Frankenstein: Junji Ito Story Collection - Reviews

This collection isn't half bad. I very much like Junji Ito's Frankenstein manga (I'd rate it an 8/10) and that manga takes up a sizeable 40-50% of the pages within this volume. And then on top of that, there are several stories which I would rate as 5/10s (which is pretty solid for Junji Ito one shots): The Strange Tale of Oshikiri; The Strange Tale of Oshikiri: The Walls; and Face Firmly in Place.

One of the weak points in Junji Ito's stories is the characters, so I think Frankenstein benefitted from being based on someone else's characterizations. Junji Ito did do a great job of turning that story into a manga though. And feir grotesque, body-horror style of artwork worked very well to depict the Creature.

It's worth noting that this collection includes all of the same stories as Ito Junji's 9th Horror Comic Collection (plus more stories). Those are the Oshikiri stories. Two of those are 5/10s, and I do find it kinda interesting seeing Junji Ito clearly iterating on concepts within these one shots.

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Here are links to my reviews on the individual installments, plus a link to my review of the other collection where I talk about the relation between the Oshikiri stories:

• Frankenstein [8/10]
• Neck Specter [3/10]
• Bog of Living Spirits [4/10]
• Pen Pal [2/10]
• Intruder [4/10]
• The Strange Tale of Oshikiri [5/10]
• The Strange Tale of Oshikiri: The Walls [5/10]
• The Hell of the Doll Funeral [3/10]
• Face Firmly in Place [5/10]
• Boss Non-Non & Hide-and-Seek with Boss Non-Non [4/10]
• SEE ALSO: Ito Junji Kyoufu Manga Collection: Kubi Gensou