There is no such storyteller on Earth as This is Junji. Since his professional manga debut in 1987, he has been terrifying readers with his eerie stories and frighteningly iconic creations. The brilliantly talented mangaka has rightfully become one of the most famous horror storytellers of his generation, and for good reason. Junji Ito's beautifully illustrated comics hide deep, devastating secrets, and each story he weaves is haunting and terrifying in the most unique way.
Junji Ito's collections are now available
Narrowing Junji Ito's vast oeuvre down to 13 of his most chilling works was no easy task. Although most of Junji Ito's scariest stories can be found in scanned form on the Internet, his stories have also been collected into separate collections. Some collections, such as Tomi and Uzumaki, contain stories that develop a specific narrative, while others, such as Shiver and Smashed, include individual stories collected by theme.
Junji Ito's Scariest Stories
From eerie ghost stories to heartbreaking gothic horror to grotesquely bizarre modern fables, here are 13 of the most terrifying stories from one of the masters of horror manga, Junji Ito.
13. Handsome boy at a crossroads
Ito often writes about love and how it can damn us. The first – and main – story from his lovesickness collection is a great example of just that. We meet Ryusuke on the train. A teenage boy returns to his hometown after years of absence, but the thought of it haunts him.
The devastating reason for this will soon be revealed, but in the meantime his arrival coincides with a trend of young women seeking a “crossroads of fortune.” Soon, the brutally murdered bodies of schoolgirls begin to turn up, begging strangers for their fortune; but who is to blame? How does this relate to Ryusuke's pass? This surprisingly chilly mystery is one of Ito's most memorable tales and introduces one of his most terrifying creations.
12. Siren Village
Turning to popular horror, Ito prepares another grim homecoming. Village of Sirens. After a strange phone call from his parents and an ominous appearance at his window, Kyochi decides it's time to reunite with his family. Alas, when he returns, he finds that the once vibrant, albeit rural, village has become a ghost town.
Life now revolves around a strange factory of unknown origin, and even stranger are the all-consuming sirens that come from it every night. If you like stories about strange rituals, unusual cults and the occult, then you will enjoy this story. If you like taboo-breaking horror, you'll certainly be pleased as the death toll here is huge and includes a rare demographic of victims.
11. I don't want to be a ghost
When Shigeru kindly picks up a beautiful wandering woman on the side of the road, his life changes. Although Shigeru is initially worried about her bloodied and disoriented state, she explains it away. A few days later, they begin a secret affair, despite the fact that Shigeru is married and expecting a child. Blinded by the beauty of his new acquaintance, he is willing to ignore how often his lover appears covered in blood and the fact that she claims to “love his ghosts.” Her true desires are darker than anyone could have foreseen, and Shigeru, of course, doesn't realize this until it's too late.
10. The Weird Hikizuri Siblings
One of Ito's funniest creations, this darkly humorous true-life tale follows crazed siblings who take great pleasure in tormenting and terrorizing each other and their unsuspecting victims. More than two tales collected in Lovesickness, we meet some unlucky people along the way, including an old school friend of their prettiest member and a photographer. Although their schemes can have deadly consequences, the Hikizuri siblings tend to be pretty miserable, although you wouldn't want to be invited to dinner with them.
9. The Mystery of the Haunted House
The arrival of a haunted house turns the town upside down as ridicule turns to terror as each new visitor walks through its doors. Two boys get caught up in their owner's kinky games after they try to get in for free. As they explore the ghoulish halls, they discover a veritable house of horrors filled with victims who claim to be the owner's family.
There's a dark comedy to it that comes from another of Ito's recurring characters, the wily creeper Soichi Tsuji. But there is nothing funny about his heinous crimes. The Mystery of the Haunted House is a wild ride that will delight fans of ghost culture.
8. Revered ancestors
Family is often mentioned in Ito's story, and “The Honorable Ancestors” perhaps shows him at his most psychedelically deranged. On a seemingly ordinary evening, Risa is brought home by her close friend Makata, who claims that the young girl suffers from amnesia and cannot remember where she lived. According to doctors, her amnesia is caused by enormous emotional stress.
Risa becomes more and more upset as she is haunted by visions of a giant caterpillar… but what does it all mean? The truth revolves around the strange traditions of Makata and his family, which are revealed in Ito's insanely gruesome manner as the story comes to an end. It's a family reunion you'll never forget, no matter how much you wish you could.
7. Uzumaki
Probably the most famous of Ito's many works. Uzumaki It's not considered a classic for nothing. It's a uniquely creepy story that weaves a supernatural curse into a ghost story, set around the small town of Kuruzu-cho, which is inhabited not by spirits, but by spirals. It also helps that Ito's character lines do an epic job of transforming normally modest forms into something downright terrifying.
