 April from Vertical (9781647291525, p/b, £13.99)
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