Warning: Spoilers Ahead for Uzumaki!
Uzumakiis easily considered the most recognizable of legendary horror mangakaJunji Ito’s works, with many recognizable moments even first-time readers will remember forever, that fans can’t wait to see come to life in the upcoming anime adaptation. Ito has a unique way of leaving indelible impressions on horror fans by tapping into cosmic horror concepts yet mixing in enough black humor so it does not feel too edgy.
Junji Ito has been active in the decades sinceUzumaki’srelease, capturing similar vibes with macabre tales depicting everything from liminal horror to stories of Soichi and much more. Still,Uzumakiis commonly mentioned for its use ofeldritch, supernatural, psychological, and body horror themesas a spectacular showcase of the horror master’s storytelling spectrum.With theUzumakianime coming to Adult Swim on August 20, 2025, it’s exciting to see what moments will make it into the series.
10Fungi in the Maternity Ward
Chapter #11: Umbilical Cord
Much ofUzumakifeatures Kurôzu-Cho’s residents terrorized by the spiral curse, but seeing it affect even infants is incredibly upsetting. When Kirie discovers the origins of the mushrooms being fed to hospital patients, which are harvested fromthe babies who sprout spiral-laden mushrooms from their regrown umbilical cords and placentas, the series takes a sinister turn. The worst part is that this isn’t even the darkest part of the chapter, with mere pages later showing a scene disturbing enough not to be safely shown here.
9Wakabayashi Drills This Scene Into Readers' Brains
Chapter #13: The House
Peeping Toms are common in manga, but rarely do they reach sinister extremes like Wakabayashi. After having to move into the same row house as Kirie Goshima’s family, Wakabayashi develops a habit of secretly drilling peepholes to spy on Kirie. This habit would turn his image into a perfect cautionary tale for people showing similar behaviorwhen the spiral affliction causes him to transform into a monster riddled with drill-like spikes, unrecognizable from his relatively more innocent, inwardly creepy self.
8Medusa Gets the Junji Ito Treatment
Chapter #6: Medusa
Kirie’s most recognizable panel and one ofJunji Ito’s best cover artfeatures her hair, afflicted with the spiral curse, beginning to coil in a bid to draw attention.If the hair curse were more harmless, it’d almost come off as quirky,but when Kirie tries to cut it, the hair tries to strangle her, asserting itself as a symbiotic threat to her life. The worst part is that this causes one of Kirie’s friends, Kyoko Sekino, to attempt to emulate her hair, resulting in her contracting the curse. While Kirie escapes the encounter and gets the source of her curse cut off from the root, the same can’t be said about Kyoko.
7Everything Reminds Yukie of Him
Chapter #2: The Spiral Obsession (Part 2)
Yukie Saito was the second to be utterly claimed by the spiral curse after the passing of her husband, and it’s a cruel fate,as she is haunted by images of Mr. Saito until she succumbs to a similar fate. No matter how much self-inflicted torture she administers to make the spiral sources go away, she can’t help but see the spiral claiming her husband in everything, be it hospital equipment, insects, or her inner ear.
6The Horror Master Himself
Various Afterwords and Post-Chapter Panels
Junji Ito is among the foremost horror mangakaand has received plenty of celebrity recognition in Japan and abroad. Yet, his chilling illustration and writing forUzumakidon’t always prepare readers for how weird and silly the man is. In numerous panels following particularly dark moments from the series,Ito draws himselfinto situations ranging from researching to preparing for the series or being hounded by his editors.
His most amusing panels include him innocently enjoying the perks ofUzumaki’screation process, namely sampling spiral-shaped foods for no particular reason. Hopefully,Ito’s voice acting creditmeans he will reenact these scenes.
5Snail Male
Chapter #8: The Snail
Katayama is one of the more sympathetic victims of the spiral curse inUzumaki, with his characterization as a slow character being cruelly brought to its natural body horror extreme when he transforms into a snail.This wouldn’t even be the last instance of human-snail hybrids inUzumaki, which makes perfect sense given their perfect spiral shells. What emerges later are disturbing implications about their perception as former humans, with people making dark choices when there’s suddenly an otherwise limited food supply.
4Springtime in the Cemetery
Chapter #7: Jack-In-The-Box
Mitsuru Yamaguchi is similarly obsessed with Kirie, like Wakabayashi, but instead of drilling peepholes, Mitsuru has a habit of performing jumpscares even on his crush. After a tragic, utterly preventable car accident that Mitsuru causes by jumping out in front of it, confident that his love for Kirie would stop it, he leaves behind a jack-in-the-box for her,vowing to return from the dead to kill her.
Mitsuru’s zombie resurrection inUzumakiis a surprising, more typical horror moment. Still, there is a twist, ashis sprightly movement is due to him being spring-loaded by the car’s suspension, lodged in his corpse.
Invincible/Uzumaki Crossover Turns Atom Eve into Nightmare Fuel
Invincible co-creator Ryan Ottley reveals a creepy crossover commission that sees Atom Eve transformed by the curse featured in Junji Ito’s Uzumaki.
3Spiral City
Chapter #19: Completion
Uzumaki’sdescent into Lovecraftian elements culminates in chapter #19, the story’s conclusion, featuringa massive, grimly beautiful set of spiral constructs resembling a city.The city of Spirals features a floor of corpses, the amalgamated victims of the spiral curse, and an ominous, impossible liminal space at the end of the row house. DespiteUzumakionly featuring four episodes, seeing this city brought to the screen with as much impressive detail as Ito used would be fascinating.
2Come Join Mr. Saito
Recurring After Chapter #1: The Spiral Obsession
Mr. Saito’s mangled corpse,arranged in an impossible spiral shapeby breaking his bones to leave his contorted remains to be discovered by his family, is one of the most chilling, iconic sights of any of Junji Ito’s moments. The worst part for the Saito family is that they can’t escape his visage, and this chilling image appears to them in wood impressions or even coiled insects.Uzumakiand Junji Ito fans will be especially ready to scrutinize this moment for its authenticity and bone-chilling terror.
1Kazunori & Yoriko’s Union
Chapter #5: Twisted Souls
Kazunori Nishiki is one of the most tragic figures inUzumaki,along with his unfortunate lover, Yoriko Endo. Kazunori’s family is locked in a feud with Yoriko’s family, which makes things incredibly difficult for the pair. The spiral curse, as it turns out, has afflicted their families to cause them always to be in conflict, so in a macabreRomeo & Julietmoment,their curse manifests in the two being locked in a binding romantic entanglement. The resulting visual is chilling, haunting, and tragic, as the pair’s only actual sin was loving each other.
Uzumaki: Spiral into Horror
Cast
Uzumaki: Spiral into Horror is an adaptation of Junji Ito’s acclaimed manga, directed by Hiroshi Nagahama. The series unfolds in the town of Kurôzu-cho where inexplicable events related to spirals plague the inhabitants, leading to terror and madness. Highlighting the psychological and supernatural, the show follows high school student Kirie Goshima and her boyfriend, Shuichi Saito, as they confront the spiraling horrors that engulf their town.
