On the melancholic shores of a seaside town, a particularly depressed and delicious girl runs into a man-eating mermaid. Instead of immediately eating her, the mermaid protects her from other supernatural creatures attracted to her delectable scent, waiting for the day when she is finally ripe enough for the mermaid to properly enjoy, a fate which the borderline suicidal girl welcomes.
“This Monster Wants to Eat Me” or its original title, “Watashi wo Tabetai, Hitodenashi,” is a horror manga written and illustrated by Sai Naekawa, exploring the complicated bond between an ancient and powerful sea monster and a gloomy high school girl. The story focuses on themes of loneliness, isolation, trust, and the heavy, sometimes unbearable trauma we humans hold onto.
This work firmly presents itself as an example of yuri, a term of Japanese origin referring to a genre of fiction focusing on the intimate personal relationships between women, often romantic, though not necessarily.
For much of its expansive history, yuri has been a niche genre, but it has recently experienced a surge in popularity and mainstream acceptance. This has led some fans to call our current time period a “yuri renaissance” with more people than ever around the globe partaking in these stories. “This Monster Wants to Eat Me,” after 11 published volumes and increasing fan demand, is finally being adapted into a 12-episode anime that started airing Oct. 2.
Besides the beautiful artwork, what’s immediately apparent flipping through the first volume is the calm, lonely tone, interspersed with moments of graphic violence. The setting is eerily quiet while occasionally reminding you of how danger could be lurking anywhere off the coast. Not to mention the heavy symbolism that the author uses to their advantage, drawing parallels between different elements.
Pages flood with water as our tragic heroine, Hinako, sits in class, considering walking into the sea and never returning. Then, when we are introduced to the mermaid Shiori, her eyes match the color of the same sea that Hinako thinks of drowning herself in, a clear metaphor for how Hinako sees and thinks of the mermaid.
Character designs also play into this. Hinako’s long-sleeved turtleneck and baggy school uniform are a representation of the scars she hides, both mental and physical. When she’s not posing as a student, the cool and mysterious mermaid Shiori wears a long white dress, her flowing black hair nearly dragging against the ground as it blankets her figure in a dark silhouette.
The story focuses heavily on the dynamic between these two and how their relationship grows and adapts as new facts are revealed. They share a deep bond that puts the entire dynamic of their relationship into question.
Readers of modern yuri classics such as “Bloom into You” and “Citrus” will feel right at home with the pacing of this story, as the interpersonal relations between characters are the primary focus. Many pages are filled with the character’s introspective thoughts and action scenes are typically brief, though the series doesn’t shy away from grotesque imagery on occasions when supernatural creatures tear each other apart. If you are looking for consistent intensity like we see in long running action series, this may not be for you.
This isn’t to say that the series lacks tension, as there is a constant feeling of unease in how things will play out. Between new revelations and uncovering hidden truths, the motivations of the main cast are always in question as new characters appear and complicate things.
Undeniably captivating, readers will be unable to stop turning the pages, going through volume after volume late into the night before eventually feeling sad once they’ve run out of material. It is easy to confidently recommend “watatabe”(abbreviation used by the author and fans when referring to the series) to those looking for quality yuri media to read, along with its well-deserved anime adaptation.
Five volumes have been officially translated into English by YenPress and are available for purchase on their website, with the sixth on its way soon. The anime is streaming on Crunchyroll.
