At Na-chan's · review
At Na-chan's is a quick excursion inside of Usamaru's mind. It isn't as incoherent as his other works but still contains a certain dose of perplexity and offers free interpretation. It has evident raise awareness tones but it ventures deeper than that. The very start is drawn as if we are invited into the main character's life which consists of stuff other people have thrown away; it immediately makes us think of the cliche idiom (One man's trash...). Artistically wise it may not be the best eye candy out there, but style itself reflects Natsuki's childlike innocence while the composition of colors plays in favorof morose atmosphere.
Usamaru subtly dances between -- for me -- two of the most probable explanations; which would be the brainwashed Natsuki and her fanatic dad, or dysfunctional, albeit -- in Natsuki's eyes -- stable and only family she knows of. We as the readers are the ones to decide whether the dad is the " villain " who affects her mental state with his fanaticism or just a not so ordinary parent. Do his attempts to raise her awareness prevent her from adaptation to society or is she really the " small stone " ?