Why Junji Ito's Worldbuilding is so Terrifying

Рет қаралды 508,985

Күн бұрын

You have nothing to fear, but fear itself. And spirals. An exploration of Junji Ito’s worlds of terrors, and the secrets behind his unique style of horror.
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What type of story scares you the most?
Perhaps something dark, visceral, rooted in physical danger? Or something subtle, psychological, with layers of unseen dread? Or maybe something unknowable, inexplicable, that lifts the veil on reality and exposes the cosmic terrors of the universe?
The work of Japanese horror manga artist Junji Ito exists at the intersection of all our greatest fears. His tales capture primal anxieties so expertly they can seem truly mysterious. So, what I want to do today is peel back those layers of mystery, and explore what makes Junji Ito’s worldbuilding so darn spooky. And to do that, we’ll need to find our courage and dive headfirst into this ocean of terrors…
0:00 Horror of Junji Ito
0:55 Gyo and Death Stranding
4:06 Thing that Drifted Ashore
8:05 The Enigma of Amigara Fault
12:23 Uzumaki
15:26 Translating a Nightmare
18:28 Understanding Junji Ito
Copyright Disclaimer: Under section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for “fair use” for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education, and research. All video/image content is edited under fair use rights for reasons of commentary.
I do not own the images, music, or footage used in this video. All rights and credit goes to the original owners.
Media Shown: Gyo, Death Stranding, Thing that Drifted Ashore, The Enigma of Amigara Fault, Uzumaki, Remina, House, The Mist, Psycho, It Follows, Eyes Without a Face, The Ritual, Beyond the Black Rainbow, World of Horror, Cat Diaries, Honored Ancestors
♫ Music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio:
Mysterious Green Fluid, Sanity Unravels, Haddonfield Horror, Alone in the Dark, Dusk, The Witching Hour, The Vanishing, Tenebrae, The Guardian
♫ Additional music by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com):
Beauty Flow
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
creativecommons.org/licenses/b...
#CuriousArchive #Worldbuilding

Пікірлер: 722

@Yora21 Жыл бұрын

I think when Ito was asked what his inspiration was to create Gyo and the deeper meanings behind the story, he said that he was simply thinking that shark are scary, but would be even scarier if they could chase you on land. And then he just went to draw fish with legs chasing people on land.

@bitchassmoththing Жыл бұрын

fibsh

@EverTheFractal Жыл бұрын

I think when you look at a lot of his stories most of them really wear their hearts on their sleeves. Uzamaki points out that spirals keep recurring in nature, so he takes that to its natural conclusion. This chair is fairly big, a man could hide inside it easily. That dream seemed really long even though I was asleep for like an hour, what if they got longer and longer? Wouldn't it be messed up if I got stuck inside this medical contraption? It's wild that people take drugs that have a chance to kill them instantly- hey wait what if there was an addictive honey that had a chance to make you explode? What if a still alive person had to hold their severed head on?

@lukelambert78 Жыл бұрын

he’s not wrong 😂

@Mate397 Жыл бұрын

I dunno, I tried to read the manga about that story but it didn't really keep my attention. Dropped it roughly after the shark was chasing after the couple in the house.

@weq3ei8u42 Жыл бұрын

@@EverTheFractal yea that lack of sudtley tends to be why i dont find most of his work terribly frightening, as much as i love it. although intrestingly the enigma of amigara falls might have been the story of his that directly affected me the most out of what ive read of his, despite the ridiculus ending.

@mythicandco Жыл бұрын

Junji Ito is awesome because a lot of his stuff comes to him like "hey wouldn't it be fucked up if this happened?" and then he just goes with it

@claudedebussyreal 11 ай бұрын

and i mean, it would be fucked up if that happened, so it works alright

@whitefox3189 7 ай бұрын

My idea of a Junji Ito anime adaptation is the realistic depiction is what makes it loose its charm. Depict the background unrealistically or weirdly. Use ominous colors. For Gyo, the main the is ocean critters, associated with blue, what do people think opposite of blue. Green. So make normal fish green colored and the infected ones blue. Make the colors as weird without loosing realism, such as how normal humans appear. Kinda like Jojo anime, when battles start.

@VCV95 3 ай бұрын

A lot of his manga has really deep seated commentary on Japanese culture. amigara Fault could easily be about forced conformity as just one example.

@MforMovesets 2 ай бұрын

It doesn't even have to make sense in the slightest.

@ender4429 2 ай бұрын

@@whitefox3189 This is the first I've heard of green being the opposite of blue. Red is much more commonly thought of as the opposite of blue, no? That's why many teams in games are red vs blue.

@impcityangel3245 Жыл бұрын

When I saw the human shaped holes, I thought about what it would be like to go into one. I was frightened to know that the characters thought the same thing.

