Look Back

The process of artistic creation is a scary, daunting, and isolating act. We put a part of ourselves into even the smallest of our creations, and putting any part of ourselves out into the real world is just opening us up to the judgement of others.

‘Look Back' is about two manga artists who form a bond over the joy of artistic creation. Together they inspire each other to improve and become not just better artists, but better people. They both have their own reasons to stop drawing, but they realize they're better because of one another. The scene where Kyomoto thanks Fujino for getting her out of her room spoke to me on a personal level.

Fujimoto is quickly becoming one of my favorite comic book artists. I love how he explains things via the medium. For example, Fujino is repeatedly drawn from the back, head-down, by herself, ignoring the world around her while drawing. After she befriends Kyomoto, Fujino is still drawn in the same pose, but with Kyomoto hanging around and drawing too. However, the last few pages features a couple of beautiful, dynamic two page spreads of the two of them together, enjoying each others company, working together as one. Extremely moving imagery given what's happens throughout the book. The actual act of creation may be solitary, but it's ability to connect with others is unparalleled.

I went into this book blind, and it went in a direction I did not expect, and while certainly not for everybody, I found it to be a very poignant book that will really resonate with those on the same wavelength.

Anna's Year of Manga (TM TM TM) continues with another one shot by Fujimoto. I liked Goodbye, Eri a bit more but I still liked this sweet friendship story torn about by violence. Through this I learned about the Kyoto Animation arson in 2019 which I had not heard about which is absolutely heartbreaking.

A good read if you want to be a little sad. (I always want to be a little sad.)

Look Back is an intimate One-shot created by Fujimoto. The author of Chainsaw Man and of Goodbye, Eri reduces, but not eliminates, the supernatural elements in favor of a story about the sacrifices made by Mangaka to follow their dreams, asking himself if it's worth it following this road. Look Back intertwines perfectly the stripes, styles and concepts of friendship of the two protagonists with a world which doesn't understand their passion, considering the artists as otaku you should exploit to have fun or immerse in great stories, and never following it as a true art to avoid distancing yourself from the social mass. Serialisations and personal achievements affect the frustrations of the multiple people who don't obtain success in a cruel world, with a destiny broken by individuals lost on the streets. In this sense when “Look Back” returns to the weird peaks to which Fujimoto has accustomed us, proposing “what ifs” and temporal connections made with different realities based on comics, we observe genius ideas mounted on the edgy artistic style of the author. Instead, when the slice of life and construction of the world of mangakas takes over, it forces the reader to notice the exaggerations and the plot holes which the other projects turned into strengths. Look Back is a production which doesn't abandon the road of the eternity of the art and the remembrance, but yet it works less because of an excessive realism linked with telling a more personal set of events.

STYLE: 4
STORY: 4
WORLDBUILDING: 5
RHYTHM: 5
PROTAGONISTS: 4
ANTAGONISTS: 3,5
ARTISTIC FEATURE: 5
ATMOSPHERE 5
EMOTIONAL IMPACT: 4,5

FINAL VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