Laika no Hoshi

Short, simple, but an interesting and oddly charming continuation of one Laika the space dogs story! To start us off, Laika was in fact a real mixed terrier dog who was among one of the first animals to reach space (and the first to remain in Earth’s orbit). The technology at the time was rather primitive, such was the need to test these things on animals before humans, with the expectation being that Laika would not return home alive. She likely passed a few hours into the mission from either stress, overheating, lack of oxygen, or a mutual combination of all three; never to returnas herself as the spacecraft she resided in (Sputnik 2) disintegrated upon re-entry into Earth's atmosphere. I think this is why reading Laika no Hoshi helps quell the outrage one might have while reading that. It’s very much so an escapist read, watching Laika alive on a planet of her own with a functioning dog army whose only plan is to one day return to Earth and seek revenge on those who inflicted such needless cruelty. Even if this is only Laika’s goal, one that her best “friend” (subjective here, some people say this is kinda a funny twist on a girls love story, you can honestly think whichever with how impressionistic the language is) Mushka vehemently disagrees with, she still goes out of her way at every opportunity to show the world her hatred and disgust for humans. All in all, Laika no Hoshi handles themes of revenge and how trying to achieve such a feat can make you blind to the reality that you live in now. I personally love the art style and its rather warped depictions at times, especially when Laika grows more monstrous in the face of confronting and finally trying to reclaim what she wants from humanity. I also love the inclusion on Laika’s real life monument as it adds to the overall tribute that this story is to her. Wherever and however she may be now, I hope Laika may rest easy and know that we still talk about and remember her, even if it’s through a silly manga.