Short Cuts

nathandouglasdavis Aug 23, 2020

4

The gags are on point. At least in the beginning. I did notice that my interest in the series started deterioratiing over time. It's somewhat similar to the artist's previous series Palepoli in that it's made up of a bunch of disconnected short comics, with some recurring scenes being woven between the one-offs. Mai, and feir odd tastes, becomes such a recurring character that fe could almost be seen as the main character. More than the recurring scenes and characters though, the "cuts" are connected by thematic similarities. Ko-gals, fashionable high-school girls with baggy socks, are the central theme--their sexuality and shallow conversations. We also see a lot of older, lecherous men who creepily give these teenage girls attention. And there's also a theme of cutesy animals. There are robots, aliens, skeleton people, and so on. There are blowjobs, compensated dating, and a father accidentally penetrating feir daughter. There is gross-out humor, with at least two instances of people literally eating shit. There are several examples of cute things being evil, because that's unexpected. There are several jokes based on consumerism and the exploitation of young girls. Bill Clinton makes an appearance. The author shows up as a rabbit-eared manga artist within the series and there are several jokes made about the manga industry. But the humor can basically be condensed down to the intersection between the young and the old, the cute and the repulsive.