Tatsuya Serizawa Overcomes Midlife Crisis Through "Criticism": A Study of Ramen Saiyuki

*Thumbnail is from "Ramen Saiyuki (2)" No. 90

The manga "Ramen Saiyuki," written by Rokuro Kube and illustrated by Tan Kawai, which features the 'Ramen Baldy' that everyone on the internet loves, is currently (as of February 11, 2026) running a campaign making 37 chapters free until February 14, 2026. It is easily one of the top five most interesting manga currently being serialized, so everyone should read it.

Starting with "Ramen Hakkenden," which is extremely famous for internet memes like the iconic "They aren't eating ramen. They're eating information!," the series has continued with the latest installment, "Ramen Saiyuki," where Serizawa has become the protagonist after being too character-driven as a supporting role. It is overwhelmingly interesting—so much so that it's a waste to only consume it as an internet meme. Honestly, you can start reading from "Ramen Saiyuki" and still enjoy it. In fact, that's where I started.

The appeal of "Ramen Saiyuki" isn't just in seeing Serizawa—the 'Ramen Baldy' who was so intense in those viral clips—now withered and enjoying a lonely gourmet life at a mediocre ramen shop early in the story. Well, that's interesting in its own right, and it was a hot topic on the internet when it was announced, but what makes this work truly interesting is that Serizawa, having fallen into a midlife crisis, overcomes it by encountering "criticism."

The scene where Serizawa, who had lost his passion for ramen and fallen into a slump, regains his passion and returns to being a ramen fanatic is certainly moving. However, the highlight of this work lies in the fact that he doesn't just reject petty logic; he digs deeper into it, analyzes the history of how ramen has evolved and the reasons for the decline of the scene he once belonged to, and constructs his own historical perspective.

The highlight of the early chapters, in particular, is the 12th and 13th bowls (chapters 12 and 13). This episode is wonderful, as Serizawa finds the path he should take next after organizing the history of modern ramen development and his own position within it, while citing the words of literary critic Hideo Kobayashi regarding the transition of art from the age of form to the age of individuality. It is undoubtedly a masterpiece of "Ramen Saiyuki."

Without overly glorifying or belittling his past career, he appropriately evaluates its value, finds history in the accumulated years, and discovers the horizon he should move toward next. Here, criticism is clearly functioning.

Yes, while criticism is often shunned these days, it clearly functions in this manga. By making the ramen discussions between Serizawa and the ramen critic Ryo Arisu—who could be called the co-protagonist—the backbone of the story, while referencing other genres like pro-wrestling and music, the work transcends being a mere ramen gourmet manga and connects ramen to events and history occurring in the world.

The creator, Serizawa, and the receiver/analyst, Arisu. The words exchanged between these two are not mere displays of knowledge. Their dialogue, which deciphers ramen by sliding the structures of different genres, is an act of drawing "auxiliary lines" to break through the stagnant status quo.

What does it mean for criticism to function? It means finding a path within accumulated experiences and events, which then serves as a guide for the next step. In "Ramen Saiyuki," Serizawa uses the weapon of criticism to redefine himself, someone who was once 'finished.' Having once pushed the masses away by saying they were 'eating information,' he has now regained his heat as an 'expressor' by adopting the perspective of the most sincere handler of information—that is, a 'critic.'

As of now (February 2026), 14 volumes of the collected manga have been released, and in the process, he continues his journey to explore the 'form for all' while interacting with former comrades, rivals, and respected predecessors.

In that process, the story gains depth by taking up suburban chain stores and ramen vending machines—things that are usually hard to put on the table of criticism—and finding a kind of 'form' in them, while also depicting a 'comeback' in a different form from Serizawa's in a way that could be called quite straightforward.

In the latest episodes, the creator and the narrator have finally reached the point where they are clashing their ramen philosophies through a direct ramen showdown, going beyond just the technique of making ramen. I think the conclusion of "Ramen Saiyuki" might be near, but it is definitely a manga that is too good to just know as an internet meme. I highly recommend it to everyone.

↓ Since the original author, Rokuro Kube, is a former employee of Rockin'on, it's only natural that rock history is referenced in the work, and the way the latest episode ends is just landing where it needs to land. That thing depicted in the final panel really hit home.