Undercurrent (アンダーカレント), 2004-2005, Toyoda, Tetsuya, Afternoon
STORY: 8
Meet Kanae, the owner of a small public bath house, as she tries to go on just after the disappearance of her husband. Can she continue life as usual although she doesn’t even know what happened? Why? Is the husband even alive? One simple volume guides us to solve those questions, and more, with a subtle delivery that is very satisfying.
ART: 6
Lines are quite simple with a lot of white space. No action, no gorgeous panel. But, oh my god: women are, for once, drawn as human beings before anything. No clothing that always sticks to an arched butt, no breasts that are constantly poking out, such a lack of sexualization is really unusual. So unusual that one reviewer on My Anime List wrote: “the design is very idle, I guess that it’s due to it’s a slice of life but please: THE (female) MAIN CHARACTER LOOKS LIKE A MAN, I can’t with that”.
Time to check: oh, this is incredible! Tetsuya Toyoda, the author, is a man! [Fireworks sounds] Well done Japan, you can do it, here is a mangaka whose strokes evoke empathy rather than patriarchy.
POLITICAL POTENTIAL: 6
For a change too, we have mostly people that are able to care about others, instead of the “everybody is selfish” seen in so many adult titles.
FEMINISM: 8
The main character of Kanae is just amazingly human and never pressured by any gender tropes. She is not defined by being ‘the wife of’, she expresses more emotions than just love, and there’s dignity and empathy around her.
CONCLUSION: 7
Undercurrent looks average from a distance, but it’s actually great! Great enough to be adapted to a movie. You will like it if you are old enough for a seinen reading (or enjoy a manga that does not have an hysterical pace).
Leave a Reply