“My good fortune is not that I've recovered from mental illness. I have not, nor will I ever. My good fortune lies in having found my life.” -Elyn R. Saks.

Chi no Wadachi or a Trail of Blood is truly an unnerving experience. This manga is exceptional and dare I say masterful at setting an unsettling environment using everything from lighting and positioning to the expressions and body language of a character. Something that is also noteworthy is that many panels go without words and even where there are words there are few. A lot of the overall experience of the manga comes directly from the disturbing emotions the manga brings forward.

Story: 35% / 43%
The story in of itself is not as stressful as many people would lead you to believe. What makes the story distressing is it's use of impressively believable cast and impeccable use of disquieting art. However, the story is very, very original. Since it is not done I cannot completely write an accurate rating, but I am satisfied with the current chapters.

The use of ambient and characters makes this story unique and masterful. It has no qualms with addressing very strong topics such as a range of mental illnesses, murder, mental and physical abuse, child abuse, and heavy trauma.

Characters: 30% / 33%
The characters are simply superb. All of the developed characters are so believable, in fact, that one could think people like this could exist in real life. And make no mistake, it is probable that they do. Mental illness and trauma consume a great deal of people in the real world, far more than people would like to admit.

Each of the characters is uniquely written and to an extent could be interpreted as real people in the story. The actions the characters take at times might seem irrational to some, but remember that they are human and they are most likely affiliated with mental illness. Irrationality is the main theme of the manga and it will not shy away from exposing its characters to the most emasculate situations.

Art: 23% / 23%
I personally believe that this manga's greatness comes from its specialty in creating an anxious mood in every panel. Each new panel you are faced with an entirety of new agitating emotions. Everything from the background to the incredibly believable emotions and body language of the specific character are all used to bring forward your most distressful emotions. This is truly the strongest point on the manga and deserves full points.

Overall: 88% or 8.8/10 rounded to 9/10