ブルーピリオド 12

Few stories managed to captivate me as much as this one has, even less in the first volume.

The title of this manga paints homage to Picasso's “Blue Period”, a time in the artist's life where he painted utilizing blue and somber colors that may be perceived as melancholic by some. Apparently, during this period, he had trouble selling his paintings because, like many (many) artists like him, were not appreciated at the time.

In the actual story, we find ourselves with a protagonist that by all means is the “perfect” student or the “ideal” person an average teenager his age would like to be: he's popular, kind, parties/drinks with his friends until 6 a.m., has near-perfect grades (often appearing in the top 10 of his class), as well as great charisma. Yet, he feels rather empty; he doesn't know what to do with his life, to the point where he says he simply will go to college and pick whichever career will offer him a stable future instead of pursuing an inexistent aspiration, but all of this changes when he walks into the art classroom and sees a painting made by one of his classmates.

What I love so much about this story is that it resonates with the reader one way or the other, to the point that it discusses both points of pursuing a career in arts, which is something I've experienced first-hand and through several friends who were placed in the same situation. Furthermore, where this story shines the brightest is when Yatora finds his passion and works himself to pursue it, as we get to see his effort firsthand, how he learns to improve his technique, the hurdles he needs to overcome, as well as the goal he pursues; we feel his frustrations, contempt, happiness, and even his sense of inferiority when it comes to those around him that we can't help to grow attached to him more and more as we turn the pages, which by the way are filled with incredible art.

In the end, “Blue Period” is a story that not only I'm incredibly excited to continue, but also is one I believe will impact me in the long run. I still can't believe this is just the first volume, as it's packed with so much narrative content in the form of themes, motifs, and characters that if I were to mention it, this review would be waaay longer than it already is. Just do yourself a favor and go buy it right now.