文豪ストレイドッグスわん! (Bungou Stray Dogs Wan!) – Volume 4

Aislin · March 15, 2021, 7:26am

This is Bungou Stray Dogs comedy manga spin-off Wan! reading club.
This thread is for discussing Volume 4.
Home Thread is here.
Everyone’s welcome, but knowledge of the main series is required to enjoy this spin-off.
(Bungou Stray Dogs itself is not comedy manga. Wikipedia lists it as action/mystery/supernatural.)

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Schedule for Volume 4

Week	Goal	Start Date
Week #1	Chapters 56-58	February 15th
Week #2	Chapters 59-61	February 22nd
Week #3	Chapters 62-64	March 1st
Week #4	Chapters 65-67	March 8th
Week #5	Chapters 68-70	March 15th

Reminders for Discussion:

Please blur/hide any major events in the current week’s pages (however early they occur), like so: [spoiler]texthere[/spoiler]
Feel free to discuss grammar, vocabulary, comprehension questions, as well as interesting plot details
Include references (page, panel, character speech bubble, etc.) so that others can help you
We’re all here to learn and read together, so share your thoughts and ask questions!

Aislin · February 21, 2021, 8:24pm

Week 1: Chapters 56-58 (3 chapters)
Start Date: February 15th
Next Week: Week 2
Home Thread: Link

Mark your participation status by voting in this poll:

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0 voters

Aislin · February 14, 2021, 10:48pm

#56

This whole motif about going into the gap in the rock which is exactly your shape… It sounds suspiciously familiar to the Junji Ito’s The Enigma of Amigara Fault. I wonder if it’s a reference.

50%

Also, I’m lost with this panel. Kamakura…? My brain got hooked on the city name and now I can’t think about any other meaning.

#57

Mm, I love summer evenings.
But I wonder about how each country treats fireworks differently. In Japan, it seems that ordinary people can only buy “safe” ones, and the big, 打ち上げ花火 ones are restricted to the professional usage?
In Poland there is no summer 花火 (I think it’s a Japan-only thing?) but for the New Year’s Eve? Everybody can buy everything. There are no safety rules. The only concern in recent years is that some dogs are sensitive to the loud noise that fireworks make. How does it work in your countries?

#58

I may not like Guild characters as much as the rest of the cast, but it was refreshing to see them after so long time.
But, does anyone have any idea why Lovecraft seems to be attracted to the wooden objects?

Note to myself - Bungou Stray Dogs - miscellaneous discussion - #38 by Whologist - there is a comment for #59 there to be checked next week It feels like a present waiting to be opened.

icefang97 · February 15, 2021, 5:47pm

Chap 56

An interesting first chapter of the book. Fiodor makes his appearence. I was lost because I only knew his first name.

I haven’t read 人間失格 but from what I saw I think this is the conclusion of the book.
If it is, it’s a really nice reference.

Chap 57

This chapter was really cute. Then Dazai tries to die, and Yoshino Sensei makes dark poems. I like when Dazai just turns something nice into a suicide thing.
I’m not sure of my understanding of one thing.

Dazai tries to put more than two fireworks in a box of 2 max?

Chap 58

A nice chapter but maybe I missed a lot of reference because I did not find it as funny was mostly weird. It was meh at best for me. They were two short one that was good but the rest were meh. I guess Lovecraft is supposed to be weird.

He asks Lovecraft if he was raised as a fisherman. He then answer it was closer to an abyss?

Answer to Aislin

Never knew about it. Thx for the info. It’s always more fun when you understand the references.

That’s because you are missing the first part.
いざかまくら It means in case of emergency.

We need to be 18+ to buy the one that explode in the sky. Never saw the small one though.

I would like to know. I only found out that
Whisperer in Darkness (1931) in which the Black Goat is called the “Lord of the Woods”. However, Lovecraft clearly associates Shub-Niggurath with The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young in two of his stories—“The Dreams in the Witch House” and “The Thing on the Doorstep”.
Also found a book called the wood that he wrote.The wood

Aislin · February 16, 2021, 6:53pm

Answer to icefang

It didn’t sound that way to me, but I’m not 100% sure.

Crime and Punishment was an obligatory high-school book for me.

That’s how I understood it. I never used fireworks myself, let alone such specific type, so I cannot say how it is supposed to work, but from this dialogue, this box seems to have some kind of limit? of 2?

Cthulhu is a sea monster, Lovecraft power is Cthulhu form.

Cthulhu is a Great Old One of great power who lies in a death-like slumber beneath the Pacific Ocean in his sunken city of R’lyeh.
Cthulhu | The H.P. Lovecraft Wiki | Fandom

Ohh, so the first part wasn’t https://jisho.org/word/いざ !

