UnCovered review by Samantha LeRoy, ACLS
Mays Landing Branch
There’s a reason Junji Ito is considered
the king of horror manga and nowhere clearer is this proven than in UZUMAKI.
Perhaps Ito’s most famous and recognizable
work, UZUMAKI chronicles
the horrific downfall of Kurouzu-cho, a small, somewhat isolated town in Japan
sandwiched between the mountains and the sea. What brings down this community?
A serial killer? A demon? A spiral. The town is cursed by the shape. Some
characters become entranced and obsessed with the shape, some develop horrible,
debilitating phobias. Some turn into literal spirals themselves (amongst many
other things)! On the surface, this seems like a pretty silly concept for a
book, but Junji Ito’s writing and artwork forces the reader to take it
seriously. Each chapter is a story in itself and with each story the book gets
more and more disturbing and grotesque until the entire town and all its
inhabitants succumb to the horror. Ito’s art style is as striking and dark as
his imagination, but its captivating all the same. The body horror in this book
will make you cringe in discomfort, but it’s rendered in such stunning detail
you can’t look away. Chapter 8: the Snail literally made my jaw drop in shock,
and one panel in chapter 11 scared me so much, I had to cover it with my own
hand. Each story never ends the way you think it will, which keeps up the
momentum of the book and makes you more excited for each chapter.
If you’re a horror fan and maybe are
wanting to take a break from American horror, UZUMAKI is required reading.