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Manga fans worldwide know the renowned series, Hunter x Hunter‘s creator, Yoshihiro Togashi’s relentless drive for his works. Despite his health struggles, Togashi has remained dedicated to his work, providing his readers with periodic updates on his progress and personal challenges. Similarly, Togashi has recently shared a post on his social media account about his ongoing struggle, but this time it’s not due to his health.

Hunter x Hunter manga cover | Credit: Viz Media

Kazuo Umezu, a pioneering figure in horror manga, passed away on October 28, at the age of 88. Due to the loss of Umezu, Togashi is currently finding it increasingly hard to focus on his work, as Umezu has a significant creative influence on the Hunter x Hunter creator.

Yoshihiro Togashi’s Heartfelt Tribute to Kazuo Umezu

On November 7, Yoshihiro Togashi shared a post on his official X account revealing the depth of his connection...

Hunter x Hunter creator Yoshihiro Togashi recently shared how the passing of horror manga author Kazuo Umezu has affected his ability to concentrate on work.

Taking to his official X account on Nov 7, 2024, Togashi disclosed the emotional toll of the loss, revealing that his usual challenges in maintaining focus have intensified.

“It seems my posts will be irregular until the end of November. As usual, there are various things, and it’s hard to focus on work. But with Umezu-sensei’s passing, it’s especially difficult right now,” he tweeted.

He also shared a personal memory of Umezu’s work, reminiscing about the first time a manga moved him to tears.

“The first time I cried reading manga was during Tamami’s makeup scene.“

11月末くらいまで不定期投稿になりそうです。

色々ありまして仕事に集中出来ないのはいつもの事と慣れっこのつもりでしたが

楳図先生の訃報と重なり現状がしんどいです。

漫画を読んで初めて泣いたのは

タマミちゃんの化粧シーンでした。 pic.twitter.com/tPuxWgdlSb

— 冨樫義博 (@Un4v5s8bgsVk9Xp) November 6, 2024

Umezu’s influence on Togashi is evident within Hunter x Hunter,...

Horror manga author Kazuo Umezu, known as the ‘God of Horror Manga,’ passed away on Oct 28 at the age of 88. His funeral was held privately, attended only by close family and associates.

A public memorial service will be arranged later to honor his memory.

According to Yomiuri Shimbun, Umezu passed away due to stomach cancer.

Umezu had collapsed at his Tokyo home in Kichijoji in July 2024 and was later diagnosed with terminal stomach cancer. He opted not to undergo surgery, receiving palliative care at a hospice in Tokyo.

Throughout his illness, Umezu remained passionately committed to his craft.

When a journalist visited him, he revealed his drive to create, stating, “Humans can’t lose to machines. I’m working on a story that won’t lose to quantum computers.” He shared glimpses of a new concept he was developing, saying, “Once I’m better, I’ll need to draw this story.

Image via Nhk The official accounts for manga creator Kazuo Umezu, known for the award-winning manga series The Drifting Classroom and gag-manga Makoto-chan , reported today that the author has passed away. According to Yomiuri Shimbun , Umezu passed away on October 28 from stomach cancer. He was 88 years old. A funeral for close friends and family was already held. Kazuo Umezu was born in Koya, Wakayama prefecture on August 3, 1936 . Umezu's family then settled in Gojo, Nara prefecture. Due to the influence of his mother, he started to draw at the age of 7 based on stories that his father would tell him about local myths and tales. As detailed in an interview with Tokion , Umezu was inspired by Osamu Tezuka’s Shin Takarajima and started drawing manga in high school, debuting at age 18 with Mori no Kyodai ( The Siblings in the Forest ), a retelling of the Hansel and Gretel fairytale. From there, he...

In a sad turn of events, Kazuo Umezu, one of the biggest legends in the manga industry, passed away at the age of 88. Umezu was a famous name in the horror and macabre genres, and his work influenced many other manga creators, including Junji Ito, the creator of many prominent horror works like Uzumaki, Tomie, Gyo, etc.

Legendary Manga Creator Kazuo Umezu | Credit: Instagram@mastersofmanga

Umezu is considered the “god of horror manga,” thanks to his major works like The Drifting Classroom, Cat Eyed Boy, Orochi, etc.

