Romantic manga series ‘Perfect World’ is one of the titles that Kodansha Comics has released on digital platform since 2018 but the manga is now available on print as well for those who like to read it in printed form. In this article I’ll be reviewing this josei manga and see if it is worth your time and money.
Tsugumi Kawana is a 26 years old woman who works in an interior design firm. One day during an office party, she met Itsuki Ayukawa who was her high school crush and was glad to know that he achieved his dream of having his career as an architect but one thing that shocked her was that he is fully dependent on wheel chair for two years after being caught up in an unfortunate accident.
The drastic accident took place when he was in third year of his college. While riding his bike, he was hit by a car which injured his spinal cord and made him disabled. Initially he seemed to be very optimistic and cheerful but in a short period of time Tsugumi realizes that he is constantly fighting his own chaotic thoughts that he keeps hidden under the surface.
The reunion of the two brings back a lot of memories along with the feelings that Tsugumi had for him in high school. At that she suppressed her feelings because Itsuki was already in a relationship but now his has broken up with her. It doesn’t take time for Itsuki to notice that she is interested in him, so he straightforwardly tells her that he doesn’t want to be in a relationship because of his disability.
When Itsuki is taken to hospital because of infected bedsore that he didn’t feel because of damaged nerves, before it caused damage to his body, Tsugumi witnessed and realized what exactly Itsuki is suffering from. She realizes that it’s not just his health that he cares about but he is also extremely worried about his career and desperate to live his life like a normal person. But that doesn’t stop Tsugumi from pursuing Itsuki and only heated up the feelings she had for him.
I feel that there are things that could have been better after having read the 1st Volume of Perfect World. There is no doubt that it has depicted the life of a disable person in a way that seems almost real which include all the sufferings and the struggles of a disable person who wants to stay positive and overcome those hardships to live a normal life and have a successful career. But Itsuki can sometimes seems a bit annoying, personality-wise, at least while reading the first volume.
Despite of being optimistic Itsuki is very presumptuous especially when it comes to Tsugumi. He keeps telling her that they can’t be in a relationship and she won’t be happy with him. His situation is understandable and it makes sense why he keeps pushing her away as he doesn’t want to become a burden on someone and wishes a better life for her. But he should also understand things from Tsugumi’s perspective as she is an adult and is fully capable of having her opinions and views towards life. He should respect her feelings and point of view.
Although things seems to move in a better direction towards the end of Volume 1 as Itsuki’s character develops a bit but we can’t judge that after reading just one Volume as it might be just a temporary thing. Certainly, there will be many hardships in the future that they both Itsuki and Tsugumi will face together and I’m sure that their character will further develop while the story moves progresses.
Perfect World has been written and illustrated by Rie Aruga and this is her first multi-volume manga as her previous manga had only 6 volumes. The artwork is kept simple which is focused on the characters most of the time with less details in the background. It’s not bad as it expresses the emotions of the characters very well. Many panels seems plain with only characters in it which helps focus on the emotions of the cast.
Perfect World has been brought to West by Kodansha Comics and Rachel Murakawa. Has translated the manga. There is no issues in the translation and seems smooth while reading. Moreover there are also some translation notes in the end of the book. Perfect World is in continuation in Japan with 10 Volumes being released so far out which 9 Volumes have been released digitally by Kodansha Comics in English. Although the series is targeted towards josei demographics, the series has won the award for best shojo manga in Japan in Kodansha’s Manga Awards.
Perfect World is a realistic story that depicts the life of a disable in a very honest way. It is a relaxing story that doesn’t hesitate in showing what it looks like to have a relationship with a disable person. Although there are some things that could be better but since this is just the beginning of the story so there is a lot of potential for the story to develop and move in a better direction.
