Before You Go Extinct Review
Normally, when I have a manga review to write, I start with a synopsis of the manga itself, or maybe I talk about the genre it’s from first, or if the author is famous enough, I mention their body of work before going into their latest release. However, I’m not sure how to begin this review, as it’s not your typical manga ‘story’. It’s an anthology of animals discussing and exploring philosophy, from the meaning of life inside an oppressive capitalist society, the crushing dread of being the last of your kind, to the nebulous concept of love, and much more. So…not exactly something easily summarised! The mangaka, Takashi Ushiroyato, only has one other credit to his name (so far not translated into English) and that’s a comedy/horror title, and this is the debut of the artist Kanato Abiko, so there’s little context I can give to either contributor to this work. So where do I start with such a release?
First impressions of the book: the glossy cover comes with its own bookmarks (front and back cover) which I appreciated very much. There’s also a glossy last page with art of all the animal characters coming together, which is a nice end to such a dense book (in subject matter, not page volume). I also appreciate the book getting right to the point on the very opening page, with a penguin holding a gun and shooting another penguin, so you know you’re in for something unique from the start.
The book contains six chapters. Each chapter is mostly self-contained, starring different animals that are on the verge of going extinct, from the Japanese Sea Otters to the Hawaiian crow, in quirky scenarios that often explore a philosophical concept. For example, the crow chapter starts off with a simple idea of some crows mourning a fellow dead crow, but then goes into the loss of culture and how it changes with the passing of generations according to the survivors, or lack thereof. The use of outrageous everyday situations with animals works well as the animals often serve as a comical foil to the wacky, violent panels (ever wanted to see a penguin try to bomb their own kind? They got it covered here) but it’s the nature of their survival that gives the edge to the themes being discussed, because there could be a day when not only will these animals no longer exist in our world, but also other animals, maybe even ourselves? It’s the juxtaposition of the cute cuddly creatures with deep, dark themes that makes this book stand out.
Two themes run through all the stories: one is the transmigration of two souls across different animals on the brink of extinction, often playing different roles to each other, such as parent and child, or two friends mourning another. There’s also a ‘humble rock’ that is present in each chapter, sometimes to great significance (such as the penguins keeping the rock warm instead of incubating an egg) sometimes less so as it’s barely mentioned in the crow chapter but the rock serves different purposes from the aforementioned ‘egg’ to being used as a microphone for a rock concert.
Each chapter can be read as its own tale, aside from the last one which is a sequel to Chapter 1, but considering each chapter discusses different themes, you’ll probably find that one chapter will hit you harder than another. The one that I connected most with was Chapter 4, ‘The Juggling Otter’, which discusses society pressures to settle down, have kids and give up ‘childish’ hobbies. In this case, an otter is told to stop juggling and settle down to have a family, for the survival of their species, in the face of not only the death of a friend but also lacking in self-fulfilment. In today’s world, where women’s abortion rights are being stripped away, disabled people are painted as ‘not contributing’ to society, and speaking as someone who has multiple hobbies that would be considered ‘childish’ (video games, anime, etc) it admittedly struck a chord with me. I think the contrast of the otter finding joy in their juggling, even being extremely good at it, but still having to ‘prove’ their worth in a society that sees them as nothing but wasteful, is a powerful image.
Kanato Abiko does a good job in this manga, with very distinct animal expressions, detailed backgrounds and framing in each panel. My only criticism is that in sometimes I found it hard to figure out who was talking in each panel, for example the penguin opening chapter – the two main characters look almost exactly alike, but I struggled to figure out who was killing whom in the last pages (kinda important to know!) Whereas in other chapters, such as Chapter 3, there’s a clear distinction between the old and young otter, so it’s easily to follow who’s who in that case.
The translation by Yuki Tejima is very good. I can’t imagine expressing such heavy themes from one language to another can have been an easy task, but it’s a good read overall.
Before You Go Extinct is very distinct in its subject and themes, a truly one-of-a-kind manga that will affect you differently depending on who you are and if you like seeing cute animals in wildly explosive situations. It’s not a light read by any means, but one to give you food for thought when the final page has been turned.
Read a free extract at the publisher’s website here.
Our review copy from Vertical was supplied by Turnaround Comics (Turnaround Publisher Services).