@DrBright5558 Жыл бұрын

Gets warped into wierd wiggley monster

@oo8962 Жыл бұрын

When I see that, I thought there would be something pulling people in but I never thought that people would willingly put themselves in

@dorebregolagath7557 Жыл бұрын

@@oo8962 I mean something was manipulating their heads that drove them to going into the holes

@MrCBroz Жыл бұрын

Have you considered an episode on Fantastic Planet (1974)?

@Marewig Жыл бұрын

He really understood what intrusive thoughts are like, especially the more damaging ones. Then, he dialled them to over 9000.

@rebelsnowflake15 7 ай бұрын

Really respect Ito for going "man, I'm so scared of sharks. What if they could come on land and get me" and then making all of us scared of that too

@randallbesch2424 Ай бұрын

How do you think Lovecraft worked? Working his own fears into his works.

@Tyrexthecreaturedesigner Жыл бұрын

It’s so interesting how this channel went from weird biology to cosmic horror. I’m not even mad.

@TisOsha Жыл бұрын

eh, personally kinda miss it

@fakkva2841 Жыл бұрын

I mean...the video before this one is literally about speculative biology

@TisOsha Жыл бұрын

@@fakkva2841 eh, fair but now i have a feeling speculative is 1/3 now

@burningbronze7555 Жыл бұрын

@@TisOsha well one is a rare genre.

@TisOsha Жыл бұрын

@@burningbronze7555 ehh, true

@georgekostaras Жыл бұрын

Jungi Ito has a sense of humour, I think that's why he's so scary. He doesn't take anything too seriously. It's why when he gets serious it hits like a freight train.

@chonaposadas7289 6 ай бұрын

Dark humor?

@alexsell9219 5 ай бұрын

You should read Kafka! People report that he would laugh manically into the night when he wrote. Yet, most people don't consider him a funny writer.

@Klinoklaz 4 ай бұрын

souichi series are pretty hilarious indeed

@Pooky1991 Ай бұрын

Probably why his one story The Bully is so disturbing. I own alot of his collection books and i think that is the only story out of all of them that stays grounded in some f-up reality. Same with no Longer Human even though it is technically based off the book from another author.

@robertgronewold3326 Жыл бұрын

The irony that Junji Ito is a giant cinnamon roll, and yet he creates these stories.

@matrythethird5464 Жыл бұрын

Something I see a lot in junji ito's work is the invasion of privacy, In a lot of his storys the horrors get really close to the characters, to their space, even the spiral are not a physical monster attacking, they creep in the life of everyone, leaving them unsafe in their own homes

@AbrahamLure Ай бұрын

Yes, this! This is what I think makes his works so chilling. Characters can never relax, because relaxing is having private moments, and in Ito's stories those private moments are infiltrated by the terrible

@badger6882 Жыл бұрын

I never really understood how Junji Ito’s horror really scared people until I read the enigma of Amigara Fault. It sunk into me reading it through, page after page: horror just within comprehension yet it’s true scope beyond the human mind. The telling of a hell so uniquely cruel and terrifying, repellent yet calling out to the characters like that. So I’m a fan :)

@UCannotDefeatMyShmeat Жыл бұрын

I’ve seen so much of this I’m now just like “okay.” when passing these sorts of things. Although admittedly berzerk had me going “holy shit you can show that?”

@wren_. Жыл бұрын

what’s even worse is that you know what’s going to happen to you if you go in that hole. you know there’s no going back, and while you may not know what the end looks like, you know you’re going to die from the moment you step in. and yet, you just can’t help it. you are a slave to your curiosity. the very act of being human is what has doomed you from the start.

@holow3038 Жыл бұрын

@@UCannotDefeatMyShmeat berserk is not horror but depressing stuff

@EverTheFractal Жыл бұрын

I adore that you put focus on how funny and absurd some of his stories can be. I feel like when a lot of people review his works they leave this out and ignore it entirely because they feel like it's somehow an insult or antithetical to the "point" of horror. I think that, in itself, is a disservice. Horror and comedy aren't as distant relatives as a lot of people try to believe! Sometimes the fact that something is so horrifying it loops back around to being funny can leave you with an awkward dissonance that really sticks with you. Yeah the idea that a large version of your head is floating around with a rope like it's some sort of balloon is hilarious! That's a funny concept! That doesn't make the panel where they find out killing the balloon kills you any less stuck in my brain.

@anto_point Жыл бұрын

One of my favorite example of this is the movie Beau is Afraid by Ari Aster, released this year. It is so surreal, and absolutely and genuinely hilarious at times. Nonetheless, it was one of the most gut-wrenching, gut-wrenching, terrifying, existential crisis inducing experience of my whole life. Comedy and Horror are not antinomic, and in fact, they complete very well as it creates this dissonance that puts your feelings right in an uncanny valley

@OOOOOO-dx7zu Жыл бұрын

also, when you read his work, it's quite spooky, but when you see see the panels at random, it loses most of that and comes off almost ludicrous. The fact that he can make something, that you would otherwise find nothing more than bizarre, scary is his genius.

