The web is alive with wacko theories on Jacko

For those into conspiracy theories, one question that won’t go away is: Who killed Michael Jackson?

Revelations over the weekend that even his father Joe Jackson suspects foul play only added to what has become a real-death Thriller.

And among the hundreds of comments on Australian online news sites - scattered between the honour roll of tributes - there are plenty of keyboard detectives with their own theories about Jackson’s dark past and his final hours.

Janet of Melbourne wrote on the Herald Sun site: “Michael Jackson was very much a victim of his fans, his friends, his handlers, his critics and his own medical team. There was no escape for him and no one will ever know the increasing pressure he was under to perform 100 per cent every time which, unfortunately, cost him his own life.”

In a comment to sbs.com.au, David of Victoria said: “A tortured soul who never really got the help he needed. Was he an abused victim or perpetrator? A life out of control for all to see. The leeches that surrounded him sucked him dry.”

Courier-Mail reader Blind Freddy of Logan zeroed in on the cocktail of drugs found at Jackson’s ranch. “Drug abuse would not surprise me. It seems the path all these ‘icons’ take as it gets harder to live up to their hype. I think the media should be held accountable too.”

And Movie Buff speculated on Perth Now: “I wonder if all those years of bleaching his skin had any bearing on his bad health. I have never heard of anyone else having done this. Maybe the experts could shed some light on this matter.”

Former wife Deborah Rowe’s reported confession that Jackson was not the biological father of his children also fuelled rumours about a family feud.

Asherah of Brisbane wrote to The Courier-Mail: “It’s no surprise that the kids aren’t biologically his. But what I want to know is, why he didn’t want to have kids that were his biologically. Maybe he couldn’t. Maybe he didn’t want them to look like his father.”

The row over Jackson’s final resting place led Sandra to comment on News.com.au: “I think he’s already been buried - and the coffin at the memorial was empty. Besides, it’s been almost two weeks now. Surely there are health regulations etc after that long.”

But there are also hundreds of online comments defending and reflecting on the man whose musical talent and beat entranced and transformed lives around the world.

As a parting thought, Wonder Ris of Keysborough, Victoria, wrote to The Daily Telegraph: “We all talk and have opinions of a man we only know about by what the media portrayed, and even they never knew him. We know only of the entertainer and that is what we should remember. Every song he sings leaves us with a different memory of where we were when we first heard it. That is what we should remember.”

One thing is for sure, the Michael Jackson mystery tour has just begun.