Manga
The manga that were hits in Japan in the 1990s.
1990S HITS
About
Humanity, having faced extinction at the end of the 20th century, would not have entered the new millennium if it weren't for them. In 1969, during their youth, they created a symbol. In 1997, as the coming disaster slowly starts to unfold, that symbol returns. This is the story of a group of boys who try to save the world. For Kenji, a simple convenience store manager who once dreamed of becoming a rock 'n' roll musician, a host of memories from his past come rushing back when one of his childhood friends mysteriously commits suicide. Could this new death be related to the rise of a bizarre new cult that's been implicated in several other murders and disappearances? Determined to dig deeper, Kenji reunites with some of his old buddies in the hope of learning the truth behind it all.
Character analysis
Kenji gave up music for a steady, ordinary adult life, and a friend's mysterious death drags him back into a secret symbol and prophecy he and his childhood friends invented as kids, now being used by someone to orchestrate real catastrophe. His reluctant return to leadership, not because he wants to but because no one else can, grounds the story's sprawling conspiracy in something painfully human.
Otcho left Japan for years before being drawn back into the unfolding crisis alongside Kenji, and his more worldly, unflappable demeanor makes him one of the group's steadiest presences even as the conspiracy around them grows stranger and more dangerous.
Yukiji's blunt, physically capable personality made her the group's de facto protector even as kids, and that same protectiveness carries directly into the adult crisis, she's often the one willing to act decisively when everyone else is still debating what's real.
Kanna grows up largely without her uncle Kenji around, and as she gets older she has to investigate her own family's connection to the unfolding conspiracy with limited information, carrying his unfinished fight into a new generation.
Donkey, like the rest of Kenji's old friend group, gets drawn back into the symbol and prophecy they invented as kids, and his more ordinary, settled adult life makes the sudden reappearance of their childhood game that much more disorienting.
Status evaluation
Grounded, realistic character art suits the series' slow-burn conspiracy thriller tone well.
The series is widely acclaimed for its intricate, patient mystery structure spanning decades of its characters' lives.
Nostalgic childhood flashbacks provide some lighter moments against the story's tense, adult-thriller tone.
Childhood nostalgia colliding with real, adult-scale catastrophe gives the series consistent emotional weight.
The slow-building conspiracy and cult-like antagonists create real, sustained dread.
Violence occurs as part of the unfolding disasters but is generally not the story's main focus.
A large cast spanning multiple timelines and a dense, slowly unraveling mystery demand real, close attention.
This is a completed series. This figure has not been verified against a current source and should be treated as approximate.
“A made-up symbol from a childhood game somehow becoming the center of a real, adult-scale catastrophe is such a specific kind of dread, the past actually catching up with you.”