I think Junji Ito might be cursed. Or at least, maybe that’s the case with his work, since when it comes to animated adaptations of any of his comics, they never seem to get it right. 2018 saw the publication of The Junji Ito Collection, a collection of his stories that was more anthology in nature, but it just didn’t have the sauce, that feeling of not being able to sleep because a page is haunting you. The mind’s eye. So, of course, when it was announced that Uzumaki would be animated, hopes for a good adaptation were high, considering it’s undoubtedly one of his most famous works.
Those hopes were well met with the first episode a little over a week ago, whose unsettling 3D appearance made it impossible to really tell whether it was actually 2D and rotoscoped or CG. Sure, the pace is a bit fast, but if it means the next three episodes look and feel as good as this one, I’ll take it. Then, over the weekend…the second episode aired. I won’t beat around the bush: this sucks.
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The fast pace of the first episode was forgivable, but it feels more crowded here, but that’s not the worst of it. No, the biggest problem comes from the fact that it really doesn’t look that good. The characters can barely move, and when they do, it’s stiffer than a 100-year-old tree, the editing feels pointless, and the 3D quality just disappears. It’s a mess, likely due to a continued lack of concern from higher-ups for industry animators, and while the specifics of the situation may not be revealed (I imagine the development time since this was announced was actually four years) the episode isn’t a good one either omen).
The second episode was so bad, I’m honestly considering ignoring the last two episodes, why spend time on something like this when the original manga can be enjoyed. But that’s it, isn’t it? Why go through the process of adapting to something? That’s not to say that Ito’s work isn’t adaptable, I think if you let the first episode breathe a little more and split it into two episodes, you might get something really special. I’m just not sure we really need to adapt to everything under the sun.
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For many people, anime is the final work, the complete version of a work, because without the existence of animation and dubbing, how can a low-level comic be something that people can pick up, read, appreciate and put down? ? , and music? I don’t quite agree with this stance – yes, I do like to see the ways a particular director might choose to adapt a comic, and I also think sometimes a comic can be a comic and that’s okay.
Ito’s work is obviously highly regarded by many people around the world, but it feels like anime is a validation thing to legitimize the work, something he really doesn’t need, especially when the end result is the second episode of Uzumaki . Comics are really good sometimes, especially Ito’s, his work is all about turning pages and this effect is hard to capture in motion (no, editing is different, it’s a physical movement you force yourself to do) when Turn the page when you know something terrible is about to happen and really sells his work).
Maybe one day an amazing representation of Ito’s work will come out, but, there are so many of his comics that I guess I won’t care if it ever comes out.
