Summary
- Oyasumi Punpun is a serious, relatable comic about real issues presented in a quirky way.
- Other manga series like Onanie Master Kurosawa and Inside Mari follow a similar tone.
- 20th Century Boys and Boys Abyss offer dark, introspective narratives akin to Oyasumi Punpun.
There are slice-of-life dramas, and then there’s Oyasumi Punpun. Written by Inio Asano, the manga follows a young boy called Punpun Onodera through different stages in his life, from elementary school to his early 20s. While he and his family are ordinary people, the manga portrays them as birds as he deals with depression, love, and his domestic struggles. As strange as it can get, it’s a serious story that goes into some heavy places.
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Oyasumi Punpun doesn’t aim to be deliberately sad, but Asano didn’t want to make it a ‘feel-good’ tale either. It’s simply a relatable comic about real issues done in a curious way that makes it worth checking out. But are there any other manga comics that follow Oyasumi Punpun’s tone? Well, yes. Otherwise, this would be a short article. Here are some other series fans should check out.
Updated August 27, 2024 by David Heath: It's been nearly a decade since Oyasumi Punpun reached Western audiences, and just over a decade since it ended in Japan. Even after all this time, it's become one of the most highly-regarded manga online. MyAnimeList ranks it at a 9.00, the highest score any of Asano's works have received. Though others are catching up, like his action strip Mujina into the Deep.
Still, Oyasumi Punpun only has so many chapters to go through. Once it's over, readers will have to find other works that scratch that itch, and luckily there are plenty out there. This article has been updated with a few more Punpun-esque works, including some by Asano himself and other masters of psychological drama like Shūzō Oshimi. Between the big names and the hidden gems, there's plenty for eager readers to go through.
1 Onanie Master Kurosawa
A Coming-of-Age Tale With A Dark, Ecchi Edge
- Written by Katsura Ise.
- Illustrated by Takuma Yokota.
- 4 Volumes, 31 Chapters.
- Fan Translations only.
Oyasumi Punpun isn't exactly kid's stuff, as it doesn't shy away from adult topics, themes, or content. Even so, it's not quite as upfront with them as Onanie Master Kurosawa, which follows a boy who's so antisocial that his only hobby is indulging himself, so to speak. Even so, his superiority complex doesn't mean he doesn't look out for others, as he saves a girl called Aya from bullies through his "pastime."
Put short, while it's more ecchi, Kurosawa is a kid with bad social problems and an unhealthy way to deal with them. Aya pays him back for his "service" by blackmailing him into dispensing the same kind of "justice" on other bullies. It's through his arrangement that both he and Aya learn to overcome their issues, connect with others properly, and find new hobbies. Like Asano's best work, it takes on topics honestly rather than just for titillation.
2 Inside Mari
A Psychological Body Swap Drama
- Written & Illustrated by Shūzō Oshimi.
- 9 Volumes, 80 Chapters.
- Available in English digitally via Crunchyroll and in print via Denpa.
The same applies to Inside Mari. Only its lead, Isao, sticks to shutting himself off and playing video games because, after moving to Tokyo from Gunma Prefecture, he failed at starting his life anew. Instead of making new friends at college, he's an isolated drop-out. His only joy in life is Mari, a pretty young girl he often sees at the convenience store, though he never has the courage to talk to her. But when he manages to make eye contact with her, his life changes.
With one exchanged glance, he finds himself waking up the next day as Mari herself. With no sign of what happened to his original body, and no one knowing what happened to him, he now has to live Mari's life as his own until he figures out what's going on. Even so, going from being a shut-in to a socialite is a hard transition. He learns the hard way why his old life stalled, and how to make his new one work. The result is a psychological drama that tackles gender, bullying, and social anxiety head-on.
3 Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction
Children Realize How Brutal Humanity Can Be
- Written & Illustrated by Inio Asano.
- 12 Volumes, 101 Chapters.
- Available in English via Viz Media.
Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction is the only one of Asano's works to be adapted into animation so far. Probably because it's one of his more straightforward works, as humanity finally comes face to face with aliens. It starts a global war where, despite protests, pacifist movements, and more, the world's nations ramp up the war against the "Invaders."
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At first, this doesn't affect the leads, Kadode and Ouran, all that much. They still get to go to school, make friends, and live ordinary lives. Though they gradually discover nothing is as rosy as it seems, and that the Invaders can't hurt humanity any worse than humanity can hurt itself. It's a gentler, shorter tale than Punpun, though no less dense in its philosophy and subjects.
4 Sugar Candy Bullets Can't Pierce Anything: A Lollypop Or A Bullet
For Readers Who Fancy A Little Whimsy In Their Punpun
- Written by Kazuki Sakuraba.
- Illustrated by Iqura Sugimoto.
- 2 Volumes, 13 Chapters.
- Fan Translations only.
Based on Kazuki Sakuraba's original light novel, A Lollypop Or A Bullet shares Punpun's depressed lead character, rural setting, broken home, and feelings of isolation and depression. Except instead of using artistic license to express its darkness like Punpun, it uses it to add some whimsy, as the cold and withdrawn Nagisa bumps into transfer student Mokuzu.
She's the daughter of a popular singer and thus became popular herself. But she insists on befriending Nagisa, the one student who didn't care about her. It's because she claims she's a mermaid, and that she has to befriend Nagisa before the storm comes, or she'll drift back into the sea and turn into foam like in the Hans Christian Andersen story. As odd as that sounds, it becomes the equivalent of Punpun's bird heads: a plot device to get the two to express their hopes, dreams, and frustrations as they bond together.
5 My Solo Exchange Diary
Punpun From A Real Perspective
- Written and Illustrated by Kabi Nagata.
- 2 Volumes, 27 Chapters.
- Available in English via Seven Seas Entertainment.
Punpun's dark, depressing story struck a chord with some readers because they could relate to the character's situation. There are a lot of people out there in similar situations to the bird-headed boy, and they likely feel just as trapped as he does. Some of them even wrote their own manga directly from their perspective, like Kabi Nagata's work. Best known for making My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness, her manga memoirs continued with its sequel, My Solo Exchange Diary.
It details how, frustrated by feeling left behind in life, she built up enough courage to move out into her own place, only to struggle with living alone. Her struggles aren't helped by her love life (or lack thereof) and her distant relationship with her mother. It has Punpun's social isolation, depression, and rough family life, with the edge that it's about a real person dealing with these issues and more. As such, as heavy as Punpun gets, this might make My Solo Exchange Diary more raw and personal for some.
6 I Sold My Life For ¥10,000 Per Year
Lead Broken By Life Learns How Worthwhile It Can Be
- Written by Miaki Sugaru.
- Illustrated by Shoichi Taguchi.
- 3 Volumes, 18 Chapters.
- Fan Translations only. Light Novel version is available in English via Yen Press.
Based on the light novel Three Days of Happiness, which was based on the original 2chan web novel, I Sold My Life for ¥10,000 Per Year's premise is exactly what the title suggests. Left destitute, Kusunoki is told by an old man that there's a store that takes payment in the form of time, health, and lifespan. Skeptical at first, he gives it a try and finds its shopkeeper, Miyagi, who reveals his life is worth a comparatively meager ¥300,000 (approximately $1,925).
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Broken and desperate, he sells his remaining time on earth at ¥10,000 (approx $64) per year, leaving him with just three months left to live. For that remaining time, he'll be watched over by Miyagi, who moves in next door to his apartment. Like Punpun, Kusunoki had led a bitter life, only he's old enough to realize its torments and try to run it out ASAP to end his suffering. But it aims for its warmer moments, as Kusunoki discovers the value of life goes beyond its monetary worth.
7 The Climber
Mountain Climber Uses His Hobby to Process His Neuroses
- Written by Shinichi Sakamoto and Yoshiro Nabeda from Jiro Nitta's original novel.
