Dave Schaafsma's Reviews > Blood on the Tracks, Vol. 14

Somber blue covers for 13 and 14, blue for Seiichi’s depression, 36 years into his screwed up life, more than 20 years since he left home for Tokyo. The drawing, always precise and sharply etched in the first twelve volumes, has gotten much looser at times to reflect the greater edge of madness Sei approaches. Sometimes the images of Sei are blurred, smudged.

In this volume he talks (in his head) to the cousin he murdered, who invites Sei to join him in death. Effectively horrifying. More evidence of his slide into madness.

At the conclusion of volume 13 Sei had seen his former girlfriend--that relationship, only chance for love, ruined by his jealous mother--Yukio Fukiishi, so we expect a meeting between them in this volume.

But nope, it’s mommy dearest, who meets him, care of the police who find her wandering the streets, with his address and a photo album in her hand. But she doesn’t initially recognize him. The police leave her in his custody, where he has to pay her six months back rent. Then she realizes it is him, and apologizes. Too late, mom.

But by far the most disturbing thing in the whole series, especially if true (spoiler alert?) is the letter to readers Oshimi pens at the end to make it clear the whole series is essentially an auto fictional tale based on his own screwed up relationship to his mother.

“The more of this comic I draw, the more I suffer.”

I don’t know if this is true or just laying on the horror, but I have a feeling it is! If so, hang in there, man!