@chriss780 Жыл бұрын

My dad was an EMT, so they would obviously see a lot of horrific things and accidents. He had a friend who once saw a women horribly mangled in a car accident and afterwards when he thought about inexplicably started laughing. When your brain sees something so horrific it doesn't know how to process it a common reaction is laughter.

@soccerandtrack10 Жыл бұрын

Maybe foreshadow for the video= Norway thinks its alive,but its made of smaller concius things,and that makes the country thinks its a person,when its made of humans/plants,and other animals.

@soccerandtrack10 Жыл бұрын

@@chriss780 i did laugh after reseeing the persons fingers broken for the sameri shamploo. I knew about the batman who laughs because of a dream, the princess is ok. She sees criminals hert people. I dont what they wanted. I resaw the episode 1/2.

@rmt3589 Жыл бұрын

"If you can't reason with something, you aren't safe from it." That's an amazing line! And an even better motif!

@angel_of_rust 4 ай бұрын

that inadvertently explains the downfall of Disney

@rcu1995 3 ай бұрын

Makes me think of "It" by Stephen King. The clown holds much less power when you don't fear it.

@randallbesch2424 Ай бұрын

@@angel_of_rust the rise of Disney a better Disney.

@Coyoteari 11 ай бұрын

I love that the actual basis for a lot of junji ito’s work is just “hey wouldn’t it be fucked up if-“

@randallbesch2424 Ай бұрын

Messed up. jeeze the 21st century speak is littered with that word.

@TheKrilicious Жыл бұрын

Junji Ito is the H.P. Lovecraft of our time

@wren_. Жыл бұрын

except without the racism

@TheKrilicious Жыл бұрын

@@wren_. That's a very good point 😅

@tiberiusdawn2042 Жыл бұрын

@@wren_. hey he japanese there is a chance he xenophobic

@Gordonfreeman551 Жыл бұрын

@@wren_.what are you talking about?

@abhinavav7770 Жыл бұрын

@@wren_. he is racist against eldrich beings always showing them in negative role

@JustToSaveYou Жыл бұрын

The art style Junji Ito uses is so perfectly suited to comic form that it doesn't translate 1:1 to animation. It can be done, but you have to change things to maintain the feeling instead of just animating the image.

@natto4now Жыл бұрын

As a fan of juinji ito and death stranding Am glad to hear that it was announced he was working with a gane studio on an open world horror game

@thecandlemaker1329 Жыл бұрын

I'm less than glad to hear that the game is open world, but maybe Ito's input can make that work.

@comyuse9103 Жыл бұрын

wait what, oh my god that could be the best game ever in a decade

@Mrow_alt Жыл бұрын

@@thecandlemaker1329 what’s wrong with open world?

@cabbageleon4914 Жыл бұрын

WHAT, WHAT GAME? HE'S WORKING ON A GAME?

@nemtudom5074 Жыл бұрын

Ookay, that sounds cool!

@casualsatanist 9 ай бұрын

The cat story is honestly hilarious going from his other stuff, you expect the cat to be some cosmic horror, but in reality it’s just a story about a man who’s afraid of a normal cat, and honestly the suspense reading it got me more than anything else.

@cookiecutter5176 11 ай бұрын

I think a huge part of my fear actually comes from the art style itself. The stark black and white making such detailed, intricate, busy patterns makes me so nervous I can't begin to understand why.

@purplehaze2358 Жыл бұрын

I'm not sure how Junji Ito manages to make such superficially ridiculous-looking imagery and ideas absolutely horrifying, but he manages it. I'd compare the feeling it invokes to the paintings of Hieronymus Bosch, but frankly, Bosch only manages to make superficially goofy imagery intimidating through its.. _abundance,_ as though a complete and utter breakdown of order as we understand it has taken place. By contrast, a lot of Ito's work generally conveys that feeling through smaller-scale, more intimate imagery; so I'm at a loss for what to compare it to.

@wren_. Жыл бұрын

i think it’s because of the body horror aspect. the body is the one thing a person has complete control over, so to be robbed of that control by something as harmless as a spiral is terrifying.

@randallbesch2424 Ай бұрын

The implications of them if you delve into it over superficial thinking of them.

@randallbesch2424 Ай бұрын

@@wren_. Lovecraft certainly did from ghouls to Deep Ones and partial botched reanimations too that turned people into animals.

@anakin-is-panakin 8 ай бұрын

I think the thing that traumatized me the most from Junji Ito was when that kid and his bully both become snails and mate together in front of their classmates. It’s just so unsettling.

@corvus8996 2 ай бұрын

im sorry the what now

@anakin-is-panakin 2 ай бұрын

@@corvus8996 yeah 😔 idk how to provide context because nothing can make it make sense lol you should read Uzumaki and see for yourself if you have a strong mind and stomach 😭 I don’t but I still read it

@isteyak78 Жыл бұрын

I was never into horror, But junji ito's manga's are beyond horror

@EmonWBKstudios Жыл бұрын

I was never into breathing air, but oxygen is beyond air. That's you, that's what you sound like.