- Illustrated by Shinichi Sakamoto .
- 17 Volumes, 170 Chapters.
- Fan Translations only. Available in Italian via Edizioni BD.
The Climber, created by Shinichi Sakamoto and Yoshiro Nabeda, is a little different from the other entries on this list. Like Junji Ito's No Longer Human, it's an adaptation of Jiro Nitta's 1973 two-part novel of the same name. Yet it's more grounded than that work, or any of the other entries on this list. There's no magic, visions, phenomena, love triangles, or the like. Just solid, human drama.
It details the life of Buntaro Mori as he goes from starting a mountain climbing club in high school to becoming a world-class professional climber. It's everything in between that makes it special, as Mori uses climbing to deal with his loneliness and depression. Just as "God" leads Punpun down a dark path, Mori's neuroses drive him towards trying to reach the top of K2, the hardest mountain in the world to climb. 1–4 people per year die in their attempts to conquer it, so Mori has his work cut out for him.
8 Blood On The Tracks
It Turns Punpun's Domestic Drama Into A Domestic Nightmare
- Written and Illustrated by Shūzō Oshimi.
- 17 Volumes, 153 Chapters.
- Available in English via Kodansha USA.
After Shūzō Oshimi finished Flowers of Evil and other cheery-sounding works like Happiness and Inside Mari, he started to work on a piece that YouTube media critic John 'Super Eyepatch Wolf' famously described as "The Manga That Breaks People". Like Punpun, Blood on the Tracks shows how ugly and dark things can be in a family. Except it doesn't use allegorical images like Punpun's birds, as its people can be disturbing enough as they are.
Seiichi Osabe lived a normal life until his family went on a hiking trip. His clingy mother Seiko always tries to keep him safe, but when his cousin Shigeru almost knocks him off a cliff edge as a joke, she snaps. She saves Shigeru from slipping, only to deliberately push him off the edge, with Seiichi as the only witness. He survives, albeit in a comatose state. As he slowly rouses from it, and Seiko slowly devolves into a personality disorder, Seiichi is left trapped between looking out for his mother and wanting to escape her manipulative clutches.
9 Arigatou
Punpun's Premise As A Dark Ecchi Comedy
- Written and Illustrated by Naoki Yamamoto.
- 4 Volumes, 47 Chapters.
- Fan Translations only.
As great as Blood on the Tracks is, fans might find Arigatou much closer to Oyasumi Punpun's tone. On paper, it's about Ichiro Suzuki trying to revive his role as head of his family and help them overcome their hardships. In practice, it's a dark comedy that shows how the Suzukis keep failing and making things worse for themselves.
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Ichiro is enthusiastic yet embarrassing and ineffectual. His wife is an alcoholic recluse, and his daughters range from rebellious (Takako) to unresponsive (Akiko). It plays out like a gross-out laughfest at first, with art that borders on being more than R-rated. However, the story and characters come together after the first few chapters, as its psychological elements become more apparent. The Suzukis may be broken, but they're not the only ones with issues.
10 My Broken Mariko
Like Punpun, It Uses A Mix Of Crude & High-Class Art To Tell A Sad Story
- Written and Illustrated by Waka Hirako.
- 1 Volume, 5 Chapters.
- Available in English via Yen Press.
My Broken Mariko is unique as it started as a webcomic on Comic Bridge, which was pulled together into a single volume for release by Kadokawa and Yen Press. The jōsei genre, which is aimed at young women rather than its younger equivalent shojo, is no stranger to dark, sad stories. Hirako's work just stands out because it feels rawer than its competition. The story follows Shiino, a girl grieving the death of her best friend Mariko.
Driven to fulfill her last wishes, she steals her ashes from her abusive father and heads towards the ocean to scatter them. It sounds simple enough, though she finds herself plagued by memories and thoughts of her 'broken' friend. The manga is an honest portrayal of what grief does to a person and how they handle it, mixing lovely art with crude sketches to capture the shifting emotions a la Punpun.