[Front cover]Wasabi is a graphic novel created by Keith, one of the cartoonist in Gempakstarz. Before we move on to the review, let me introduce you with Keith!
Keith is a 3D animation graduate of the Sheridan College, Canada, his works blend funk and postmodern style effortlessly. He is also one of the finalist of Shorei Award, International Manga Award 2007, Japan. Keith has been a full-time artist at Art Square, the media group behind local comic magazine Gempak Starz.
Keith is well known for his four-panel comic strip called 'Lawak Kampus' or Kuso High School in English. Around 2006/2007, Keith started working on his first serialized comic called Wasabi. The comic the was compiled and was released as a graphic novel.
[Back cover]'Wasabi' takes place in an annonymous high school, the cynical and witty Wasabi is a student no one cares due to the lack of maturity and manipulative behaviour of him. Meanwhile, a new boyscout named Chiro unexpectedly arrive at the school and begin a close relationship with Wasabi to teach him how to survive high school - the hard way. Along the ride, Wasabi drags Chiro into teenlife providing directions (or indirections to be exact) about what's wrong and what's right.
The genre of this graphic novel is obviously comedy, because this is what Keith is good at. There`s a big differences on Keith`s drawing between Lawak Kampus and Wasabi. The characters in Wasabi look 'more human', mature and this time it`s kinda similar with Japanese manga than the characters in Lawak Kampus, which are more to cute and 'chibified.'
[This is how the principal handle his students. lol!]Each chapter of this graphic novel managed to made me laughed. The ending for each of it`s chapter are always funny and Wasabi`s craziness and the comical violence he did really made the story more interesting and I always ended up reading with laughter. The storyline is simple and easy for readers to understand every situation the characters are into.
These are my favorite scene from the graphic novel, with Wasabi and his craziness! lol
This graphic novel is available in English. More information about the English version here.
The cover for English version;
A really funny and interesting graphic novel. A type of comic that you won`t get bored even when you`re reading it hundreds of times! Kudos Keith!^^,
Score: A
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