His death comes as a big shock to Junji Ito, who has been a fan of Umezu since he was a child. In fact, Umezu was the one who motivated Ito to take over the horror genre and create some of its greatest works.

Umezu’s family and close friends held a private funeral for the manga creator on the day of his death.

When it comes to horror manga, Junji Ito is an unparalleled mastermind. Ito has continuously defined what horror can be with his grotesque works like, Uzumaki, Tomie, The Enigma of Amigara Fault, and many more; leaving readers terrified and disturbed by the eerie visuals and bizarre stories. However, many may not know that terror that Ito instills in his readers stems from his own deepest fears.

Tomie manga by Junji Ito | Credit: Viz Media

Although he had a huge fascination towards horror since childhood, he decided to explore this genre as a mangaka after experiencing the sheer terror of reading and watching horror stories himself. The fears he felt in childhood as a horror lover himself, later manifested in his works; creating a whole another genre that is associated with his own name.

Junji Ito’s Childhood as an Avid Horror Lover

In 2019, during the 30th year anniversary of his...

With a career that stretches across nearly 40 years of game design, Hideo Kojima is one of the most experienced developers in the industry. Kojima’s work isn’t just about gameplay; it’s about provoking thought and reflection. Apart from being the mastermind behind the Metal Gear and Death Stranding franchises, Kojima is well known for sharing his love for the anime and manga industry.

Hideo Kojima is on friendly terms with iconic horror manga artist Junji Ito and has known each other for almost 30 years. Junji Ito’s manga has been adapted to both film and anime television series, with upcoming Uzumaki being the most anticipated series for September.

A Panel from Uzumaki Manga | Credit: Viz Media

Interestingly, Kojima recently posted a manga recommendation from none other than horror author Junji Ito, and surprisingly, it wasn’t his famous work Uzumaki.

Uzumaki Creator’s Manga Recommendation That Thrilled Hideo...

With the domination of Shonen manga like One Piece, Naruto, and Bleach for years, a subgenre has also been discreetly thriving in the industry— horror. At the forefront of this genre stands Junji Ito, a master of eerie storytelling and grotesque imagery. Among his creations, Uzumaki is regarded by Ito as the “most complete demonstration” of his artistic ability, in addition to being one of the most terrifying horror stories ever written.

A Panel from Uzumaki Manga | Credit: Viz Media

While this masterpiece manga first started its serialization in 1998, fans had to wait quite a long time for the anime adaptation to come to fruition. The long wait is finally over as Uzumaki‘s Adult Swim adaptation is set to premiere on 28th September.

Junji Ito’s Perspective on Uzumaki

After going through constant delays, the news of Uzumaki‘s anime adaptation’s release has sent the anime community into a frenzy.

Blending a charming vintage art style with shockingly gory horror, Jay Stephens' Dwellings takes readers into Elwich, a seemingly idyllic small town with a sinister side where blood-splattered secrets are lurking around every well-manicured corner. With the first 72-page issue of the limited comic book series now available from Oni Press, we caught up with Stephens in a new Q&a feature to discuss combining a nostalgically cozy art style with intense scares, creating faux retro comic book advertisements that tie into his hair-raising tales, and reteaming with Oni Press to release Dwellings into the world!

Below, you can read our full Q&a with Jay Stephens, and we also have a look at the cover art, preview pages, and trailer for the first issue of Dwellings! To learn more about Dwellings, keep an eye on Oni Press' official website!

Thank you for taking the time to answer questions for us,...

2022 has been another big year for anime and manga in the United States. This fall's "Chainsaw Man" anime is earning rave reviews. "Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero" earned 32 million worldwide in its first week. Netflix's "Cyberpunk Edgerunners" convinced folks to give the messy "Cyberpunk 2077" another shot, rocketing the game up the Steam rankings. On the manga front, the blockbuster success of Junji Ito has led publishers to take chances on other horror artists like Kazuo Umezu and Kanako Inuki. There's even a fledgling indie manga movement in the United States, with small publishers like Glacier Bay Books and Star Fruit Books distributing titles that might never otherwise see the light of day. We're long past the time of executives chopping up anime series in the editing docket to be marketable to American children. Anime and manga are now respected in their own right, if only because it sells.

