Review by Frank Plowright

While it can’t be stated as a definitive pattern, Inio Asano has taken to jumping the continuity forward a couple of years with the final chapter of each volume, except not this one. Punpun’s mother died at the end of Goodnight Punpun 3, and Goodnight Punpun 4 begins with Punpun visiting his estranged father for the first time in several years.

What distinguishes Goodnight Punpun from most real life graphic novel dramas is the absence of any attempt to temper an ongoing misery, which continues throughout this volume. When Punpun was younger his father was an appalling individual and that’s not changed, which leads to a grim and embarrassing conversation as Punpun’s father attempts to pass on his acquired wisdom of life. It’s brilliantly written to be of no value whatsoever.

Even more so than the feelings and situations, Asano’s art delivers an absolute reality, enormous time spent on supplying detail and surroundings. It’s not always necessary to view situations from distance, but Asano does it anyway to include the scenery and embed the characters in it. The only exception to this is the continued presentation of Punpun and any family member as a sketched avatar looking as out of place as they feel. Asano actually simplifies Punpun further by the end, shaping him as a two-dimensional triangle on legs.

As ever, Punpun is never shown talking with anyone, just expressing his feelings via blocks of text highlighted on a black background. He remains a dreamer clutching at straws, yet also profoundly depressed and almost sleepwalking through life, but now he has his dead mother’s savings to fund him. He whiles it away earning minimum wage while dreaming of locating his childhood love Aiko.

Cheeriness is never on the agenda with Goodnight Punpun, but this volume has no flashbacks to redeem the endless monotony of Punpun’s life. It’s acutely observed and brilliantly presented, yet a detailed study of tedium is a detailed study of tedium, and despite the rich art, entertainment is a consideration low on the agenda. Thankfully there’s a glimmer of hope at the end in a chapter looking back, not forward. What are the chances of it being resolutely crushed in Goodnight Punpun 5?