Fragments of Horror

by Junji Ito

A new collection of delightfully macabre tales from a master of horror manga. An old wooden mansion that turns on its inhabitants. A dissection class with a most unusual subject. A funeral where the dead are definitely not laid to rest. Ranging from the terrifying to the comedic, from the erotic to the loathsome, these stories showcase Junji Ito's long-awaited return to the world of horror.

Ma no Kakera (魔の断片, also titled Shard of Evil or Fragments of Horror), is a series of short stories by Junji Ito.
It began serialization in the first issue of the revived Nemuki+ (ネムキプラス) magazine on April 13, 2013. It was subsequently published as a collection in Japan in June 2014, with the final story, "Whispering Woman", having been previously published in Shinkan (シンカン) rather than Nemuki+. In December 2014, it was licensed by VIZ Media to be released in English in June 2015, under the "Fragments of Horror" title.

Chapters:

Futon (Blanket)
Haunted Wood Mansion
Tomio: Red Turtleneck
Lingering Farewell
Dissection Girl
Black Bird
Magami Nanakuse
Whispering Woman

Genres: Manga, Horror, Graphic Novels, Comics, Short Stories, Fiction, Fantasy

224 pages, Hardcover

First published July 8, 2014

About the author

Junji Itō (Japanese: 伊藤潤二, Ito Junji) is a Japanese cartoonist and illustrator, best known for his horror manga.
Ito was born in Gifu Prefecture, Japan in 1963. He was inspired to make art from a young age by his older sister's drawing and Kazuo Umezu's horror comics. Until the early 1990s he worked as a dental technician, while making comics as a side job. By the time he turned into a full time mangaka, Ito was already an acclaimed horror artists.
His comics are celebrated for their finely depicted body horrors, while also retaining some elements of psychological horror and erotism.
Although he mostly produces short stories, Ito is best known for his longer comic series: Tomie (1987-2000), about a beautiful high school girl who inspires her admirers to commit atrocities; Uzumaki (1998-1999), set in a town cursed with spiral patterns; Gyo (2001-2002), featuring a horde of metal-legged undead fishes. Tomie and Uzumaki in particular have been adapted multiple times in live-action and animation.

Reviews

[daph pink ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

*awkward welcome* Ik it's my 8th Junji Ito book in two weeks , and no I don't regret my decisions, I love him.

Speaking of the book , it's a collection of stories so I will be reviewing each story , that way it's easier for me give the average rating at the end!

1. Futon :- 2/5(now even my blanket is not safe, thanks Mr ITO)

2. Wooden spirit :- 3/5 ( stay away from perverts who call a house sexy)

3. Tomio. Red turtle neck :- 3.5/5 ( imagine the horror of knowing that your head can fell off anytime you remove your hands from your head?? and now imagine living like this for rest of your life )

4. Gentle goodbye:- 4/5 ( this wasn't disturbing or disgusting like Mr. Ito's usual work , it was in general very sad and depressing and I like sad thing)

5. Dissection-chan :- 5/5 ( what the hell was that ? No seriously , kids stay away , people sensitive to gross images stay away , if you love yourself , stay away! This is was so gross and disturbing that I gave it 5 stars?? Seriously what's wrong with me?)

6. Blackbird :- 4/5 ( imagine a bird feeding you, your own meat from future , mouth to mouth to keep you alive? Disgusting , horrific and disturbing !!!!)

7. Magami Nanakuse:- 3.5/5 ( call me dumb or whatever , I quite didn't understood this story , okay ? Anyone here please help!)

8. Whispering woman:- 3/5 ( not as horrific and disturbing as other stories but I loved it.)

So overall rating ( because who doesn't like numbers and averages ) :- 3.5 (well now that's difficult , should I rate it 3 or 4)

Well overall it was a great collection, Mr. Ito has done it again, and I will probably take a break before picking his books again because everybody want mental peace which us usually disturbed after reading JUNJI ITO 's book ( I am obsessed with his name)..

