Tappavat Kädet #1

Written and drawn By Leo Kuikka 

23cm x 17cm, black and white, colour covers.

32 pages, with A4 translation sheet. 

What happens when you're up to date with the epic Finnish comic book saga Läskimooses? How do you manage the transition back to reality while you wait for the latest issue? With a spin off series of course. 

Tappavat Kädet (roughly Lethal Hands) is set in the same universe, but separated from it as a self contained story. The narrative centres around the thoroughly dislikable Pasi Lihavisto. We follow the trudge of his daily grind - sleeping at his office desk, drinking too much, escalating arguments with his wife, guilt ridden efforts with his children. His real life xenophobic tendencies lead to daily dreams of being a violent Chinese emperor, taken with enacting barbaric punishment to anyone that crosses him. 

The fantasy soon crosses over to real life as a mysterious heat takes over his hands - the best way to describe it is a kind of Kung Fu energy - a powerful weapon against those unlucky enough to get in the way. 

The frameless sketch book style of art gives a lot of fluidity and space to the narrative. It's a welcome expansion to the Läskimooses magaverse, although it's one that is only four parts long. 

Buy a copy here: http://www.kreegah.net/leo-kuikka-tappavat-k%C3%A4det-1.html

And don't forget to check out Läskimooses while you're there. 

Läskimooses - issue 43

Läskimooses - issue 43 

by Matti Hagelberg

23cm x 17cm, black and white, colour covers.

32 pages, with A4 English translation sheets.

****Läskimooses is an ongoing series. I've read and reviewed all of the previous issues - if you haven't read those reviews, I recommend at least talking a look at the first couple of posts to get a sense of the scope of this epic alternative comic.***

What happens after the end of the world?

What is the psychological aftermath of preparing for the end of the world that doesn't come? 

Close up detail of Matti's trademark scratch style.

At this point in Läskimooses these are the questions our protagonist and antagonist have to face. 

For centuries cults and religions have prepared for the end that never arrives, an enlightenment for a chosen few that is postponed indefinitely. Issue 43 also explores the absurdity of the idea that religious truth comes to those who sacrifice their sensory input to obtain a high level clarity of thought - chastity, starvation, isolation, light and sound proof rooms - all of which are also used as forms of punishment or torture. As history has shown us, sensory deprivation leads to madness unseen by those in the midst of the madness. 

There are flashes of the wider Läskimooses reality amongst the confusion and darkness, the detailed drawings standing out in contrast to the dark abstractions, before we're once again we're left with an uneasy cliffhanger. This is the dark underbelly of Läskimooses.

There is now an updated shop for international orders, where you can buy back issues by year. The sold-out issues have just been reprinted, so it's a rare occasion that all issues are available - so get in quickly! 

http://www.kreegah.net/l-skimooses.html

Or ask your local independent comics dealer to get Läskimooses  in stock.

You can also check out some samples online here. 

Review by Nathan Penlington

Läskimooses - year #7, numbers 41-42 (2018)

Läskimooses - year #7 (2018 - numbers 41-42)

by Matti Hagelberg 



23cm x 17cm, black and white, colour covers.

Page count approx 24, with A4 English translation sheets.

If you've been following my previous reviews you'll be pleased to know we've finally caught up with the entirety of Läskimooses back issues, that's all 42 issues read! If you haven't read those reviews, I recommend at least talking a look at the first couple of posts to get a sense of the scope of this epic alternative comic. 

For me the strength of Läskimooses is in its ability to spin multiple stories simultaneously, contained within an overarching narrative. All of those stories have been teased out slowly, the threads forming knots, moments overlapping, subplots mirroring and supporting, but all a kind of mirage of air and deceit. Just when you begin to think everything that has to be said has been said, and you think you can see the general direction, there is a sudden surprise turn in the narrative. 


For example, you can't help but side with our conversationalist when he says: 

"I have a hard time taking that...[word redacted to minimise spoilers]...seriously...but if you say it went like that, so then it is like that". 

