I wasn't expecting an arc from volume 7 now but I guess they wanted to match the finding of Kasumi and Kozakura adopting her as soon as possible and not waiting a whole volume. I just hope that doesn't change too much the development of volume 6 if adapted, is one of my favorites.

So back then when they returned from the otherside together for the first time, the bang on the door was Sorawo in the alley. And when Sorawo inside the room with Toriko looked into the peephole and saw blue, she was looking into alley-Sorawo's eye???

Oh shit, I hadn't made that connection!

So back then when they returned from the otherside together for the first time, the bang on the door was Sorawo in the alley. And when Sorawo inside the room with Toriko looked into the peephole and saw blue, she was looking into alley-Sorawo's eye???

Oh shit, I hadn't made that connection!

The knock would make sense, but the blue eye? I don't buy it. An iris as a particular pattern. You would notice what it is, plus you have the black pupil in the middle. That would be awesome is it was that though!

My pet theory: Sorawo actually is not a human but Otherside phenomena which was created in response to Toriko’s wish.

1) Sorawo doesn’t remember her life before meeting Toriko very well because she is literally just appeared in that shallow pond and that’s why the story in the novel started from exactly this point.

2) Her being somewhat similar to Satsuki could be explained that way: Toriko wanted someone who looked like her beloved onee-sama, but less intimidating and also the same age as her. (Maybe Toriko was unsure at the moment what she wanted more – find Satsuki or find someone to search for Satsuki with).

3) Appearance aside, Sorawo is perfect for Toriko purposes – expert on the related lore, ready and willing to explore Otherside and fell in love with her at first sight.

3) Being Otherside phenomena herself Sorawo constantly connected to Otherside, that’s why it’s creatures know her thoughts.

My pet theory: Sorawo actually is not a human but Otherside phenomena which was created in response to Toriko’s wish.

1) Sorawo doesn’t remember her life before meeting Toriko very well because she is literally just appeared in that shallow pond and that’s why the story in the novel started from exactly this point.

2) Her being somewhat similar to Satsuki could be explained that way: Toriko wanted someone who looked like her beloved onee-sama, but less intimidating and also the same age as her. (Maybe Toriko was unsure at the moment what she wanted more – find Satsuki or find someone to search for Satsuki with).

3) Appearance aside, Sorawo is perfect for Toriko purposes – expert on the related lore, ready and willing to explore Otherside and fell in love with her at first sight.

3) Being Otherside phenomena herself Sorawo constantly connected to Otherside, that’s why it’s creatures know her thoughts.

Wow this makes so much sense tbh...That would be a twist if true. I always thought Satsuki must have had some type of connection to Sorawo. There's no way their appearances are parallel by accident.

That theory is fun, and it would work the other way around, with Toriko being the phenomenon. The amazingly beautiful girl, that have the perfect skills to survive in the wild, while also having experience with firearms... That's too perfect as well.

That would work well if .... the story wasn't told from Sorawo's perspective. She is the narrator, so that wouldn't make any sense. Also, she is also too coherent to be a phenomenon.

But I believe there are some truths to it. My own theory is that the otherside wants to establish proper contact with the human world. For that, they selected those two and it prepared them for that, making them lose their families so they wouldn't have any attached to the real world. The circumstances of Sorawo's family's death are too suspicious to begin with, as well as Toriko's moms dying on a plane crash.

The otherside also needed a couple with a strong bond, as solo human as not able to survive in the otherside. It also wanted someone with intellectual abilities (Sorawo) and someone with physical abilities (Toriko), in order for them to survive properly the physical and mental hardships of the otherside.

And for them to meet, the otherside used Satsuki as a catalyst, who was once a human, but was transformed into an otherside phenomenon. It is also possible that Satsuki had been selected in the first place to be the intellectual one to be paired with Toriko, and that she was deem unsuitable.

I don't believe the otherside to be an intelligent phenomenon that planned all of that properly. For me, the way it works is more like fate or destiny.

