Japanese horror master Junji Ito has teamed up with Netflix for an anime anthology series based on his works, "Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre." A new clip shows some of the stories adapted and when we can expect to see these twisted stories.
The clip below offers a better look at Ito's most popular character, Tomie, and confirms five new stories for the series. Even better? Netflix will release “Junji Ito Maniac” on January 19, 2023.
Stars: Romi Park, Tomoko Kaneda, Yûki Kaji
The stories "The Story of the Mysterious Tunnel", "Mold", "Layers of Fear", "The Thing That Washed Ashore", and "Back Alley" join the lineup.
Junji Ito Maniac will be an animated horror anthology and will include up to 20 stories originally written by Junji Ito, a beloved horror manga artist. The series is directed by Shinobu Tagashira and written by Kaoru Sawada. The debut season of the show will consist of 12 episodes.
The new clip begins by jumping right into the action, introducing a scene from what appears to be an adapted episode of Ito's "Tomie." The clip begins with several photos thrown from the roof of what appears to be a school. The photos flash on the screen, showing a girl who appears to have a face growing out of the back of her head. Soon the photos are completely scattered outside the school. A girl stands outside and asks two young men for help. She then turns her head slightly in a creepy way and asks, "Will you listen to me?" before the series title bursts onto the screen. According to this clip, audiences craving for Junji Ito Maniac should expect some mind-blowing horror stories that are sure to invade the brain and cause plenty of nightmares.
Newly announced stories to be featured in Junji Ito Maniac include "The Story of the Mysterious Tunnel," "Mold," "Layers of Fear," "The Thing That Washed Ashore," and "Back Alley." Besides "Tomie", other Ito stories that were previously adapted are Shouichi, "The Hanging Balloons", "Ice Cream Truck" (also known as "Ice Cream Bus"), "Tomb Town" (also known as "Street of Tombstones" or "Tombs"), "Library Vision" (also known as "Library of Illusions"), and "Headless Statue" (also known as "Headless Sculptures").
About the series: "With a selection of 20 macabre masterpieces brimming with his original worldview and fascinating characters drawn in his stunning style, including popular titles like 'Hanging Balloon' and fan-favorite characters Tomie and Soichi, this animated series will completely immerse viewers in the maniacal charm of Junji Ito.”
Previously, the mangaka legend detailed the importance of Tomie as his debut work and horror inspirations from him. The character, who has the ability to refuse to stay dead, was first introduced in 1987. The manga was adapted into a live-action series and, at one point, appeared on Quibi. The artist also explained some of his designs behind another popular character, Souichi, a troublesome and mischievous boy with a penchant for inflicting curses and dabbling in the dark arts. The Hanging Balloons is about suicide, another indicator of Ito's brand of dark, nightmarish horror.
Junji Ito's distinctive and terrifying artistic style evokes a visceral response in his work, and up to now it has been difficult to translate the nightmare fuel into other media. "Maniac" isn't the only Ito adaptation in the works, either, as Uzumaki's previously announced Adult Swim adaptation is slated to arrive in October.
Look for the series to premiere in its entirety, exclusively on Netflix, on January 19, 2023.
Watch Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre 2023 Trailer
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