- Mangaka : Junji Ito
- Publisher : Viz Media LLC
- Genre : Fantasy, Horror, Supernatural
- Published : September 2020
Introduction
Junji Ito is one of the many mangaka that a lot of people recognize. Just after hearing the name, a slew of associated words just pops up into our heads. Well, most of those are related to horror and gore. After all, Ito-sensei is a master of creating skin-crawling scenes and stories. We mean, the stuff that will surely remove our capacity to have a peaceful night’s rest as we shiver and hug our knees for our dear lives. Funny thing is we’re not even exaggerating. Junji Ito is a horror connoisseur if such a profession even existed.
Contains Spoilers
Discussion Time
Venus in the Blind Spot is one of Ito-sensei’s horror anthologies. It’s a series of horror one-shots that could hold their own stories on their own two creepy feet. For Venus in the Blind Spot, there are ten short stories in the form of chapters. Each story exudes the Junji Ito signature of creepy and terrifying. It’s just like eating that sandwich our grandmas make with their own special sauce. It’s simply amazing. Our personal favorite is the human chair. It’s basically a story about a chair connected to a certain family. Well, the chair has someone living inside it. Who? Only Ito-sensei knows.
1. Beautifully Twisted Stories
The works of Junji Ito are undoubtedly terrifying and twisted. By twisted, we mean something-
wrong-with-the-head kind of twisted. He has mastered the craft of getting under the skin of his readers and making them shudder in fear. True enough, Venus in the Blind Spot lives up to that kind of reputation. The horror theme of each story is not the typical ghost, demon, or alien story. Each plot is unique to its own and even unimaginable at times. It won’t be an exaggeration that each story offers a unique kind of horror.
2. Unexpected Twists
The good thing with this set of stories is that it’s not just terrifying to read. The plot in itself is actually enjoyable to indulge in. It’s not just about the creepiness, it’s also about the storytelling. Each of the stories at least has a point where we catch our mouths to be agape for such a sudden twist. Most of them don’t really fit the description of predictable. Heck, most, if not all, of them caught us off-guard. Nonetheless, that just adds another amazing spice to its already long list of good spices.
1. Bizarre Horror
If you’ve already read Ito-sensei’s other works, it won’t come as a surprise that his works are pretty graphic. Venus in the Blind Spot is of no exception. Ito-sensei does not hold his ink back when it comes to portraying death, gore, and out of this world occurrences. In fact, there are just far too many panels that you want to close your eyes if you’ve got a weak heart. Not only is the art horrifying, but the stories in itself also offer a horror we didn’t know we’d be afraid about. After all, who would’ve guessed we’d be terrified of a monster tongue?
Final Thoughts
Venus in the Blind Spot has surely reached the very high bar Ito-sensei has set for himself. We’re not joking when we say that we’ve absolutely loved reading all ten stories. By love, we didn’t mean reading it with big bright smiles on our faces, though. We’re not some kind of sick psychos. Contrary to that, our teeth could’ve shattered from trembling. Nevertheless, the anthology is no doubt another Junji Ito masterpiece that every horror fan would love to read during the darkest hours of the night.
Author: Christian Markle
