MANGA SPECIAL: BEST OF JUNJI ITO

Asian culture holds a spectacular place in the world when it comes to horror, synthesizing universal horror materials with cultural subjects. If bored of the repetitive horror sense of the West, one must most certainly take a look at Junji Ito: a mangaka who can see through people, and can understand our fears, desires and how spine-chilling unknown can be. White Rain Book House presents 10 distinguished works of the mangaka Junji Ito that might be worth the consideration of horror fans.

Venus in the Blind Spot

This book contains a lot of interesting stories. Venus in the Blind Spot, the story the book is named after, is about a group of men obsessing over a girl; whose father is the leader of a UFO research group. Shortly afterwards, they realize that there’s something strange about her.

Tomie

Tomie is amongst the most well-known works of the famous mangaka. Briefly, it is about a cannibal girl who decides to feed on a man. Tomie will make the readers question what a “monster” is.

Uzumaki

This selection of short stories might actually be the most famous work of Junji Ito. The main story after which the book is named is about people that are cursed by supernatural events involving spirals. Reading this, you might ask yourselves, how can one make quality horror out of spirals? Ito competently does. While the famous Uzumaki got adapted into a live-action film, the 3-in-1 Deluxe Edition of the book is now available at White Rain Book House.

Sensor

Cosmic horror enthusiasts should give Sensor a chance, considering that in this one, Junji Ito combines cosmic horror with the theme of existential dreads masterfully! This story is about cosmic death cults, supernatural volcanos and telepathic villages.

Shiver

Shiver is another selection of stories by the famous mangaka. The stories involve balloons that bear faces in the sky, a destructive series of events that is about to happen to an amateur film crew and long, long nightmares.

Remina

Remina is a story about the terror of the unknown. Remina is the daughter of a successful scientist, who discovers a brand new planet and names it after her daughter. Later on, they discover that this planet Remina is on its way to its monstrous collision with Earth. In no time, fear of death possesses the whole population, leading them to hold a grudge against Remina.

Frankenstein

There’s a plague amongst children, called “doll’s disease”, which turns children into literal dolls, unable to move or speak. It’s most parents’ worst nightmare, and many eventually throw the doll away, but that does not include Maria’s parents. However, a series of events that is about to occur might force them to reconsider their point of view.

No Longer Human

No Longer Human is about the story of Oba Yozo, an upper-classman who is manipulative, destructive and reckless. This might be the most nihilist work of Junji Ito.

Deserter

This story collection is named after the story Deserter – as its name gives it away- is about a deserter who is hiding from the war with the help of a family. However, the family may not be well-intentioned at all, since they have been deceiving him by telling him the war has been going on still, while in reality, the war had ended 8 years ago.

Junji Ito’s Cat Diary: Yon & Mu

This book is a very distinct one, even for Junji Ito! It’s a chronicle of him, so this piece is derived from his personal experience. Junji Ito’s Cat Diary: Yon & Mu is about how his life has changed when he suddenly starts living with two cats.