“Tonight, it seems, the freaks win, and not the prom queen.”
Ok. Stick with me on this one because we are going to review/ramble about an author and his grotesquely disturbing yet brilliant book series, Maggot Girl. Still with me? Good. Otis Bateman is an extreme horror author who proudly advertises that he is here to gross us out with tales of filth and death; he’s unapologetic just like his writing, and he’s damn good.
While extreme horror may not be for everyone, the horror genre is like the Golden Corral of entertainment. Do you like the basic meatloaf and mashed potatoes or are you more of a John Belushi in Animal House?
Maggot Girl is John Belushi.
Morticia is an outcast. She dresses in all black and is an easy target for bullies and the closed-minded alike. I can remember getting teased for being overweight, being a comic nerd, and just being an awkward kid like it was yesterday. Going from a high school in Norfolk VA to a high school in Ellington MO brought on a whole new level of narrow-mindedness, I’ve always considered myself non-violent, but even the most docile creature will bite back eventually. Stokely Carmichael said it best "...in order for nonviolence to work, your opponent must have a conscience." Morticia found a way to bite back and boy did she.
While Morticia Maggot's story is filled with abuse, trauma, and a vile way of life, Otis Bateman somehow has managed to give her a soul. It's a dark soul. Darker than a Jack Kevorkian documentary narrated by Tom Araya, but a soul nonetheless. With a title like Maggot Girl, it's a dead giveaway that this book is not for everyone. It's disgusting, perverted, and birthed from the darkest corner of hell, but that's what makes this series of books great. It takes the elements of body horror and pushes the boundaries...more like it smashes the boundaries into a land of uncomfortableness. But that's the fun part of horror. Horror is supposed to make you feel uncomfortable and test your limits. But not all horror is built the same. You can have the biggest buffet but if the food sucks the selection doesn’t matter. Same thing with horror, if there’s no sustenance then what’s the point? Otis Bateman writes in brutality with the humor of a sadistic Svengoolie, and I'm here for every f*cked up entry he makes.
Maggot Girl is more than an extreme horror story. It’s a tale of revenge. It’s a tale of finding where you fit in. It’s a huge middle finger to anyone who has ever told you that you don’t belong.
