Not Simple

Not Simple (stylized in all lowercase) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Natsume Ono, presenting a nonlinear narrative of a young man's fractured family history and the search for his missing sister. It was serialized in Penguin Shobo's free web manga magazine Comic Seed! from August 2004 to October 2005. Its chapters were collected in a single compiled volume, first by Penguin Shobo in February 2005, and later by Shogakukan in October 2006. Viz Media licensed Not Simple for an English-language release in North America in January 2010.

The book opens on an unspecified time with freelance journalist Jim remarking on the extraordinary life Ian leads, and his intention to turn Ian's story into a novel.

The prologue is the last chapter chronologically. A homeless Ian, weary and with very little reason left to live, is picked up by a stranger. The woman, Irene, soon realizes that Ian is the same man her Aunt Jenny talked with years prior (according to Irene's mother, a now-deceased Jenny was about to abandon her husband and infant child but was ultimately talked out of it by Ian). She informs him of Jenny's death and he becomes despondent. The two then travel to a train station, where Irene calls her mother and learns that it was not Jenny whom Ian met, but instead her own parent. However, Irene's stepdad (who is stated to be jealous and obsessive in controlling his daughter) mistakes Ian for her boyfriend and orders him to be killed. Jim – who was waiting at the station for Ian – and Irene are shocked to see him bleeding to death from a stab wound. Although Irene tries to save Ian, Jim stops her from touching his blood and says that he has already accepted death.

Sometime later, two restaurant patrons discuss a recently published book called Not Simple. Rumor has it that the novel is actually a thinly veiled memoir and the author, Jim, has committed suicide, mirroring the events of the book.

The novel then jumps back to the past, opening with Ian's sister Kylie being released from prison. She has a discussion with her father, who reveals that he divorced her mother while she was in jail and is now planning to remarry. Kylie's mother took Ian with her to London illegally, as she is not his biological mother and is an alcoholic. In London, Ian does odd jobs for the local butcher to support his mother, who uses the money immediately on alcohol. She eventually signs him over to a pimp, who gives Ian gum for behaving well. Kylie arrives and sends Ian back to his father in Melbourne, promising to meet him again when he achieves his goal of beating fictional runner Robert Johnston's 1000 meter record. Kylie returns to her mother's apartment and tells her she intends to make amends for the hurt she has caused her in the past.

Once again, an unknown amount of time has passed. Jim, who has only met Ian recently via interviews, discusses his incoming move to New York City. After hearing that Kylie has gone to America and left behind no other clues, Ian decides to join Jim on his move.

Months later, Jim is in an ambiguous relationship with his neighbor, Rick. Ian shows up at Jim's apartment one day wearing a three-piece suit that Irene's mother bought him, ostensibly after traveling all the way to the west coast. After Rick offers Ian a piece of gum, he confesses about his mother selling him into prostitution, seemingly unfazed. Soon enough, Jim gets a call informing him that Kylie is now in a prison on the outskirts of London for attempting to kill her boyfriend. Ian leaves once again in search of his sister.

Two years later, Jim spots Ian on the streets of New York. Disheveled and seemingly depressed, Ian is now a shell of the bright and hopeful man he once was. He confides in Jim that his sister was dead by the time he got to London: she caught a cold in prison which turned into a fatal case of pneumonia. Ian then went to visit his mother, who finally reveals to him that he is a product of incest between Kylie and their shared father. She determines him as the cause of her unhappiness and wishes to never see him again.

Ian decide ver al novio de Kylie, que actualmente se encuentra en Nueva York. Más tarde, Jim ve a un Ian angustiado con chicles en la mano fuera de su habitación. Jim corre al apartamento del hombre, donde descubrimos que se trata del antiguo proxeneta que Ian conoció años atrás. Es aquí donde el lector se entera de que Ian es VIH positivo y, al parecer, lo ha sido desde que sufrió abusos en su infancia ; Kylie intentó matar a su novio tras enterarse de su relación con su hijo. Ian le dice a Jim que lo único que desea es sentir el amor de quienes deberían estar cerca de él. Ahora solo le queda una cosa por la que ilusionarse: reencontrarse con la madre de Irene. Jim acepta encontrarse con ambos en la estación de tren, sin saber lo que ocurrirá más tarde ese día.

