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Published Nov 2024

BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL

BLADE

OF THE IMMORTAL

78

78

78

A unique motif and fittingly dark art style make this one of the most iconic and memorable horror mangas ever drawn

From:

Hiroaki Samura

Year:

1993 - 2012

Genre:

Dark Fantasy

Read:

1x

From:

Hiroaki Samura

Year:

1993 - 2012

Genre:

Dark Fantasy

Read:

1x

Spiral into a world of horrific and grotesque pandemonium

Uzumaki is a manga that instantly intrigued me as I turned through its opening pages and watched the scene being set for this unique and unsettling horror concept. By the time I reached the conclusion of the first chapter I was hooked, slapped with a multitude of spiraling emotions, consisting mostly of shock, bemusement and joy at the sheer insanity and perverseness that I was seeing drawn on the pages in front of me.


Having a spiral as a horror motif is a fun idea, and Ijo’s interpretation of how that might manifest and unfold across a town and its people was awesome. Each chapter painted its own bizarre picture of what spiralized terror might look like and did so in an interesting way, that was equally macabre as it was engaging, keeping me excited as I progressed through the story. [bit more]


The bleak and gritty art style was just perfect for this kind of story. On its own it is extremely likable and a clear product of late 90s manga, showing no signs of the super stylized and cookie cutter approach that began dominating the industry post 2010. With that, Ijo nails expressions of derangement, horror and madness with all his characters, not to mention the town itself, which becomes a vessel for the spiral and a memorable character in its own right.

The first chapter with the obsessed father was my favorite, but the Snails and their eventual appeal as food was also so good. The rearrangement of the towns architectural layout into a giant spiral labyrinth, that eventually consumed the individuals within them, was also amazing and was one of the many great moments in the final chapters that came to fruition in a strong and and satisfying ending.

Some of the middle chapters did feel a little underwhelming, specifically the jack in the box and mosquito stories, which despite having some of the most twisted artwork in the book, felt somewhat forced and over the top, coming at a time when more character and story development would have been appreciated and likely benefited the overall pacing and story.

I also found the character's storytelling and dialogue to be disappointing, mostly because their actions and responses to the unfolding events were not believable or developed. They felt one dimensional and were almost stuck in a looping emotional state as they went through one spiral madness after another. You would expect them to attempt to uncover what’s happening, to flee the town, to warn people… there’s a whole host of responses that would feel natural and appropriate to the ongoing situation but they instead acted mostly nonchalant to the town's events and mostly reset emotionally when the next chapters began.

It’s likely Ijo intended his characters to be vehicles for the horror rather than fleshed out entities in a complex story, but I argue it’s important to have real human responses to situations in horror stories, as it helps add tension and emotion, and only enhances the genre. The outside world sending battleships to investigate the town was a good example of this, giving a larger sense of hopelessness to the situation, whilst also adding additional complexity to the world and scope of the Uzumaki itself. The later stages had more of this and did it well, but it would have been nice to see it from the get go. 

RATING BREAKDOWN

Story

7.9

Visuals:

8.7

Characters:

6.4

BONUS

Originality

FINAL

78

78

78

VERDICT

Uzumaki will stay with you for months after reading it. How could it not? It's a one of a kind horror manga that through brilliant dark artistry conjures up bizarre and grotesque imagery thats packs immediate emotional response. The characters may be somewhat shallow and the lack of a proper overarching story prevent it from pushing deep into the 8’s, but considering this is a short manga the author has done a phenomenal job at creating something iconic and has me excited to pick up again in the short-term

MOOD

MOOD

SEA OF STARS

Sabotage | Turn-based RPG

65

Genre defining pixel design, let down by underwhelming battle mechanics and frustrating lack of challenge

SEA OF STARS

Sabotage | Turn-based RPG

65

Genre defining pixel design, let down by underwhelming battle mechanics and frustrating lack of challenge

SEA OF STARS

Sabotage | Turn-based RPG

65

Genre defining pixel design, let down by underwhelming battle mechanics and frustrating lack of challenge

SEA OF STARS

Sabotage | Turn-based RPG

65

Genre defining pixel design, let down by underwhelming battle mechanics and frustrating lack of challenge

CONTACT

contact@ratersgonnarate.com

CONTACT

contact@ratersgonnarate.com

CONTACT

contact@ratersgonnarate.com

CONTACT

contact@ratersgonnarate.com