Wombs

I am glad there is enough interest for it to keep being translated. So many titles like this go for a few chapters and are dropped. I am highly enjoying every release of this one.

 

Thank the scanlators for that, fortunately not everyone who's into scanlating does so for mainstream titles like Naruto, niche titles like Wombs also deserve some love (and often end up being better than mainstream stuff, which says something about contemporary mainstream quality).

Wow The Navi sure are sulking.

Thanks Hox and Happyscans.

This is one weird story, even uncanny at times, and I'm having a hard time getting all the details. At the same time it's very unique and, for now, interesting enough to warrant following.
I do expect some visceral horror to pop up at some point though, heaven knows what they really implant in these women.

I find it very reminiscent of older sci fi I read growing up, like heinlein or foster, where you didnt really need to understand everything that was going on.

I am glad there is enough interest for it to keep being translated. So many titles like this go for a few chapters and are dropped. I am highly enjoying every release of this one.

Im pretty sure the Seconds are Earthers they just left Earth at a later date. In the time the First reached their planet and colonized those left behind on Earth progressed technology at a faster rate.(like Sleeper or Generation colony ships getting passed by faster then light ships being developed during their travels)  Which could also explain why the Seconds and their robots look so alien.  

 

but still the Seconds are assholes who need to be tele fragged into space. 

Aye both are from Earth. The Seconds came a couple of decades (I think 200 years) later.

At first I was like you're Thorfinn? Then 98, 99, 100.

 

I want First to win but I keep getting this feeling Seconds are Earthers, and I have a bias for rooting for my planet. The First fled our planet ousted or hoping for a better life, yet here I am hoping for a First Conquest victory or wiping out 99% of Seconds city for a Domination Victory. Oh pooh.

 

Im pretty sure the Seconds are Earthers they just left Earth at a later date. In the time the First reached their planet and colonized those left behind on Earth progressed technology at a faster rate.(like Sleeper or Generation colony ships getting passed by faster then light ships being developed during their travels)  Which could also explain why the Seconds and their robots look so alien.  

 

but still the Seconds are assholes who need to be tele fragged into space. 

This is one weird story, even uncanny at times, and I'm having a hard time getting all the details. At the same time it's very unique and, for now, interesting enough to warrant following.

I do expect some visceral horror to pop up at some point though, heaven knows what they really implant in these women.

I'm confused. I say "pre-War Japanese Empire" to refer to territory that was part of the Japanese Empire prior to the start of WWII. You clearly agree with me in those terms: 1895 is prior to WWII - yes, almost 50 years prior if you say the 2nd Sino-Japanese War started in 1937. It's the same way people would call Alsace-Lorraine part of pre-War Germany when discussing WWI, or Poznan as part of pre-War Prussia when discussing the Napoleonic Wars. I was simply trying to make a distinction between women conscripted from organized (pre-war) territories of the Japanese Empire and women who were kidnapped from territory conquered over the course of the war, as their experiences were quite different (horrible, but to different extents, and in different ways).

The women in this comic seem to me to be a reference to war-time sex slaves conscripted from organized territory of the Japanese Empire. Being forcibly impregnated by alien tissue at the hands of the military "for the good of your country" conjures the image of rape at the hands of the military "for the good of your country". Unfortunately, as this series goes on, it seems more and more militaristic. The 1st wave of colonists are righteous, and the sexual abuse of conscripted women is necessary to further their cause and fight off the barbaric invaders. The more I read, the more similar it seems to the English-language pro-fascist military sci-fi of the 40s and 50s. Maybe the tone will change, but so far the militarism dominates. War is presented as an evil, but as a necessary evil, requiring the sacrifice for the good of the people and for the good of the state. The enemies commit needless atrocities, while the "good guys" commit atrocities only for lack of any other option.

No, it'd be more like the injection of experimental performance enhancement drugs. Because there's no actual act of coitus, there is no sexual abuse. Instead, they are surgically implanted with foreign tissue, like insemination only here it's just foreign tissue and not semen. Men were often experimented on during times of war, especially during WWII. This really isn't so different. It's certainly not truly any worse just because they're utilizing female soldiers' wombs rather than torturing and maiming them as was done to men in reality. To suggest this is so much worse than what has actually happened to real men just because these are women and their wombs is pure sexism.

Damn, that was a packed chapter.

Japan occupied Taiwan and Korea almost half a century prior to WWII.

 

You're not an apologist, you're a revisionist.

I'm confused. I say "pre-War Japanese Empire" to refer to territory that was part of the Japanese Empire prior to the start of WWII. You clearly agree with me in those terms: 1895 is prior to WWII - yes, almost 50 years prior if you say the 2nd Sino-Japanese War started in 1937. It's the same way people would call Alsace-Lorraine part of pre-War Germany when discussing WWI, or Poznan as part of pre-War Prussia when discussing the Napoleonic Wars. I was simply trying to make a distinction between women conscripted from organized (pre-war) territories of the Japanese Empire and women who were kidnapped from territory conquered over the course of the war, as their experiences were quite different (horrible, but to different extents, and in different ways).

