Rating: 
Summary: Disturbing
Review: That is the only way I can describe this book. The only other manga series that I really thought was even close was Tomie which just happens to be by the same author. Uzumaki means whirlpool, and of course whirlpools, or spirals are the center of attention in this book, and what frightening things they are. The story is told through Kirie Goshima, a very pretty girl who is subjected to so much horrific strangeness that one really feels sorry for her. Her only true support is her boyfriend Shuici whose parents are the first victims of the spirals. The father is the first to become obsessed with spiral and eventually dies after wraping himself into a spiral. The mother virtually destoys herself because of fear of spirals on her body: she rips out her hair, cuts her finger prints off, and stabs herself in the ear ro destoy the cochela. And this is just the beginning. Spirals destroy the lives of others. A girl with a cresent moon shaped scar is eaten alive by a spiral that forms on her head, Goshima's father makes pottery from clay of the lake that contains ashes of those who died because of spirals. Their souls scream in agony as the pottery is baked in the kiln. Truly disturbing, but please read it!
Rating:
Summary: Great Horror Story
Review: This is one amazing horror manga! The art is great, and the whole world it creates is totally freaky. This is deffinatley not for those who can't handle a nice little scare mixed in with some shoujo type plots (the Romeo and Juliet spin off is a great example). The one problem I have with this release is that the translation comes off as stiff at times, and can cause some parts to seem cheesy. Luckly this doesn't happen all that often, but I am starting to wonder about Viz. Uzumaki is not for the weak hearted though. There are some truelly terrifing images, and plot twists in this manga. If you are a fan of Clive Barker or John Carpenter (resembles In The Mouth of Maddness) then you will absolutely love this book.
Rating:
Summary: Unique, surreal and disturbing.
Review: This manga further proves just how varied the subject matter of Japanese comics can be. It's horror, there's violent imagery, but the concept behind the goings on is utterly unique. And the sense of doom hovering over the small town where the story takes place is palpable. I like the abstractness of the threat presented by the spiral. There doesn't appear to be a malevolent consciousness behind the eeire goings on presented. Some characters are victims of the spiral, others use it to their advantage. Art wise, Uzumaki is great. Distinctly Japanese yet with a character all its own. There is a flair in the design and line work that gives simple scenes a richness. Page composition is also good, letting the actions and reactions determine the size and shape of panels. There is some pretty startling imagery here (the fate of the one man obsessed with spirals is what drew me in), and I guess it might be too much for some people. I'm in no way a fan of 'gore' just for the sake of gore. Here it is purposeful, and there really is a nightmare quality to a lot of the events that can be pretty fascinating. The author/artist does a nice job of exploring different applications of the evil spiral concept. It works well in this collection, and the stories complement each other nicely. I don't know if the series can continue to progress in an interesting manner, but this collection is very worthwhile. There are a lot of manga translations out there now, and many of them end up blending together in terms of look and feel. Titles that have stood out for me before include Mai the Psychic Girl, Area 88, Nausicca, 2001 Nights, Battle Angel Alita, and Parasyte. Uzumaki takes its place among these titles in my mind for its uniqueness of vision, both in look and in concept.
Rating:
Summary: Weird! (in a good way)
Review: This manga was weird. If you've read other reviews and Publishers Weekly synopsis, you know what I'm talking about.
I loved this book. I love the mystery that it leaves you with after finishing. It hardly gives you any clues as to answer what's the cause of everything. In my opinion this is wonderful characteristic of any novel, graphic or text. The best books are the ones that you can't put down. Uzumaki is one of those books. I read it in one sitting. I have to warn you though, doing so may be dangerous to your mental health!
Again, I loved Uzumaki. I can't wait for volume 2. Stop reading this review and pick it up yourself!
Rating:
Summary: The ultimate experience in twisted surrealism
Review: Uzumaki comes from the mind of Junji Ito, widely considered today's best Manga horror artist. Ito first burst onto the manga scene in the early 90's with the popularity of his "Tomie" series, about an immortal, regenerating girl whose beauty drives men insane. There have been a bunch of Tomie movies, as well as a Hong Kong adaptation of Uzumaki, widely considered Ito's ultimate creation. To date, 3 volumes of Uzumaki have been published. The first volume is a remarkable feast for the imagination. Kurozucho is the once-peaceful coastal town where Kiri lives. Kiri and her boyfriend Shuichi have noticed lots of strange things in their town recently, having to do with spirals. Shuichi's dad is dangerously obsessed with spirals of all shapes and sizes. This obsession ultimately leads to his death, as his own body becomes twisted into a spiral form, crushing his bones. At his funeral, the smoke from the crematorium releases his ashes into the sky in the form of a twirling spiral that dumps into the sea. Soon the whole town becomes infested with swirling spiral shapes. Any plot or summary of Uzumaki will simply not do it justice. The concept as a whole seems simplistic and foolhardy and that's exactly what makes it so genial, that Ito can take such a simple offbeat premise and carry it to unimaginable depths of horror. Twirling hair becomes terrifying, as does a bowl of spaghetti, anything in the shape of a spiral. Uzumaki also explores depravity and people who go absolutely insane whenever they see a spirally shape. One woman, for example goes to ever-increasingly horrifying measures because of her fear of spirals. First, she shaves the hair off her head. Then, in a gruesome scene she cuts off the skin of her fingertips and on and on until total self-mutilation becomes the cause of her death. This first volume contains 6 chapters, totalling about 200 pages. The chapters are all interconnected with the same similar premise and also with the presence of Kiri and Shuichi, who are both in every chapter. Each chapter however is distinguished by its own little storyline, a sort of twilight zone-ish ode to the bizarre central premise. It reads pretty fast, in about 45 minutes unless of course you choose to carefully absorb Ito's illustrations as I did. Stunning in its imagery, clever in its telling of a story, Uzumaki may well be what what gets me back into reading comics, after years of novel reading. Essential for any fan of horror or the weird in general.