@Quacktivate Жыл бұрын

@@EmonWBKstudiosOHHHHH! YOU JUST ROASTED THAT GUY HIGH FIVE!

@autistichades5552 Жыл бұрын

@@EmonWBKstudiosGood god, I could’ve never imagined how much someone would misunderstand a comment as simple as that. It’s like you missed out on all of your english classes in all of the schools that you’ve been to. It is so amusing, so tragic, and so embarrassing that it defies words from any dictionary ever made, I need a whole new language to describe how I felt reading that comment.

@Quacktivate Жыл бұрын

@@autistichades5552 bro stop being mean, you're being mean. That's mean stop it dude.

@Bionickpunk Жыл бұрын

I find Uzumaki incredibly cliche, outdated, and kinda funny.

@Tarnished-bn5gq 10 ай бұрын

All of Junji Ito’s methods of writing cosmic horror are phenomenally portrayed in the iconic 2015 video game “Bloodborne”. It’s a slow descent into an increasingly disturbing and unfathomable world of linked nightmares that neither the player or the main character can wake up from. The player and the main character both know much about the world and at the same time know nothing, it only takes place in a single city and several warped nightmare hellscapes after all. The overpowering feeling and knowledge that we know nothing, yet know far more than ever intended for us is almost crushing in the game.

@Lady_Flashheart40 10 ай бұрын

The fact that Silent Hills would have had Junji Ito working with Guillermo Del Toro makes it all the more frustrating that it was cancelled.

@deesevrin8570 Жыл бұрын

I read Uzumaki in one sitting, perpetually convinced that my imagination was going to do worse to me than the next chapter if I dared go to bed. I was traumatized. I was phobic of spirals for solid month after that...and my business' logo which I designed is a spiral I had looming over me every day. 11/10

@tVt2000 Жыл бұрын

Bruh you’re braver than me. I couldn’t work with a spiral over me

@angel_of_rust 4 ай бұрын

wait til you see Sweet Baby.

@lynxthebobcat2609 Жыл бұрын

Im so happy you covered Junji Ito's work! I love horror and Junji Ito is one of my favorite artists, its a lovely coincidence to have one of my favorite KZfaqrs cover an artist I also like! :D

@finneldereverett7881 Жыл бұрын

His work is irrational because fear isn't rational. He is truly my favorite artists & horror writer.

@randallbesch2424 Ай бұрын

Fear without danger is irrational.

@terrythepterodactyl8048 Жыл бұрын

"There's a scene where a pair of 𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐄𝐌𝐁𝐎𝐃𝐈𝐄𝐃 𝐋𝐄𝐆𝐒 kick a cat painting, which destorys the spirit of a cat, because the cat's soul was in the painting of it, or it 𝐖𝐀𝐒 the painting. But then the cat was 𝐀𝐋𝐒𝐎 a part of the lady who owns the house so she's destoryed, 𝑩𝑼𝑻 𝑻𝑯𝑬𝑵 𝑰𝑻 𝑻𝑼𝑹𝑵𝑺 𝑶𝑼𝑻, not really." "A guy goes to a watermelon stand and asks for 𝘽𝘼𝙉𝘼𝙉𝘼𝙎, which transforms him into a 𝙈𝙊𝙐𝙉𝘿 𝙊𝙁 𝘽𝘼𝙉𝘼𝙉𝘼𝙎."

@0mn1vore Жыл бұрын

Terribly inconvenient. :-\

@Bluegirl12345 Жыл бұрын

I'm so confused

@Rum-Runner Жыл бұрын

If you ever have the time, might you consider covering the worldbuilding of Gemini Home Entertainment? It’s an analog horror series that manages to seamlessly blend monster horror, body horror, cosmic horror, and, of course, analog horror into a single narrative through various forms of media. Mostly through KZfaq videos made to look like home tapes, but also through posts and even a video game they developed. It’s right up your ally I think. Anyways, love your videos, and I look forward to the next one, whatever it may be. Cheers.

@Beowolf-jy5rc Жыл бұрын

id also recommend vita carnis which is more biological horror (i guess) but if you'r looking for cosmic horror then local 58 is simple but good there's also Mandela catalogue which is something

@Rum-Runner Жыл бұрын

@@Beowolf-jy5rc Those are all great, but I think GHE has a little more meat to it in terms of worldbuilding, which seems to be the overall theme of Curious Archives’ channel.

@Beowolf-jy5rc Жыл бұрын

@@Rum-Runner makes enough sense i don't watch this channel much. i don't know many analogue/digital horror series with a big focus on world building. the June archives may count but A.R.G's are were it's at in terms of world building. the sun vanished, the muse A.R.G, there's something in the sea and more all build a world or area.

