366 – Triple Dip 56 – Mermaid Saga, PTSD Radio, The Silver Demon
Night 4 of October Extravaganza brings us to another Triple Dip! We’re checking out Mermaid Saga, PTSD Radio, and The Silver Demon! dakazu also read Siren Rebirth, a reboot of a manga adaptation of the horror video game series Siren!!!
Continue readingSatanister
A manga about the serial killer hunter Satanister who enters the ultimate serial killer tournament to hunt down and defeat the serial killer known as Valkyrie.
This is another over-the-top horror action series by Rei Mikamoto. I’m a fan of his campy gory horror comedy Chimamire Sukeban Chainsaw but I wasn’t that enthused about this book. It was strange that the first two chapters focus on the serial killer Valkyrie having her way but forcing her victims into gory death games before the titular Satanister finally makes an appearance. Once she shows up the series devolves into a gory battlefest that follows Satanister and her sidekick fight against other serial killers. Mikamoto is well versed in action which was enjoyable to read but I missed the ultra campy comedy of Chimamire Sukeban Chainsaw. A decent horror action but not my favorite of his works.
~dakazu
Hideout
A manga about a writer who tries to kill his wife on a tropical island paradise when they are both kidnapped and confined by a terrifying old man in his secret hideout.
This is a slightly older horror manga by Masasumi Kakizaki, who is probably best known for being the artist on Rainbow. Kakizaki is an excellent artist and his drawing skills shine within the horror genre. Specifically in this book he does amazing work focusing on the horrific looking eyes of the old man. They actually give me the chills when I look at them too long.
The story here is also done really well with constant flashbacks that show the tragedy that drove the writer to madness. It’s interwoven with the horror of the hideout that imprisons the old man’s victims. I appreciate a horror story that has no sympathetic characters because the brutal violence that follows seems fitting. Kakizaki even throws in a great hook at the end to bring everything together.
~dakazu
Kasane
A manga adaptation of rakugo storyteller Sanyutei Encho’s ghost story opus Shinkei Kasane-ga-fuchi. A young man becomes the obsession and then curse of an older woman.
We’ve discussed this on a recent episode.
I so glad I found this series. Not only is the Kasane-ga-fuchi the story basis for Daruma Matsuura‘s Kasane but this manga adaptation is done by Gou Tanabe who drew H.P. Lovecraft’s The Hound and Other Stories! There are so many connections to series we’ve covered here on Manga Machinations!
This manga was really interesting to read. Kasane was an early work in Gou Tanabe‘s career and looks very different from the hyper realistic illustration style he uses for his H.P. Lovecraft adaptations. The designs match Japanese art from the Edo period and look much more manga-like. It was interesting to see how Sanyutei Encho expanded on the original Kasane-ga-fuchi ghost story to create a full drama involving a scorned woman. Tanabe does a great job emphasizing the woman’s decent into jealousy and depicting the growth on her face that represents it. It’s a wonderfully subtle horror series.
~dakazu
Dragon Head
A manga about high school teenager Teru Aoki, who awakens to find himself trapped in a tunnel with only two other survivors after an earthquake derails the bullet train he was riding.
We’ve discussed this on an old episode.
Dragon Head is a prime example of a series that starts strong but fizzles out afterwards. The situation of being buried alive drives the survivors of Teru, Ako, and especially Nobuo, into real madness. Minetaro Mochizuki creates fantastic tension with the first arc of this story. Unfortunately I feel the story dips after the first two volumes. The rest of the series is a decent post-apocalyptic survival story but it never lives up to the looming horror of the Nobuo losing his mind.
Available in English from Kodansha.
~dakazu
Choudouryoku Mouko Daishuurai
An alternate history manga where the Mongol empire was established by the dominance of special “Mongol Horses” that are actually the dismembered and regrown hands of a giant.
We’ve discussed this on a recent episode.
Shintaro Kago is a master of body horror and visuals that make you skin crawl. We’ve covered Super-Dimensional Love Gun last year which absolutely disgusted us. However I found Choudouryoku Mouko Daishuurai easier to stomach since Kago tied this concept of giant hands used as horses with historical events that shaped modern society. It was interesting to read how Vasco da Gama successfully brought the “Mongol Horses” back to Europe or how Germans developed various “Mongol Horse” powered tanks for superiority during World War 1. But make no mistake, this book still includes a ton of disturbing body horror that Kago is known for.
~dakazu
Godsider
A manga about Reiki Kikoku, a man born between evil and good who becomes a Godsider destined to vanquish Devilsiders who plan on conquering all for Satan.
This is a gory battle manga from the 1980’s when that genre was popularized by titles like Fist of the North Star and Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. Godsider‘s gimmick was that the good and evil sides were loosely based around Judaist and Christian mythology. It’s a completely decent action series by Kouji Maki but it’s personally special to me because it was my first introduction to extremely gory battle manga. I read when I was visiting my father’s hometown in Shikoku, Japan. My much older cousin had it and it blew my poor ten year-old brain. I had nightmares from weeks because of this book. Looking at it now it’s really not that scary but to my sheltered childhood self it was the equivalent of looking at a snuff film.
~dakazu
365 – One Shot 44 – Gogo Monster
October Extravaganza continues with Night 3 as we do a One Shot on Taiyo Matsumoto’s Gogo Monster! dakazu also read the end of Wotakoi: Love Is Hard for Otaku, watched Ranking of Kings, talks about Kamen Rider with Tojima Tanzaburo wa Kamen Rider ni Naritai, and rants about Spotted Flower and Shimoku Kio!!!
Continue readingOff Village: Daisan Bougyoheki
A manga about a secret village hidden in Japan where the dead reanimate. When the reanimated eat a living human they transform into a horrifying skinless monster.
The art work by VOID is very impressive here. While the reanimated zombie-like humans are nothing special, the skinless monster looks very terrifying. My main issue with this manga is the various plot holes that arise from the backstory of this village. The government secret unknown to even the prime minister premise is always eyerolling and always prone to illogical setups. It makes me feel appreciate horror stories that don’t try to explain everything because ultimately the explanation leads to more problems.
~dakazu
Kemono Shima
A manga about a group of high schoolers who are trapped in a school on a remote island that has been overrun by dogs gone feral.
This horror manga is rote but doesn’t have a bad premise. Good horror troupes of the survivors arguing and causing more problems is done well. There’s definitely some horror to be had with the dogs that attack the students as well. It’s just that the art by Hakubahashi is a bit lacking. If the art could convey the terror of the dogs and the gruesome deaths a bit better this would have been a horror manga to remember.
~dakazu