So I've always wanted to give my opinion on Mr. Alanguilan's "ELMER" but I was too embarrassed to even publish a review.
So, Mr. Alanguilan, here's my honest take on it :)
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Today, Good Friday, I decided to re-read ELMER. I read the gift set edition so I read everything in one sitting.
The art is simply gorgeous! The black and white art was superb and I loved the inking job of Mr. Alanguilan. Always have, always will. It happens in a world where chickens talk. Yes, chickens! It has a lot of family drama and it has its funny moments.
The story starts with a chicken named Jake Gallo and he decides to go home from the city to visit his family. His dad Elmer wasn't doing to good... Turns out that Elmer is sick.
Elmer leaves Jake with a book that he wrote. The story of how it all happened. Jake is scared to read it since he's been looking for that book all his life.
It is revealed that Chickens just had enough of the $h*t humans give them. They suddenly talk and go all-out crazy against the humans. A war suddenly emerges and it's humans against chickens.
A simple farmer named Ben decides to help out 3 chickens. He names them Elmer, Helen, and Joseph. Elmer sees the good side of the humans in Farmer Ben but Joseph doesn't like humans one bit. One day, Joseph attacks Farmer Ben and it was Elmer who had to stop it.
Turns out, the world is going crazy with the war. There are actually terrorist chickens! Lots of the activities happen in the Philippines by the way. A lot of chickens and humans died in the process. People went to Farmer Ben and found out that chickens were hiding. Joseph tells Elmer and Helen to leave.
I especially loved the scene wherein Joseph dropped from a tree to fight this guy. Awesome!!!
Eventually, Chickens got the nod of the UN and they are now part of the human race.
Some people loved it, some people didn't. One day, the Bird Flu came and people wanted to kill Elmer and Helen. Farmer Ben took a bullet for them and was rushed to the Hospital thanks to Elmer.
Elmer then became a writer and had a column called Chicken Scratchings. He had 3 children.
At the present, Jake learns a lot from the past... He finds a note in the book from his dad asking him to remember. Jake decides to finish the book...
It was here wherein I realized that one of the major issues we Filipinos have is selective amnesia. We only like to remember the things we want to and sometimes we forget what's important. To understand the present, sometimes, we really need to look back and see what happened.
The idea was plain and simple, what if chickens can talk? Mr. Alanguilan created a new world of fiction and fantasy but it says a lot about people. The good and the bad.
I really enjoyed reading this book because personally, I liked the family aspect into it. Here was a father wanting a secure future for his children.
There's this lesson I got from my mom. After my grandfather died, my godmother kept mentioning to my mom how lucky she was because she's never say no to my grandfather. Whether it be driving him to the grocery or a simple walk.
Life will be hard if you have regrets. Life is too short. Make the most out of it with your loved ones. Me? I can't say no to my parents. It's the little things, the simple things that make them happy.
Thank you for this wonderful story Mr. Alanguilan. I loved every single page of it. I saw how much love and passion was put into this book. It was a masterpiece!!!
I look forward to reading more of your work :)
