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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Lovecraft in Japan,
By
This review is from: Uzumaki, Volume 1 (Paperback)
In the coastal Japanese town of Koruzo-Cho, strange events are afoot. As told by schoolgirl Kirie Goshima, the town is being affected somehow by the mysterious power of the spiral, and nobody, not even those closest to her, are safe.While this story contains enough chilling events that it would even be effective in prose, the true magic comes from Junji Ito's illustrations. He takes some of the most outlandish concepts (a man's body twisted into a spiral, two girls fighting each other using their freakishly elongated hair) and makes them incredibly disturbing, rather than looking ridiculous. This is a far cry from most American monster or bump-in-the-night horror comics, and much more effective than simple drawings of visceral gore. This is only the first installment of this series, so explanations and resolution are almost absent. However, I found myself so drawn in to this weird story that I am looking forward to future volumes, no matter how creeped out I know I'll get reading them.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Unique, surreal and disturbing.,
By Jeff Rich (King of Prussia, PA United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Uzumaki, Volume 1 (Paperback)
This manga further proves just how varied the subject matter of Japanese comics can be. It's horror, there's violent imagery, but the concept behind the goings on is utterly unique. And the sense of doom hovering over the small town where the story takes place is palpable. I like the abstractness of the threat presented by the spiral. There doesn't appear to be a malevolent consciousness behind the eeire goings on presented. Some characters are victims of the spiral, others use it to their advantage. Art wise, Uzumaki is great. Distinctly Japanese yet with a character all its own. There is a flair in the design and line work that gives simple scenes a richness. Page composition is also good, letting the actions and reactions determine the size and shape of panels. There is some pretty startling imagery here (the fate of the one man obsessed with spirals is what drew me in), and I guess it might be too much for some people. I'm in no way a fan of 'gore' just for the sake of gore. Here it is purposeful, and there really is a nightmare quality to a lot of the events that can be pretty fascinating. The author/artist does a nice job of exploring different applications of the evil spiral concept. It works well in this collection, and the stories complement each other nicely. I don't know if the series can continue to progress in an interesting manner, but this collection is very worthwhile. There are a lot of manga translations out there now, and many of them end up blending together in terms of look and feel. Titles that have stood out for me before include Mai the Psychic Girl, Area 88, Nausicca, 2001 Nights, Battle Angel Alita, and Parasyte. Uzumaki takes its place among these titles in my mind for its uniqueness of vision, both in look and in concept.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Will you be dining on the Escargot appetizer this evening?,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Uzumaki, Volume 1 (Paperback)
I certainly won't. I will never look at anything with a spiral the same way ever again.Ito has created a great story, even for someone like myself who is not a fan of Japanese animation, and also a beginner in the wide world of graphic novels and chapter books. (or grown up comic books if you prefer that term) The stories are told from the prospective of a young girl named Kirie Goshima who lives in the town of Kurozu, along with her boyfriend Shuichi Saito. The first two chapters deal with the tragic deaths of Shuichi's parents, his father dying from turning himself into a spiral, and his mother from trying to rid her body of spirals. (Think fingerprints and the cochlea in the inner ear for starters) Shuichi is convinced that their town is infected with spirals, which is seemingly proven by the odd patterns in the river and the fact that every time a body is cremated, the smoke belches out from the smokestack in a spiral pattern that covers the town before falling into mysterious Dragonfly Pond. After the deaths of his parents, he quits school and becomes a recluse, popping out only in time to save Kirie from one spiral or another. In the remaining chapters, we meet Azami Kurotani, a beautiful girl who has never been turned away by a boy since she received a crescent shaped scar upon her forehead. But when Shuichi turns her away, Azami becomes fixated on him, and falls victim to the spiral. Then Kirie's father, a potter, begins to notice changes in the way his clay behaves when fired in the kiln. His everyday plates and bowls begin to twist and warp into unusable shapes, and he becomes transfixed by his work until Shuichi realizes what is happening and steps in to help Kirie. Next is a love story of two youths whose poverty stricken parents have declared war on each other, and refuse to allow the young lovers to see each other. Just as the spiral seems to twist in upon itself forever, so does unrequited love writhe about the hearts of Yoriko and Kazunori. In the last chapter, the spiral steps it up a notch and enters the realm of the truly bizarre, when Kirie discovers that her own hair has been infected, and begins a life of its own. Surprisingly, this causes her friend Sekino to become jealous of the attention Kirie is getting from being led around by her hair. Some people will do anything for attention, and Sekino finds a way to compete with Kirie while Shuichi tries to find a way to save her. I found this volume to be extrodinaryly entertaining, and am already buried deep within Volume Two. With the subtle horror and fast paced storyline, these books are a great read for young adults and old adults alike. A simply fascinating study of how a mundane pattern can awaken from non-existence and possess an entire town, this is definately an entertaining "Food For Thought" piece that will cause you to wake up and take notice of all the patterns within your own life. Quite enjoyable, all in all. :o)
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