Nurture or Nature: Motherhood Gone Wrong
Blood on the Tracks [Chi no Wadachi], or Trail of Blood, is too complex to simply be classified as a horror manga.
Unlike what the title suggests, it has very little blood, but is a sequence of mindfucking scenes, getting increasingly aggravating and horrifying. Blood on the Tracks might just be one of the most emotionally disturbing mangas of today and turns everyday life almost nightmarish.
An ongoing series of 114 chapters, Shuzo Oshimi released this manga in 2017. Also known as the author of The Flowers of Evil [Aku no Hana] and Happiness, his style is easily distinguished by wispy illustrations that lean towards manga realism instead of cartoonish drawings.
As well as being the maestro of contrast and convincing facial expressions, in Blood on the Tracks, Oshimi pins down the perfect psychological horror story and, although slow-paced and with minimal dialogue, is packed with dubious twists and expressive panels.
The manga, set in 1994, starts off well, highlighting the dynamic of a family on a hiking trip. However, the plot unravels quickly to show the crooked side of the relationship between Seiichi, a shy 13-year-old boy, and his mother, Seiko. In the attempt to conceal her attempt to murder her nephew, the overprotective Seiko coddles and smothers her son to a point of no return. As the reader follows this story, the lines of motherhood and boyhood are blurred in a perturbing way. Seiko holds the reins to Seiichi’s mind and does not plan to let go of them anytime soon.
On the menu are manipulation, disordered thinking, and a heavy cloud of constant ominousness. Seiichi fails to grow up normally, as he is trapped in the prison of his mother’s damage, and Seiko’s behavior threatens to tear the family apart. She hides behind the facade of the ideal Japanese housewife but her serene smile can only conceal so much of her corrupt morality.
Fans of Oyasumi Punpun and Junji Ito’s works will enjoy this agonizing manga. Even if the story is desolating, it is nonetheless captivating and suspenseful, as Oshimi really stretches the limit of each character’s sanity.
About the Author:
Mizuki Khoury
Born in Montreal, based in Tokyo. Sabukaru’s senior writer and works as an artist under Exit Number Five.
