Fear is strange – mostly fueled by individual experiences. We are all born with two innate fears: falling and loud noises. Horror manga writer and artist, Junji Ito, takes those fears and others and turns them into surreal experiences of terror.

 

Even though Ito started out in dentistry, he began his journey as a horror aficionado in the mid-1980s. He’s taken inspiration from other horror icons, such as Mary Shelley and H. P. Lovecraft, and created a terrifying, psychological and body-horror empire.

 

He has written numerous books, short stories and one-shots, some of which have been turned into live action and anime movies and series, including, most recently, Netflix’s Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre.

 

 

While Ito’s short stories are small blips, his themes surrounding time, memory, relationships, among others, transport the reader to alternate realities. His unique manga style plays off of heavy body horror that shocks the eyes, while the storylines always play with the psychological strings of the readers’ minds.

 

Now, cue the Japanese Tales of the Macabre’s theme song, “Paranoid” by MADKID, and delve into some of Ito’s top short stories -- selections taken from collections such as Shiver, Fragments of Horror and Venus in the Blind Spot.

 

 

Hanging Blimp from Shiver, 2015

 

Hanging Blimp is full of strange visuals and an extraordinary story.

 

Similar to The Mist and Bird Box, strange occurrences with no explanation begin to take place all over Japan. After a prominent teen figure hangs herself outside her room, her peers and fans fall into a depression.

 

During this time, some people start seeing what looks to be a giant balloon resembling the celebrity’s head. Soon balloons modeled after regular citizens' heads swoop down from the sky intent on flying away with their doppleganger’s heads.

 

The idea of being hung and carried away by a balloon that resembles your head is disturbing, but the scariest part is there appears to be no reason this happens.

 

Hanging Blimp was my introductory story to the enigma that is Junji Ito.

 

 

Earthbound from Smashed, 2019

As humans, we have a tendency to try to see the best in people, at least when we view the world as “a glass half-full.”

 

So when people all over the city freeze in place, unable to move, those in Earthbound view them as the victims.

 

Throughout the course of the story, we meet multiple characters, a boy frozen by his dog’s grave, an old man frozen on the sidewalk, and main character Asano’s boss frozen in her new apartment.

 

Asano does what she can to try to help and save these frozen individuals, bringing them food and water and doing research to identify their ailment.

 

At first, Asano believes these people are frozen due to grief. Eventually, we learn that they are frozen by guilt -- for example, the boy had killed the dog; the old man had killed a little girl in a DUI accident; and Asano’s boss killed someone in her apartment.

 

These murderers turn completely to stone, and they are pulled free and discarded.

 

 

Gentle Goodbye from Fragments of Horror, 2014

Many of Ito’s stories seem to be literary versions of The Twilight Zone, and Gentle Goodbye — similar to the Twilight Zone episode “The Passersby” — is no different.

 

As indicated by the name, this story is more gentle than Ito’s other stories.

 

It starts with a happy couple who clearly love each other very much, but Riko starts to notice ghosts around the house. This leads to the explanation of the “gentle goodbye,” how when the family loses a loved one, they pray and bring back afterimages of the deceased.

 

This allows the family to give a gentle goodbye as the afterimage fades.

 

Slowly, Riko comes to the realization that she herself is an afterimage that her husband married after she died shortly before their wedding.

 

Anyone who has lost a loved one, especially suddenly, deserves a gentle goodbye.

 

 

Billions Alone from Venus in the Blind Spot, 2020

Billions Alone, the opening story of Ito’s short story collection Venus in the Blind Spot, plays with the idea of isolation versus socialization.

 

In a style similar to The Human Centipede, characters within the story first disappear and are then found sewn together in strange formations.

 

As more and more body configurations are found, it is determined people are being abducted when they get together in large groups. Some think aliens are at fault, while others believe it’s a strange cult called “Billions Alone.”

 

However, some, such as the main character Michio’s class reunion, ignore the warnings. Everyone at the reunion but Michio and his friend Natsuko disappear into seemingly thin air, only to be found later, sewn into a giant human configuration.

 

Billions Alone reflects the fear and restrictions of being forced to stay home and away from those we love – similar to the COVID pandemic.

 

Everyone who remembers the shutdown can find solace in this story and know that Ito understood this too.

 

 

Venus in the Blind Spot from Venus in the Blind Spot, 2020

Venus in the Blind Spot’s title story is the height of the book’s themes surrounding the ethereal and extraterrestrial.

 

The entire story surrounds obsession, the obsession with beauty and the unknown. A club that was originally created for the sole reason of searching for UFOs and extraterrestrial life takes a dark turn as the members become obsessed with the club leader’s beautiful daughter Mariko.

 

As the obsession with Mariko grows, a strange occurrence begins. Some members start losing sight of Mariko, literally-- at certain distances, they can hear her, but not see her.

 

Mariko’s protective father, an accomplished surgeon and scientist, grows tired of these men’s obsession with her. So, he creates a procedure that will interrupt their brain’s perception of Mariko.

 

Even though her father does this with affection and paternal protection — with a hint of mad science — the procedures backfire once the public finds out and the doctor’s work is reversed.

.

 

Slumber from The Liminal Zone, 2022

The unconscious is as dark and mysterious to us as the bottom of the ocean and the depths of space. Scientists have learned new ways to manipulate the mind, but the extent of its power remains unknown.

 

Takuya keeps waking up from terrifying dreams of murder and gore, only to find, once conscious, news reports of familiar murders.

 

While other than these dreams, he has no memory of committing these murders, he quickly becomes convinced he murders people in his sleep. As he prepares to turn himself in, one of his friends comes by and he tells her everything.

 

After consoling him, she leaves his apartment, only to be attacked by the murderer a short distance away. She is the only victim to survive and is able to give a suspect description, proving it is not Takuya who is the murderer.

 

Author Bio:

Ariana Powell is a contributing writer at Highbrow Magazine.

 

For Highbrow Magazine