End of the World

We begin the story as Rock has left her husband, Astro, and their children and wants a divorce because Astro has cheated on Rock (again). As the five year old twins Rockette and Astro Junior find pictures of their parents when they were young, we flash back to the ever popular romcom scenario of when Rock met Astro... except it's Kyoko Okazaki so it's messy, it's kooky, it's funny and it's all in a way that's unique to her. Between romantic comedy and hallucinated fairy tail, she paints a wind of hysteria in the fashion world and its music/drug-saturated nights.

At the edge of the city not far from the sea, a field of goldenrod sways in the breeze, its veil of amber flowers obscuring secrets underneath. Old bones and forgotten memories rest in silence, waiting for someone to dig them up. This is where the lives of six young men and women intertwine in ways both tragic and extraordinary. Decaying secrets are revealed as they forge friendships from pain, find betrayal in pleasure, and stare into the face of death itself—in a field of gold by a stagnant river, under the smoke-filled skies. [Kodansha]

This is a story of "love" and "friendship" encountered by Kaneda Sakae, a high school student who came to Tokyo from Hokkaido in search of "fashion" in the early 1980s. This is a realistic "subculture" coming-of-age story that blows away the pretense of the bubble economy and bustle of the 1980s. A dialogue with Asada Akira is also included at the end of the second volume!

The victim of the dismembered murder case was "Chiwawa-chan" whom everyone knew. She had many friends. But in truth, nobody knew anything about her... In addition to the title story, six others, like "Memories of Summer" and "Chocolate Marble-chan," are included in this collection of gems of short stories.

If you are aware of fashion in Japan you must have seen Liliko’s face. For the last few years she has been at the top of the modeling world, with her face and body promoting the biggest brands. But as everyone who is in this world admits, staying on top is a constant and never ending battle. There are always new faces introduced to the public. Younger models and new looks are brought into the fold every season. And keeping that position means learning to adapt and learning to cope with change. To maintain her position, Liliko has decided to go under the knife. This is not her first go with this service. It is yet another round of plastic surgery, all done to keep herself looking young and vibrant. However, in this case just a little nip and tuck was not enough. Liliko is bent on undergoing a full body makeover. From head-to-toe, every inch of her will undergo cosmetic surgery, and thus begins her madness. [Kodansha] --- Won the 2003 excellence prize at the Japanese Media Arts Festival, and the 2004 Osamu Tezuka Culture Prize.

In addition to the title story about boy and a girl who kill their parents and roam the American Midwest, the volume includes five short stories: "VAMPS," Okazaki's version of a vampire tale; "Sunflowers," a summer vacation nightmare experienced by an elementary school student; "Little Sun in the Water," a coming-of-age story of bankruptcy; and "Otome-chan," a family story about a father with eccentric habits. A collection of masterpieces by Okazaki Kyouko!