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.

Gothic Lolita

I've been a fan of Dakota Lane's books since I read Johnny Voodoo (sadly, out of print) several years ago. While perusing the new book shelves, I was happy to find she has a new novel out. Gothic Lolita tells the story of two teenage girls, one in Tokyo, one in L.A. whose lives are curiously entertwined. Miya and Chelsea are the same age, favor the same unusual style of dress, and are fans of an out-of-print manga series called Shonen Rainbow Warriors. More than that, they have an emotional connection that neither voices but each feels. Somehow the girl on the other side of the ocean is important, possibly the only person who can understand the other. The teens read one another's blogs faithfully until one day, with no warning, Chelsea goes silent. She posts nothing for three years, leaving Miya to wonder where Chelsea has gone and what has happened, but despite the lack of communication Miya still feels Chelsea. She still needs her.

Miya's father has just died, leaving Miya and her special needs younger brother alone in the world. Even before this their father had abandoned them in a Japanese orphanage, incapable of caring for them after the suicide of their mother. Miya considers running away and taking her brother with her, especially after an American woman shows up, looking to adopt a younger child. Who is this woman and how is she connected to Chelsea? In the meantime, Chelsea is wrestling with her own demons. Her younger brother is missing, or is he? The reader senses that Chelsea is not telling the whole story. As the book unfolds, the fate of the missing brother becomes clear as does Chelsea's guilt and depression. As each girl tells her story, the reader begins to understand how they are connected and slowly their narratives move to unite the girls.

I liked this story and I especially liked the black and white photographs interspersed with the text. In fact, I would have liked more photos. My favorite was the final photo of the book, a symbolic depiction of hope for the girls' future. In general I felt that Miya's narration was stronger than Chelsea's, and I found Miya's more interesting, especially her description of the various Gothic Lolitas she sees on the streets. If you don't know what the Gothic Lolita style is, picture a Victorian Little Bo Peep, or better, check out the book Gothic and Lolita, so you can see the wide range of styles that make up this Japanese fashion trend.