Chito e Yuri arrivano alla zona superiore e puntano alla cima. Lungo la strada si fermano in una struttura per il lancio di razzi e in una grande biblioteca e ripensano alle attività degli esseri umani, continuate fin dai tempi antichi. Dopodiché, le due ragazze riprendono il cammino, ma il loro viaggio è avvolto nell'ombra delle difficoltà... Ecco a voi il volume conclusivo de "L'ultimo viaggio delle ragazze"!
Tsukumizu (つくみず, a pseudonym, real name unknown) is a Japanese cartoonist. They are best known for the manga series Girls' Last Tour (2014-2018), a slice-of-life in a post-apocalyptic setting, and Shimeji Simulation (2019-2024), a 'yonkoma' (four panel strip) surrealist comedy.
God!!! That was so sad 😫. The tv show they made stopped at book 4. I almost feel like I should have left it there but I needed to know what else happened. I ultimately knew what was going to happen but it’s still sad 😕. Wonderful show and books though!!
This is a review for the manga as a whole and not this individual volume.
The anime for this manga had been on my radar for some time. I knew very little about it, other than it was usually compared to Kino's Journey which I enjoyed. I think I watched the entire anime within a forty-eight-hour period of starting it, and I immediately knew I had to read the manga to find out more.
So, I had already read the manga a couple times in unofficial translations by this point, so this isn't exactly my first read. I've had plenty of time to process my feelings towards this story, and there was really an extraordinary amount to process.
The first thing most people I know who have either seen the anime or read the manga say is it's very depressing. I'll be honest, just looking at the basic plot makes it seem like a horrifically sad and hopeless tale. Yet, I never was hit by any pity for these two girls in this hopeless situation. If anything, I envied them.
They were born into a dying and nearly dead world, in a collapsed society built in the ruins of an older collapsed society. They seem to have been separately taken in by an older man after something conceivably happened to their separate sets of parents. That was the only family/parental figure they can remember. They lose him at a very young age and are forced into the world to fend for themselves.
They are almost entirely ignorant of humanity, history, morality, and basically anything that we humans take for granted from our social constructs. So, they experience the remnants of this long dead world from an entirely fresh perspective, and it's so well executed to make it breathtaking. I was in constant awe of how effortlessly thought provoking it was. Heavy concepts were given fresh perspective from the eyes of these two unbiased observers. War, death, life, the afterlife, art, music, literature, and that's only the first ones to come to mind.
They have one simple purpose, and that's to find their way to the highest level of the multilayered ruins, hoping there's something up there. Yet, the journey comes to mean more to them than the destination. All the experiences they share together on their trek make their lives worthwhile, as unfair as their lives seem. Despite having only each other for almost the entirety of the story, they always had each other. Both of them had one ever faithful and unshakable companion to help them navigate through life.
I guess that's why I'm envious of them. The simplicity of their existence, coupled with having a person they loved deeply to get through it with, sounds nice. I suppose that's odd to say about two young girls forced to scrounge for every bit of food and water they can find, but the author herself mentioned feeling envious of them in the afterword. I guess I'm not alone, and that's one of the feelings these manga volumes gave me. I felt that as long as this story existed, and there was an author out there who could invoke these kinds of emotions in me, I'd never be alone.
There are so many powerfully emotional scenes that it's hard to even begin going into the finer details of the plot, so I'm not going to do that. I just want to say that I'm not sure if a work of fiction has ever moved me like this. Even the artwork, which I don't have much of an eye for, constantly made me want to sit and appreciate it. Every time I read this, I'm filled with a sense that everything will be okay, in the end, and that life, for all its hardships, is very much worth living.
In the last volume of this series, Chii and Yuu reach the end of their journey.
The girls continue their upward trek and gradually lose things along the way - they're too heavy, or they run out. They continue to be tough survivors - there's a scene where they're both enjoying hot water because they're low on everything except water and fuel. Both of them get to experience something that is important to them and makes them happy. Yuu stumbles on coffee and finds she loves it. For Chii, of course, it's books. They find the hugest library in creation. I loved the way Yuu was happy for Chii, even though Yuu can't read, and Chii was happy for Yuu, who thinks constantly of food, for the coffee even though Chii thinks it's bitter.
It gets worse - the tractor breaks, and the girls have to continue on foot, carrying everything on their backs. Here's where we begin to see what is really important: why carry a gun when you're the only ones on earth? Do you struggle under the weight of books when you're barely making it up the stairs?
And when Chii and Yuu make it to the top of everything, it's just them, looking out over a vast landscape of buildings and machinery. But there was also a touch of hope for humanity, as seen in a room they found earlier, that hints of spaceships sent out before the world shut down.
This was a wonderfully perfect ending to the series. While I wanted a surprise happy ending for Chii and Yuu, that wouldn't have been authentic to this story so I'm glad the author didn't go there.
