“Usually spiral patterns mark character’s cheeks in Japanese comedy cartoons, representing an effect of warmth. However, I thought it could be used in horror if I drew it a different way.” said manga artist, Junji Ito in an interview.
Uzumaki, a horror manga by Junji Ito, was first published in 1998-1999 in three parts in Japan. Uzumaki was one of many manga that had created an opening in Ito’s career as an illustrator and storywriter. The manga series was serialized in North America by Viz Media in 2002. This gained a lot of popularity from more parts of the world, and Uzumaki was nominated for an Eisner Award in 2003, and was also in the “Top 10 Graphic Novels for Teens” in 2009. An anime and live-action soon came out, thanks to the manga’s popularity.
In the first chapter, you are first introduced to a highschooler named Kirie Goshima as well as her boyfriend Shuichi Saito and the small Japanese town they live in, Kurouzucho. The town seems normal and quiet, but we soon learn that the town is cursed by spirals. Ito guides us into the horrors and supernatural activity in this town using many different ideas. First, Shuichi’s father, Mr. Saito is the first to become affected by this unknown curse, and becomes obsessed with spirals. Mr. Saito asks for pottery from Kirie’s father with spirals in it, he moves his finger through water to make a small spiral and Mr. Saito soon is able to have his eyes go in circles and can twist his tongue into a spiral. From this obsession, Mr. Saito dies by contorting his own body to mimic a spiral, breaking his bones and leaving his mouth agape for Shuichi and his mother to find in their home.
Throughout the manga, we watch the citizens of Kurouzucho either become paranoid or cursed into monsters. Students and a teacher in a school slowly distort/transform into snails because of their spiral shells, soon laying eggs for more snails to hatch. Smoke from cremations stay in the sky in spiral patterns, an abandoned lighthouse becomes cursed making it so whoever looks at it walks in circles and affects vegetation as well as causes whirlwinds and whirlpools. This all happens while Shuichi is becoming paranoid and trying to get Kirie to leave the town with him.
Junji Ito does a great job incorporating horror and thrill into his work. He is also amazing at making simple topics or actions into a horrifying story. Many other artists and fans call him the “King of Horror Manga”. He uses many factors when drawing, such as detailed backgrounds and characters when it comes to a terrifying scene. Two Freshmen, Aliyah Essex and Lucia Marmion both enjoyed reading Uzumaki mainly for its unique artstyle and because I had recommended it to them.
“I thought it would be interesting and I liked it.” said Essex “The details put into the characters and into the manga itself.”
Marmion said “I like the artstyle, it has lots of detail and it’s more realistic than most mangas.”
Ito also draws his characters in a more realistic yet simplistic style as well as putting his characters in small, normal towns. This is so the reader can almost imagine themselves or anyone in the story itself. Ito also likes to use his art to scare his readers, one of his techniques is to distort the body. Ito will have his characters in grotesque positions in an unnatural or real way, such as Shuichi’s father in the first part of Uzumaki. These factors all make up Uzumaki, which makes it a perfect horror manga. Uzumaki is definitely Ito’s best work yet and needs more recognition.