The women in this comic seem to me to be a reference to war-time sex slaves conscripted from organized territory of the Japanese Empire. Being forcibly impregnated by alien tissue at the hands of the military "for the good of your country" conjures the image of rape at the hands of the military "for the good of your country". Unfortunately, as this series goes on, it seems more and more militaristic. The 1st wave of colonists are righteous, and the sexual abuse of conscripted women is necessary to further their cause and fight off the barbaric invaders. The more I read, the more similar it seems to the English-language pro-fascist military sci-fi of the 40s and 50s. Maybe the tone will change, but so far the militarism dominates. War is presented as an evil, but as a necessary evil, requiring the sacrifice for the good of the people and for the good of the state. The enemies commit needless atrocities, while the "good guys" commit atrocities only for lack of any other option.

When you're talking about WWII, "pre-war" obviously means "before WWII"....

Japan occupied Taiwan and Korea almost half a century prior to WWII.

 

You're not an apologist, you're a revisionist.

At first I was like you're Thorfinn? Then 98, 99, 100.

 

I want First to win but I keep getting this feeling Seconds are Earthers, and I have a bias for rooting for my planet. The First fled our planet ousted or hoping for a better life, yet here I am hoping for a First Conquest victory or wiping out 99% of Seconds city for a Domination Victory. Oh pooh.

By the late part of the war, Japan took their "comfort women" from conquered nations. So a better analogy would be being drafted to fight for ISIS. 

 

Also, what "debate"? I don't think anyone but the extreme right-wing Japanese have ever argued that the comfort women affair was anything but rape. Not the same as a draft. Is there anyone, male or female, who'd chose being repeatedly raped by soldiers for years over being drafted? Your comparison seems at best naive, at worst kind of offensive.

 

Though there are some interesting parallels between comfort women and Wombs, the darkness of this story exists precisely because the women soldiers' bodies are being used in ways different than a usual draft.

While being drafted held a high probability of death, being one of these "comfort women" made their circumstances a point of fact. You're really weighing a high probability of an arguably less desirable circumstance (I find death to be less desirable an experience than rape, and please don't bother asking if I've ever been raped because I've never died either and so that point is moot) versus the certainty of a circumstance which is still undesirable but arguably not so much as the former.

The two sides of the coin then become probable excruciating death and the certainty of rape. Frankly, I find your trivialization of the act of being drafted to be just as offensive.

Everything is comparable with reason.

Uhhhh... Hawaii became a subject of the United States when the U.S. military invaded and overthrew the local government.

 

You have a very strange definition of "Pre-war".

When you're talking about WWII, "pre-war" obviously means "before WWII"....

Sorry, I see I was unclear. When I said "of the Japanese Empire", I meant the women who were subjects of the pre-war Japanese Empire, not those from conquered nations of the "Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere" who were generally treated even more horribly, often dragged from their homes and raped to death on the spot, or outright killed immediately. At the time, people in Taiwan and Korea were legally subjects of the Japanese Empire the same way Indians were subjects of the British Empire and Hawaiians subjects of the United States. This is why I say they were forced to sacrifice their bodies for their country, because under international law and accepted practice, it was their country (obviously the case for those from Japan).

When I brought up debate, I meant specifically in the context of Japan, where this work was published. I am not an apologist, I have some idea of how horrible this system was and I do not make this comparison lightly. To me, the premise of this story has similarities to coerced prostitution by the military. The obvious differences are their attitudes and their treatment, where in this story the characters are treated as valuable partners in the war effort, and see themselves as such. In that way, I think it brings up the question about how to define the difference between soldiers being drafted and forced to fight, and women being drafted into forced prostitution. One is a perfectly legitimate system, used by every nation when necessary, and the other is an atrocity. I'm not questioning that characterization. My question is: why is it that the characters in this story can be forced to leave their homes to undergo something horrifying, dangerous, and revolting, and still willingly cooperate?

To answer your question: The enemy is carpet bombing civilian targets. This leads to a fatalistic will to survive in the survivors. Those people do whatever it takes to win. People are generally alturistic, given the right incentive they will gladly sacrifice themselves to save others.

 

See the Germans in ww2.

The Japanese in ww2.

North Koreans.

North Vietnamese.

Syria today is a great example.

Sorry, I see I was unclear. When I said "of the Japanese Empire", I meant the women who were subjects of the pre-war Japanese Empire, not those from conquered nations of the "Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere" who were generally treated even more horribly, often dragged from their homes and raped to death on the spot, or outright killed immediately. At the time, people in Taiwan and Korea were legally subjects of the Japanese Empire the same way Indians were subjects of the British Empire and Hawaiians subjects of the United States.

Uhhhh... Hawaii became a subject of the United States when the U.S. military invaded and overthrew the local government.

 

You have a very strange definition of "Pre-war".

