Reviews

Uzumaki: Spiral into Horror by Junji Ito

jenhurst's review against another edition

5.0

this was amazing. One of the best pieces of horror that I’ve ever consumed. I thought it was equal parts creepy, weird and engaging. The setting was amazing in the coastal town. I found some stories better than others, like the hospital settings, but all of them were still enjoyably. I liked how the boyfriend bought into it early, but the protagonist had more hole and was willing to figure things out.
I was surprised that for a manga the events, world and characters were well fleshed out for the medium.

twinkspo's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

The art style is gorgeous and the story is intricate and well-written. A note I would like to add is that the characters are hard to single out and differentiate and the ending feels thrown together. 

luminous's review against another edition

3.0

Pretty excellent, as far as imagery and body horror. Characterization was kind of weak, even taking into account that a story like this doesn't need fully fleshed characters. Climax was underwhelming. I honestly enjoyed the first half to two thirds more, before the thin plot gets going.

mxunsmiley's review against another edition

5.0

Honestly the most I can say is "what the fuck." I did have some issues with it regarding the fact that the spiral phenomena are never explained, but it was really engaging and got more and more horrific with each chapter. At first I thought, "Ok this is weird but I don't see why people say Junji Ito's work is so unsettling," but I immediately changed my mind. I hope I don't have nightmares!

smellofoldbooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

The story is a little repetitive at first, but then unfolds in a great way. The horror is sometimes so exaggerated that it's almost funny.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Body horror, Mental illness, Gore, Blood, Death, Violence, and Suicide

beep_boople's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

5.0

honnari_hannya's review against another edition

4.0

There's a reason why he's one of the most famous horror mangaka in the world. Loved this bindup. Some stories felt a little repetitive towards the beginning, as they were mostly for set up, but by the end I was totally hooked and invested in how all the characters would fare.

bigaaal's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

covfeefer's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

When it comes to horror, the medium plays a really important role in how effective it is. Horror movies mostly feel dull to me. Horror books generally bore me. Horror games, now that, ahh is actually really terrifying!

But I'm not here to talk about games. There is one medium for the horror that I hadn't explored until now. The worlds of comics/graphic novels and manga.

The thing with horror for me is, it doesn't scare me with jumpscares or scary looking monsters. What truly scares me is when it gets uncomfortable, unsettling, unnerving. And this one, it had me, right from its first issue! Junji Ito's brilliant writing about a little town slowly haunted by the spiral shape (yes, a spiral) And the shape is unavoidable. Fingerprints, hair, water, the spiralling shape is just about everywhere when you start noticing it.

And it truly gets unsettling as we see people obsess, fear, go mad, distort their bodies and transfigure all for the simple hypnotising shape of a spiral. There are no scary monsters here, nothing familiar to point and be scared about. What makes it scary is it's all with normal people of a city, people like you and me, twisted by the curse of the city. Their situation could've been happening to us (in a world like that) and their actions could've been ours. Add to that the artworks and it makes for something genuinely unsettling. 

Also, the eighth issue has continued to stick in my mind for almost two weeks now. I keep having thoughts about that happening to me and that, truly, is uncomfortable. So, as far as horror goes, Uzumaki definitely wins for me. My only disappointment was that it's ending didn't feel like an ending at all. The bonus issue after didn't make that any better either. But everything until the ending was absolutely great, and if you're looking to feel uneasy, Junji Ito will not fail you.

birbboi's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0