[aly ☆彡 (on holiday, will be back soon) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great. If I didn't have nightmare before, well I do have them now after reading this. If you feel like the cover is enticing enough, think again if your heart is strong to handle it.

In the style of ero-guru, or "erotic grotesque gibberish," Junji Ito created the Japanese horror anthology manga series Fragments of Horror, which features grotesque female villains who prey on lousy men. This manga is the ideal representation of how those grim literary works might turn out if they were instituted.

Ito's work is indisputably distinctive, and his take on horror is wholly fresh and unusual. In the end, many of his tales have a logical conclusion that only adds to their strangeness. Given that this is my first introduction to Ito's work, it only seems sensible that I am perplexed considering the inconsistent quality of this collection. There were several weak spots, including a few of the chapters that were close to the conclusion and weren't really necessary, but not in the manner that vagueness produces effective terror by leaving it to the reader's imagination. Some that I find a bit offensive even because it’s futile — like the chapter of author with tic.

I also often find his characters to be the same having told a different stories. While my praises on his artwork isn't totally a lie, but I wish it would be somewhat distinguishable. I could see some disappointment harbored for this particular work of his, but I wasn't his old time fan to be coming up with the conclusion.

I didn't believe it was entirely a letdown for a first-timer. Even still, it was a quick read that was fascinating and spooky. My personal favourite would have to be "Tomio: Red Turtleneck," whose protagonist is cursed and will not be able to prevent his neck from cracking (aka the boy in the cover). It was unsettling, but its approach tends to wash out all kind of realism. Ito enjoys staring at things that are beyond his comprehension, and I liked how he portrayed that.

As a whole, it is still a haunting read. I did not kid when I said I have a nightmare now.

[Fabian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exceptionally gruesome. All these Japanese horror stories are Ju-On ("The Grudge") adjacent! Most of them lack a coherent purpose or strict motive-- which is precisely what makes them all the more eerie and beautiful!!

P.S. Ain't the cover JUST a beaut? Picked it out as a usual experiment in dada experimentation.

[Coos Burton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Creo que podría decir que esta es mi antología favorita de Junji Ito. Todos los relatos son maravillosos, las ilustraciones son súper macabras, como acostumbramos con el mangaka.

[Ray Nadine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've always been a fan of Junji Ito's horror, and this book started off so strong, but the second to last story left such a bad taste in my mouth that it spoiled the book for me.

I do love how short the stories are, and even though they are short, they still managed to get across a subtle level of disturbing that creeps in your head for a while, even after finishing the story. It was really hard to put the book down and was easy to jump into the small world built around each story.

The story in question that really bothered me involved portraying a transgender woman as the villain of the story, and had a distasteful "a-ha! She's actually a man oh my god!" reveal that was incredibly tacky and uncalled for. It had nothing to do with the actual horror aspect of the story, and it only went on to propagate incorrect stereotypes about a marginalized group of people. When tropes like that are played into, I feel like it's cheap and poor storytelling.

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another horror anthology by Junji Ito.

Futon - ★★★
A man is plagued by horrible visions and refuses to come out from under the covers of his futon. A solid but very short story.

Wooden Spirit - ★★★★
A young woman visits a historical house and becomes a tenant. This one gets hella weird at the end.

Tomio - Red Turtleneck - ★★★★★
This gets super dark and terrifying. I loved it. It's about a guy who leaves his girlfriend for a fortune teller and comes to regret it.

Gentle Goodbye - ★★★★
A woman marries into a family who can turn their family members into "afterimages" when they die. They are like ghosts that slowly fade over a long time. Loved the ending.

Dissection-Chan - ★★★
A story about a woman obsessed with dissection.

Blackbird - ★★★
A hiker stays alive by unknown means for a month after breaking his legs in the wilderness. This one was strange but kind of cool.

Mogami Nanakuse - ★★
A strange story about a fan meeting their favorite author who is obsessed with nervous tics. It feels like something may have gotten lost in translation here. I thought it was kind of stupid.

Whispering Woman - ★★
A young woman cannot make any decisions on her own and needs an attendant to make every decision for her including things like rather to sit down or not.

