by Eden
Kyoko Okazaki’s Helter Skelter is a surreal look into the dark side of fame. While it’s a well-tread territory, Okazaki’s skill at presenting Liliko’s descent is disturbing and harrowing as she pulls more and more people into her immoral world.
Ai Yazawa’s Paradise Kiss is more than 850 pages and the most surprising part is how little time passes. From the beginning to the end (minus an epilogue), it really only takes place over about a month. Paradise Kiss packs in so much, it still feels like an intense epic.
Moyoco Anno’s Sakuran follows a rebellious young woman, eventually named Kiyoha, as she rises up from being a maid in a brothel to a very popular courtesan and all the ups and downs involved. It’s not romanticizing this life but it’s not shaming any of the women involved, either.
Let me be immediately clear about my bias here — Ai Yazawa’s Nana is one of the best comics of all time. I do not care to argue about this one way or another. You should just accept this as fact.
It can be argued that Tomie isn’t even really about Tomie — it’s about all the people she influences and affects. Tomie is less a character than a force — she’s evil, sure, but that’s just her nature. She can’t help it. She has no morality.