Hmm, but you can buy it, it isn’t “professional show only”. I’m not sure whether we have an age limit - kids probably are very good at asking somebody older to buy it for them anyway.

Hmmm, sounds like a realistic option, since many references in BSD are just titles.

icefang97 · February 16, 2021, 8:21pm

Re Answer to Aislin

Thx for the help

Is it good? Would you recommend me his books?
Anime makes everything more interesting ha ha.
Maybe we should do a bangou stray dog real life book club. Just reading some of these author real work or something.

Aislin · February 16, 2021, 9:36pm

Well, I’m reading their works on my own anyway, but I prefer translations in this case. I may do some exceptions if Advanced Book Club picks one of their books, but beside that, I’ll stick to my translated collection.
And anyway, in Dostoyevsky case, the original is in Russian language, remember

Ah! I think it’s a nice opportunity to share - I got two new books delivered today - both are short stories collections, one by Ango, and one by Kenji. In Polish.

Photo

About Crime and Punishment… It was one of the better books in “required in school” category, and it was quite enjoyable, but I was reading it after Death Note and I preferred Death Note version of the same theme.
Both Light and Raskolnikov believe that they have the right to single-handedly judge and murder people, and only Light has balls to actually carry on with this plan. Meanwhile, Raskolnikov quickly suffers mental breakdown. Is it more realistic? Probably yes. But it’s a little tiring to read about.
So, yep. Imagine Light in Russia, without money/good social status, who becomes scared of what he did after his first murder. And no superpowers. And then the whole book is about dealing with consequences of his failed marvelous plan which assumed “that he is an extraordinary person able to take on the spiritual responsibility of using evil means to achieve humanitarian ends” (from Britannica).
…Unless you didn’t read/watch Death Note, I somehow take for granted that everybody did.

icefang97 · February 16, 2021, 9:43pm

polish, no wonder I have no idea what these books title are. Just tell me if you like them then.

I wasn’t thinking about reading them all in Japanese though. Anyway, Russian is on my list so maybe one day.
Thx for the info on Crime and Punishment. Death note is probably better then.

Aislin · February 16, 2021, 9:47pm

I said these are short stories collections, so the title is just for fluff anyway.
But Night on the Galactic Railroad (銀河鉄道の夜) for Kenji and in Ango’s case, you can read the original title on the right side of the cover.

icefang97 · February 16, 2021, 9:52pm

I wasn’t sure if it was the title. How dare you try to make me read Japanese.

I think I saw that story in an anime last season or so… Maybe I’m wrong though but I don’t think so. Anyway good reading.

Aislin · February 16, 2021, 9:56pm

Thank you! And I’ll happily share my impressions after I finish.

Aislin · February 28, 2021, 8:49pm

Week 2: Chapters 59-61 (3 chapters)
Start Date: February 22nd
Previous Week: Week 1
Next Week: Week 3
Home Thread: Link

Mark your participation status by voting in this poll:

I’m reading along
I’ll catch up later
I’m dropping out
I’m reading ahead

0 voters

icefang97 · February 22, 2021, 3:57pm

The reading this week felt short

Chap 59

A cute little chapter. Kyouka missing 愛想 and then Lucy just ask her if Atsushi isn’t giving it enough already was cute.

Chap 60

Chuuya really loves that hat.
I’m not sure I get the joke here.

I did not found the word Chuuya is using but I found 生き抜く which mean to survive. Does Chuuya just said something it’s nice just to survive? Maybe he said it’s nice to just relax but he is always angry? Maybe they just says that because he gets drunk easily and he is drinking.Is it a pun? Help me!!! Thank you
I sad he did not like the mouse hat because it was so cute.
He did at some point changed his hat when he bought a new one in a previous chapter though… Anyway.

Chap 61

Interesting choices of glasses I must say. I never thought Motojiro had such beautiful eyes.

That chapter was really funny. I like the group picture.
Fun thought here. Why Monocle? Why only one eye? How does it stay in place? I should look into it. I always thought it looks nice. Time to look into it then

Edit: I must forced myself to not read ahead ha ha. Next one seems nice though…

Aislin · February 23, 2021, 5:06pm

59

Now I’m wondering if I misunderstood that part of if you’re talking about a different scene. My version was more or less:
Lucy: you need 愛想 in this job!
Kyouka: ahaha, and that’s coming from you
Lucy: okay, maybe I wasn’t nice towards you&tiger, but now you’ll see how friendly&cute I can be!

also, I had to use google translate photo mode for this coffee name (and it actually managed):

60

In this chapter I was constantly wondering why won’t he just use his powers to fly after the hat?
And yep, there are some inconsistencies if he just loves this specific hat because it’s a keepsake or if he just loves hats in general.