[La loca de los libros · Rating 4 out of 5]

Junji Ito nos trae nuevas y aterradoras historias. Gracias a la editorial ECC veremos como va saliendo su obra a la luz. Saber qué tiene en esa cabeza prodigiosa.

Estos son los relatos que contiene y mi breve valoración e impresión sobre ellos:

🛌 "Futón." ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Muy corto pero efectivo.
Me ha gustado muchísimo. Tiene un dibujo sublime, como todos.

🚪 "Espectros de madera." ⭐⭐⭐/5

Una historia irregular. Tiene un buen comienzo pero el tono general no me ha entusiasmado.

 🙎 "Tomio y el jersey rojo de cuello alto." ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Agarra fuerte tu cabeza antes de adentrarte en este relato.
Buenísimo.

⚰ "Una separación lenta." ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Emotivo relato sobre "rescatar" a aquellos que ya no están con nosotros y así tener más tiempo para despedirnos.

✂ "Miss Disección." ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

La obsesión de la protagonista por la disección no tiene límites. Vaya imágenes nos regala.
Muy bestia.

 👁"El ave negra." ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Otro buen relato.
Muy visual y con sus buenas dosis de asquerosidades varias.

📚 "Magami Nanakuse." ⭐⭐/5

Esta historia no me ha gustado. Lo que rescato es una ilustración a página completa llegando al final del relato.
De resto me ha parecido una parodia con un tono demasiado absurdo y con aspectos que no me han gustado nada como están tratados.

👄 "La mujer que susurra." ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Un buen relato con una gran carga de denuncia sobre el maltrato a la mujer.
Veremos como va degenerando en un final con mucho "karma."

🔝👌 Como ocurre siempre con este autor, el dibujo es lo más destacable, la precisión a la hora de mostrar esos terrores que a muchos nos pueden asolar en un momento dado.
Como en toda colección, no todas las historias pueden estar a la misma altura pero el conjunto es muy notable.
Junji Ito nos regala un Epílogo final donde nos cuenta su proceso de creación de historias durante este tiempo y donde tiene unas palabras de agradecimiento hacia aquellos que lo han apoyado en este proyecto.
Nos vuelve a perturbar y deleitar con unas historias cargadas de leyendas locales y con giros interesantes.
La edición es preciosa, con una cubierta muy cuidada y que te hace querer leerla nada más verla.

Recomendable para los amantes del terror nipón y seguidores de Junji Ito 🔝

https://www.facebook.com/LaLocadelosL... 📚

[Sarah ♡ (let’s interact!) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fragments Of Horror is more modern Ito, published in 2014, and he is on great form! This was his first short horror story collection in 8 years at the time.
It’s a fast paced, good starting point!
I loved Gentle Goodbye the most, it was very emotive with a good twist! Not your usual ghost story. And not the usual visceral imagery from Ito here. A different type of horror storytelling!

There is, of course, great horror imagery throughout. He is the master of body horror, I wouldn’t recommend his work to the squeamish. His art style is one of my favourites!
I still need to properly read my Uzumaki and Tomie books after reading some of online many years ago! Happy to now have an ever growing physical collection of his work! 💀🖤

4 Stars

[Orrin Grey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let me just get this out of the way before we start the review: For my money, at least two of the greatest masters of the weird tale who have ever lived are alive today and working in comics. One is Mike Mignola, and the other is Junji Ito. This is not just Junji Ito’s first horror collection in eight years, but it’s also the only collection of his unrelated horror shorts that’s widely available in print and in the English language right now. That, in itself, is enough to make Fragments of Horror a cause for celebration and the fact that it’s in a gorgeous hardcover edition that looks spectacular on the shelf alongside Viz Media’s other recent Junji Ito releases Uzumaki and Gyo makes it doubly so.

Honestly, if you’re a Junji Ito enthusiast, then just knowing that there’s new work out there is probably enough to get you ordering. If you’re not, then it’s probably because you haven’t yet been introduced to his work. While Uzumaki remains his towering masterpiece and an indispensable piece of modern weird fiction, there are much worse places to make your introduction to Ito’s work than in the pages of Fragments of Horror.

