Forum - View topicREVIEW: I Had That Same Dream Again Omnibus
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FireChick
 Subscriber Posts: 2487 Location: United States |
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I read the light novel of this, and I think it's the best of Sumino's translated works so far. Pancreas was kinda meh and relied too much on inspiration porn and cliches to be anything good, and I absolutely HATED At Night I Became a Monster because every single character was an entitled jackass. But I still think Sumino has a long way to go in terms of writing, because her prose isn't really all that engaging or interesting. Granted, I haven't read the manga version yet, but I plan to.
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Princess_Irene
ANN Associate Editor
 Posts: 2655 Location: The castle beyond the Goblin City |
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I agree that Sumino is still developing as an author. One of the reasons I liked this so much was because it was less derivative than her other works, which rely a lot on tried-and-true tropes of YA fiction. (Especially the inspiration porn.) The reveal that spoiler[all three women were Nanoka] isn't hard to see coming, but I feel like the story does a better job with making its inspirations part of the plot rather than just throwing them in to make the reader feel.
I'd argue that everyone being an entitled jackass (which is totally true) in At Night, I Become a Monster is largely the point of the book, but that definitely doesn't make it any better in terms of reading enjoyment. |
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FireChick
Subscriber Posts: 2487 Location: United States |
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Wait wait wait, THAT was the reveal?! spoiler[That all three of them were Nanoka?!] How?! That makes no sense!! I knew something weird was up with the three women she interacted with, but nothing I read indicated that they were that!
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pharmboy23
Posts: 198 |
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I think if you re-read it with that in mind you’ll enjoy it even more.
This was a great book - brought tears to my eyes at the end. It looks like it’s going one direction but it then goes the complete opposite. So good. |
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Princess_Irene
ANN Associate Editor
Posts: 2655 Location: The castle beyond the Goblin City |
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I mean, that was how I interpreted it, but I could be wrong! spoiler[What led me to that conclusion was that each woman disappeared after Nanoka learned something that would change their fates - high school her never told her parents that she was upset that they weren't going to be at Parents' Day, and so they died in the plane crash, Skank-san never stopped seeing herself as special or better than her age mates, so when Nanoka learned to appreciate the boy in her class and that she wasn't better than anyone else, Skank-san ceased to exist, and the old woman had the painting that the boy from class grew up to paint, but because the other two futures changed, in Nanoka's life he never left the country and they stayed together. Each woman met Nanoka specifically to ensure that her future would change for the better, because they realized their mistakes too late.] That Sumino kept mentioning The Little Prince was another thing that led me that way - spoiler[some interpretations of the book focus on the possibility that the unnamed pilot narrator is the author working to change his life.]
Anyway, that's my take on it! |
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ErikaD.D
Posts: 660 |
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I was interested of reading that manga until I read your spoilers that spoiler[her parents are later ended up killing by plane crash and MC ended up an orphan(ugh, another orphan in new manga!). I'm disappointed that MC ended up an orphan and killing of her parents is forced and cheap cliche. Ironically that in Pancreas, by the same author -- the MC and Sakura has parents but not MC in his new manga. Go figure. ] |
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Princess_Irene
ANN Associate Editor
Posts: 2655 Location: The castle beyond the Goblin City |
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@ErikaD.D
Oh, no, the spoilers are just part of the story - spoiler[in reality, because she meets the high school girl, Nanoka talks to her parents and they live, so she's not an orphan. It's actually avoiding your least favorite trope]. |
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ErikaD.D
Posts: 660 |
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I see. spoiler[Sorry for misunderstanding.] |
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Princess_Irene
ANN Associate Editor
Posts: 2655 Location: The castle beyond the Goblin City |
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No worries!  We all have things that can ruin a story for us and there's no shame in that.
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a_Bear_in_Bearcave
Posts: 550 Location: Poland |
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I ended up buying it after your review interested me in this to read a bit. I agree that it's better than "..pancreas", though I really liked that one too - I don't mind tropes that much as long as they are executed well, and they didn't bother me there.
I especially like the protagonist - she is a cocky little shit sometimes, but her faults are coming from the same place as her good points, which is how you do a great flawed MC. Most protagonist have "well-meaning but naive" as their designated flaw, she is more aggressive in her attitude which is rarely seen in MCs in that way - like when she's in the right but she also unnecessarily escalates. Her "better than others" attitude is usually only seen in antagonist, but she combines it with befriending people others avoid, which makes it her virtue as well as a fault. I wish I could see her grown-up version as one of main characters for some other story. |
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