And in 2018, that is the cultural climate we're in, when the verifiable is secondary to hearsay and spin. During the seven years of its development it seems Läskimooses has come to contain more truth than contemporary politics (Hi there America, oh hello Russia. Sorry Brexit, I forgot about you). 


Fiction Vs Fact in 2018 - if you say it went like that, so then it is like that. 

Although my box of review copies is now empty, Läskimooses is still not finished (in fact issue 43 has just been published). If you've yet to pick up a copy get on board Läskimooses soon - hopefully this series of reviews has proved it's not too late to catch up. It's been an absolute pleasure to plough through them all. 


At this point I'm left with a dilemma. I would like Läskimooses to end soon, I have questions that are demanding answers, but I would also like the pleasure to continue for quite a while longer. Thankfully, we're looking at two more years longer. 




There is now an updated shop for international orders, where you can buy back issues by year. The sold-out issues have just been reprinted, so it's a rare occasion that all issues are available - so get in quickly! 

http://www.kreegah.net/l-skimooses.html

Or ask your local independent comics dealer to get Läskimooses  in stock.

You can also check out some samples online here. 

Review by Nathan Penlington

Läskimooses - year #6 (2017)

Läskimooses - year #6 (2017 - numbers 35-40)

by Matti Hagelberg 



23cm x 17cm, black and white, colour covers.

6 issues, variable page count (approx 24-38 pages), with A4 English translation sheets.

If you haven't read my previous reviews of Läskimooses here's a quick recap from my review of year #5:

Läskimooses straddles experimental comics, diy culture, punk aesthetics, and graphic art. It's already the longest single comic book story ever produced in Finland, with about two years left to run. Läskimooses is written entirely in Finnish but thankfully, for the non-Finnish speakers, each issue comes complete with an A4 sheet containing English translations.

My reviews are taking the series year by year, until we catch up with the latest issue #42 - the full set of reviews will be found here, and like the the series itself it's probably best to read them in order. 

Year six of Läskimooses opens with the continuing story of Agner Mang - what unfolds is a story of a race with the dream of total planetary dominance, one that mirrors Earth's history of colonialism, with an additional secret society - a golden age conspiracy theory trope - at its core. 

But it's the last two issues of year six, particularly the bumper issue 40, that brings the larger narrative into focus and starts to tease at who is telling these stories, where we are, why we are here, and what our relationship is with the only other person in the 'now' of the narrative.

It's smartly plotted, edging the conspiracy theory satire into the formation of cults - the object of devotion being Läskimooses of course. The last issue of year six ends with six black squares, the final square just contains the words: "And Läskimooses didn't come". Another cliffhanger in pure Läskimooses style.

If you're reading the English translations you'll find a couple of small errors - a misplaced word, ie 'if' for an 'it', and once or twice you might find the page numbers don't correlate. But they are tiny, easily overlooked mistakes in an epic work. Certainly not enough to mar your engagement with the narrative. 

There is now an updated shop for international orders, where you can buy back issues by year. The sold-out issues have just been reprinted, so it's a rare occasion that all issues are available - so get in quickly! 

http://www.kreegah.net/l-skimooses.html

Or ask your local independent comics dealer to get Läskimooses  in stock.

You can also check out some samples online here. 


Review by Nathan Penlington

Läskimooses - year #5 (2016)

Läskimooses - year #5 (2016 - numbers 30-34)

by Matti Hagelberg 

23cm x 17cm, black and white, colour covers.

5 issues, variable page count (24-38 pages), with A4 English translation sheets.

A few months ago Matti Hagelberg sent me a huge parcel containing 42 issues of his epic experimental comic Läskimooses, and as with everything else sent to me for review, I'm reading every word.  My reviews are taking the series year by year, until we catch up with the latest issue #42 - the full set of reviews will be found here, and like the the series itself it's probably best to read them in order. If you've read my previous Läskimooses reviews feel free to skip to the text below the next photo, otherwise here is a quick primer. 

