This review isn't my usual more formal style, but figured I'd post it here regardless.

Helter Skelter is another great manga by Kyoko Okazaki. While I didn't think this was as solid as Pink, it is very close in quality. For the most part, it is just as good, but the art suffers from what appears to be some rushing (apparently this manga didn't go through the cleaning process that manga usually go through before being collected in tankobon due to Okazaki getting hit by a car near the end of the publishing process). In Pink, I praised Okazaki's deliberately messy style, but here it is messier and it doesn't feel deliberate most of the time. It's not necessarily bad, and I do still find the style appealing, but I think others wouldn't. The art does, however, drastically improve in the last few chapters. As for the story, it is a lot more plot driven than Pink. Even though it's very predictable, the ending was very satisfying, and despite advertising a continuation, I think it is perfect as is. While this story doesn't really do anything new, even for the time that it was originally published, it does present the subject matter in Okazaki's unique style of storytelling, sometimes taking ridiculous and even surreal turns. The characterization of Liliko and the other characters was absolutely spot-on, being both realistic and a caricature of those types of personalities, walking the line between real and surreal, actuality and hyperbole. The facial expressions were incredibly expressive, the dialogue was unflinchingly raw, and the inner monologue was sublimely revealing. The pacing was absolutely perfect, ramping up (or down) as the story progresses. The whole thing was a joy to read. The immensely cathartic ending was the cherry on top the series needed to punctuate on the thesis. Would highly recommend unless you have an aversion to the art style.