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futurama1979's review against another edition
3.0
my brother collects Ito's books, and has been feeding me one collection at a time for a bit now. this one impressed me the least so far, but i feel bad saying it, because it was still a really good time.
"Weeping Woman Way" was a classic Ito plot. go to a creepy village, have a weird experience, try to get back and find it again and you're fucked.. the Catholic school one was really freaky, good stuff. it was a little more layered, there was the salt and the weird roommate, the idea of the special class, the messed up headmistress; i liked that the causal horror wasn't any of the supernatural stuff, or, at least, the source of horror is layered too. the visual horror is the wife and what she does, her powers, but the true horror and root horror, the causal horror, was the fucked up way the headmaster treated women and girls. well and of course the religious fanaticism added to the insanity of all the teacher characters. but really, none of it would have happened if there wasn't that base horror of this man will ruin women's lives, murder women, come onto his own students et cetera solely to fulfill religious fantasy.
"The Spirit Flow of Aogikahara" was weirdly sort of my favourite. it was short and strange, but a fun idea. the concept of fighting misery and illness and suicidal thoughts with joyous physical change, even and especially change that is horrifying to an outside eye has always been interesting to me. but, then, the serial killer one was corny and almost cheapened the collection for me. Ito's common themes of suicide, sleep/insomnia, and tradition rear their heads at various moments in the stories. i think maybe if this collection had a few more stories it would feel a little more balanced and less concentrated. still, though, lots of fun to read.
"Weeping Woman Way" was a classic Ito plot. go to a creepy village, have a weird experience, try to get back and find it again and you're fucked.. the Catholic school one was really freaky, good stuff. it was a little more layered, there was the salt and the weird roommate, the idea of the special class, the messed up headmistress; i liked that the causal horror wasn't any of the supernatural stuff, or, at least, the source of horror is layered too. the visual horror is the wife and what she does, her powers, but the true horror and root horror, the causal horror, was the fucked up way the headmaster treated women and girls. well and of course the religious fanaticism added to the insanity of all the teacher characters. but really, none of it would have happened if there wasn't that base horror of this man will ruin women's lives, murder women, come onto his own students et cetera solely to fulfill religious fantasy.
"The Spirit Flow of Aogikahara" was weirdly sort of my favourite. it was short and strange, but a fun idea. the concept of fighting misery and illness and suicidal thoughts with joyous physical change, even and especially change that is horrifying to an outside eye has always been interesting to me. but, then, the serial killer one was corny and almost cheapened the collection for me. Ito's common themes of suicide, sleep/insomnia, and tradition rear their heads at various moments in the stories. i think maybe if this collection had a few more stories it would feel a little more balanced and less concentrated. still, though, lots of fun to read.
yennsciri's review against another edition
4.5
weeping woman way and madonna are instant favorites. some of his best
daaani's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
raxorrr's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
one of his better collections. this is the last of Junji Ito I'll be reading for a while since I've read almost every horror story he has ever published and I'm glad I ended it with this one. the stories are short but memorable and unique. I think my favorite was Slumber, the final chapter in the volume because of how mysterious it was. we were left to guess the plot twist instead of having it told to us. I did need some more explanation at the end but reading that one was most enjoyable.
one of his better collections. this is the last of Junji Ito I'll be reading for a while since I've read almost every horror story he has ever published and I'm glad I ended it with this one. the stories are short but memorable and unique. I think my favorite was Slumber, the final chapter in the volume because of how mysterious it was. we were left to guess the plot twist instead of having it told to us. I did need some more explanation at the end but reading that one was most enjoyable.
montylearoy's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
4.5
I love Junji Itos work
perth_is's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Body horror, and Death
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Xenophobia
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
jasper_wildlife's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
n1y4d's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
ahauntedpiano's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0