Uzumaki features many of Ito's favorite themes, such as obsession, paranoia, and the mundane becoming downright bizarre. Uzumaki's influence cannot be overstated, with numerous video game and film adaptations in development, as well as a highly anticipated anime adaptation. Unfortunately, the latest TV adaptation of Uzumaki flopped, gaining very low ratings in IGN's own review.
6. Fashion model
While many of Ito's stories are slow-burning ghost stories, this is more of a horror story that reveals its monster from the very first pages. Like our next article, Tomie, Model Model has become one of Ito's most popular and long-running stories. When a young man sees a bizarre model in a magazine whose mouth is filled with dagger-shaped teeth, he is consumed by her image. He can't stop thinking about her, why she was hired and why she fills him with overwhelming existential dread.
Life goes on, and he and some friends begin casting for a student film. This is where the model once again comes to the forefront of her life in a brutal and all too real manner. This is a great entry in both the Ito and monster horror canon.
5. Tom
Probably Ito's most famous creation, the stunningly beautiful Tomi was killed by her classmates only to reappear the next day. Since then, she has terrorized readers and men in love for years. Eat Tomy's collection of fairy tales where you can read her story from her earliest to her latest appearances, each more delightfully bleak than the last. Her ever-changing true face is a nightmare, but Ito's striking illustration style has also made her an enduring pop culture figure.
Even if you've never read Ito's story, you've probably already seen Tomi in sticker, tattoo, or T-shirt form. Ironically, in her stories, it is almost impossible to capture her beauty in character unless you want to see her true colors as well.
4. House of Puppets
Puppets have always held a particularly creepy place in horror, and Ito uses that to his advantage in this terrifying tale of a strange family obsessed with puppets. It all starts when a young girl named Kinuko befriends the son of a family of puppeteers. After becoming close to one of the two sons, Haruhiko, she visits the house, immediately wary of a large puppet named Jean-Pierre.
Years later, Haruhiko and Kinuko reunite and marry. But when they are called back to their ex's family home, they make a horrifying discovery. This is one of Ito's most classic stories, but it will still shock and surprise at every turn.
3. Record used
An eerie and atmospheric album, Used Record tells the story of a strange record that hypnotizes and seduces the listener. When Ogawa buys the vinyl, she quickly becomes obsessed, as does her friend Nakayama when she hears it. Soon, all the couple can do is listen to the song over and over again. But there is only one copy, which means that a tragic path awaits the girls.
What makes this story so scary is the fact that we all have that one song that we can't stop listening to. Ito just takes this to a new, supernaturally nightmarish level. And for this reason, this wonderfully drawn story proves to be as captivating as the song at its heart.
2. Lubricated
Growing up above her family's barbecue restaurant on Mount Fuji, Yui grew tired of the fat that slowly but surely accumulated, covering their home. While she worries about its consequences, her cruel and cruel brother Goro takes the cooking oil from which it is created and drinks it from the bottle until his face is covered in large, grotesque pustules.
Goro's obsession with fat and his sister's hopes for survival are deeply intertwined in this one of Ito's most harrowing stories, one that will put both your dinner and your sleep cycle at risk. In fact, this is a story that you need to be mentally prepared to read, so don't take it lightly.
1. Hanging balloons
What makes Ito's story “Hanging Balloons” the scariest? Well, this is one of his most bizarre works (this is where the mangaka excels), and it also manages to evoke a feeling of complete claustrophobia and inevitability in the best sense. After the unexpected suicide of a famous schoolgirl sparked a wave of copycat deaths, people began reporting seeing impressive hot air balloons in the sky.
But these are no ordinary balloons. In fact, reports claim that it is a giant inflated head of a deceased woman. Soon more balloons appear, chasing those whose faces they wear. Instead of ropes, metal loops swing beneath them. What is their purpose? If they catch up with those they resemble, they are caught and hanged… This is a psychedelic night horror come to life.
What's next for Junji Ito?
According to the official page, there are no new Junji Ito stories in development at the moment. on Viz.com. The most recent new release is Moan: The Collected Stories of Junji Ito, which just came out in early October. It includes six new stories by the legendary author. Here's a quick overview of what to expect from product page:
“A dark evil lurks in the inaccessible depths of the chimney, groaning as it echoes through the home of a germophobic mother and her daughters. In another tale, flowers blooming in the shape of eyeballs are just the beginning of the strange phenomena surrounding a mysterious transfer student. Could he have supernatural powers? Also, a man from a village deep in the mountains is divided memories of his wife. What happened to her after she said that she would give her blood freely?”
In addition to the manga, there was an anime called Junji itto Crimson TV. announced during Japan Expo 2025. However, there are no details about the cast and official release date yet.
Rosie Knight is an Eisner Award-winning journalist, writer, and comic book artist. She is a co-host Crooked Media's X-Ray Vision Podcastdiscussing pop culture, from superhero movies to prestige television to the best fantasy novels and, of course, comic books.
