If suicides go to Hell, then Hell is a world of dead end jobs, where nothing much happens and no one seems to care. At least that’s their fate in Keret and Hanuka’s Pizzeria Kamikaze.
Mordy is a young Israeli who killed himself only to end up baking pizzas in a city that reminds him of Tel Aviv. His roommate says it reminds him of Frankfurt. It could be any modern city. Like the job, it doesn’t matter. Everyone there is a suicide. Mordy hangs out with his friend Uzi, living from day to day, when he discovers the girl he was dating when he killed himself has also committed suicide. He becomes convinced he can find her. Uzi is sceptical, but there’s nothing else to do and the rest of the book is a road trip.
Keret is an influential Israeli writer and this comic is based on his short story "Kneller's Happy Campers." The story has also been adapted to film. Wristcutters: A Love Story, starring Patrick Fugit, gets a limited release this summer. Hanuka’s artistic take on a world of suicides is interesting. Except for an Arab suicide bomber, most people look fine. Some have a bullet wound, some heads are at an angle, but even Kurt Cobain’s face is intact. Yep, Kurt. It’s as though the gore would distract from the initial atmosphere of ennui.
Once on the road the two meet an interesting series of people. Leehee, a young woman who overdosed and doesn’t believe she should be considered a suicide; Raphael Kneller, who has some interesting secrets; and Joshua, a self-proclaimed Messiah King, who killed himself, but promised his followers he’d return. Joshua is, of course, another form of the name Jesus, a Messiah King who, arguably, killed himself, but promised his followers he’d return. It’s too obvious a parallel not to be important, but what Keret is trying to say isn’t at all clear. It’s a problem that grows as the story progresses. Its not that a story has to have a message, per se, but this one starts with a world defined by tedium and then starts to progress through a series of adventures that seem more layered on than honestly developed through the preceding events. Keret puts forward some interesting ideas, his execution doesn’t really add up to a cohesive story. |
