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“Aggretsuko” #2

By | March 13th, 2020
Posted in Reviews | % Comments

Aggretsuko the anime is an incredibly relatable series from Sanrio, encapsulating the frustrations of working life with a combination of cute animal characters and death metal music. A comic spinoff came as a surprise, but not an unwelcome one as we wait for season three. So does it manage to capture the same combination of cuteness and relatability? Let’s find out.

Written and illustrated by Jarrett Williams
Colored by Sarah Stern
Lettered by CRANK!

Retsuko’s on the hunt for a new outfit in the clearance rack, when she runs into her fashionable and RICH coworker Tsunoda, who then drags her from shop to shop, flaunting extravagant purchases. As Retsuko’s blood pressure rises, will she be able to make it to the heavy metal karaoke bar before she EXPLODES?!

The “Aggretsuko” comic is a slightly different kind of comic adaptation. While Oni Press is no stranger to turning cartoons into comics, the Aggretsuko show is an anime – typically those are adapted from manga, or get manga adaptations. An American comic adaptation is unusual, although not entirely unheard of.

Still, there are cultural aspects that might get lost in translation. The Aggretsuko anime may be relatable to anyone working an office job (or most any job, really) but there are some elements that are more specific to Japan. Fortunately, those elements are not vital to the story, and the “Aggretsuko” comic still works well for the story and characters no matter where the cultural norms are coming from.

With that aside, we need to look at the story as a whole and as it works with the main themes of “Aggretsuko.” In this case, Retsuko’s thrift shopping trip gets derailed as she’s pulled across boutiques by Tsunoda, the social media obsessed doe of a coworker. We follow Retsuko as she’s taken from store to store, wincing in shock at the prices on everything while Tsunoda doesn’t bat an eye at the increasingly high numbers.

So yes, the “Aggretsuko” comic still manages to capture some daily frustrations nicely. It’s not exactly a long storyline or one filled with emotional conflicts, but it’s another snapshot of life. That’s what people watched the Aggretsuko anime for, and what we’re reading the “Aggretsuko” manga for.

Next, we need to see how well the comic captures the look and style of the anime. The Sanrio style is very distinctive, but its use of distinctive character designs with large faces and minimal detailing makes it easy to identify and capture.

Jarrett Williams not only captures the overall mood and theme of the series in the writing, but also in the artwork. It’s a very bright and cartoony style, but that’s exactly what the series is. Nice little touches like the background effects often make panels feel like screencaps right out of the anime. There’s still plenty of attention to detail, like how the background scenery adds to the world with a variety of distinctive animal people going about their lives.

Colorist Sarah Stern also captures the look and feel of the Aggretsuko anime nicely. The color schemes are simple and clean, matching the art exactly. The colors are matched to the anime perfectly, bringing the vibrant and bright Sanrio style into the comic.

With all that said, there’s one other aspect of “Aggretsuko” that cannot be overlooked: the death metal.

One of the most outstanding aspects of the series is how Retsuko’s frustration gets expressed through metal. The anime dub has Jamison Boaz providing Retsuko’s death growl and singing, creating a wonderful switch from Erica Mendez’s light and cheery voice to a proper metal roar. Each song is directly related to Retsuko’s frustrations that episode and have memorable lyrics.

Does the comic capture this? Visually, yes; we still get a great built up as Retsuko wordlessly enters the karaoke room, grabs the mic, and breaks into song. The comic adds a nice touch by turning the edges of each panel into jagged spikes, adding to the tone and volume of the song. Even the coloring shifts tone and adds dark shading throughout. It’s a great touch.

But the lyrics don’t quite do the trick. The anime songs begin with a rant that doesn’t necessarily have to rhyme, but then bring it together for the chorus. For instance:

Continued below

“Wake up in the morning and do it all again
Selling my soul ‘cause I’m a corporate slave.
CHOKE ON MY RAGE!
CHOKE ON MY RAGE!”

Meanwhile, the comic’s lyrics are more of an extended rant that don’t cut to a chorus. “Spending money just for show! WHO CARES?! Who needs expensive items when sale items are just as good!”

While it’s a fine rant, it doesn’t quite work as an “Aggretsuko” song. Is this a bit of a nitpick? Absolutely. But it is still about an element that’s important to the character and series.

With all that said, if the only thing I can criticize is the song lyrics, that speaks well to the comic’s favor. The “Aggretsuko” comic manages to be a cute and easy read on its own, while still capturing the main elements and flavor that made the anime a hit.

Final Verdict: 7.5 – A light and fun comic that will help tide fans of the anime over until season 3, while providing relatable content that can speak to its readers.


Robbie Pleasant

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