Actually, it’s just 息抜き, not く. So I understood it just as everyone happily having fun and randomly chattering, and the more stoic characters being disgusted with so much relaxation.

61

This chapter was a little hard for me, because glasses are one of my triggers. But I managed!
Monocles: they apparently are really being held by the area around the eye and that works…? Yes, I’m also suspicious about this.
Why only one eye: I couldn’t find the official answer. So this is only my personal theory. But. Some generations ago, presbyopia was the most common problem requiring eyesight correction. But. Presbyopia means you don’t see close objects. When you correct presbyopia, you can see close objects, but your far vision becomes worse. Nowadays, we have progressive lenses. But, in monocles era, progressive lenses didn’t exist, so I assume people were only correcting one eye, so they could achieve good vision for all distances without taking glasses off. Yes, it is possible to have one eye specialized in “far vision” and the other in “close vision”. I know this, because I heard that when people aged 40+ do laser eye surgery to correct myopia, they have an option to do exactly this. Some people don’t ever get used to it, but some do and they don’t consciously know when their eyes are switching between each other.
And since in fiction, it’s usually older people who wear monocles, I think this is a valid theory.
Question: at the very end of the chapter, Dazai says he doesn’t understand what Ango is saying… The problem is, neither do I.

Aislin · February 23, 2021, 5:15pm

I also promised to comment on my purchased books when I read them.

So, I finished Ango's short stories (just after he appeared in #61, it fits nicely)

So, the two stories included were:

桜の森の満開の下
夜長姫と耳男

I was surprised how bloody, full of cruelty and unsettling atmosphere both were. I would actually classified them as horror.
Unfortunately, again, just like with Motojirō Kajii, I’m not sure I understood their meaning and message. Once again I felt too stupid for the “superior” literature ^^" Was it about beauty? About playing with Japanese sacrum? (for example, sakura trees are portrayed as creepy)

icefang97 · February 25, 2021, 10:29pm

Answer to aislin

I relooked at it and it seems I was wrong. Kyoka is telly Lucy she is missing 愛想. Glad this is corrected. Now I wonder how many more mistakes I made without realising it.

Was he really disgusted? It felt to me like he was saying relaxing is good but he is always angry so they did not say anything? maybe?

This sentence confused me and I don’t know if I should ask for more info or leave it there.You hate glasses or you really like glasses? I think you mentioned you liked them but then how is is hard… wait…
Just kidding
Thx for the monocle’s info.

Dazai wants to join the glasses club. Ango says that it’s too early for him. He need to at least be able to do a 3 with his eye(referring to the previous joke)

I feel like all old Japanese others are writing horror or dark things. If you need help with finding meaning behind them I would recommend googling some book analysis. This is what I always do.

Sorry, I wanted to answer early but I was busy.

Aislin · February 26, 2021, 12:48pm

Answer to answer

Well, he was also drunk in this scene.

Omg, this!!! It was about that joke!
Because Dazai was having one of his eyes covered during his Mafia days, I somehow was thinking that:
Mafia Dazai = 1 eye
ADA Dazai = 2 eyes
joining the club = 3 eyes
Literally 3 eyes, not an eye shaped as “3”.

Thank you!

Due to personal issues, I hate being reminded of everything related to glasses, contact lenses, eye surgeries, ophthalmologists, opticians and optometrists. And so on.

I’m happy you managed to find the time at all

Aislin · March 15, 2021, 7:28am

Week 3: Chapters 62-64 (3 chapters)
Start Date: March 1st
Previous Week : Week 2
Next Week: Week 4
Home Thread: Link

Mark your participation status by voting in this poll:

I’m reading along
I’ll catch up later
I’m dropping out
I’m reading ahead

0 voters

Aislin · February 28, 2021, 9:02pm

Aaand of course I forgot last week to check @Whologist comment to #59.
It was about that coffee name
@Whologist, you need to help me with remembering! x)

Whologist · March 1, 2021, 5:05am

I’m late to replying 0-0

Summary

太宰さんには未だ早いですね - It would be early for you, Dazai (Or quick? I don’t have the book on m and I’m too lazy to go to the chapter for context…
せめて目が３にできるようになってから - Well I was able to make my eyes turn into 3’s, at least (A reference to earlier in the chapter where his eyes turned into 3-like shapes when he removed his glasses.)

Oh nooo
I myself have a terrible memory so this sounds like quite the plan

文豪ストレイドッグス わん! (Bungou Stray Dogs Wan!) – Volume 4

Schedule for Volume 4

文豪ストレイドッグスわん! (Bungou Stray Dogs Wan!) – Volume 4