Monday, May 28, 2018

The Jain's Death

Jainism is insane. It's so insane it makes even regular insanity sound sane by comparison. When you hear about people wearing cloth masks over their mouths their whole lives because they're afraid to accidentally eat a bug, you might reasonably assume an unwarranted phobia of such critters. But noooo, the Jains have to go one better. It's because they adore the little darlings too much to risk hurting them!

However, insanity can make for good reading. The Jain's Death is a very short 60-panel comic about... well, shit, the title covers about half and any more would be spoiling it. Suffice it to say the mindset of absolutist ahimsa will be so alien to most readers as to provide a quick but entertainingly novel spin on a well-traveled concept. What karmic banking lacks in violence it certainly makes up for in self-righteousness and nitpicking. By the last line of dialogue, not even the Rod Serling twist you might think is coming will be the real one.

Even if you don't agree with the mentality (I certainly don't) this was a well-executed story.

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