Unveiling Junji Ito's Most Terrifyingly Relatable Tales!

Warning: Spoilers for Junji Ito Collection and Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre!

The horror mangaka master Junji Ito is renowned for his ability to delve into the grotesque and macabre with ease, utilizing a wide range of styles and themes. Despite some of his tales being fantastically metaphysical or absurd, many still strike a chord with viewers, as they reflect real-life struggles, fears, and phenomena.

This list features selected tales from Junji Ito's shorter works, rather than his stories featuring established characters like Tomie, Souichi, and Oshikiri. Each of these tales has been adapted into an anime, either in Crunchyroll's Junji Ito Collection or Netflix's Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre.

10 "Hanging Balloon"

Residing in Japan, Junji Ito's inclination to satirize and manipulate real-life societal structures and belief systems is understandable and expected. Some of his stories delve into deeply rooted traditions and value systems that are even recognized by Westerners. For instance, "Honored Ancestors" and "The Gentle Goodbye" explore the profound significance of honoring deceased family members within Japanese culture.

Although the latter story is oddly more heartwarming, the evident pain and guilt associated with the theme tackled in "Hanging Balloon" naturally intensifies its impact on the audience. Furthermore, it holds a greater sense of relatability as every culture unfortunately confronts the subject matter of the episode. Allegedly inspired by a childhood dream of Junji's, the portrayal appears to satirize the near glorification of these and other tragedies, their inescapability, their inevitable claim on everyone's lives, and the disconcertingly frequent occurrence that creates a pervasive feeling of ubiquity.

9 "Boy at the Crossroads"

Although this tale clearly retells the spine-chilling Japanese game Tsuji-Ura, the message of the episode goes beyond exploring Japanese folklore and instead serves as a universal cautionary tale about human nature. It is disconcerting to see numerous individuals place excessive faith in the predictions of strangers, relying solely on fate or using these readings to justify their deepest desires. The inclusion of the enigmatic "Pretty Boy" only adds to the mystique, ultimately emphasizing the real-world lesson that seeking answers from unfamiliar sources can lead to disastrous consequences.

8 "Tomb Town"

This content draws parallels to Edgar Allan Poe's famous horror story, "The Tell-Tale Heart," delving into the notion that a murderer can become mentally entwined with their victim to the extent that they inadvertently reveal themselves, even after seemingly getting away with the crime. In "Tomb Town," this concept is taken to an extreme as the auditory illusion of a "beating heart" in Poe's narrative becomes a tangible phenomenon, impossible to ignore. Junji's unique reimagining of "The Tell-Tale Heart" vividly portrays certain murders as so conspicuous that they might as well appear as enormous graves exactly where the victim met their end.

7 "Mold"

A central theme explored in this short piece revolves around the uneasiness and paranoia that arises when entrusting one's home to an untrustworthy caretaker. However, the profound significance of the titular mold and its impact on the characters largely outweighs this relatable situation. The eventual fate of the homeowner and their persistent inability to vacate the deteriorating house convey Junji Ito's intention to highlight the unbreakable emotional bond individuals can develop with their homes, even if remaining has negative consequences. This sentiment resonates strongly with anyone who has experienced the bittersweet feeling of leaving their childhood home.

6 "The Long Dream"

"The Long Dream" delves into the realm of metaphysics, exploring the intricate connection between reality and perception. This mind-altering dream experience, reminiscent of "Mold", takes the obsession to another level as it infiltrates the dreamer's very being. The profound impact of this obsession is like being chained to one's own dreams, where the fascination with their potential symbolism or significance consumes the dreamer.

5 "Town of No Roads"

This content presents an alarming and exaggerated portrayal of contemporary culture, which promotes and celebrates the excessive public sharing of one's life, whether through social media or other means. In this peculiar realm, the notion of privacy is entirely absent, even in the most intimate and personal spaces, showcasing the potential extremes of such a lifestyle. The most concerning moments depict how a nuclear family's acceptance of this way of life is as disturbing as voyeurism, illustrating how even those who initially resist eventually succumb to the degrading aspects of living in the public eye.

4 "Hell Doll Funeral"

Being one of Junji Ito's shorter stories, translating this episode on Crunchyroll in any capacity would have been a severe injustice as it delves into the unexplainable tragedy of parents who have tragically lost a child. In this particular case, these parents are unable to move on and defy the expected outcome of such a dreadful ordeal, which typically involves exploring the negative consequences it has on parents. Through the horrifying physical deformation of the late child, viewers are compelled to imagine how being enslaved to the memory of a lost child can distort one's life into something terrifying and unrecognizable. Junji Ito Maniac's "The Thing That Drifted Ashore" addresses a similar theme, albeit with any cherished individual.

3 "Layers of Terror"

The inclusion of this storyline in Junji Ito's Netflix series highlights the unsettling nature of narratives involving children, especially for individuals who have children of their own. In this particular episode, although the child is fortunately still alive, the focus shifts from a parent grappling with the loss of a child's life, as seen in Junji Ito Collection's "Hell Doll Funeral," to the profound longing for a parent to relive their child's early years. Ito presents the mother with a supernatural opportunity to turn back time, but the process is deeply disturbing and does not unfold as she had anticipated. To add another layer of complexity, the ending introduces a similar desire of the mother to rewind time for herself.

2 "The Bully"

"The Bully" is a rare exception in Ito's body of work, as it lacks the incorporation of otherworldly elements. Despite this, the story presents incredibly surreal circumstances, showcasing an intricate scheme that spanned decades in order to exact revenge on a girl who had been a bully. Although the story's true antagonist faces punishment, she tragically directs her frustration and anger towards her own child, resulting in a disturbing manifestation of mental and physical abuse that persists for generations. This distressing portrayal of bullying, while extreme, unfortunately reflects the prevalence of such behavior in our society.

1 "Long Hair in the Attic"

This interpretation of a tragic real-life situation is undoubtedly one of the most intricately layered and haunting ones that numerous individuals have unfortunately experienced. Junji Ito, in this collection, skillfully delves into the symbolic significance of Chiemi's hair, initially in its literal form and later, with a supernatural twist that is iconic to the author. Her hair functions as a tangible embodiment of how Chiemi's boyfriend manipulated her. Hence, when she bravely chooses to cut it following their breakup, she takes a significant step towards moving forward. Cutting her hair allows her to witness an immediate and controllable transformation, empowering her in the process.

Then, Ito adds a supernatural twist to completely subvert the feel-good message by having the regrowing hair gruesomely decapitate the protagonist, proving that not all well-intentioned actions lead to success. Junji Ito further deepens the narrative by revealing that the same hair manipulated by Chiemi's boyfriend ultimately causes his demise. This can be interpreted in various ways, including the notion that the guilt of his ex-girlfriend's death overwhelms him, despite his initial portrayal as a heartless monster. Regardless, this use of poetic justice is enhanced by the numerous other interpretations of the symbolism behind Chiemi's hair.

You can stream Junji Ito Collection on Crunchyroll, and Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre is available for streaming on Netflix.