I really did not expect to like this as much as I did.
But... it's Cruella.Manga Cruella is still Cruella, at least from the 2021 movie. Wild, spontaneous, creative, unconventional, eccentric, amazing, a mite unhinged, no-limits, n0-boxes, no-effs-given Cruella. She can't hide her true self, even when she is trying to blend in and look "normal".
I love how she's drawn here - every panel featuring her (which is nearly all of them) is unique, stylish, edgy (figuratively and literally), and totally not conventionally attractive or pretty for a woman; if anything she's designed to look much older than her late teens to her twenties.
Estella/Cruella is a "crazy lady", and you cannot look away from her. She's like Miranda Priestly, Harley Quinn, the Beatles era and punk rock all rolled into one unstoppable storm. Villain or antiheroine, you adore her.
'Disney Cruella: The Manga: Black, White, and Red' is not a direct adaptation of the 2021 film. It's a midquel to it, a minisode based on Estella's life when she is pickpocketing with Jasper and Horace in 1970s London. The manga is about her trying to figure herself out, and how to be who she is meant to be. But she is not ready; she is not quite there yet. Not when she is still dealing with PTSD from a horrific tragedy in her childhood, and is living in poverty in a world that won't give women like her a chance to thrive and shine.
There are surprisingly a lot of life lessons to be taken away from this, especially for women who feel boxed and pressured by a patriarchal society that hates and fears them and wants to keep them in limited, safe, boring confines. In Estella's own words: "I may have gotten too used to hiding myself." 'Black, White, and Red' is about a young Cruella finding herself, and perhaps, unexpectedly on her part, helping other women find themselves, too; their own unique selves.
"The only person who can represent me is myself."
Tastes in clothes and fashion is a part of that expression.
It's quite beautiful. Very special. It's not really mad or maddening, but it's mad in that it loudly and powerfully breaks down the walls of conventional storytelling and character development. The story is not as weak and insubstantial as it might appear on a first read, and there is strong character analyses punching it up. If its messages don't hit you right way, they creep up on you, and you won't be able to forget any of it.
An example of unconventional story structuring, especially for a Disney product, is there is no villain in this little story. Unless you count the London cops, which I do. Eff the police. Eff the brutal upholders and abusers of a corrupt, unfair and unjust system.
I have to say that Jasper is drawn and written to be very insightful, and cute. In a way he's as eye-catching and irresistible as Estella.
Now, the negatives of 'Black, White, and Red' are:
First, its titular colours are never actually, well, coloured in properly in this black-and-white-only manga - of course red isn't shown - so in that sense nothing stands out visually. The cover is the most colour you're going to get out of it. Which is unfortunate since colour and expression are such majors themes here. The clothes presented could have been more if we could see the colours.
Second, the ending is a bit abrupt.
Third, it is obvious that the English translation process was done from the American English perspective, as the dialogue doesn't technically suit the 1970s British linguistics and dialect. So the historical setting and aesthetic aren't authentic, therefore not believable. Where's the slang? No slang in the lower-class-and-poverty-stricken streets of London, are you joking?! Throw some cockney in there, for pete's sake!!! We hardly ever call police "cops", either. It's towards, not toward! And colour is spelled with a U over here!
And fourth, for what is a 'One Hundred and One Dalmatians' spinoff piece, and a Cruella de Vil character study, Jasper's and Horace's little dogs barely appear; in fact dogs in general are largely absent in 'Black, White, and Red'. No hint of Estella being "dangerous" with cute canines, unless you count her brief and slight annoyance with them at the very beginning, and the very end, of the manga. I like that at least the detail of Cruella "seeing spots" is downplayed and muted, not overdone like it easily could have been, for sometimes less is more, especially in psychological fields of study. Though another thing in the manga that is underused, but which doesn't need to be, is Horace. He hardly does or says anything. A sad waste, for he could have been a fine comic relief (not that Estella can't be funny, far from it) like he is in the movie.
I recommend 'Disney Cruella: The Manga: Black, White, and Red' to fans of the 'Cruella' film, and to feminists and those studying feminism, believe it or not. Who knew there would be great insights to be found in a manga tie-in to a Disney Live Action Movie Remake and villain origin reimagining? I know, I'm shocked, too.
But then again, Cruella herself is supposed to be shocking and defy expectations, so it makes a bizarre kind of sense, intentionally done or not.
Outrageous and fabulous.
"Why hide when I'm this talented?"
"Their normal is abnormal for us."
"The only thing I trust is my own intuition."
"It is not for you to determine who I will become."
"When are you gonna wake up... Cruella?"
'Art will survive'
Final Score: 3.5/5
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