No Longer Human
First tankōbon volume cover
人間失格
(Ningen Shikkaku)
GenrePsychological horror[1]
Manga
Written byJunji Ito
Published byShogakukan
English publisher
MagazineBig Comic Original
DemographicSeinen
Original runMay 2, 2017 – April 20, 2018
Volumes3

No Longer Human (Japanese: 人間失格, Hepburn: Ningen Shikkaku) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Junji Ito; it is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Osamu Dazai. It was serialized in Big Comic Original from May 2017 to April 2018 and published in three volumes.

Overview

No Longer Human is told in the form of notebooks left by one Ōba Yōzō (大庭葉蔵), a troubled man incapable of revealing his true self to others, and who, instead, maintains a facade of hollow jocularity. The work is made up of three chapters, or "memoranda", which chronicle the life of Ōba from his early childhood to his late twenties.

In this version, Yōzō meets Osamu Dazai himself during an asylum recovery, thus giving him permission to tell his story in his next book. The manga includes a retelling of Dazai's suicide from Ōba's perspective.

Publication

Written and illustrated by Junji Ito, the series began serialization in Big Comic Original on May 2, 2017.[2] The series completed its serialization on April 20, 2018.[3] Shogakukan collected the series' individual chapters into three tankōbon volumes.[4]

In February 2019, Viz Media announced they licensed the series for English publication.[5] They released the entire series in one hardcover book.[6]

Volumes

No. Original release date Original ISBN English release date English ISBN
1 October 30, 2017[7]978-4-09-189718-3December 17, 2019[6]978-1-97-470709-6
2 March 30, 2018[8]978-4-09-189826-5December 17, 2019[6]978-1-97-470709-6
3 July 30, 2018[4]978-4-09-860056-4December 17, 2019[6]978-1-97-470709-6

Reception

Nick Smith from ICv2 praised the work, stating the story was unpleasant but riveting, with great artwork.[9] Leroy Douresseaux from Comic Book Bin also praised the series as tragic and delicate, while being grotesque and cruel at the same time. Doresseaux also praised the artwork.[1] Brandon Danial from The Fandom Post felt Ito's work was a solid adaptation of the original novel, while also praising the changes Ito made to the story.[10] Nancy Powell from Comics Beat also praised the story, stating that while it is not easy to digest, Ito does a good job telling the story.[11] Adi Tantimedh from Bleeding Cool praised the artwork's portrayal of the main protagonist. Tantimedh also praised the story.[12] Derik Badman from The Comics Journal was more critical of the book, stating Ito's art was alright but can feel stiff and simple in later parts. Badman also felt the series had too many objectionable themes and changed too much of the original novel.[13]

In December 2019, the English volume ranked tenth on The NPD Group's bestseller list Monthly BookScan.[14]

References

  1. ^ a b Douresseaux, Leroy (December 18, 2019). "No Longer Human manga review". Comic Book Bin. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  2. ^ Ressler, Karen (January 19, 2017). "Junji Ito's No Longer Human Manga Ends on April 20". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on July 27, 2023. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  3. ^ April (April 6, 2018). "Junji Ito's No Longer Human Manga Ends on April 20". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on July 25, 2023. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  4. ^ a b 人間失格 ３ (in Japanese). Shogakukan. Archived from the original on June 19, 2023. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  5. ^ Ressler, Karen (February 11, 2019). "Viz Licenses Junji Ito's No Longer Human Manga". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on December 25, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  6. ^ a b c d "No Longer Human". Viz Media. Archived from the original on September 6, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  7. ^ 人間失格 １ (in Japanese). Shogakukan. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  8. ^ 人間失格 ２ (in Japanese). Shogakukan. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  9. ^ Smith, Nick (February 10, 2020). "Review: 'No Longer Human' HC (manga)". ICv2. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  10. ^ Jones, Grant (December 16, 2019). "No Longer Human Hardcover Manga Review". The Fandom Post. Archived from the original on December 16, 2019. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  11. ^ Powell, Nancy (December 30, 2019). "Review: Junji Ito's No Longer Human turns human folly into a haunting tale of misery and despair". Comics Beat. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  12. ^ Tantimedh, Ali (December 10, 2019). "Review: Junji Ito Adapts "No Longer Human" into a Masterpiece of Existential Horror". Bleeding Cool. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  13. ^ Badman, Derik (January 29, 2020). "No Longer Human". The Comics Journal. Fantagraphics. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  14. ^ Mateo, Alex (January 13, 2020). "My Hero Academia Ranks #3 on U.S. Monthly Bookscan December List". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on July 7, 2022. Retrieved December 25, 2021.

External links

Junji Ito
Big Comic Original series
Categories