In his typically self-deprecating author’s note at the end of the book, Ito wonders whether his horror instincts have returned, but it doesn’t take much reading to find out that they have. In fact, Fragments of Horror reads very much like what it is: a return to form. In this volume, you’ll find a cross-section of just about everything you can expect from Ito’s work, from the sublime to the grotesque, and from the serious to the silly. There’s a poignant tale right next door to a ludicrous one. Almost all of them contain Ito’s trademark talent for a perfectly-timed panel, the equivalent of the jump-scare reveal in a movie at just the right moment but all the more impressive because Ito allows it to linger.

While Ito has better stories in other books, this is a great collection and an admirable sampling of what makes a Junji Ito story stand out, whether it’s being terrifying or just ridiculous. “Futon,” the first story in the book, is a pretty perfect primer of what you can expect from Junji Ito, all in a compact eight pages, while stories like “Dissection-Chan” and “Blackbird” feel like classic Ito tales. There’s even a touch of his tendency to repeat characters, as the couple from “Futon” show up again in “Tomio – Red Turtleneck.” “Magami Nanakuse,” meanwhile, is a perfect example of one of Ito’s sillier stories.

At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter how well Fragments of Horror stacks up next to Junji Ito’s previous horror collections. For those of us who have already been indoctrinated in the cult of Ito, each new story is a treasure. For those who haven’t yet had the pleasure of discovering him, this will serve as a fine introduction. What is important is that the people at Viz Media seem to know the importance of the occasion and have treated Ito’s first collection in almost a decade with the reverence it deserves. The edition is beautiful and sturdy, and just seeing pictures of the cover online cannot possibly do it justice. Once you’ve held it in your hands, you’ll know that this is a special book, one that deserves a special place on your shelf.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the horror manga-ka author of the masterpiece Uzumaki and Museum of Terror, and after an eight year hiatus, here’s some short stories, some comedic, some scary, some icky, a ghost story, such a range of stuff that he apologizes for in the preface as lame. Not so. I like most of them a lot.

I admire how the drawing principally creates the sense of horror, so difficult to imagine accomplishing in a time of blockbuster cgi films. He crafts this fear with clean lines, simple paneling, simple, simple! And fantastic ideas. “Dissection Girl” is creepy. “Black Bird” melds human and animal to create a monster. 'Nanakuse Kyokumi' was my favorite, really inventive and strange. Or maybe "Whispering Woman," a longish atmospheric "ghost" story.

[Scott Neumann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Creepy, unsettling, and bizarre just some of the words used to describe the contents of this book. Did I enjoy this? absolutely. The artwork is beautiful and grotesque at the same time, the stories will resonate long after you put the book down. The standouts for me are 'Wooden Spirit', Tomio-Red Turtleneck' and 'Dissection - Chan'.

[Sadie Hartmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve read several Junji Ito short story collections and this one goes hard! The tales are extremely dark, often violent, and more nudity than I’ve seen in any of his other collections. My favorite aspect of his collections are the shocking surprises when you turn a page a get full artwork with something completely unhinged and gruesome. The ones in this collection are terrifying! Ugly! I loved them
Cover-to-cover, this one goes all out!

[HorrorBabe911 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Collection of short horror stories by manga’s Horror King. I like certain. Stories but not all. They more of body horror and a bit grotesque. Okay if you like horror.

[disco · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was RIGHT up my alley .. I couldn't put this down. Junji Ito has a way of telling a story like no one else. These stories were twisted, weird, and had some of the best artwork I've ever seen. Highly recommend!

[Johann (jobis89) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Really good but also felt like it was lacking…something?!

[Fátima Linhares · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nunca tinha lido nada deste senhor e não posso dizer que lerei mais alguma coisa, mas posso sem dúvida afirmar que o senhor Ito tem uma mente bastante imaginativa. Os contos são todos grotescos e horripilantes. Alguns chegam até a ser nojentos. Não será do agrado de todos, mas foi uma boa experiência de leitura.

