Sofie’s Reviews > No. 6: The Manga, Volume 05 > Status Update

secret softie dogkeeper is so lovely i wanna cry
“i won’t pray or cling to some god. i’ll show how i can believe in you two.” her faith in rat and shion is actually religious cool cool cool this found family is so fucking sweet

oh rat is NEVER gonna let shion live that goodbye kiss down is he

rat immediately getting pissed at himself and the world and cursing it all after mercifully singing that man to a peaceful death. he is REALLY struggling to clutch onto this idea that he and everyone else should be angry above all else, even in their very last moments on earth. it’s like every time he does something to ease someone’s pain, he has to backpedal and overcompensate in the opposite direction OUCH

OH MY GOD AND NOW THIS TOTALLY REFRAMES SHION BEGGING RAT TO KEEP HIM HUMAN!!!!! not only does he keep him human by awakening feelings and introducing him to experiences he’s never had before, he keeps him human by not letting him slip back into blissful ignorance. rat is the voice that tells shion: “no. you need to look this in the eye before running back to what’s comfortable”. their yin yang is insane

AND also just like shion wants to go back to no. 6 for the first time since escaping, i also had a moment of oh my god no take me back to dancing in rat’s living room. it’s so fucking human to want to escape into comfort when you’re faced with the worst of reality. distractions are a tool that should be used sparingly and with full knowledge that most of the time, they are just bandaids on bullet wounds

the tone of this has been relatively cozy so far even with the slight detours into horror sci-fi, so this marked shift REALLY hits. i feel exactly like shion in this moment. we got lulled into a false sense of security in west block, we forgot the true horror of no. 6 cause we really hadn’t SEEN it yet. but now here it is. we’re trapped with it just like shion

one of the prisoners asking eve to sing one more song and that getting him shot???????? oh rat feels so fucking guilty, that panel of him gritting his teeth afterwards was so telling. just another piece of evidence for him to prove his mindset that unguarded emotionality gets you killed

THE ONLY THING THAT GLITTERS FOR ALL TIME IS-
ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING?????? the cut off right before what i assume is “love” is diabolical oh my god that was so effective

rat saying that songs and stories can’t actually save anyone because all they do is distract people from their suffering is SO telling about his character. he’s definitely connecting it to shion too and how he’s been a dangerous “distraction” for him. and yet. he still sings.

shion feels like rat is the embodiment of his heart, that he is what makes him human. there’s SO MUCH to unpack there. so for shion, what does it mean to be human? if it has to do with rat, then i’d say it’s about free will and freedom and thinking and FEELING for yourself. it’s about love and understanding. all things that are tantamount to their relationship and how they change each other for the better