This manga series is a masterpiece. So quiet, and haunting, with continual solitude and struggle, and our girls helping one another to the end.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Such a sad ending... though it was filled with awe.
The girls come to the end of their journey. And even amongst all the loss, all the despair, all the worry... they still have each other, & love each other. In the end, that's all that matters. Art, rough yet good. Dialogue, interesting. Characters, likeable, loveable, admirable.
L'ultimo viaggio delle ragazze è stato un viaggio meraviglioso. Il viaggio di due sopravvissute, Chi e Yu, a una guerra globale che ha pressoché estinto il genere umano così come la stragrande maggioranza della vita dal nostro pianeta. Un viaggio eternamente dominato da un senso di malinconica, serena, spensierata accettazione di quella realtà, che le condurrà alla scoperta di un mondo, dominato da fatiscenti architetture e macchinari ormai privi di un loro scopo, che per via di quella guerra sanno poco nulla, anche riguardo a numerosissime cose che noi diamo assolutamente per scontate. Un viaggio che è una scoperta, oltre che del mondo esteriore, anche di quello interiore, su cosa sia l'uomo, cosa abbia creato, cosa abbia distrutto. Un viaggio sempre in bilico fra il sorriso e la tristezza, tra lo slice of life e il filosofico, sino al raggiungimento di un finale che mi rimarrà impresso molto, molto a lungo...
Chito y Yuuri son dos chicas que están explorando un mundo post apocalíptico, buscan alimento y refugio en una enorme ciudad formada por niveles. A lo largo de toda la historia ellas intentarán saber quiénes fueron los habitantes de esta ciudad a través de lo que está intacto: templos, fábricas, edificios, museos, máquinas y tantas pero tantas armas para intuir que todo se acabó debido a una guerra.
Al principio parece que ellas no conocen otra forma de estar ya que nacieron en un mundo arruinado, se sorprenden mucho cuando encuentran pequeñas cosas del pasado y tratan de ser amables con las poquísimas personas que ven, pero en los últimos capítulos se nos dice de donde vienen y qué las hizo moverse de un lado a otro. Mientras la historia avanza, ellas se empiezan a cuestionar qué es lo que hacen en ese mundo y por qué siguen el viaje si no hay un futuro claro, piensan en la muerte como algo natural que igual da miedo y en el deseo de no olvidar.
"It feels like watching a play of your own life where you die at the end, and all the actors come out to take a bow and then you understand how interesting that whole thing was" -Igor Ovsyannikov
"And it was my favorite scene I couldn’t tell you what it means But it meant something to me" -Will Toledo
Wow.
I have been putting off this manga and really anything worth reading cause of irrational reasons, maybe being busy, even if it's just consuming other forms of art on doing practical real-world stuff. I have been away from literature really ever since that quite boring book on architecture that I didn't even bother to review properly.
It's good to start reading again with something I'll quite likely remember my whole life from now on.
Shoujo Shuumatsu Ryokou or Girl's Last Tour is about two girls: Chito and Yuu who are climbing up to the top level of the ruins of a mega-city in search of civilization. They drive their little Kettenkrad through these ruins and through the random moments in their daily life during what's most likely a post post apocalyse, they discuss philosophical topics like God and the afterlife, human nature, curiosity, sympathy, immortality, memory, history and such.
On their way up, curiously, they act as a sort of ending chapter of humanity/history, recording what appears to be the last of humanity: the last historian, the last aviator, the last artwork... which I must say I haven't seen that anywhere. Maybe this is my lack of experience speaking but I've seen this specific detail only here and nowhere else.
Speaking of detail and taking a detour, I must praise the art of this manga. It is splendid, wonderfully balanced between sketchiness and detail. I'm in love with this ruined aesthetic (I must read Blame! soon)
Moving Forward, as they climb onwards to the top, they slowly discovering what I can only describe as a meaning of life...
This is amazing all and all throughout, I have very few negatives to say because, in my eyes, they seem so trivial that they aren't worth mentioning. The Art is strikingly detailed chaos as I've already mentioned, the aesthetics are on point and the mangaka does well to be as historically accurate while also incorporating future technology.
I'm instantly writing this review after reading the manga so if I have more to write I'll add it in the back end, but meanwhile I'm gonna recommend a youtuber's analysis on this manga that I find quite enjoyable and insightful, a little sponsor or plug if you will.
