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A review by mjmarx59
聲の形 7 [Koe no Katachi 7] by Yoshitoki Oima
5.0
This is more of a review of the whole series than the last volume since I didn’t have the energy to review each one.
Shoya is a pretty accurate angsty depressed loner, and minus the bullying parts, I found him pretty relatable. The Xs on everyone’s faces is a perfect metaphor for anxiety. Shoko is a pretty great character too, and the part where she imagines a world where everyone is deaf like her was one of the best moments of the whole series. In particular, the question of “how can you prove you’ve changed?” Is a really fascinating one, and is the most interesting question asked here. I did like the end, though the movie’s ending was a bit more powerful.
Now onto the not so great things. The side characters are pretty hit-or-miss. Tomohiro is fun and exciting and I love his over eagerness getting him into trouble. Shoko’s mom sucks for most of the story, then gets a tragic backstory that I really liked. But some of the other side characters just don’t feel satisfying. Like their actions make sense, but I don’t enjoy them. Specifically, Naoka is absolutely horrible throughout the entire thing, and she keeps getting chances to redeem herself for… some reason? I also didn’t like the part where all the side characters get a page to talk about how they ALSO got bullied, which felt cheap and not at all in reality. Also, The film-making subplot was pretty forgettable and didn’t serve any purpose.
At least compared to the movie, the manga version is way more consistently dark and has some genuinely dark and really uncomfortable moments (Naoka vs Shoko’s mom), and just has a more melancholy tone overall. Shoya felt like more of a real character, and I appreciated his inner monologues SO much. Overall I think I like the movie slightly more? But both are fantastic adaptations of a story I find extremely relatable, both to Shoya and Shoko.
Shoya is a pretty accurate angsty depressed loner, and minus the bullying parts, I found him pretty relatable. The Xs on everyone’s faces is a perfect metaphor for anxiety. Shoko is a pretty great character too, and the part where she imagines a world where everyone is deaf like her was one of the best moments of the whole series. In particular, the question of “how can you prove you’ve changed?” Is a really fascinating one, and is the most interesting question asked here. I did like the end, though the movie’s ending was a bit more powerful.
Now onto the not so great things. The side characters are pretty hit-or-miss. Tomohiro is fun and exciting and I love his over eagerness getting him into trouble. Shoko’s mom sucks for most of the story, then gets a tragic backstory that I really liked. But some of the other side characters just don’t feel satisfying. Like their actions make sense, but I don’t enjoy them. Specifically, Naoka is absolutely horrible throughout the entire thing, and she keeps getting chances to redeem herself for… some reason? I also didn’t like the part where all the side characters get a page to talk about how they ALSO got bullied, which felt cheap and not at all in reality. Also, The film-making subplot was pretty forgettable and didn’t serve any purpose.
At least compared to the movie, the manga version is way more consistently dark and has some genuinely dark and really uncomfortable moments (Naoka vs Shoko’s mom), and just has a more melancholy tone overall. Shoya felt like more of a real character, and I appreciated his inner monologues SO much. Overall I think I like the movie slightly more? But both are fantastic adaptations of a story I find extremely relatable, both to Shoya and Shoko.