@Beowolf-jy5rc Жыл бұрын

monument mythos dose have a focus on world building just not a massive one now that i think about it.

@Rum-Runner Жыл бұрын

@@Beowolf-jy5rc Ooh, I really like that one too. I’d argue the worldbuilding in that one is roughly on par with GHE.

@rga1605 Жыл бұрын

The Remina story is also great because it shows that Ito can also make really good action scenes, like the atmospheric chase scene. Also it's one that he explores social panic as a whole as well.

@AstridIlledia 4 ай бұрын

Honestly Hellstar was one that truly got me in a sense of panic

@matteste Жыл бұрын

Now that you have covered Junji Ito i hope you cover the world of Made in Abyss. It just has so much world building for its strange setting to create something truly special.

@s0cks548 Жыл бұрын

I absolutely love Junji Ito’s books. He captures fear he way no one else can.

@quicksilvertongue3248 Жыл бұрын

From my perspective, Uzumaki is far and away the most noteworthy Ito story, followed somewhat distantly by Tomie and then even more distantly by Flesh-Colored Horror. The latter is a good "exception that proves the rule" to the idea about not adding color to Ito adaptations, as the creepily unsettling portrayal of the manga would turn to visceral nausea if you were actually seeing the pinks and reds of exposed musculature, rather than imagining them. Tomie is probably the most famous story, and I'm quite surprised it wasn't mentioned here.

@alexterieur8813 Жыл бұрын

Just bought it as i really enjoyed Nanno on netflix which is inspired by Tomie.

@theexchipmunk Жыл бұрын

Uzumaki will probably always be one of my favourite works of his. It´s just such a genuine and incredible depiction of cosmic or lovecraftian horror. That creeping wrongness that slowly starts to seep into reality, only to exponentially escalate with each step till it twists ;) reality itself. And I really adore it for not being some amorphous many limbed and deformed horror. While it has those, they are a result, not the thing itself. Because the actual horror of that story isn´t something tangible. It´s a concept. The concept of spirals either themselve or being a gateway for the "thing" that bleeds into existance. And it´s even in a metaphorical sense very fitting. The spirals are not really malicious. They still just do what they always do. Twist. But instead of themselves, they twist objects, minds, bodys and at last reality itself.

@winniethexiping1062 8 ай бұрын

I also want to point out that the one with the human shaped holes is a metaphor for japans social pressure on young people they have a predetermined path like a mold to get a job work and work and be remotely successful even if that’s not what they want to do they feel like they have to go through that mold and get shaped into a miserable person that just works and works

@AJScraps Жыл бұрын

Love Junji! He also does so much hands on research in to spooky phenomena and he is great at interacting with his fans!

@brooke3394 Жыл бұрын

the thing that drifted ashore is my favorite story of his and it’s soooo underrated! thank you for covering it!!!

@Jjonahlamison Жыл бұрын

Man. I would never think that you would do something like junji ito. Maybe you could do other books too? There’s one called apocalypse taco. While it may seem silly at first, the book dives into body horror pretty well. It revolves around the idea of bees, genetically modified to create things out of wax. But once it goes haywire, it turns people into creatures made of human teeth or arms. It is a really good book and I think you should make a video on it.

@lionessoftor4139 Жыл бұрын

I always worry about artists who work on things like this. If this is going through their head what else is. I hope they are okay.

@hal9713 6 ай бұрын

junji ito is such a lovely and well-adjusted man! he’s a great cat dad. i mean, just from what they’ve said in interviews, i think it’s more reasonable to be worried about miyazaki; he makes such sweet and cute creatures but they’re… almost always very deeply tied into his childhood trauma regarding war.

@munchi674 Жыл бұрын

I’ve always been a huge junji ito fan ever since I was 14, I’ve somehow collected all of his manga. His way of telling horror stories has always surprised and inspired me, from his illustrations to his story lines, he’s an incredibly creative man. My favorite book by far was either Frankenstein or one of his most popular books, Uzumaki. The story of the spiral had always irked me, and for someone who isn’t scared easily with certain aspects of horror, Ito still finds a way to freak me out! He’s a wonderful artist and I’ve loved his work for a while now, he’s inspired me to create my own disturbing art as well! To all who read this, have a wonderful day💗 :)

@natto4now Жыл бұрын

The way he draws fish disturbed me I legit couldn't eat seafood for months

@rayanderson5797 Жыл бұрын

This guy seems to do Lovecraftian horror better than Lovecraft ever did.

@anonfinally1692 8 ай бұрын

In my opinion, Lovecraft is not the best but he started it. Some cosmic horrors trump Lovecraft's writing but those wouldn't exist without him. The great cosmic horror writers of today stand on Lovecraft's shoulders.

@mtreding 10 ай бұрын

12:06 The body's were noodleated beyond recognition

@BeinBr33zy Жыл бұрын

I've been a fan of horror (and specifically cosmic horror) for a long time, but I've never experienced dread that compares to when I saw the top of the lighthouse in Uzumaki.

