Crazy Love Story

    (Tokyopop, 2004-2006)
™ and © 2002 Lee Vin, Daiwon C.I. Inc.
b&w; Graphic Novel

You don’t really expect to find existential angst in manga romances but maybe it’s not so surprising just how often the lead character suffers from an interior emptiness that no puppy dog romance can ever fill.

In this instance, it’s Sin Hae Jung, a bitter but pretty young thing who really enjoys taking out her complicated family issues on whoever’s handy. She’s the fulcrum in this twisted triangle between the desperate-to-be-her-dog Jin Sung Moo (who deludes himself that he can “cure” her contrariness with his unconditional love) and the sincerely creepy Jimmy.

Jimmy’s shooting for a dangerous Marilyn Manson vibe but misses the mark and ends up looking and acting like the second lieutenant of a Power Rangers villain. And over to one side is Bo Na, Sung’s supposed “best friend” who loves mixing the three for the maximum amount of drama trauma.

The art is a sketchy, slightly smudgy variant of the standard Korean style which has the usual over-fascination with tousled hair, bee-stung lips, and empty stares.

— S.A. Bennett
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