3.5 Stars This is a case where some stories in this collection are stronger than others. As always, the illustrations were wonderfully creepy. My favou3.5 Stars This is a case where some stories in this collection are stronger than others. As always, the illustrations were wonderfully creepy. My favourite story was Just the Two of Us with Scarlest Circle coming in second. While not a personal favourite, this collection has enough going for it to make it a worthwhile read....more
3.0 Stars The nature of anthologies means that some stories are stronger than others, which was definitely the case here. I appreciated the opportunity3.0 Stars The nature of anthologies means that some stories are stronger than others, which was definitely the case here. I appreciated the opportunity to experience horror manga from an author besides Junji Ito (who I love but dominates the translated market).
My favourite story was the first called Kamei. In my opinion it had the best creepy story, paired with a pleasing art style. The others stories were more inconsistent, either having weaker plots or weaker artwork or, in some cases, both.
That being said, I hope more of these collections get published in English so I can continue to expand my knowledge of Japanese horror manga authors....more
2.5 Stars As always, Junji Ito's artwork is beautiful, but it was not enough to save these lackluster short stories. They just felt incredibly average 2.5 Stars As always, Junji Ito's artwork is beautiful, but it was not enough to save these lackluster short stories. They just felt incredibly average and mundane. Very disappointing....more
3.5 Stars I love the disturbing artwork that continues to remind me of Junji Ito. I like this one, but the vignettes are quite short and not always ent3.5 Stars I love the disturbing artwork that continues to remind me of Junji Ito. I like this one, but the vignettes are quite short and not always entirely satisfying....more
4.0 Stars I loved this horror manga. Dare I make the comparison, but this manga reminded me quite of a bit of Junji Ito work in terms of artwork and th4.0 Stars I loved this horror manga. Dare I make the comparison, but this manga reminded me quite of a bit of Junji Ito work in terms of artwork and themes.
Written in a series of short fragments, the narrative has a broken, disjointed style that worked well to create an unsettling story. From a storytelling perspective, the narrative could be a little too fragmented but I could give up that for a creepy atmosphere.
I loved the story ideas surrounding body horror and dark imagery. The hair and the dark shadows have stayed particularly vivid in my mind.
Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher....more
4.0 Stars I was quite pleased by this third volume. The series is starting to come into it's own as it moves further from the away from it's tropey pre4.0 Stars I was quite pleased by this third volume. The series is starting to come into it's own as it moves further from the away from it's tropey premise. I like the suspenseful dark angle the story is taking. The plot works because the author managed to get me invested in the characters in a short number of chapters. I look forward to seeing what comes next....more
4.0 Stars I was pleased that the story is expanding from the original volumes because it would be boring to watch Mash punch through Magic on every pag4.0 Stars I was pleased that the story is expanding from the original volumes because it would be boring to watch Mash punch through Magic on every page. The best part of this second volume is the development of the side characters. I appreciated learning some of their underlying motivations, especially the brother learning for the sake of his sister....more
4.0 Stars This is an enjoyable if not tropey start to this manga series. It feels like One Punch Man mixed with Harry Potter, but the character specifi4.0 Stars This is an enjoyable if not tropey start to this manga series. It feels like One Punch Man mixed with Harry Potter, but the character specifically reminded of Rock Li from Nurato....more
3.5 stars As always, the artwork is brilliant. The setup book was fantastic but I will admit that I did not completely love the execution of the idea. 3.5 stars As always, the artwork is brilliant. The setup book was fantastic but I will admit that I did not completely love the execution of the idea. The narrative was just a little unwieldy for my tastes....more