The Man who Never was

Lovesickness by Junji Ito My rating: 4 of 5 stars Viewer discretion advised: Warning for graphic violence, acts, and body horror. The master of Japanese Horror, nay, graphic horror worldwide. As usual he has the unique ability to take day to day, mundane aspects of life, and turn them into graphic, disturbing, macabre displays of terror. The premise of these series of interconnected short stories involves our protagonist, who has returned to his childhood home, a childhood which I might add, has some seriously disturbing repressed memories attached to it. Right after his arrival, mysterious incidents begin taking place, ending in a serious of disturbing suicides and deaths. As the body count rises, and bit by bit the townspeople turn to rabid, maniacal, insanity, it's upon him to solve this phenomenon and stop the violence. It seems as if, in every other of his stories, things go bad, and everyone goes mad. But despite a predictable pattern, we s...

Fragments of Horror by Junji Ito My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews Junji Ito is to Graphical body Horror, what Lovecraft was to cosmic existential horror.  His stories are anthologies, often set in the Japanese countryside, where mysterious things are afoot, and just around the corner one might encounter the paranormal, that can, for no particular reason latch on to you, ruin your life, and oftentimes end up taking it as well.  They often feature a coterie of everyday people, who are afflicted with, or experience the horrors on the other side of the veil. Where malicious, whimsical and mostly evil incarnate entities toy with you for their own perverted amusement. And there is little you can do to combat them.  The characters of Junji Ito rarely try to fight against their oppressors; you won't find wooden stake wielding, silver bullet shooting monster hunters. Just what one would expect if you were to encounter the monster that goes bump in the night. You...

American Gods, Vol. 3: The Moment of the Storm by Neil Gaiman My rating: 5 of 5 stars Rating 5 out of 5 |Grade A+; Hypnotic, Liberating, Final Last on American Gods, the spark for the battle between the Old Gods & New Gods was ignited, with the very public execution of Odin. A recently escaped Shadow, alongside Mr. Nancy & Chernobog must rally what remains of their forces for the inevitable confrontation. But what secrets & mysteries lie behind the veil; which tree was Shadow missing, hidden amongst the forest. That, and more on the concluding Volume of Gaiman’s American Gods. It still amazes me, how Gaiman is able to extrapolate the origin myths of Ancient gods and apply them to the magical realism like world of this story. At one point, somewhere in the middle, Shadow, after retrieving Wednesday’s body, is resolved to hold vigil over it, as per the dead god’s request. What does that entail one might ask. Well, it involves being t...

American Gods, Vol. 2: My Ainsel by Neil Gaiman My rating: 4 of 5 stars Rating 4 out 5| A Grade; An Acid trip down dark alleyways The bizarre yet phantasmal trip road trip with Shadow Moon & Mr. Wednesday continues. Having got a glimpse of the otherworld & beings which hide beneath the veneer of reality, Shadow finds himself further embroiled in the impending war between the Old Gods & New Ones. Having found himself in a spot of trouble, Odin has his handyman spirited off to the innermost reaches of America, where hopefully he will be safe from prying eyes. But outside our perception, the shadow conflict continues, as the first casualties of war begin to surface. Shadow is plagued by mysterious visions, about his destiny, past & not so dead wife, Lauren. Leading him to contemplate what his role is, in this whole kerfuffle. We are right there with him, riding along. Volume 2, takes a breather after the events of the first Volume. W...

American Gods, Vol. 1: Shadows by Neil Gaiman My rating: 4 of 5 stars Rating: 4 out of 5 | A Grade; Fantastic, awe inducing, psychedelic Gods are great, but people are greater. For it is in their hearts that gods are born, and to their hearts that they return. I had Neil Gaiman's works on my radar for quite a long time; ever since I heard of his fantastic Graphic novel Preludes & Nocturnes , as well as perhaps his most well known work American Gods . I have to thank the Stars TV adaptation of the series, starring the ever engaging Ian McShane for that one. Still, it kept gathering dust on my TBR list, until a pandemic which shall not be named forced us all in the confines of our homes. Then, there was ample time to read. And Mr. Gaiman didn't disappoint. Alone & anxious, Gaiman's American Gods, gave me a much needed escape from the depressing reality that was, to a slightly darker fantastic world which he had woven with as much ca...

The Young Woman and the Sea by Catherine Meurisse My rating: 3 of 5 stars Rating 3 out of 5 | Grade C+ Lot's of Pwetty pictures. I've always admired the nation of Japan. For its beautiful culture, rich & storied history, mythology, cuisine, for anime & nerd culture, and it's unique natural landscapes. The sight of Mount Fuji rising from the horizon as if rising to the sky, or Hokusai's violent and thought inducing depiction of Kanagawa off the wave, or was it the mist filled fantasy-esque opening to Tom Cruise's 'The Last Samurai', it's a land which has captured my imagination. And someday I hope to get acquainted with her intimately. So, it was with intrigue that I delved into The Young Woman & the Sea by Catherine Meurisse. It was a mixed bag. On one hand I don't feel that the author, while rambling on about a lot of things, wasn't really able to connect to that vein of the culture. Nor was sh...

Snow, Glass, Apples by Colleen Doran My rating: 4 of 5 stars Rating 4 out of 5| Grade: A, Haunting. You know that feeling you sometimes get at the back of your neck, like something is crawling up your body, its slithering, hissing rattle which causes you to feel grima like when someone is scratching their fingernails against a blackboard? This story is that. Taking the well known Grimm's tale of 'Snow White', and adds a mature, chilling, haunted twist to it. Before you think of picking this up, be warned, the story contains quite a lot of graphic content, and is not something you read to your toddler for a bedtime story. Going the Maleficent route, the story focuses on the Evil queen, who has to face the ever encroaching calamity that is her step daughter, who is <Spoiler> an immortal Blood sucker [an Immortal Blood sucker (hide spoiler) ] .</Spoiler> Concubine and later second wife to the King, the not so evil queen was merely a girl, quit...