Läskimooses straddles experimental comics, diy culture, punk aesthetics, and graphic art. It's already the longest single comic book story ever produced in Finland, with about two years left to run. Läskimooses is written entirely in Finnish but thankfully, for the non-Finnish speakers, each issue comes complete with an A4 sheet containing English translations.

Läskimooses contains elements of pulp sci-fi & pop culture, and the history of the universe. But in essence Läskimooses is a parody of conspiracy theory, you know the kind that underpins TV shows like Ancient Aliens - theories that begin at the fringes of reality and quickly veer off into unhinged absurdity. 

Again, it's hard to describe the content without spoilers, so I'll keep it brief. The first of this set of issues contains a disconcerting moment, and with a tangible backdrop of underlying tension, the diverging narrative is continued. 

The art incorporates elements and styles from a diverse range of sources from The Flintstones to pulp gangster thrillers, via Planet of the Apes and children's illustrated history books. Every issue of Läskimooses also contains a photo-montage on the first page, as well as a detailed, and obsessively drawn image on the back page. It's an additional puzzle to try and fit each of them with the ongoing narrative, more often than not there is no direct correlation - but that obscure/d connection is part of the fun of Läskimooses. 

The back page illustrations for year five range from a couple in fancy dress as Jessica & Roger Rabbit, Hitler sleeping in a deckchair, the pyramids of Egypt, and cos-players dressed as He-Man and Skeletor. Maybe that search for connection is part of the satire on conspiracy theory - the willingness to find connection and causality where there is none.

I can confidentiality state that if you're this far into Läskimooses you'll be hooked. So, get yourself a subscription, ration your reading, and you'll be caught up as the final issue goes to print.

There is now an updated shop for international orders, where you can buy back issues by year. The sold-out issues have just been reprinted, so it's a rare occasion that all issues are available - so get in quickly! 


http://www.kreegah.net/l-skimooses.html

Or ask your local independent comics dealer to get Läskimooses  in stock.

You can also check out some samples online here. 


Review by Nathan Penlington

Läskimooses - year #4 (2015)

Läskimooses - year #4 (2015 - numbers 23-29)

Matti Hagelberg 

23cm x 17cm, black and white, colour covers.

7 issues, variable page count (24-38 pages), with A4 English translation sheets.

Please note: The fourth year of Matti Hagelberg's Finnish experimental comic book epic continues the precedent set by the first three years. My reviews are taking the series year by year, until we catch up with the latest issue #42 - the full set of reviews will be found here, and like the the series itself it's probably best to read them in order.

It's difficult to review something so experiential, and so narrative led, without spoilers. But I'll do my best. 

Historically the Läskimooses narrative enters modern era conspiracy - the world of shadowy elites, who assassinate those with the true knowledge. Think Cold war spies, New World Order. Or take a trip to a large newsagent, those books you find advertised at the back of UFO magazines? that's where we're at. A self-published book written from memory, itself a memory of book destroyed because of The Truth, a truth passed down through tens of generations. A truth that has the elites jumpy and trigger happy. 

The art is a hybrid of fine art, religious iconography, anime, classic american cartoons, pop culture pin ups, historical photographs, and stylised abstraction. And this season of Läskimooses has my favourite back cover so far - Jesus riding on the back of a dinosaur. 

Year #4 ends with an issue that starts to pull the over arching narrative into focus, a glimpse of our first face to face conversation with our interruption loving companion. It's a cliff hanger in the style that is unique to Läskimooses, perhaps just slightly reminiscent of Samuel Beckett:

"What were you muttering about just now?....Wait here, don't start before...."

Despite how that might sound out of context, it's utterly gripping stuff. 

You can check out some samples of Läskimooses here, along with the international ordering info. Most of the sold-out issues have just been reprinted, so it's a rare occasion that all the issues are available - so get in quickly: 

http://www.kreegah.net/hagelberg-matti-l%C3%A4skimooses-international-subscription.html

Or ask your local independent comics dealer to get Läskimooses  in stock.

Review by Nathan Penlington