@awsomeness Жыл бұрын

Curious Archive is back with another fantastic video! You never fail to impress with the versatility of the topics you dive into and always so captivating!

@bonelessbaby6908 Жыл бұрын

Dude this is awesome, I just read remina last month and you're my favorite channel. This also gives me hope that maybe one day you'll cover more manga like Nausicaä of the valley of the wind.

@lezbefrenz Жыл бұрын

Ito is incredible, and that's an understatement. I love his work so much, and the fine line drawing he does, omg.. super artistic talent and incredible body horror stuff. Thanks for the coverage! Gotta spread the good word of Junji to all! ;)

@PopeIvanThe11th Жыл бұрын

It is always so good to see a new release from you! I love your work, and I hope it continues for a long time.

@superspider64 Жыл бұрын

I may not like horror and have a dislike of bad endings, but I wholeheartedly support Junji Ito's dedication to his craft

@elizabetho.7484 Жыл бұрын

Great video and great to see you covering Junji Ito's work. Also, your description of House is the best ever.

@VS-kf5qw Жыл бұрын

I love that you touched on the absurdity. Hellplanet Remina left me feeling that complex soup of emotions more than any other work, like an insane dream. The absurdity and laughter was almost comforting in those moments where everything seemed utterly grim

@cerouluxray6394 Жыл бұрын

Art like this has unexpected effects, and can influence individuals differently. When I first came across the Enigma of Amigara Fault, it absolutely terrified me and I hadn't even read it. For a full week, it kept me from sleeping properly as I kept asking myself why I found it particularly disturbing. The mere concept that someone would be compelled to slot themselves into a space "made for them" with such intensity that it overrides all reason and self-preservation. Even to this day, such an idea strikes a pang of instinctive terror. At the time, I was slowly breaking my mind out of a cultish church group, staring into the cracks as I tried to sift the truth away from the lies. For nearly two decades, my family had thrown themselves into it, getting taken advantage of in the process. This story's main concept is what finally tore the veil and made me see what happened. Two family members out of our group of five had gone so headlong into it that they came out the other side as someone else entirely, twisted and deformed beyond recognition. Myself and one other barely got out, the one with renewed scars from her childhood, and myself now unable to ever consider going back to a church of any kind again. The fifth? One could say he made it about halfway down the hole before we pulled him out. If I ever get the chance to thank Junji Ito myself, I will. I don't know if he considered the Enigma of Amigara Fault's metaphoric parallels. It's the beauty of art, even if it inspires terror.

@yugioht42 Жыл бұрын

Ito’s work is actually quite simple. It evokes fear from the human form and simply twists it. The circles are actually from the rare fear of spiral patterns in objects. It’s basic phobias that exist but Ito twists it into something new. I found Ito’s drawings fascinating more than scary as the complex patterns have a odd effect on my mind. It doesn’t exist as fear more like I want to understand it and dissect it for study.

@Cp-71 Жыл бұрын

What bothers me somewhat in cosmic horror is that, in spite of its concentration on humanity being small and meaningless, the otherwordly beings ALWAYS seem to be interested in it - which kind of negates the point. Like, why would any of these things even come to Earth when it's so unimportant?

@quicksilvertongue3248 Жыл бұрын

The best stories in this vein make it clear that they're not here for us, and probably aren't even here on purpose, but just passing through and casually destroying our whole universe without even noticing we exist.

@changsangma1915 11 ай бұрын

If thats how you interpret it, thats your problem.

@memesfromdeepspace1075 10 ай бұрын

Like child interested mound of ant

@johnathanmonsen6567 10 ай бұрын

They generally aren't. The meetings that happen in cosmic horror stories between humanity and the cosmic are happenstance; neither side sought out the other. To quote Loki, "An ant has no quarrel with a boot."

@dinomatians9889 Жыл бұрын

I’ve been a fan of junji ito for a while and it is so cool to see you cover his works and what goes into them and keep up the good work I really enjoy your videos

@KrazyKaiser Жыл бұрын

How are your videos so consistently amazing and interesting?

@valentinhalau3396 Жыл бұрын

you are genuinly the only youtuber of which i watch all of the videos he would make and patiently wait for a new one , my fav vids are the speculative alien planet biology videos , would like if you would make more , keep it up

@Blueskirtt Жыл бұрын

A video on my favorite horror mangaka AND you bring up one of my favorite films of all time too, House? Bravo, good sir.

@Zaprye Жыл бұрын

Great entry, thank you so much for covering Junji's work!

@alfredlaalpacadeageofempir9215 Жыл бұрын

This is one of those channels i never expected to talk about manga(Although i shouldn't surprise me, taking into acount the main medium it reviews is visual in nature).

@margchannel7430 Жыл бұрын

The art of junji ito is so terrified and lovely at the same time, good video mate.

