"Boukyou Tarou"—A Question for the "Human" Walking in a World 500 Years Later

A man wakes up all alone in a future where civilization has perished.
His desire to "return home" reaches across 500 years to pose a question.
I will write down my thoughts after reading "Boukyou Tarou" (by Yoshihiro Yamada).

Waking up alone in a world 500 years later

The protagonist of the story, Tarou, was once a successful president of a large corporation.
However, due to a sudden cooling period, humanity faced the brink of extinction, and Tarou entered cold sleep with his family in a corporate cryosleep shelter in Basra, Iraq.
Then, 500 years later, he is the only one who wakes up.

What spread out before his eyes was a world where the civilization of the past had vanished without a trace.
There is no electricity, no writing, and no national borders.
Tarou begins to walk the frozen earth alone.

Even if civilization is gone, are people still human?

This contains some spoilers from here on.
This manga is best read without any prior knowledge, so if you felt something up to this point, please read the first volume.

Free up to episode 26!!

I don't know how long it will be available, but you can read it for free up to episode 26 on Comic DAYS!! Please try reading it here!!

The people Tarou meets do not understand his language or his culture.
Their lives, having lost civilization, are completely different from the "human society" Tarou knows.
However, even within that, feelings of love for family, the kindness of sharing food, and fear and desire certainly existed.

Tarou, who initially viewed them as "primitive beings," gradually finds his heart moved by their values.
This change is depicted very carefully.
While reading, I was made to think about what the "civilization" I took for granted really was.

To live is a series of losses.

What left an impression on me was the scene where Taro lets go of what could be called a "symbol" of his past during his journey.
To him, it was civilization itself, the pride of his former self.
However, in the harshness of nature, it was nothing more than baggage,
and in order to survive, Taro gradually strips away the "civilized person" within himself.

I felt that hidden within that figure was the question of what is truly necessary for a human to live.

Homesickness is searching for a place to return to.

The title "Bokyo Taro" carries the meaning of "longing for one's homeland."
However, what Taro is searching for does not seem to be just a "place," but
the very "meaning of living as a human."

Even if civilization perishes, people seek others and try to live with someone.
In any era, there is "homesickness" there.
This quiet message remained in my heart for a while after I finished reading.

In conclusion

"Bokyo Taro" is not the type of science fiction that surprises you with flashy developments or technology.
Rather, it is a work that depicts the strength and weakness of humans within silence.
Taro's journey is a "story of a fresh start" that resonates with us living in the modern age.

It is precisely in an era where civilization has advanced too far that this silence sinks in.
If you haven't read it yet, please try picking upVolume 1and starting there.
As you follow Taro's journey, a "place you want to return to" might emerge within yourself as well.

#MangaReview #BokyoTaro #YoshihiroYamada #SF #WhatIsHuman #ReadingLog #CivilizationAndNature #Manga

As of 2025/10/24, the latest volume is volume 13.

I also recommend these 💁

J⇔M

Phoenix

Aria in the Wind

I would be very grateful if you could like and follow me ☺️