Every decision a character makes feels calculated and believable. No one suddenly acts stupid for the sake of the plot. This may sound like a weird thing to praise, but a lot of attention is given to each character’s motive. Their actions and plans will change depending on what they learn about the situation (or rather what they don’t learn) while keeping the same basic goal in mind. Everyone from the Yukawas to the main antagonists to even some of the random grunts have clear and understandable goals. One thing that I appreciate about the characters here is that they all follow a clear line of logic. The character’s aren’t the deepest I’ve ever seen, but they work well for the story the manga’s trying to tell. Her father is bumbling and selfish, but he does genuinely care about his family at the end of the day. Her grandfather is likewise dependable and responsible, albeit he can be somewhat overprotective from time to time. She cares deeply about her family and will do whatever is necessary to keep them safe. Kokkoku’s characters are simple but effective. I’m not gonna go into any spoilers, but there were multiple time reading this where I audibly said out loud “Ew what the fuck?” It’s possible that I’m just easily impressed when it comes to art, but I really do think that the art in this manga is great It’s one of the main reasons I recommend someone read the manga instead of watching the anime adaptation, because while the anime doesn’t look BAD, it doesn’t look nearly as good as the manga does in my opinion. Scenes with body horror feel about as creepy as it should (and believe me there are a lot of scenes like that). And when shit gets real, the art is just as good as it is in the quieter, more suspenseful moments. There are other people who can move in this world, and most of them are out for blood. In spite of many scenes’ stillness, these characters are not alone. But not only does the art’s sense of emptiness sell you on the premise, it also gives multiple scenes a feeling of suspense and tension. Characters stand in wide open spaces, really selling you on the idea that they’re stuck in time. Previously busy streets feel empty and lonely in the absence of movement. Kokkoku takes place in a world frozen in time, and the manga makes great use of liminal space to convey the world’s stillness.
I am not an art critic so while I might not be able to give the most in-depth or informed opinion on the quality of art, even I can still confidently say that the art in Kokkoku is fucking great. Still, a lackluster ending doesn’t invalidate a story that managed to be engaging and interesting for 98% of its run time, and for that I still consider Kokkoku’s story to be a good one. The ending isn’t AWFUL or anything, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit disappointed with the series’ conclusion. Now, as much as I liked Kokkoku’s story, I have to admit that the last chapter is… not the best.
#Kokkoku moment by moment anime series#
The series is filled with interesting plot twists, and (with one exception) they all feel logically consistent with what had been established beforehand. I kept wanting to know what would happen next. I was consistently engaged in everything that was happening in this manga.
#Kokkoku moment by moment anime tv#
Whether it’s books or games or TV shows, I have a bad habit of dropping things if they manage to lose my attention. I have ADHD and I tend to have a hard time sticking with media up until the end.
There’s always some new plot development or twist that keeps everything fresh and engaging. The first few chapters of the manga do a great job at grabbing your attention at the start and it manages to stay consistently exciting and interesting up until the end. From there, it quickly becomes a game of cat-and-mouse between the Yukawas and their pursuers. They go to where Makoto and Tsubasa are being held to rescue them, but they quickly realize that they’re not the only ones who can move in the frozen time. Unable to make it to the meeting place in time, her grandfather uses a family heirloom to freeze himself, Juri, and her father in time. One day out of the blue, her nephew Makoto and her brother Tsubasa are kidnapped and held for ransom. Juri Yukawa is a young woman in a financially struggling family trying to make ends meet.
I definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a good mystery/thriller and I look forward to reading the author’s current series, Golden Girl (It sadly isn’t translated as of writing this, but hopefully someday it will).
It’s short enough that it doesn’t overstay its welcome, but long enough that it feels like a complete and satisfying narrative. It’s not without its flaws, but it still manages to be a well-paced mystery with logical plot twists, suspenseful and even horrifying moments, and characters that I wanted to survive to the end. Kokkoku is a manga that I thoroughly enjoyed from beginning to end.
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