@camchem 10 ай бұрын

The most recent Uzumaki trailer looked gorgeous and very promising! I’m really excited to see the final results.

@fidde208 Жыл бұрын

You could look into the manga Mushishi. Quite otherworldly and sometimes dangerous for the characters, but with a very calm and soothing atmosphere to it.

@LegionsOfLoodle Жыл бұрын

I watched the anime, its one of my favorites now

@fidde208 Жыл бұрын

@@LegionsOfLoodle if I remember correctly the anime was two season and both were very faithful to the manga, so you won't miss much if you don't read it. But I think the atmosphere comes across even better when you can read at your own pace and stop and wonder at certain pages.

@matteste Жыл бұрын

How about Made in Abyss?

@fexus9730 Жыл бұрын

I loved reading Uzumaki. At the end of the book, there are some extra chapters which Junji Ito has inserted himself into, searching for answers to this mysterious yet natural spiral shape which occurs seemingly everywhere in nature. Uzumaki in my opinion works the best because it uses a theme that we are always surrounded by. Whereas the sharks would have to come from the ocean, the spiral has already manifested everywhere and the manga makes it clear that escaping it is utterly futile. Makes me really happy that the real life spirals in nature tend to be peaceful and really beautiful :D

@bluehairedemon Жыл бұрын

one of my favorite horror podcasts (the magnus archives) was heavily inspired by junji ito's work, especially the things concerning a specific character named michael

@pap64 10 ай бұрын

I just want to say THANK YOU for giving Junji Ito credit for the fact that many of his stories are so absurd they reach high levels of Stephen King camp. I know horror is subjective and what may be terrifying for someone may be just weird to someone else, but one thing that attracted me about Junji Ito's stories is how he can go from something that is sick and horrific on a psychological level to something that is just so ridiculous you love it. Like the "Ice Cream Bus" story; all it is is that the Ice Cream man visits a neighborhood and the kids get addicted to his ice cream (I won't spoil it for those that don't know that story). And the 'Melting Classroom" series has moments that make me squirm...but then I back out and think that the premise is that the main character is controlled by the devil and he kills people by apologizing to them. It's like if he were to make a KZfaq apology video, complete with ukulele, and it would go viral in the most literal sense ever. I think the reason comedy and horror often go so well it's because of the absurd and how the characters react to it, and I feel Junji Ito does that well when he wants a story to be that. Though stories like "Uzumaki", the holes one, "The Bully" and such are very unsettling and not funny.

@shinyeevee456 Жыл бұрын

I was so excited when I saw this upload I audibly gasped. Thank you for your amazing content, CA!!

@laurelsilberman5705 Жыл бұрын

You know, there’s not much content on the internet that I wouldn’t put on too close to bedtime. I’m a horror lover and a comics freak through and through, but I’ve also been reading and studying Junjo Ito’s work for half my lifetime. While I will oftentimes fall asleep to unimaginably scary stories, THIS-This I put on for less than one minute as I was eating a bedtime snack, and I said, “Nah. That’s a video for daylight hours.” Ito is a certified physiological horror legend and I’m so glad to see one of my absolute favorite channels on KZfaq covering one of my all time favorite horror comic artists. Much love, Curious Archive. ❤😊✨👌🏽👍🏽❤️

@seawarshark6674 11 ай бұрын

Your voice narration combined with Junji Ito's arts is amazing.

@Ph4ntomHourGlass Жыл бұрын

This channel went from mostly speculative evolution to basically a horror analysis channel and I'm all here for it

@benmcreynolds8581 Жыл бұрын

It's almost healthy for our own well-being to be able to allow ourselves to embrace the Absurdity about the difficulties of Life. Rather: if we don't, we would just be pessimistic, negative, stressed, depressed, hopeless, nihilistic. *So finding a healthy way to balance dark humor & Absurd sarcasm alongside the difficulties that life entails is actually a beneficial trait to gain. As long as you still empathize, care about, focus on safety & respect those who sadly endured difficult situations. Then I think that's a healthy location for a person to exist in.

@MayorDesu Жыл бұрын

I remember watching Gyo as a kid and it was facinating to watch and the storyline was ok. I would definately watch it again. Didnt know there was a manga for it.

@thecandlemaker1329 Жыл бұрын

The anime is good as far as horror anime goes, but the manga is a masterpiece.

@MayorDesu Жыл бұрын

@@thecandlemaker1329 just read the manga and it's very different from the anime + a lot better than the anime as the characters are given more personality than the anime

@AlienBemular Жыл бұрын

the enigma of amigara fault can be seen in the kindergartens of Steven universe as they have human shape holes.

@nothanks7263 Жыл бұрын

They even made sure to have a weird noise emanating from the Kindergarten at the end of "On the Run"

@lollipoplemur5073 Жыл бұрын

I love his art. Thank you for making a video about it.

