I love this kind of existential philosophical manga. Before You Go Extinct grabbed my attention from page one and while it is dark, it is ultimately about finding love and meaning despite the meaninglessness of life.

It's possible that there might be a little lost in translation or a little lost due to cultural differences. As best I can tell, this is a collection of various cute and anthropomorphized animals engaged in philosophical existentialism. Asking themselves what the point of life is? Whether it's better to have been born than not? How we should best deal with existential dread. The animals deploy various strategies to deal with the finite nature of their existence: genocide, homicide, learning cultural tradition, incubating stones rather than chicks, protest, eating, juggling, pursuit of world records, etc. The animals also heavily question whether or not reproduction is a good thing. One strategy not mentioned in the book: antidepressants. Because sometimes questioning whether it's good that you were born is "philosophy" and sometimes it's just "clinical depression."

This comic is definitely for adults rather than children because there's a lot of violence. It'll stick with you. The appropriate audience is someone who wants to spend an hour grappling with the meaning of life.

The pictures are very cute. The story is disturbing.

Before You Go Extinct was definitely a weird read, and I mean that in the best way.

The stories are dark and a bit unsettling, but they are told through such cute, almost playful artwork that the contrast makes it feel even more impactful. At times the mix felt jarring, yet it’s exactly what made the manga so unique. It’s not the easiest read, but it’s one that stuck with me long after I finished.

This was a quick and thought-provoking read, and I thought the art was excellent. I found it a little difficult to tell some of the characters apart in a couple of the stories because they were drawn so similarly, but I don't think that detracted from my ability to follow the storylines themselves. The stories were sad and introspective, but at the same time sort of darkly wholesome (if that's a phrase). My favorite stories were the two about otters, with the kākāpō story being close behind.

This was… interesting. Psychotic cute animals? Check.

Psychotic cute animals who are contemplating life/death? Check.

Psychotic cute animals who make questionable decisions? Check.

I did really love how this manga challenged reproducing.

This was… something.

Thank you NetGalley and Kodansha comics for the ARC!

Wow! Before You Go Extinct is a manga that follows a rock among different species on the brink of extinction. These different species discuss the meaningless and meaningful moments of life. They talk about love, family, culture, and death.

At first I was confused with the penguicide but as the story went on, I started to see what this manga was all about. The story with the crows was a tearjerker and my favorite! ***SPOILER***Loco, the MC crow, did not find meaning in life and cultural rituals. When he was the last crow to die, other crows (released by humans) came to him and asked him how to grief. Loco was able to pass down generations of crow knowledge and culture to the next generation. ***END OF SPOILER*** I really enjoyed the crow story.

It can be dark at times, with death being a topic heavily present. I enjoyed the illustrations but at times I did find it hard to distinguish the characters. It's a very nihilistic manga but I really enjoyed it.

Thank you, NetGalley and Kodansha Comics, for the ARC.

Before You Go Extinct is a strange one shot manga about the meaning of life and productivity, reproduction, and existing. It follows two souls reborn through different endangered animals with a strange and uncanny sense of 'humanity' to them. This is an unusual manga that is for mature fans who want something twisted and philosophical.

this caught me off guard
the opening scene was like what the fk
but i loved it and this made me feel sad
we deserve to enjoy what we enjoy even if it has no meaning <3 the small “empty” moments matter most of all sometimes
not only reproducing!!

"Before You Go Extinct" consists of short stories, telling us about different animals facing extinction (in a way). When I first started reading this arc, I was expecting a different kind of extinction, and while the concept is difficult to explain, I enjoyed reading this arc.

However, the art was a bit confusing at times and this made it difficult to tell the characters apart. Despite this, I did find it very interesting, some short stories more engaging than others. I would definitely read other works of this author.

A solid 3.5, rounding up to 4.

A collection of small stories about animals pondering the meaning and meaningless of life.


What I disliked
‣ confusing art style
‣ confusing storylines


Review

I received an ARC of this book.

DNFd at 35%

Absurd and confusing. I had no idea what was happening or what the point was. Honestly I can't think of anyone I would recommend this one to.

I think I was expecting more realistic stories of the animals facing extinction and what might trouble them.

I am not sure what to say about this its so cute yet emotionaly forward at the same time.
The manga has many small stories of different animals with different stories , alot of them are dark and ask many philosophical questions about the meaning of life and the types of cultural practices.
There are themes of murder, death and violence but the images of the animals are extremly cute so I would be careful because this is not a cute manga!
I would be intrested in picking up a second volume as its pretty intresting!