That would work well if .... the story wasn't told from Sorawo's perspective. She is the narrator, so that wouldn't make any sense. Also, she is also too coherent to be a phenomenon.

But we are constantly remained through the story that things are not like Sorawo see them. Or think of them. Like, with the Red Person for example it was only after Toriko interfered that Sorawo registered in her mind: “oh, that thing is actually trying to make me burn myself!” Also I don’t remember that moment very well (which is thematically fitting) but I think Sorawo gets headaches every time she tries to think about deeper Otherside.

It's an interesting theory, but I think it would take away from the story if Sorawo or Toriko weren't human. At its core, it's a story about being an outsider, someone who doesn't truly fit in society. The Otherside is a source of horror, but it's also a source of comfort and a place Sorawo and Toriko can be their true selves. It's the transformation from being alien metaphorically to being alien literally. Them being real humans is crucial for that.

last edited at Jul 25, 2026 12:00PM

The circumstances of Sorawo's family's death are too suspicious to begin with, as well as Toriko's moms dying on a plane crash.

When did the story say Toriko's moms have died? I only remember her mentioning them once, and how she was originally from Canada(?). So I assumed they were living there and Toriko came to Japan to study.

She is the narrator, so that wouldn't make any sense. Also, she is also too coherent to be a phenomenon.

I don't see how that would be an issue tbh. We don't know how these Otherside beings work exactly. There might be some more sentient ones. Like this new girl for example. And Toriko to be an even more advanced phenomenon. But I agree with the other comment saying that I would prefer Toriko to be a human too. I do think there's something up with her though regarding the Otherside and her family history.

last edited at Jul 27, 2026 6:37AM

Sorawo is so cute when she's sulking about how much Toriko fusses over her

When did the story say Toriko's moms have died? I only remember her mentioning them once, and how she was originally from Canada(?). So I assumed they were living there and Toriko came to Japan to study.

Kozakura mentions it first in File 4. But Sorawo doesn't realize that Toriko had two mothers until much later in File 9.

I don't see how that would be an issue tbh. We don't know how these Otherside beings work exactly. There might be some more sentient ones. Like this new girl for example.

You'll enjoy this chapter i think

last edited at Jul 29, 2026 1:40AM

Is the anime worth watching?

Is the anime worth watching?

NO.

Is the anime worth watching?

It sucks. Wrong order of files. Fillers. Low budget. Skip it.

^^ ^ Got it. Thx.

Woof yeah no I’m really mad abt the fact that the anime was in the wrong order. Because that’s what I started with, so when the anime finished (which I was kinda annoyed about cause what was that ending) and I went to find the manga to continue the story, I quite literally could not find where the anime ending left off. I had to go all the way back and read the entire manga (which was fine but still)

Idk I still kinda like the anime, but there was just a lot of bad things with it too. :/

i discovered this manga today and binge read til now. i’m obsessed and i’m going to go read the light novels now

^

magnet:?xt=urn:btih:8214357757e9857b7051271a1563214e4aa753df&dn=Otherside%20Picnic%20LN&tr=http%3A%2F%2Fnyaa.tracker.wf%3A7777%2Fannounce&tr=udp%3A%2F%2Fopen.stealth.si%3A80%2Fannounce&tr=udp%3A%2F%2Ftracker.opentrackr.org%3A1337%2Fannounce&tr=udp%3A%2F%2Fexodus.desync.com%3A6969%2Fannounce&tr=udp%3A%2F%2Ftracker.torrent.eu.org%3A451%2Fannounce

Download via qbittorrent or other bittorrent clients

last edited at Sep 3, 2026 9:43AM

Or you can buy them on Kobo.

Here comes some important statistic: All Sorawo and Toriko physical interactions in manga up to chapter 91.
Courtesy of @vkcist (Telegram)

Sorawo touched / held Toriko’s hand (in Chapter 1, she just grabbed her sleeve) – 21.
(+2 from Chapters 10 and 23, where I couldn't quite tell if Sorawo held Toriko's hand or not).
Chapter: 1, 2, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12, 22, 26, 35, 36, 41, 46, 55, 60, 66, 71, 89.

