Review by Jong Chung
In an effort to catch up to recent volumes, here is another review featuring the Haruhi Suzumiya series! The fourth installment, The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya features the stoic Nagato at the center of its events. The universe is turned on its heels when the world Kyon knew it as is no longer. As if the past had been changed, Kyon finds the SOS brigade nonexistent, and even Haruhi to be a stranger to him in this new world. Even more disturbing to Kyon (ironically) is that there are no Aliens, Time Travelers or Espers around! Despite having met up with his past acquaintances of the SOS Brigade, none seem to remember nor recognize him.
The setup is, as you may have guessed by now, a “what if” scenario of the Haruhi universe. The arc does its job well; it covers the character development of the resident alien member of the SOS Brigade, as the “otherworld” Yuki displays a personality that the real one never displays. (Perhaps “incapable of doing so” is much more correct.) As the perpetrator of these series of events was Yuki herself, readers may wonder if that is her ideal self in her own opinion. What of the world, then? The interaction between the two characters places before the reader an important fact as well; that being the level of trust she places in Kyon, the only one left with memories of reality, to choose whether to right the world or leave it as it is: one much like our own, without Haruhi's possession of God-like powers or supernatural beings such as Aliens, Time-Travelers and Espers.
Though I read this with a good deal of bias, it was very enjoyable despite all present previous knowledge of the course of events (as it was released in OVA film adaptation recently).Without a doubt, it's one of the most exciting arcs to read within the series, and it gives us a glimpse into the mindset of the usually incomprehensible Yuki Nagato. While it's a bit out of season with the story taking place in winter, it serves as a last reminder of the cold season that has just begun to pass.
© 2011 Linda Thai
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