Finished A Cruel God Reigns (Zankoku Na Kami Ga Shihai Suru) by Moto Hagio. And I'm struggling for words. I've read deep and psychologically disturbing manga before, and this one has all the rights to join their ranks. Its exploration of the topic of abuse and devastating effect it has on a person left me speechless. It goes deep under your skin and stays there, gnawing, troubling. It's visceral, raw and at the same time incredibly artistic. I've never seen depiction of trauma being done in such a crystal clear way. Those manga panels are beautiful but painful all the while. I'm hesitant about its 2nd half and ending and have doubts that I'll ever be able to reread it, but Moto Hagio is deservedly a legend for creating manga like that.
It's like riding a very elaborate elevator, all mirrors and fancy buttons, but it's confined and you know you're descending into darkness in it








