At some point they loved each other enough to cohabitate, but now the relationship is on autopilot. Ben is helpless as, well, a baby.īen's life unravels through the slow disintegration of his relationship with the beautiful Miko Hayashi. Biological impulses prevail over brainpower. But for all he has learned, he is powerless to control his own shallow life. He is able to break down life's complexities into neat little compartments that he can deride without attachment. He is intelligent, maybe too intelligent. His slate is full of sardonic criticism of the world he lives in. Ben Tanaka, Tomine's aimless protagonist, is a fully functioning grown up. On the surface, the characters have been programmed with survival skills to face life's challenges. Shortcomings, a graphic novel by Adrian Tomine, is life by instinct. No one taught it how to blink, how to cry, how to kick its chubby legs. And yet, on some basic level, it already has everything it needs to know to face life. The baby enters the world a blank slate waiting for instruction. The bright lights, the strange noises, the sensation of being surrounded by tall strangers poking around overwhelm the senses. When a newborn baby comes into the world, everything is a wonder.
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