I can barely describe why I love this manga so much it's so unconventional compared to other mangas I would give a 10. The two quotes I put at the top are my best attempts at describing my love for Girl's Last Tour, but I think I can do one better
I'm a very big fan of music and as such I'm more informed in music than any other form of cultural communication so I just wanted to recommend music that felt like this manga, at least to me. That's the most accurate way I can probably explain this feeling. Music recommendations:
Shoujo Shuumatsu Ryokou OST (Anime Soundtrack) {kind of an obvious choice} C418 - Minecraft Volume Alpha (Album) Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas To Heaven (Album) Kanye West - Ghost Town (Song) The Microphones - II. Solar System (Song) Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Dead Flag Blues (Outro) [Song] Talking Heads - This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody) [Song] Paths of Glory - The Faithful Hussar [Song] {The song at the end of the film Paths of Glory}
"What do you want me to do to help?" "Nothing" "I was joking" I started reading this series with the WaniKani beginner bookclub at the start of the year. Volume 1 read like some post-apocalyptic Lucky*Star, and Volume 2 was just more of the same. Volume 3 was similar, but had some weird bits. Volume 4 took a very sudden weird turn but touching and Volume 5 reminded me they were in some post-apocalyptic wasteland, and I started to feel a little bit concerned. Volume 6 ate my heart for lunch.
The world has been destroyed by a nuclear holocaust. Chito and Yuuri are two of the only people left alive. They’re both just little girls with no understanding of how the world was built and very little knowledge about history or humanity as a whole. They wander through one barren and lifeless wasteland after another in search of food and shelter, studying the sights they see in an attempt to learn more about the dystopian world they live in and draw connections to the lost civilizations of the past.
Though there’s an obvious melancholy atmosphere which is hard to avoid since 99.9% of life on the planet has been completely eradicated, the actual tone of the story is actually quite relaxing and innocent. That’s because it’s an apocalypse story written from the perspective of two girls that are too young to have had any attachment to the old world to begin with. There’s no sense of great loss or despair. This is simply just the life they’ve always known and they have no trouble adapting to their surroundings or enjoying themselves.
It’s interesting to have an apocalypse story filled with a ghibli-esque sense of childlike wonder and innocence. I enjoyed reading it just for the peacefully melancholy atmosphere. That being said, I don’t think the characters were as well developed as they could’ve been and sometimes the deeper themes and commentary of the story fell short. It’s not as great as it had the potential to be, but it’s still an interesting and unique take on the dystopian apocalypse genre.
Many feelings, all of them emotional. I guess they died at the end. Very sad because I thought they would make it to the top and find somebody out there. But the mushroom creature did say that the world was dying so I guess it was only a matter of time before Chi and Yuu succumbed to the world's seasons. There isn't anything for them to do. They have no food, water or warmth in the middle of winter. RIP Yuu and Chi. I enjoyed it even if they did die. 😔😔
Iako je svet razoren Čito i Juri nam pokazuju da i dalje postoji izvor malih radosti. Njihovi česti razgovori o postojanju, smislu, životu i smrti nose ogromnu emotivnu snagu, i njihovo prijateljstvo puno brige i pažnje ostaće mi zauvek u sećanju. U svetu pustoši, život je vredan dokle god osećaš toplinu zbog malih trenutaka i u lepoti koja te okružuje. ✨
Una de esas historias que sin hablar de nada hablan de todo, un viaje maravilloso con las niñas que más vueltas le dan a las cosas del mundo... Es que me ha encantado.
Two girls in a post-apocalyptical world looking for survival and trying to reach the last level of a hierarchal city, where everything is ruined by war and humans are all gone. The anime was also great but for some reason, they didn't make the last two volumes of the manga. But since these are crucial to getting to the point of the story as a whole, make sure to read the last two volumes. I got to enjoy the dialogues on life, its value, war, humans as they went along on their day-to-day journey and tried to keep on surviving. Also, it was the first anime (manga) I got to watch (read) that covered parts of Albert Camus Philosophy on nihilism and embracing the absurdity of life and living through that, even though you don't find many answers you're looking for. "Why live? Why not live?"
The Characters were outstanding, totally different but a great complement to each other to get through this journey, Chito as the brain of the team, quiet, thoughtful, and smart while Yuuri the funny, gluttonous, strong character as the body of the team.
Those sincere emotions and actions toward living life without any pretentious aspects were one of the things I completely fell in love with since a tank and a little amount of food and a few books were all they had and they kept finding joy in all the simple moments in the anime/manga like when they used the raindrops to make a music-like sound and truly enjoying it, without any great effort to make something complicated or special to enjoy. Rain Song
No se cómo definir a qué estoy triste, pero también estoy muy conmovida.
La historia en general pareciera que no te habla de nada, pero al mismo tiempo es tan sutil que no tiene porqué ser explícitamente cruda o gore para entender la desolación y decadencia del mundo.
Durante los seis tomos vimos a nuestras protagonistas llevar la situación y las vimos también como respondían a los problemas con inocencia siendo que es lo único que conocen. Las voy a extrañar a estas dos.
Es una conclusión muy adecuada y bonita para el viaje aunque la siento agridulce no porque no me gustara, sino porque era lo más lógico que puede pasar y lo que todos veíamos venir desde el capítulo uno.
I found the ending to be very sad. I wonder why they didn't animate the last two volumes. I hope the author makes a prequel, there is a ton of possibility in the world she made.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.