Tomie: Complete Deluxe Edition (Junji Ito) (urspr publ 2011; utgåvan 2016)

Another typically fantastic group of stories from Ito. All these center around Tomie, who I guess you could call a "succubus." The stories deal with men's infatuation with the beautiful Tomie and how their desire to kill and own her consume them.

The overall theme of love, lust and infatuation play heavily. Tomie seems to have a supernatural grip on men, but really - what woman doesn't......?

Wonderful collection. Highly recommended. ( )

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Tomie, the mysterious girl with the birthmark and the hypnotic voice. The voice that can make you do anything. Make you fall madly in love with her. Make you obsessed to the point of murder.

But Tomie will not die.

This volume collects all twenty chapters of Junji Ito's surreal horror comic. Most of the stories are self-contained, but there are a few that have connections to others, including the multi-part finale. Considering Tomie's M.O. is pretty much the same from one to the next, it's remarkable how diverse the stories are. But then, not all the Tomies are exactly the same.

Yes, all the Tomies. Tomie is legion. There might be one in your town right now. In your school.

In your family.

BEWARE. ( )

This is a very odd collection of short stories. The early ones have recurring characters and a developing story about Tomie, the beautiful girl who men love at first but then are compelled to kill. The middle section sheds all characters except Tomie and tells short little horror stories exploring different variations on the themes of how Tomie destroys those around her and the different ways she regenerates when those around her destroy her. The final section introduces some new recurring characters as the series wraps up in a non-conclusion.

Mostly, the whole thing is repetitive, pointless, misogynistic and, with the exception of a few images scattered throughout, is lacking in the unrelentingly grotesque artwork Ito brings to his later works of horror. ( )

Don't eat while you read this. It's not just gory, but incredibly disturbing art (in a good way).

I'd really like to know more about Tomie, but it's probably better not knowing. Oftentimes the mystery is far more interesting than the answer. ( )