A review by astrangewind
The Liminal Zone by Junji Ito

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? Yes

5.0

I don't think I need to sing the praises of Junji Ito as a horror writer. This collection is exactly what you'd expect: gorgeous art, compelling characters, terrifying stories that leave you with a sour taste in your mouth. I finished this book in about an hour, and, despite not being a huge fan of horror, found it enjoyable. Ito's brand of horror does include some amount of gore, which is the easy answer as an artist, but much of his horror is more subtle, quieter, the kind of thing that scares the everliving shit out of you without resorting to pure shock value. The thing that mostly squicked me out was the Mary statue crying blood. 

I also appreciate his opportunity to use dissociative identity disorder as a plot device, and explicitly refusing to use it. It's a mark of a truly original artist to reject such harmful yet common tropes.
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