Metamorphosis (manga)
| Metamorphosis | |
 Cover of English edition | |
| 変身 (Henshin) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Hentai[1] |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Shindo L |
| Published by | Wanimagazine |
| English publisher | Fakku |
| Magazine | Comic X-Eros |
| Original run | July 26, 2013 – March 26, 2016 |
| Volumes | 1 |
Metamorphosis (変身, Henshin), also published as Emergence, is a hentai manga written by American-Japanese mangaka Shindo L. Published between 2013 and 2016, it gained a following online for its dark and depressing storyline, becoming an Internet meme.
Plot
Metamorphosis follows Saki Yoshida (吉田咲), a high school student whose efforts to become popular leads to drug use and unhealthy relationships, gradually spiraling down into disownment, prostitution, drug addiction, and homelessness, eventually ending with her committing suicide by heroin overdose.
History
The manga was serialized in Japan by Wanimagazine by its Japanese title (Template:Lang-ja) and subtitled Emergence. It was published in English by Fakku under the title Metamorphosis, digitally on November 10, 2016 and physically on March 1, 2017.[2][3]
Reception
Metamorphosis initially gained notoriety in the English-speaking blogosphere in 2016 and 2017,[4] when several reviews and discussions of the manga appeared on imageboards and YouTube which universally described its storyline as extremely depressing and traumatizing, with some labeling the work as "cursed". Several online communities, particularly the subreddit /r/animemes, subsequently adopted the manga as a meme symbolizing misery and depression.[4]
Some manga artists has created derivative works based on Metamorphosis.[5] Notably, on November 24 2018, an unknown artist created and published a short alternative "happy ending" dubbed "I'm Gonna Fix That Girl" featuring a JoJo's Bizarre Adventure crossover.[4]
Analysis
Metamorphosis has been seen by some as inspired by Franz Kafka's novella of the same name, drawing comparisons to the dark themes and plots surrounding transformation.[3]
Shindo L writes in the manga's afterword[6] that he intended Metamorphosis to portray the "charm" of a miserable female main character. He also said in an interview[7] that projecting a work's themes and opinions onto its author is a "fallacy" and that he has "never met a person whose reality is directly influenced by what they read."
Publications
- Shindo, L (w, a). 変身 (2016-03-26). Wanimagazine, (in Japanese). Retrieved on 2020-08-18.
- Shindo, L (w, a). Metamorphosis (2016-11-10). Fakku, ISBN 978-1-63442-060-0. Retrieved on 2020-08-18.
References
- ^ Bassu, Andrea (2019-10-24). "Emergence (177013), ne abbiamo davvero bisogno?". Cyberdude (in Italian). Retrieved 2020-08-14.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Henshin (Metamorphosis)". MyAnimeList. Retrieved 2020-08-18.
- ^ a b "Metamorphosis (Emergence)". FAKKU. Retrieved 2020-08-18.
- ^ a b c "Emergence (Metamorphosis)". Know Your Meme. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
- ^ Faisal, Ahmad (2018-06-05). "Sambut Saki: Another Story, Spin-Off Doujin Emergence Karya Artis Asal Indonesia BREN". KAORI Nusantara (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2020-08-14.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Shindo, L (w, a). Metamorphosis, p. afterword (2016-11-10). Fakku, ISBN 978-1-63442-060-0.
- ^ Shindo, L (2019-02-18). "I got to interview my favorite 𝐻Ǝ𝒩𝒯𝒜𝐼 artist and..." (Interview). Interviewed by Joey "The Anime Man".