[E. G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

--Futon
--Wooden Spirit
--Tomio · Red Turtleneck
--Gentle Goodbye
--Dissection-chan
--Blackbird
--Magami Nanakuse
--Whispering Woman

Afterword

[Michael Sorbello · Rating 4 out of 5]

A macabre bundle of grotesque, comedic and romantic horror manga shorts with a wide variety of subjects.

The first two stories in this collection were fairly weak, but the other six stories were all very disturbing. My favorites were Blackbird, Dissection Girl and Red Turtleneck. These three stories featured a crow-like woman that repeatedly vomited raw meat into a wounded hiker's mouth because she mistook him for one of her young, an insane girl with a fetish for being dissected alive and a boy that literally had to keep his head on his shoulders by holding it in place. Gentle Goodbye was another really good one but it was more of a sad story than a scary one.

***

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[Maliha Tabassum (back from hiatus) Tisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

The artwork's gorgeous as always. But storywise I found most of them pretty unsatisfying.

Individual ratings:
* Futon - 3.5 stars
* Wooden Spirit - 3 stars
* Tomio · Red Turtleneck - 2 stars
* Gentle Goodbye - 3 stars
* Dissection-chan - 5 stars
* Blackbird - 3 stars
* Magami Nanakuse - 1 stars
* Whispering Woman - 2.5 stars

Ratings averaged and rounded to 3 stars

[Drew Canole · Rating 3 out of 5]

After an 8 year break, this was Junji's return to horror. It's really light-weight stuff. Nothing too scary. It's fast-paced and creative enough, but really nothing too special.

[Jan Agaton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so glad I purchased this one instead of just reading it from the library because this is definitely in my top faves of junji ito's work! every single story creeped me out to the point of visceral reaction! I'll never be able to fathom how this man comes up with all this shit.

[Oscar · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘Fragmentos del mal’, de Junji Ito, es una recopilación de historias cortas de terror, que es donde parece que más brilla el autor. El dibujo es muy bueno, y las ideas de Ito son imaginativas, a la par que perturbadoras. Estos son los ocho relatos incluidos:

Futón. (****) Una chica que encuentra a su novio bajo el futón, sin querer salir, por los monstruos que dice ver.

Espectros de madera. (***) Los dueños de una casa antigua, un padre y una hija, deciden permitir las visitas de los posibles interesados en dicho patrimonio. Al poco aparece una mujer que no solo desea ver la casa, sino que también quiere vivir un tiempo en ella.

Tomio y el jersey rojo de cuello alto. (*****) La historia empieza con un chico que no separa las manos de su cabeza. Excelente, de esos relatos que no puedes olvidar.

Una separación lenta. (*****) Es una historia de fantasmas en la que no hay terror, pero es un cuento que me ha encantado.

Miss Disección. (****) Relato sobre una mujer obsesionada con las disecciones. Extraño y macabro.

El ave negra. (****) Un alpinista es encontrado tras una accidente. Al poco sabremos cómo logró sobrevivir tantos días. Original y perturbador.

Magami Nanakuse. (**) Historia sobre una escritora que escribe sobre las manías. Flojo.

La mujer que susurra. (***) Una chica es incapaz de tomar la más mínima decisión por sí misma, por lo que su padre contrata a una asistenta que la atienda constantemente.

[Jedi JC Daquis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though not as good as Uzumaki or Gyo, Fragments of Horror still packs a punch for those who seek legitimate horror manga. This is not Junji Ito's best, yet the short stories in this book are still more than enough to haunt you in your nightmares.

Fragments of Horror, like all of Junji Ito's works carries that trademark theme of extreme obsession that leads to horrific imagery and very often the tragic demise of the characters. The psychological wtf-ness creeps into your mind as Junji Ito progresses his panels from the mundane to the totally dark and crazily bizarre.

