Ju-On
Ju-On: Video Side

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I have never seen any Grudge movie or experienced any related media. This manga is my introduction to the franchise, so I can give you the point of view of someone not familiar with the story at all. After reading the manga, I have also watched the movie (the 2000 Japanese version), so I can also give you a comparison to the movie.

This review might contain what some could consider a spoiler, but it's nothing specific, just the basic story outline.

I am a fan of horror manga. I am however not much of a fan of regular horror movies, so I was interested in ... how a manga based on a horror movie would turn out. I can't say that I was disappointed as my expectations weren't exactly high, but I certainly wasn't surprised. This manga feels just like a mediocre horror movie.

The basic story is exactly as expected, without nothing out of ordinary. Family moves in a haunted house, ignoring the warning that it might possibly be haunted. Angery evil spirit is angery and spooks it's victims few times before ultimately killing them off. Why must this evil ghost do this? Fuck if I know, the manga doesn't exactly bother to explain how the spiritual system actually works, but it's fairly common for basic horror works to not do that. It's angry and it needs blood, what more do you need? Duh.

The characters don't really have much of a personality and exist there just to fulfil their role of victims. I kinda liked the hint of "motherly" nature of Kayako (even though I had to google what even was her name). Sadly it doesn't get much expanded upon as the whole manga feels quite rushed. It is, after all, a whole movie put into just one volume.

The art is okay at best most of the time, but is does actually shine when illustrating the gorey parts. Especially one certain part which I would say is the only part in the manga that actually works as a horror. Too bad it lasted only few pages.

Finally, a comparison to the movie. The manga doesn't seem to be a 1:1 adaptation, at least not of the version that I've seen. I cannot say that the manga is a botched adaptation though, as I had the similar experience when reading it as I had when watching the movie - just a typical horror b movie. I might check the other versions of the movie later, but this didn't really piqued my interest for this franchise much. I'd say this manga is more of a miscellaneous point of interest for the fans then something that can stand on it's own.

Ju-On, or The Grudge, is infamous in the horror cycle and after a number of films, spin-off and a video game, it was only a matter of time until a manga about it was published. But like the video game, the manga has none of scare factor or charm of the films.

Story: Volume one adapts the story of the first and second television films Katasumi and 4444444444 and Ju-On: The Curse. It's a faithful adaption however the cross from film to manga means it lacks the suspense, the scares and the overall wow factor. The story is mediocre and almost boring.

Art: The art isn't ... that great and in places it's more funny than scary. Some parts of the art however, particularly the more gorey scenes have far much detail and effort put in that the majority of the manga. The art is nothing to rave about, it's very generic.

Character: Because it's such a short manga, there's little character development, as most of the characters are killed off pretty quickly. The interpretation of Kayako Saeki (aka The Grudge) however is very interesting. In some scenes she is shown as merciless ghost intent on destroying everything she comes into contact, yet in other scenes she's shown as loving and caring towards Toshio - in some parts she even has speech instead of her usual death rattle. Other than that, the characters are pretty bland and uniform.

Enjoyment: Being a huge fan of the Ju-On franchise, I was pretty disappointed with this. It's pretty much like the books that are written to accompany films after their release. I was pretty bored throughout reading it.

Overall: Ju-On lacks the scares, charm and the suspense of the films and its a poor adaptation in my opinion. Still, it's a good introductory manga and if you're a fan of the series, I'd give it a read. There's some pretty good pages, but other than that, it's pretty much mediocre at best. 5/10.