“The Summer Hikaru Died”: Body Horror and Boys in Love

During our class cultural artifact activity, I brought two volumes of The Summer Hikaru Died by Mokumokuren. It’s a series starring a teenager named Yoshiki and his relationship with his childhood best friend. His best friend, Hikaru, dies in the woods and is replaced by a supernatural entity. The story (both the manga and the anime) has horror-esque abstract art with the anime taking a mixed media approach with the series (blending real-life backgrounds and objects with animated characters). The series itself means a lot to me due to how it caters to my interests (supernatural horror with romance and unique art). It mainly connects to the class due to how Yoshiki had a crush on Hikaru when he was alive, and how he refuses to leave Hikaru’s side even though he was replaced by a dangerous entity. It also takes place in a rural location where same sex relationships aren’t as common (the term “LGBTQ+” itself is referred to as “that L gee bee t thing” by a child Hikaru in the anime).  

Another interesting concept explored in the series is sexual exploration shown through “mixing.” “Mixing” refers to the entity inserting himself into Yoshiki (or vice versa), with the entity eventually becoming a part of him. A unique part of this approach is how the characters react to each other, with Hikaru initially prompting Yoshiki to reach into his abdomen and then pinning Yoshiki down (with the parts of the entity going into Yoshiki’s body giving him pleasure and feeling “nice” to him). The text that primarily reminds me of the series is Prelude to Bruise by Saeed Jones, as they both center around the sexual coming-of-age experience of a boy in a rural village, and how that boy is seen as an outsider (specifically someone that is “hard to understand”). I find it interesting how The Summer Hikaru Died has a similar setting yet contrasts the piece with the dynamic between the two main characters. The entity inhabiting Hikaru’s body isn’t socially adjusted/in tune with societal norms, which in a way prompts Yoshiki’s attachment to him (as he wouldn’t resist his affection or feelings for him like the real Hikaru). Even though being with the entity is dangerous and leads to body-altering consequences, Yoshiki prefers it to being alone in a place where nobody truly understands him (preferring to be oneself than to live a lie).