The stories in this volume are a hit or miss for me. Some stories end in casual, and sometimes surprisingly heartfelt conclusions while still most stories end with the usual psycho-horror tropes. I find the Red Turtleneck the most horrifying among all the stories, followed by Blackbird.

Nonetheless, Ito fans like myself will still rejoice reading this collected edition (which is bounded in a beautifully designed hardcover with an awesome jacket). Fragments of Horror is a must-buy for those who collect horror manga.

[destiny ♡ howling libraries · Rating 5 out of 5]

That was so creepy and fantastic—I loved this a lot more than Uzumaki, but even so, reading this makes me want to reread Uzumaki, too, and see if my opinion on Junji Ito's particular flavor of bizarro horror has just changed!

[Keiko, the manga enthusiast ♒︎ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so readable!! I mean, hooking, that you'll just devour every page. It's definitely another hit from the horror dad! But still, I read the first half and decided to finish it off after dinner, thinking it would be disgusting and I'd lose apetite—as if it was not [yucky] so far. I love every story entry from this horror story collection, especially Tomio's story, the red turtleneck sweater. I think that's the best short story from this compilation followed by the creepy wood spirit (so disgusting, by the way.)

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Frightening and visceral art, but the stories aren't quite as good as his other collections. Feels like a series of 'deleted scenes' from better, more engrossing Ito stories. Still, pretty creepy and recommended if you're an Ito completist.

[Miranda]

Fragments of Horror is my second time reading anything by Junji Ito. I have been in the mood to read some horror manga this month, so I decided to pick this one up given its short length.

The collection features eight different short stories. Some were definitely stronger than others, but that is usually how it goes for me with short story collections. I am always impressed by Junji Ito’s artwork as the style is very unique. He balances the darker moments and executes them well in each story. I think the best stories are Blackbird, Whispering Woman, and Gentle Goodbye.

I am still not quite sure what to make of Magami Nanakuse towards the end of this collection though. The main character, Kaoru Koketsu, goes to meet her favorite author, Magami Nanakuse. Upon meeting for the first time, Kaoru makes comments about the author (who might be a transgender woman) being a man. The author is also made out to be the villain. I am not certain of what Junji Ito was playing around with in the story or how it translated. I cannot speak to his intent or how others might read it. It was my least favorite story for this reason. I was looking it up trying to learn more, but I did not have too much luck. I would love to hear what anyone else thinks about it.

*Content warning: body horror, violence, nudity, possible transphobia (in Magami Nanakuse)*

[Baal Of · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had given up on ever reading any new Junji Ito, but after a very long wait, here is a new collection of stories. Ito is a master of weird horror, and my absolute favorite horror manga writer. This volume is not quite as good as some of his other work, but I'm still giving it 5 stars because I love it. Ito's ideas are bizarre, and even when the story seems to be going in a mundane direction, he always manages to turn it into something twisted by the end. His artwork style fits the writing, with relatively clean lines, and simple paneling, which serves to put focus on the story. It's hard for me to pick a favorite, but a few of the standouts are 'Dissection Girl' with a character that starts off with a fascination for cutting up animals, but eventually wants the scalpel turned on herself. 'Black Bird' was also great, with a classic Junji Ito melding of human with animal, creating a unique creature that is horrific, and yet makes sense in disgusting sort of way. 'Nanakuse Kyokumi' was just plain fucking weird, and I wonder how he even came up with the concept. I think I need to go back and read all the other Junji Ito books I've got.

[~:The N:~ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the stories in this collection to be less impressive than those in Shiver or Smashed, but I still enjoy Mr. Ito's work. My favorite is Gentle Goodbye, to me, it's a sad story.

⭐⭐⭐ ½

[Vítor Leal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mais um belo conjunto de contos horripilantes e com desfechos surpreendentes. Apesar de não tão desenvolvidos como noutros volumes dedicados a contos, há aqui suficiente originalidade nos pormenores sórdidos e macabros. Dois dos meus favoritos são Gentle Goodbye e Whispering Woman. Ainda tenho uma braçada de volumes do Ito por ler. Abasteci-me deles antes que a procura desmesurada os levasse.