Graphic novel review: Failed Notes sa Philippine Politics Vol 1

Reviewed by Karl Ian Cheng Chua, Association of Asian Comics Critics Asia (ACCA)

Anonymous. Failed Notes sa Philippine Politics Vol 1. Publisher unknown, 2026.

 Komiks as political commentary is nothing new in the Philippine scene. Historically, Alfred W. McCoy and Alfredo Roces have curated an interesting volume of 377 editorial cartoons in Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricatures of the American Era, 1900 – 1941 (1985). Outside of editorial cartoons, several artists have experimented and been successful in utilizing the same themes in komiks, such as Nonoy Marcelo’s Ikabod Bubuwit (1970s – 2002) which satirically depicted the socio-political woes for the Philippines and Filipinos by depicting the characters as rats. Pol Medina Jr. and his Pugay Baboy began in 1988 and features obese characters from a neighborhood in Manila who engage in political satire. Despite the shift towards digital media, the genre remains popular with younger artists like Kevin Eric Raymundo whose Tarantadong Kalbo is circulated in his social media for free and compiled as a printed volume. (most of these komiks are in Tagalog and only one of Raymundo’s Tarantadong Kalbo compilation is in English)  

In the last Philippine Book Festival, I chanced upon an interesting work Failed Notes sa Philippine Politics Vol.1 (hereafter referred to as FNPP). This is a compilation of 5 zines dealing with satirical portrayals of political scandals from 2024 to 2026 and written in Taglish, a mixture of Tagalog and English. The format is simple: line art, no colors and basic panels. What is important about the komik is it highlights key political scandals so that readers are able to recall recent events. FNPP no. 1 focused on the issue of Alice Guo, former Bamban, Tarlac mayor, whose Filipino identity is questioned. The zine structured the satire to make readers feel as though they are watching the TV reportage of the scandal, with absurd conversations re-lived.

FNPP no. 2 chose to focus on the impeachment hearings of Vice President Sara Duterte, featuring her misuse of confidential funds. The komik reminds us of the hilarious claim that a “Mary Grace Piattos” was a recipient of confidential funds for the Office of the Vice President, considering that the name was obviously made up by combining the name of a popular restaurant and a potato chip brand.  While the main focus of FNPP no. 3 was on the West Philippine Sea issue, the komik shows that it is not biased against just the present administration but also criticized Senator Bam Aquino for practicing Realpolitik by initially declaring himself independent - instead of being part of the opposition - so that he would be given a senate portfolio.  FNPP no. 4 hilariously mocked Harry Roque, the former Presidential Spokesperson of President Duterte. While seeking asylum in the Netherlands, Roque came into conflict with a supporter over his consumption of humba (a braised pork dish) before anyone else had eaten.  FNPP no. 5 ends the compilation by dealing with the updates on the ongoing investigations regarding the flood control scandals. 

What is important with FNPP is that it engages with contemporary political scandals in the Philippines.  The satire made readers remember and feel the event, and the quips felt like we were exactly saying these in response with our exasperation to the absurdity of the events. Furthermore, the volume acts as a physical historical record that chronicled the events as well as the perceived responses by the populace, and hence will function like McCoy and Roces’ work to keep a visual and comical record of our past.

Karl Ian Cheng Chua is Assistant Professor at the Asian Centre, University of the Philippines Diliman, and a member of Association of Asian Comics Critics Asia (ACCA)