Rating:
Summary: The ultimate experience in twisted surrealism
Review: Uzumaki comes from the mind of Junji Ito, widely considered today's best Manga horror artist. Ito first burst onto the manga scene in the early 90's with the popularity of his "Tomie" series, about an immortal, regenerating girl whose beauty drives men insane. There have been a bunch of Tomie movies, as well as a Hong Kong adaptation of Uzumaki, widely considered Ito's ultimate creation. To date, 3 volumes of Uzumaki have been published. The first volume is a remarkable feast for the imagination. Kurozucho is the once-peaceful coastal town where Kiri lives. Kiri and her boyfriend Shuichi have noticed lots of strange things in their town recently, having to do with spirals. Shuichi's dad is dangerously obsessed with spirals of all shapes and sizes. This obsession ultimately leads to his death, as his own body becomes twisted into a spiral form, crushing his bones. At his funeral, the smoke from the crematorium releases his ashes into the sky in the form of a twirling spiral that dumps into the sea. Soon the whole town becomes infested with swirling spiral shapes. Any plot or summary of Uzumaki will simply not do it justice. The concept as a whole seems simplistic and foolhardy and that's exactly what makes it so genial, that Ito can take such a simple offbeat premise and carry it to unimaginable depths of horror. Twirling hair becomes terrifying, as does a bowl of spaghetti, anything in the shape of a spiral. Uzumaki also explores depravity and people who go absolutely insane whenever they see a spirally shape. One woman, for example goes to ever-increasingly horrifying measures because of her fear of spirals. First, she shaves the hair off her head. Then, in a gruesome scene she cuts off the skin of her fingertips and on and on until total self-mutilation becomes the cause of her death. This first volume contains 6 chapters, totalling about 200 pages. The chapters are all interconnected with the same similar premise and also with the presence of Kiri and Shuichi, who are both in every chapter. Each chapter however is distinguished by its own little storyline, a sort of twilight zone-ish ode to the bizarre central premise. It reads pretty fast, in about 45 minutes unless of course you choose to carefully absorb Ito's illustrations as I did. Stunning in its imagery, clever in its telling of a story, Uzumaki may well be what what gets me back into reading comics, after years of novel reading. Essential for any fan of horror or the weird in general.
Rating: 
Summary: A worthy purchase for the fan of horror anime
Review: Uzumaki is a beautifully drawn manga about a town that is being overwhelmed by the "curse of the spiral". If that sounds silly, don't let it put you off. It's actually a very well done plot that really draws you in. The story is a girl of perhaps fifteen who is caught up in the bizaare events in her village, which always center around the spiral pattern, in some manifestaion or other. It's beatiful, suspenseful, and some of the pictures are really scary, and if you don't like the more light-hearted styles of anime art, this is very realistically drawn. My only complaints are that it's "to be continued", and the final story borders on silly. Still, these are really only minor things that shouldn't really distract you. If you're into horror, Uzumaki is one you shouldn't miss.
Rating:
Summary: A worthy purchase for the fan of horror anime
Review: Uzumaki is a beautifully drawn manga about a town that is being overwhelmed by the "curse of the spiral". If that sounds silly, don't let it put you off. It's actually a very well done plot that really draws you in. The story is a girl of perhaps fifteen who is caught up in the bizaare events in her village, which always center around the spiral pattern, in some manifestaion or other. It's beatiful, suspenseful, and some of the pictures are really scary, and if you don't like the more light-hearted styles of anime art, this is very realistically drawn. My only complaints are that it's "to be continued", and the final story borders on silly. Still, these are really only minor things that shouldn't really distract you. If you're into horror, Uzumaki is one you shouldn't miss.
Rating:
Summary: Creepy, Surreal Manga
Review: Uzumaki is one of the few things that I've read lately that really scared me. It's a creepy, well drawn, Japanese comic about a town possesed by the idea of the spiral. It may be a weird idea, but it works, and Junji Ito moves it along by using grotesque images and twisted situations. The main character is mostly there to bring the reader from one bizarre horror to the next, but the comcic is extremely compelling despite that. It's a relativelty gory comic, so if you don't want to see people twisting themselves into spirals then this comic might not be for you.
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