Reviews

Uzumaki, Volume 1 by 伊藤潤二, Junji Ito

oumaima_mekni's review against another edition

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4.0

Weird, just weird. Captivating type of weird, yet quite weird.

pastelnekromancer's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.5

franchescanicole's review against another edition

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2.0

I've heard a lot about Junji Ito but to be honest, I didn't have super high expectations because I'm not interested in horror manga. After reading the first volume, I found the book to bank more on shock value than anything; the mystery didn't draw me in, and I didn't really care too much about the reason behind the spiral psychosis. I did really like the art style, and I really enjoyed looking at the disturbing bits, but that's about it. I don't plan on reading the rest of the series.

lubmed's review against another edition

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3.0

3.5

silverfeather's review against another edition

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4.0

(4.5 stars)

songwind's review against another edition

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3.0

I read this series (only putting in one review) after hearing them mentioned online.

The visual design is very striking and creepy. I found the facial expressions particularly effective in setting the mood and evoking response.

The storytelling, however, needs some work. The foreshadowing is a bit heavy handed in spots, robbing the horror elements of a lot of their punch when revealed. Also, I feel like the story went on too long. By the end of the story, I was no longer shocked on uncertain as yet another bizarre thing happened. It was like a whole season of Twilight Zone having the same setting and theme.

By the end, it had changed from horror to more bizarre, but was still good.

luci_qf's review against another edition

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3.0

new phobia: unlocked

shalini_gunnasan's review against another edition

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5.0

This review is for the entire series.

Uzumaki is truly visceral horror, body horror so extreme you feel nauseous. It isn't even splatterpunk and there's little gore, but it's very distressing just the same. I couldn't even look at swirly for a couple of days after reading this. True to Ito's style, there is never any hope, and all we can do is watch everything crumble so very, very slowly. Be glad this is a work of fiction... or IS IT?

analyticalchaos's review against another edition

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3.0

Junji Ito's Uzumaki: Spiral Into Horror begins with a bang. The town of Kurozocho has always had strange air to it. Suddenly, residents of Kurozocho fall into unexplainable obsessions with spirals. Kirie Goshima, a high school student, is the witness to these strange obsessions. Her boyfriend is adamant she leaves town with him to get away from the paranormal activity. Kirie is disbelieving, yet as the story goes on, the spirals are unavoidable...

Ito's art is truly horrifying. His exquisite shading and precision in detail brings the character's fear to life. When character expressions are shown, Ito's soft line work makes the facial features hauntingly realistic.

While the plot was engaging, the character development of the protagonist left much to be desired. Kirie had no motivations besides her relationship with her boyfriend and her father. Often, decisions that Kirie made had little rhyme or reason. It felt as if Kirie was a shell for the narrative and not her own character.

TW: bodily horror, blood, self-harm, death

auslyn's review

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

4.25