El epílogo detalla el emotivo encuentro de Ian con la madre de Irene. Tras convencerla de que regrese con su familia, Ian le promete que volverán a verse dentro de tres años. Los dos pasan el resto de la noche juntos en la playa.

En la última página se ve a un Jim con aspecto desaliñado de pie al borde de un camino, lo que sugiere que ahora viaja de forma muy parecida a como lo hacía Ian antes de su muerte.

Ian (イアン)

El protagonista. Pasa la mayor parte del libro buscando a su hermana, Kylie. Se describe a Ian como alguien con una personalidad peculiar que atrae a la gente.

Jim (ジム, Jimu )

Un periodista independiente que observa pasivamente a Ian en sus viajes. Es homosexual y, por ello, está distanciado de su familia.

Kylie (カイリ, Kairi )

La hermana y madre biológica de Ian. Al comienzo del libro, está cumpliendo una condena de prisión por robo a mano armada.

Irene (アイリーン, Airīn )

La hermanastra de Ian. Ella es, sin quererlo, la causante de su muerte al comienzo de la novela.

La madre de Irene (アイリーンの母親, Airīn no hahaoya )

La mujer con la que el padre de Ian se volvió a casar tras su divorcio. Durante un viaje de mochilero por el país, Ian la convence de quedarse y criar a Irene. Ninguno de los dos conoce la verdadera identidad del otro.

Rick (リック, Rikku )

Vecino de Jim y posible amante. Se escapó de casa hace años en lugar de hablar con sus padres sobre su homosexualidad.

El padre de Ian (イアンの父親, Ian no chichioya )

Un hombre frío e insensible. Cuida de Ian durante un tiempo, pero no muestra ninguna preocupación cuando este se marcha con Jim.

La "madre" de Ian (イアンの母親, Ian no hahaoya )

Una alcohólica deprimida que culpa a Ian de su infelicidad. Su hermana es una de las pocas personas que la cuida.

Not Simple fue escrito e ilustrado por Natsume Ono . Fue serializado en la revista web de manga gratuita Comic Seed! de Penguin Shobo , comenzando en el número de septiembre de 2004, publicado el 20 de agosto de 2004. ^{[ 3 ] [ 4 ]} Terminó en el número de noviembre de 2005 de la revista, publicado el 20 de octubre de 2005. ^{[ 5 ]} Penguin Shobo publicó un volumen recopilatorio titulado " Not Simple 1" bajo el sello Seed! Comics el 25 de febrero de 2005. ^{[ 6 ]} Más tarde ese año, la compañía se declaró en bancarrota, ^{[ 7 ]} y Ono consideró autopublicar un segundo volumen con los capítulos restantes de la serie. ^{[ 8 ]} En cambio, Shogakukan publicó una nueva edición de Not Simple bajo el sello Ikki Comix el 30 de octubre de 2006, recopilando los 14 capítulos, incluyendo el prólogo y el epílogo. ^{[ 9 ]} Viz Media obtuvo la licencia del manga para su publicación en inglés en Norteamérica. ^{[ 10 ] [ 11 ]} Inicialmente subieron una vista previa de Not Simple en su sitio web SigIkki , ^{[ 2 ]} y posteriormente publicaron el volumen completo bajo el sello Viz Signature el 19 de enero de 2010. ^{[ 2 ] [ 12 ]}

La división YALSA de la Asociación Estadounidense de Bibliotecas incluyó Not Simple en su lista de Grandes Novelas Gráficas para Adolescentes en 2011. ^{[ 13 ] [ 14 ]} Viz Media eligió el manga para participar en el primer Festival del Libro del Área de la Bahía en Berkeley, California , en 2015. ^{[ 15 ]}

• No es sencillo en la página web de Ikki Paradise de Shogakukan(ya no está disponible; enlace a través de Wayback Machine ) (en japonés).
• Not Simple en el sitio web SigIkki de Viz Media(ya no está disponible; enlace a través de Wayback Machine)
• No es sencillo enla enciclopedia de Anime News Network.