Sleep Is For the Weak

PG-16 for violence, some sexuality, mild language, and creepiness; official series website

I’ve always thought of one (very arguable word) to describe Mizuki Hakase’s work: “nifty.” First known in the West through her four-volume series “The Demon Ororon,” a slew of her other titles are suddenly hitting Western bookshelves: “Demon Flowers,” “Asian Beat,” and the single volume “Baku,” all through Tokyopop. You’ve probably noticed at least one of these titles due to a character with crazy eyes and/or hair staring creepily at you from his or her cover.

Since I usually value story over art, it’s very, very rare that I endorse one of those creators who’s known for “style over substance.” However, Hakase only partially falls into that category, because although her art is definitely the strong point of her manga - with dramatic panel layouts, cool designs, and characters that make me think of something drawn by Ai Yazawa (but more stylized and less detailed) - it’s clear that she tries to put real creativity behind her stories, as strange and incoherent as they may be. And for all of the surreally beautiful characters she has making eyes at the camera or posing in fantastical situations, there’s also surprisingly little pretension behind her manga; I think it’s the thread of honesty and humility underlining her work that keeps it from falling into obnoxious, gothy, “artiste” territory. You can really tell that she’s trying to give her audience something rather than just showing off her artistic capabilities in a masturbatory meeting of pen and page.

Also, it’s hard to hate a mangaka whose stories are hilariously and unapologetically batshit insane.

So, Baku. The one volume of this manga is split between two stories: the “Baku” drama about monstery people and how much they love each other - whilst shit explodes - and the “Mephisto” comedy/drama about a young man who looks like a girl and deals with ghosts while dressed in a fabulous, unabashedly gay suit. The first story has a beginning, middle, and end, and the second is more of a day-in-the-life deal since it involves a ton of side characters who don’t do more than get introduced and have dinner waiting for the ghost-hunter guy when he comes home. The script is wonderful, courtesy of Nathan Johnson, and the back cover design is wild. The book is a fun read, even though it’s somewhat incoherent. Like most of Hakase’s stuff, in case you didn’t read the preceding paragraphs.

Educated impression: Grabbing a copy of Baku is a low-commitment way to taste Hakase’s work, so you might as well. It’s fun, creepy…nifty. (Lianne)

Trackback URI | Comments RSS