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Rereading hgsn now the anime's releasing and I forgot just how quickly it was established that 1) yoshiki would do anything for (even the shadow of) hikaru to stay by his side, 2) yoshiki is gay and hikaru didn't know, 3) yoshiki doesn't "belong" in the village. It's literally the space of maybe twenty pages?

Yoshiki waits six months to confront "Hikaru" without giving the game away. (Also, not that we know it yet but he knows for sure that Hikaru is dead this entire time. He didn't need to bide his time. He already knew.) When "Hikaru" reveals himself, Yoshiki simply thinks to himself that he wants "Hikaru" to stay, even as "Hikaru" outright states he could kill him. Works on two levels, both to establish how much Yoshiki is reliant on Hikaru (and now "Hikaru") and also how little he values himself if he's willing to stay in this situation knowing full well he could die and just not caring. (1)

Then we follow it up by a flashback to Yoshiki and Hikaru. Hikaru saying Yoshiki could make it in the city. That he's "too clever" to stick around with the rest of them, even as Yoshiki himself protests he'd be all on his own out there. Hikaru's lowkey telling Yoshiki that despite them growing up together, he will stay and Yoshiki will leave. (3)

And then Hikaru says that he'd drop by if Yoshiki moves out. That he'd be there so often it'd scare away any of Yoshiki's future girlfriends. And when Yoshiki objects, says that's not going to happen, Hikaru responds saying Yoshiki's *always* weird when they talk about girls. And... well, there's certainly ambiguity on Hikaru's end here (putting himself where Yoshiki's girlfriend "should" be in this hypothetical scenario), but Yoshiki's end is pretty clear here. Yoshiki is well aware he isn't going to get a girlfriend because he doesn't even like girls like that. He's not the subtlest about it given he and Hikaru are implied to have discussed this often enough for Hikaru to notice Yoshiki "being sore about it". But Hikaru is still oblivious as to what it represents. He may joke about Yoshiki being "interested" in him, but that's all it is to him. A joke, that Yoshiki just tries to play along with. (2)

So in the space of these twenty or so pages, we know that Yoshiki is a closeted gay teen who doesn't know where he's going in life. Someone who despite being closeted is still obvious enough an outsider that he's expected to leave once he's grown up.

But he'd potentially stay for Hikaru. And now, he'll stay for "Hikaru". No matter how ill-advised that would be in either case. It's a bad situation either way, so where's the distinction in his grief-addled brain?

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anime the summer hikaru died

ig: gumicaps

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ok I did not have "gay eldritch fisting" on my 2025 anime bingo card

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Don't look at anything else but me.

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Hikaru ga Shinda Natsu Episode 02 - Yoshiki & Hikaru

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yoshiki, hikaru, and hikaru

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HIKARU GA SHINDA NATSU ✧ EP. 1 whatever you are, havin' ya by my side is way better than not havin' ya at all...

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Now that the anime adaption has been released and people outside its target audience are seeing it let's all say this together:

A story that's an allegory for queer shame and the struggles of being closeted in a small rural town could not be done if the characters were not queer.

The entire reason Yoshiki is able to sympathize with and become close to "Hikaru" is because he feels that his sexuality makes him a monster. The Summer Hikaru Died and its underlying message can literally be boiled down to "If people can have empathy, love and respect for the literal eldritch horror possessing the protagonist's dead best friend's body maybe you also deserve those things as a queer person."

If you are not willing to understand that this story centers queerness, not only are you not who this story is for, you should not be watching or reading it.

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we all knew this was coming

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カツ

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Hhhh. The first episode of The Summer Hikaru Died is out. I forgot about it. I feel blessed.

One of my all-time favorite mangas.

Thinking about what the author has said about it being a queer coming of age horror.

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･ ⋆ ･ ⠄⠂⋆ ･ ⠄⠂⋆ ･ ⠄⠂⋆ ･ ⠄⠂⋆ ･ ⠄⠂⋆ ･ ⋆ ･ ⋆ ･ ⠄⠂⋆ ･ ⠄⠂⋆ ･

You... Aren't Hikaru. Are you?

Peak released yesterday. Im so hyped for it and the first episode was SOOO good.

I have much to say about the symbolism, colors, and sound design but I want to let it marinate first. It definitely reminds me of Chilla's Art horror games.

Im not a manga reader so please don't drop any spoilers in the comments, thank you!!!

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New (still untitled) obkk doujinshi is well under way! Obito is the personal bodyguard of the Sixth Hokage, Kakashi. There's a lot going on under there, like playful/flirty/borderline murderous parkour with banter.

Will also be available in print!

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Hikaru ga Shinda Natsu Episode 01 - Sceneries

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This body and personality ain't mine, but… I like you a whole lot. So please. I don't… wanna kill you.

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Controversial (probably) but I hate people who brush aside the queer aspects of the summer hikaru died. It’s one of the main themes alongside the theme of grieving and letting go. It’s the reason yoshiki relates to “hikaru” because he feels like they’re both monsters without a place in society. Yoshiki viewed himself as a monster his entire life for being gay, then he met a real monster and sees that this monster deserves to be happy and overtime realizes that he deserves happiness as well. The comments I’ve seen denying this in the adaptation dare I say scream ignorance and homophobia. TSHD fits the queerness into the horror and the horror into the queerness