Me trying to socialize after quarantine ends

(3/14) ...Asada Asa, a strong-willed young girl living in Nagoya in 1959! I was immediately hooked to see how the opening events of the manga, and this little girl, could possibly be connected.

(5/14) Urasawa is very good at introducing us to characters we think might be a bit of a cliche, before imbuing them with all the nuance and grace of a well-developed protagonist in a matter of pages. His characters play with your expectations in interesting ways.

(7/14) An extended flashback sequence that unfolds with absolutely no dialogue is a particular stand-out, delivering pathos without a single word said. Masterfully done storytelling, all contributing to building up the characters we will be with for the long haul.

(8/14) I especially loved this somewhat horrifying panel where a little girl's imagination and a misunderstanding about a turn of phrase leads to the kind of imagery we would more likely see in a Junji Ito manga. A playful and memorable character moment.