Mushibami-hime

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I haven't finished it yet, but based off of what I have read, it is a book worth buying physically to stash in my own personal library. This author like many other Japanese writers tries to capture essence of an uncertain eeriness had within deranged people. The main antagonist reminds me of Asami Yamazaki in Audition (1999) (check it out, a great movie that may be even better than this).

SPOILERS: I basically spoil everything, so don't read past this point if you wanna give this manga a shot. It is more of an analysis than a synopsis.

The Miu's tendency towards stutters with spaced speeches, reservation ... and scratching all have an eerie sensation that comes from (what I assume to be) her tension. In rare moments when she is by herself or is herself, she speaks with clarity (no signs of the aforementioned). This complementary juxtaposition creates even more uncertainty than what was established before opening up more (especially negative) possibilities. The normality of the stalker's handsiness in juxtaposition to who was initially assumed to be reserved & tense, breaches open the main character's sense of security; We the readers can observe earlier on the eerie uncertainty within Miu, but especially after this event, Ai more explicitly questions her surrounding (in general, we assume a certain level of trust [not complete trust] when talking to strangers/ going out, since without it we restrict ourselves and we can come off very rude [Ai doing the same at the beginning]).

We know Miu is deranged with glimpses of by herself crawling around the floor like some maniac sniffing periods off pads, but there is never a reason accompanying it; rather, more uncertainties are created. As the story progresses, who Miu is get more ambiguous. I assuming that's the message the author's trying to convey--that we will never truly understand these deranged people. (I would like to describe Miu as an obsessive person, but there is too many questions. Why would sniffing Ai's period make her an equal?)

If I were to give my personal opinion based on what I've gathered, I would say I agree and disagree with the author's opinions on murders/ stalkers. I don't think it is sound to assume that these people are outside of our understanding (we may be able to somewhat understand their reasons and motives), but there is an implication that they all will fully cooperate. Even with their full cooperation, who can say if they even fully know themselves.