If you know me, you’ll know that Junji Ito is one of my favorite authors (a Mangaka, specifically). His stories of the weird and worry are only enhanced by his almost-obscene illustrations that show the extremes of human conditions like disgust, fear, and insanity. Ito’s work is of course featured on anime streaming service Crunchyroll, but recently a series of new short stories has made its way to Netflix: Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre. This 12-episode series radiates the horrors of Junji Ito’s mind in fantastic color and animation.
Compared to other works like the Junji Ito Collection and Theatre of Darkness: Yamishibai, Maniac is very similar. Collections of Ito’s stories were adapted into half-hour episodes, all filled with the same strange madness that Ito is known for. Some stories, like those of Tomie or the Hanging Balloons, I had actually read in his manga. Others I was pleasantly surprised to see — I always appreciate a new story.
But unlike The Junji Ito Collection, Maniac felt different. The animation was the same, and the same impending doom was there, but for some reason this series had a tinge of sadness to it. Let me explain.
The episode Long Hair in the Attic is about a breakup that leaves a woman so broken that her long black hair becomes sentient and kills others. Layers of Terror makes a mother’s wish to see her now-adult daughter as the bubbly toddler she once was turn into a gruesome act — something I as a mom with a 2-year old identified with a little too much. The Sandman’s Lair left me speechless with the thought of being sucked into someone/thing/where else, same with The Story of the Mysterious Tunnel. While none of these made me sad per se, they all dealt with some sort of loss or depression. I guess that in the same way as comedy and horror go hand-in-hand, grief can as well.
Of course, Maniac delivers on the scares. No jumpscares to be seen, but there are plenty of wildly grim scenes that can honestly only be described as “messed-up.” Junji Ito is absolutely the master of modern Japanese horror; he effortlessly brings in ancient sentiments (like those seen in Tomb Town) and revamps them to fit into today’s society. If you’re a fan of Ito’s work, watching this series is a no-brainer. If you’re new to Junji Ito, anime, or Japanese horror, I would still give this a try. At times a little strange and silly, Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre is a deep dive into the subconscious and salacious.
What did you think of Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre? Let us know in the comments! Maniac is currently available to stream on Netflix.
