A review by cetian
Dear Creature by Jonathan Case
4.0
This is an interesting meeting of influences. There is something from 40's/50's monster movies, an impressive black and white drawing technique, a lead character that is reminiscent of John, the character from "Brave New World", who only expresses himself quoting Shakespeare. It is a wonderful mixing up of genres and styles, from eras in which male/female roles were supposed to be very assymetrical. Like with other stories, the figure of the male agressor is mixed with the figure of the male saviour. Male strength being characterized, at the same time, as a threat and as the main hero quality. This is something, though, that can be argued against, since the creature has no visible genitals.
In this case, what is interesting is the hipersensitivity of the creature, his Shakespearean view of the world. This is like a reverse Frankenstein monster: in Mary Shelley's story, the creature cannot stand having been created and hates the humanity it will never be a part of and becomes a threat to it. Here, the creature seems uncreated (there is no story about its origin) and looks to humanity with awe, trying to stop itself from being harmful. Another deligthful inversion is the one from the title. In "Dear creature", creature is the term the monster uses to refer to humans.
In this case, what is interesting is the hipersensitivity of the creature, his Shakespearean view of the world. This is like a reverse Frankenstein monster: in Mary Shelley's story, the creature cannot stand having been created and hates the humanity it will never be a part of and becomes a threat to it. Here, the creature seems uncreated (there is no story about its origin) and looks to humanity with awe, trying to stop itself from being harmful. Another deligthful inversion is the one from the title. In "Dear creature", creature is the term the monster uses to refer to humans.