Japanese horror has always had a stronghold on people’s imaginations all across the world. Films like “The Ring” and “The Grudge,” as popular in the West as they are, can be traced back to the Land of the Rising Sun. Among those legendary works, however, one artist reigns supreme in the world of Japanese horror. Junji Ito, a manga author, has been hailed time and again for his talent for instilling fear in the hearts of his readers.
Junji Ito has written some of the most terrifying mangas in the previous 30 years. He has an extraordinary ability to conjure up frightening, filthy, or even bizarrely beautiful imagery. Go and Tomie are among his most well-known stories, and while his plots don’t always make sense, that only contributes to the odd, nightmare atmosphere he’s after.
With the impending adaptation of his 1998 manga series, “Uzumaki,” Ito’s gorgeously revolting visuals and spine-chilling tales have left a big impression on the world of manga, and they are about to do the same in the animation world as well.
The four-episode “Uzumaki” miniseries, animated by Drive and set to premiere on Adult Swim’s Toonami, aims to bring Ito’s work to a wider audience. Teaser trailers posted by the project’s creators show a faithful recreation of Ito’s art style, which is sure to pique the interest of longtime fans of the mangaka. Even with these hints, though, there is still a lot to learn about “Uzumaki,” release date, characters, and plot.
Fans of Uzumaki may be ecstatic to learn how intimately Ito was involved in the adaptation. Each episode’s script was read by the mangaka himself, who praised the screenwriter’s handling of the story.
Here’s all we know so far regarding Uzumaki’s anime adaptation.
When will Uzumaki release?
The anime adaptation of “Uzumaki” was first announced in 2019, with a release date of sometime in 2020. However, in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, “Uzumaki,” like many other projects around the world, had significant production delays.
As a result of these challenges, the developers of “Uzumaki” have decided to postpone the anime’s release date even more. The show is currently scheduled to air in October 2022. Aside from the anime’s horrific story, this change of events may be the scariest thing to ever happen to Junji Ito’s work, at least in the eyes of fans. However, there is some solace in knowing that Drive hasn’t given up on “Uzumaki” yet.
Who are the characters in Uzumaki?
The plot of “Uzumaki” is incredibly condensed, centering on only a few major characters. Given that it will only last four episodes, this makes sense. Even so, this emphasizes the importance of discussing the few characters that do exist. Kirie Goshima and Shuichi Saito, two regular students who begin to struggle with the unusual, spiral-themed curse that befalls their small town of Kurouzu-Cho, are at the heart of our spiraling story. As the protagonists, they act as guides down the perilous and scary path that is “Uzumaki.”
However, without other characters to play off of, these two would be nothing. Kurouzu-cho has a lot more than just two students to offer. “Uzumaki” delves into the atrocities that befall this small Japanese town, from Kirie’s father to Shuichi’s parents and many others.
What is the story of Uzumaki?
The “Uzumaki” anime, like the manga, focuses on a sequence of odd events that occur in a single, cursed town called Kurouzo-cho. Kirie and Shuichi, the anime’s protagonists, are two ordinary high school students who become painfully aware of the spiral-themed curse early on. They see the people of Kurouzo-cho becoming increasingly obsessed with spirals, and they themselves suffer the consequences of the curse as time passes.
The terror in this situation derives from the struggle of average people against supernatural forces that appear to be beyond their control. The Kurouzo-cho spiral curse is enigmatic and unfathomable, and viewers will be terrified as they watch the heroes strive to make sense of something they don’t understand. Unfortunately, whether or not these two survive the curse and its consequences will remain a mystery until October’s release of “Uzumaki.”