A Girl, A Cat, And A Mystery

Let's get back to Earth for a while.

There are things you encounter by pure chance. Something catches your passing glance, you spare just a second to take a closer look... and the next moment you find yourself immersed in a world you had no idea existed.

source: MyAnimeList

That is basically how I encountered Kuro. I was passing by a stand at a con, noticed some victorianesque art on the cover, picked up the tome to skim through the first few pages... And before long I was buying it, without any hesitation. The ride back home was spent deep within the comic's world - and heck, it was a quite a ride indeed.

The protagonist here is young girl Coco, living alone in an enormous mansion with her pet kitten Kuro. Their lives are filled with bliss and joy, spending whole days on games and fun. However, the world outside the mansion's walls is far from idyllic. Inhabitants of the nearby town live in constant fear of monsters - dark creatures looming in the vast forest surrounding the place. Coco, Kuro and their mansion are also a source of their worries - for not everything is as innocent and serene as it seems to be on first glance...

The story is short (spanning 3 tomes), but the atmosphere compensates for the plot's underwhelming length. I especially love the way the author introduces mystery and suspense into the story. At first, we merely glimpse some uncanny details and out-of-place scenes, interweaved into Coco and Kuro's many slice-of-life adventures. Later on, more characters are introduced, the reader starts to learn about the world seen through other people's eyes. And once all those bits and pieces start to form a coherent picture...

...let's just say Kuro's Holy Shit Quotient gets pretty high by the end of 1st tome. And it only gets better later on. Much better.

Another element adding to the overall impression is art. It's not very dynamic - it focuses more more on transmitting the impression. Monsters look alien and disturbing. Weird phenomena surrounding Coco and Kuro are surreal and often leave the reader unsure what exactly did he just saw. The feeling of mystery and unexplained is tanglible, filling every dark corner, lurking just out of reach, like dark monsters turning the townspeople's lifes into a waking nightmare.

Long story short - if you like tales of mystery, where each page is a step taken deeper into the incredible world of oniric enigma, I strongly recommend you tried to get ahold of Kuro. I promise this trip, while short, will be one to stay in your memory for a long time.

Besides, how can one reject such a cute, innocent kitten?

Summary:

Title: Kuro

Genres: mystery, supernatural

Author: Soumatou

Length: 3 volumes