Horror & Supernatural Manga

The Foothills library has a monthly anime and manga club called Ani-Manga Club. Each month we talk about manga and anime and do some sort of activity. Last month, we made character buttons. This month we played Anime Bingo and focused on horror and supernatural manga titles. I wanted to share with you all some of the titles we discussed. Just in case you would like to read some too!


It's interesting to booktalk horror manga since there are so many different types available. If you want a truly Japanese horror experience, then look no further than Junji Ito's manga. The one I like the most is Uzumaki, a book creepier than any Tales of the Crypt or Twilight Zone. Kirie lives in a small town that has become obsessed with spirals. Yes, you read that correctly, spirals. So obsessed that people kill themselves attempting to become a spiral and the spirals seem to focus their own obsession with Kirie. A three volume series, it's perfect for a late night October reading.


For a bloody violent vampire manga, you have a few options, but I enjoyed Lunar Legend Tsukihime by Sasakishonen. Shiki has the ability to see the weaknesses in things and people. He sees them as lines on the object that if cut, it would be destroyed. He hides the ability with his glasses, but one night walking home he uses his ability and kills a woman. The next night, he meets the woman again, who scolds him and informs him that "it hurt." Now, he is forced to work with the woman--a vampire--to fight and destroy a maniac vampire on the loose killing humans and hunting her.



And last, but not least, supernatural manga which can cover a huge amount of manga titles! More of the lighthearted fantasy manga could fall here. The gothic lolita styled manga tends to be in this category too. I thought I'd talk about my favorite one of this field, Demon Ororon, but I've probably written about it before. So instead, I'll write about Gothic Lolita mystery series called Godchild by Kaori Yuki. Cain is the Earl of Hargreaves who spends most of his days hunting down poisons for his collection, solving dark mysteries, or opposing the criminal organization that his deceased father started. Detailed artwork is this manga creator's strength. Yuki creates the mood of the story in every ink stroke in the panels' artwork. Deliciously moody and a true guilty pleasure of yours truly.

I hope you find some enticing reads for the last week of October. The next Ani-Manga club meeting is Tuesday, November 16th at 4-5:30 p.m.