@moonbanggi Ай бұрын

Well done on writing your commentary. I literally can never lol. 👏👏👏

@carlrazonanle487 Жыл бұрын

12:50 it looks like her heart and actions are utterly unclouded

@kiyohiyt1562 Жыл бұрын

I NEVER expected to see House make an appearance on this channel. Or any other ones really. Such a weird and niche film, but I'm glad it's getting talked about more, because it's a pretty fun watch!

@TapeCollageForEloise Жыл бұрын

I am always here for Junji Ito content!

@chaoserror3156 Жыл бұрын

very surprised you uploaded this right after I was watching a bunch of junji ittos work

@pigeonmama Жыл бұрын

It was great to see one of my favorite KZfaqrs explore the work of one of my favorite artists! Thank you for this. :)

@UCannotDefeatMyShmeat Жыл бұрын

16:27 after being aware of dead space and many scps, “out there” seems so quaint

@gabeyeah297 10 ай бұрын

this was such a sick video i love junji ito and u even mentioned the uzamaki series that was coming out

@squeethemog213 2 ай бұрын

This was a fantastic watch. Love hearing about Ito 😃

@swordofdoom1517 Жыл бұрын

Surprise House mention!! Absolutely love that film, and great vid too

@SAmaryllis 10 ай бұрын

The intense amount of detail in all panels is astounding. His story about mushrooms lingered in my mind for a long time, which was a problem especially because I'm a vegetarian and normally I love eating mushrooms 🫠

@coldcallerloopy 11 ай бұрын

This video felt like 40 minutes not 20. And I mean that in the best possible way. Bravo! Amazing video quality!

@MrTheDudeManGuy Жыл бұрын

you know it is a good day when curious archive uploads a video, it is gonna be a really good day today

@Mr_W1nkle Жыл бұрын

Hey archive I love your videos I always find it fascinating I was wondering will u ever do some Hp love craft stuff?

@grilledpook Ай бұрын

im psyched for the uzimaki adaptation , what ive seen so far looks quite interesting as someone who has just started checking out junji ito's work

@simonvelar Жыл бұрын

It's about spaces - you look at a painting and you feel like it drags you in, or it reaches out - tapping into subconscious memories - it changes your field of involvement, unintended participación. You learn that in theater, especially in Japanese theater.

@ashleyallison6205 Жыл бұрын

I feel like another reason his art works at being unnerving is the use of line. It goes hand in hand with the insane amount of detail he puts in his work. The sheer overwhelming amount of line and detail forms something akin to a visual form of static. Static can often be used in horror as a form of "nothing is scarier" - you listen long enough and you hear things. You look at it long enough and you see patterns you could swear weren't there five minutes ago. Your mind has trouble interpreting this morass of information so it tries to translate it into manageable chunks. The "static" here is often part of something bigger- a character or entity, or parts of the background-. Its a detail in the thing that should not be, and the more you stare at it the more you, the reader, try to suss out the danger before it can get you. And much like Ito's forays into the unknowable and absurd, it's brilliant. Just another layer to his creative works that adds to it all.

@JBOMB802 Жыл бұрын

I never thought id see curious archive cover ito, but im here for it!

@BeardVsTheWorldUK1 10 ай бұрын

Amazing stuff-extremely well done. My daughter got me into this Manga artist, and every little bit I see from him makes me want to see more. Hell of a lot more interesting than anything Hollywood does...Your video makes me want to work with Junji ASAP!

@zephid1868 Ай бұрын

Loved that!

@rotciv1492 11 ай бұрын

I'd absolutely love if you could do a take on the world of "Blame!". Very few mangas have ever caused me an impression as deep as this one.

@mathieugariepy2948 Жыл бұрын

Great video!

@mushroomman3295 Ай бұрын

One amazing thing Junji Ito does is he makes human charechters much more simple with minimal shading but the monsters are extremely detailed making them feel more out of this world

@mathieuleader8601 Жыл бұрын

the Hellstar Reima feels like a grimdark version of Futurama's Yivo from the movie the Beast With A Billion Backs.

@coolbird6371 10 ай бұрын

The stories that scare me the most either scare me on a PRIMAL LEVEL, a story about something just WRONG, or a story about something that used to be a human.

@taiko1237 Жыл бұрын

The fish on legs are clearly just transcending to a higher, more crab-like stage of evolution

@SomethingAboutSashimi 10 ай бұрын

Crab is final form

@Lady_Flashheart40 10 ай бұрын

I love that Ito can take frankly ridiculous concepts and make them truly terrifying. It's so disappointing that the live-action and animated adaptations haven't lived up to the source material. The live-action films are so bad they're riffable. As for the animated series, it's too polished. Ito's art isn't polished, it's visceral and detailed and that's what makes it so memorable. Thank you for doing this video! 😁

@bluehairedemon Жыл бұрын

that one about the human shaped holes is so scary, especially the realisation that i would probably also enter a hole in my shape