Toriko touched / held Sorawo’s hand – 26.
Chapter: 1, 6, 8, 10, 23, 26, 29, 31, 47, 48, 50, 64, 65, 66, 67, 70, 74, 75, 78, 84, 86, 89.

Touched / held hands by mutual choice – 11.
Chapter: 6, 8, 10, 47, 63, 78, 83, 87, 88.

"High five!" / bumping fists - 4.
Chapter: 42, 48, 75, 78.

Sorawo placed her hand on / stroked Toriko's head - 3.
Chapter: 23, 41, 76.

Toriko placed her hand on / stroked Sorawo's head - 9.
Chapter: 1, 8, 31, 39, 50, 78.

Sorawo grabbed Toriko by the leg - 2.
Chapter: 1, 78.

Sorawo pinched / grabbed / touched Toriko's face - 1.
Chapter: 45.

Toriko pinched / grabbed / touched Sorawo's face - 10.
Chapter: 2, 3, 13, 31, 38, 48, 50, 88.

Sorawo hit Toriko in the face - 2.
Chapter: 46.

Toriko hit Sorawo in the face - 1.
Chapter: 63.

Toriko hit Sorawo - 8.
Chapter: 8, 50 (at least 6 times, but only twice in the panels), 81.

Sorawo placed her hand on Toriko's shoulder / back - 10.
Chapter: 22, 23, 35, 40, 49, 54, 60, 66, 78.

Toriko placed her hand on Sorawo's shoulder / back - 32.
Chapter: 4, 8, 12, 29, 30, 32, 35, 40, 42, 50 (a whopping 9 times!!), 52, 54, 55, 63, 71, 73, 78, 84, 86, 88, 89.

Sorawo rested her head on / pressed against Toriko – 5.
Chapter: 1 (buried her face in her leg), 4 (against her stomach), 13, 61, 70.

Toriko rested her head on / pressed against Sorawo – 9.
Chapter: 11, 23, 28, 40, 45, 49, 66, 74, 78.

Sorawo hugged Toriko – 5.
Chapter: 23, 47, 62, 83.

Toriko hugged Sorawo – 12.
Chapter: 13, 31, 35, 49, 50, 55, 59, 63, 66, 78.

They hugged each other simultaneously – 1.
Chapter: 35.

Toriko kissed Sorawo's hand – 1.
Chapter: 63.

TORIKO KISSED SORAWO!!! – 1.
Chapter: 78.

On the cover of Volume 2, they are holding hands.
On the cover of Volume 4, Sorawo is hugging Toriko.
On the cover of Volume 5, Toriko has her hand on Sorawo's shoulder.
On the cover of Volume 8, they are pressed against each other.
On the cover of Volume 12, Toriko is holding Sorawo's hand.
On the cover of Volume 13, Toriko has her arm around Sorawo.
On the cover of Volume 14, Toriko is taking Sorawo's hands.

Sorawo touched Toriko a total of 49 times.
Toriko made physical contact with Sorawo a total of 109 times.
The winner is obvious!
(Contact shown on cover art was not included in the count.)

Some interactions were split across multiple categories or assigned to the most fitting one —even if that category didn't fully capture the action — simply to avoid creating a new category for just a single instance.

Example: Toriko placed her hands on Sorawo’s shoulders and rested her head against her —categorized as "Pressed against Sorawo." (Ch. 45)

Interactions involving multiple touches occurring in quick succession — with only a brief pause between them — were assigned to separate categories (or to the same category multiple times), even though it would have been simpler to group them together (and record the event just once).

Example: Toriko hugs Sorawo, and a moment later, Sorawo places her hand on Toriko’s back.
While this was effectively a mutual embrace, I split the moment into two categories: "Toriko hugged Sorawo" and "Sorawo placed her hand on Toriko’s back." (Ch. 49)

last edited at Sep 11, 2026 4:23AM