Rogin

It´s been a while since I read my last manga. Somehow I lost my passion for the asian stuff. There are still some series I read, but it´s been ages since I bought something new. I only got this one more or less, because it was 10 Euro cheaper on amazon than usual.

It was quite ok though. What I like about manga, is that there are far more female artists and writers (and even fans) than in western comics. That makes it possible to make comics about topics, that would never be discussed in american or franco-belgium graphic novels.

Helter skelter was a bit of a tough read. It´s about a Super Model, that was created by dubious plastic surgery from a previously ugly girl and who is now slowly falling apart. She tries to drag the people surrounding her, down with her as her carreer spirals to desaster.

The pictures are disturbingly ugly sometimes, while the main character gets more deranged, hateful and sad, page by page. This comic book is not funny, you can´t read it and feel good afterward, but then it´s not meant to be nice and easy. It´s all about illusion and unachievable beauty ideals. It´s so personal, insightful and uncompromisingly honest about how people, specially women can hate their bodies with an intensity that destroys them bit by bit.

It´s ugly to read, really, but it manages to transport some cruel truths with a really rare ferocity, so if you can take it a little disturbing it´s a real good comic book.