Abstraction by Shintaro Kago

Hey guys, I’m back from my super-secret Coilhouse mission to Belgrade/Ljubljana. I can’t tell you what I did there; I’ll only mention that it has something vaguely to do with stags and light beer. You will love it!

My jet-lagged brains really got a good rattle when I read Abstraction by Shintaro Kago, sent to us by Lucylle. Not safe for work! Don’t click it, mom! Lucylle describes Abstraction as “a short story in manga style, featuring an extremely creative approach to panel division/story continuity.”

I didn’t think I’d like it at first – the first few panels seemed so flat, so sparse, so lifeless. I thought, “this is why I think most manga is so boring.” But before I could finish thinking that sentence, my eye scrolled down to the page and something happened. The panels got weirder and weirder, and began to take a shape of their own. I felt like I’d been sucked into some sort of bizarre, claustrophobic fishbowl of dysmorphia, sex, awkwardness and pain, and most unsettling thing I felt as I kept on reading this was horror at how many of the completely anatomically-impossible, disjointed panels gave me an “oh shit, been there” kind of feeling. Ah, young love.

23 Responses to “Abstraction by Shintaro Kago”

  1. Ben Morris Says:

    http://samehat.blogspot.com/search/label/shintaro%20kago

    Someone’s blog with 3 additional Shintaro Kago mangas, all wildly experimental (and NSFW). Also it has pictures of a Shintaro Kago bullying kit.

  2. Ashbet Says:

    Wow, that is . . . mindbending!

  3. karen Says:

    so what does jelen pivo have to with coilhouse? i’m so curious…

  4. joshua Says:

    oooh, nadya, yr gonna love “blame!” by tsutomo nihei…check it here:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blame!

    -joshua…

  5. Paul Komoda Says:

    “My anus is bleeding!”

  6. DJ Velveteen Says:

    It was only a matter of time until manga gave us an artist so talented that he couldn’t be ignored – yet all he wants to draw is exploding demon vaginas.

  7. Twosixteen Says:

    Woah. That is some serious, mind blowing composition.

  8. Nadya Says:

    @ Karen: Jelen Pivo? Best guess ever! But that wasn’t it. :)

  9. Jerem Morrow Says:

    Head. Hurty.

    Definitely bookmarking this one.

  10. Sara Says:

    Hey did you like Ljubljana?

  11. Nadya Says:

    @ Sara: JA! Beautiful mountains and great architecture and nice people. We saw Tito’s old residence and we saw the library designed by Plečnik and everything was just totally amazing.

  12. Skerror Says:

    Mwaha…that was hilarious. Gonna have to see more of his stuff. Psyched to see what your secret mission produced. Stags and light beer? Sounds like it was some kind of esoteric espionage mission.

  13. Sara Says:

    Yey! I’m glad to hear you liked it :D I hope people were nice to ;)

  14. Nadya Says:

    Sara, SLOVENIANS ARE WEIRD!!
    Just kidding – we love them, and their unusual parking habits. ;)

  15. Rogan Says:

    And how did you like Belgrade…?

    (i still can’t think of anything other than Jelen Pivo, except maybe a hunting party…?)

  16. Mer Says:

    This is so effin’ insane. I love it.

  17. Paul Komoda Says:

    Seriously, that’s brilliant stuff.
    Love the head-taxi that’s pulling out of the panel construct.
    My favorite manga has always been the darker, more surreal work.
    Any fans of Hideshi Hino or Suehiro Marou out there?

  18. Mer Says:

    Paul, I love Hino’s Hell Baby! Don’t know Marou… will go look that up now.

  19. Sara Says:

    I know we’re weird :D and moreover i know our parking habbits are unusual at their best :D just be grateful nobody got run over by some blind/drunk driver ;)

  20. Nadya Says:

    @ Rogan, Belgrade was incredible too. We visited Kalemegdan, ate some AMAZING food, and saw the bombed-out buildings in the center of town. The people were SO kind and friendly, and I really miss it right now.

    @ Paul: I don’t know them! Googling.

  21. lucylle Says:

    Ben Morris: thanks for the link! I don’t have an home based internet connection so I’ll have to wait all day for the rest of my coworkers to get their ass back home, but at least I know what I will be doing this evening :-)

  22. Blood In Stool Says:

    For the most part, I agree with what you are stating here.

  23. Mer Says:

    Thank you, Blood in Stool. Well said. You are a very thoughtful spambot, and with a name like that, on a post like this, how could we NOT approve you? ;)