What the hell is this comic, and why is it so good with such a bizarre premise? I am definitely enjoying it, especially since it's trying to take a serious look at issues like the draft and forced pregnancy, but damn. 

By the late part of the war, Japan took their "comfort women" from conquered nations. So a better analogy would be being drafted to fight for ISIS. 

 

Sorry, I see I was unclear. When I said "of the Japanese Empire", I meant the women who were subjects of the pre-war Japanese Empire, not those from conquered nations of the "Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere" who were generally treated even more horribly, often dragged from their homes and raped to death on the spot, or outright killed immediately. At the time, people in Taiwan and Korea were legally subjects of the Japanese Empire the same way Indians were subjects of the British Empire and Hawaiians subjects of the United States. This is why I say they were forced to sacrifice their bodies for their country, because under international law and accepted practice, it was their country (obviously the case for those from Japan).

When I brought up debate, I meant specifically in the context of Japan, where this work was published. I am not an apologist, I have some idea of how horrible this system was and I do not make this comparison lightly. To me, the premise of this story has similarities to coerced prostitution by the military. The obvious differences are their attitudes and their treatment, where in this story the characters are treated as valuable partners in the war effort, and see themselves as such. In that way, I think it brings up the question about how to define the difference between soldiers being drafted and forced to fight, and women being drafted into forced prostitution. One is a perfectly legitimate system, used by every nation when necessary, and the other is an atrocity. I'm not questioning that characterization. My question is: why is it that the characters in this story can be forced to leave their homes to undergo something horrifying, dangerous, and revolting, and still willingly cooperate?

I just don't get why the story is so soft, like "yeah we're fighting this hellish war but most the time we're just cuddling and being taken care of by our overly protective and just as much war legend of a sargent".

Don't worry.

With a little luck, this is all just a setup to make it even worse when the cuddly fledgling's lose their mother duck in the worst situation ever. Just makes hell so much more hellish when likable characters die.

The premise is inherently fucked up, and actually explored in detail. It reminds me of debates over the comfort women of the Japanese Empire. Tricked, bribed, or threatened into joining up and forced to sacrifice their bodies for their country. But the implicit criticism applies more broadly to any kind of draft: what else is being drafted other than being forced to sacrifice your body for your country?

 

By the late part of the war, Japan took their "comfort women" from conquered nations. So a better analogy would be being drafted to fight for ISIS. 

 

Also, what "debate"? I don't think anyone but the extreme right-wing Japanese have ever argued that the comfort women affair was anything but rape. Not the same as a draft. Is there anyone, male or female, who'd chose being repeatedly raped by soldiers for years over being drafted? Your comparison seems at best naive, at worst kind of offensive.

 

Though there are some interesting parallels between comfort women and Wombs, the darkness of this story exists precisely because the women soldiers' bodies are being used in ways different than a usual draft.

I can't really say I enjoy the focus on empathy rather than sympathy with the characters (which is kind of stereotypical for female mangakas), but this is interesting enough anyway. I just don't get why the story is so soft, like "yeah we're fighting this hellish war but most the time we're just cuddling and being taken care of by our overly protective and just as much war legend of a sargent". Wow now I sound really whiney, maybe I should re-read Blame

That was rather sudden. Gladly, I have a fitting theme for the latter part of the chapter.

 

I doubt that they've enslaved them, though they are certainly exploiting their teleportation organs. If they'd enslaved the niebass they would have little trouble fighting off the seconds.

What makes you think they even can enslave the Niebas?

Assuming those things inside their wombs are Niebas (propably in a special life cyle), then the Niebas can stomp them considering their skills compared to the tech the humans have.

The premise is inherently fucked up, and actually explored in detail. It reminds me of debates over the comfort women of the Japanese Empire. Tricked, bribed, or threatened into joining up and forced to sacrifice their bodies for their country. But the implicit criticism applies more broadly to any kind of draft: what else is being drafted other than being forced to sacrifice your body for your country?

 

In this story, so far, we only get one perspective, and there are clear "good guys" and "bad guys". From our characters' point of view, they're losing a war to a barbaric enemy, and the horrors they face justify any means they use to fight back. But it also is clear that the recruits are being deceived, so it's quite possible that their own side is less good or the enemies less evil than we've been led to believe. On the spectrum of military sci-fi from hawks to doves, it is closer to Starship Troopers (the book, of course) than to The Forever War, but there are some signs of darkness in their own leadership already, and promises of more to come.

Let me guess: those aliens (whose embryos are implanted into those teleport female soldiers) are the native sentient species of the planet enslaved and exploited by the human colonists.

I doubt that they've enslaved them, though they are certainly exploiting their teleportation organs. If they'd enslaved the niebass they would have little trouble fighting off the seconds.

And the entire thing is rapidly getting more questionable. There appears to be a reason why pictures of these aliens are banned afterall and what exactly is put into them. Maybe just maybe the opposition to it has a point afterall.

Let me guess: those aliens (whose embryos are implanted into those teleport female soldiers) are the native sentient species of the planet enslaved and exploited by the human colonists.