Hollywood,...

Noriaki Yuasa’s The Snake Girl And The Silver Haired Witch (1968) will be available on Blu-ray September 21st from Arrow Video

What do you get when Noriaki Yuasa, director of Daiei Studios’ much-beloved Gamera series, makes a monochrome film adaptation of the works of horror manga pioneer Kazuo Umezu (The Drifting Classroom)? The answer is 1968’s The Snake Girl and the Silver-Haired Witch, a fantastically phantasmagorical slice of twisted tokusatsu terror ostensibly made for children that will irreparably traumatize any child that sees it!

A young girl named Sayuri is reunited with her estranged family after years in an orphanage – but trouble lurks within the walls of the large family home. Her mother is an amnesiac after a car accident six months earlier, her sullen sister is confined to the attic and a young housemaid dies inexplicably of a heart attack just before Sayuri arrives… is it all connected to...

“Monthly Shoujo Sunday is a collection of 12 oneshots by the wonderful Momoto Makiru. Known for their alternative and sometimes experimental art, Makiru brings us unique stories that are both weird and enlightening.” (Star Fruit Books)

Embracing the spirit of the underground, Momoto Makiru’s “Monthly Shoujo Sunday” is a wonderfully eclectic mix of styles both visually and narratively. Across 12 mini stories, the mangaka works in parody, gross out humour, social satire and absurdism to capture that lovely nostalgia of infamous publications like “Garo” which became a source of inspiration in the West for fans of underground comics. For those familiar, the work echoes the playful narrative approach of Yoshikazu Ebisu, the cartoonish crass and sexualized wok of Hanako Yamada, and the wonderfully self aware parodies on shojou of Carol Shimoda. Thankfully, beyond conjuring some notable names of the underground, Mariku’s cult stylings of “Monthly Shoujo Sunday...

We love when fans discover things we’ve never seen before. Though it was released here in the States in 1973, William Friedkin’s The Exorcist didn’t arrive in Japan until one year later. In conjunction with the release, a magazine by the name of Shonen Sunday commissioned comic book artist Kazuo Umezu to put together a several page comic-style […]...

Horror Manga maestro Kazuo Umezu has taken to film, and a trailer for his first stab at movie making a semi autobiographical “horror” movie Mother, has been released. Mixing reality and fiction, the story revolves around the relationship between Umezu and his deceased mother, Ichie. And my....it was an Odd one. Mother opens in Japan this September Mother official site Mother trailer...

                     NEC Biglobe Provides English Manga through its Android  App, Sugoi Books

Sugoi BOOKS¹ Original Manga Lineup

Tokyo, April 4, 2011 ­ NEC Biglobe, Ltd. (Biglobe), one of Japan¹s leading internet service providers, announced today the launch of its digital bookstore Android app, ³SUGOI Books.²

Sugoi Books launches with a library of more than 100 authentic manga books translated into English. Titles include: ³Cat Eyed Girl,² by Kazuo Umezu, the legendary horror manga creator, and ³Joan,² by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko, another renowned manga artist. This month¹s Sugoi Books lineup includes

original manga based on modern Japanese literature and legends such as ³Rashomon,² ³Hachiko,² ³Portrait of Hell² and ³The Setting Sun.² Expanding its manga library to 50,000 books by the end of 2012, Sugoi Books aims to become the largest manga provider for users of smartphones and multimedia devices.

Featured Content:

-Cat Eyed Girl (c)Kazuo Umezu/ Shogakukan Creative

-Joan (c)Yoshikazu Yasuhiko/ Japan Broadcast Publishing Co.

Tsuruta stood at the crib of the Japanese new wave of horror films. About 20 years later things have quieted down a little and the Japanese horror scene has grown more diverse once again. The black-haired ghosts have made room for films like Tamami and Grotesque and directors seem eager to explore new horror grounds. Combining all these elements it becomes obvious how Orochi was conceived.

Tsuruta is a horror veteran. Single-handedly pulling the Honto ni Atta Kowai series his influence of the Japanese new wave is beyond a doubt. With films like Yogen (remade as Premonition), Sky High (though more of a Kitamura film) and Dream Cruise (Master of Horror series) he reached beyond the realms of the Japanese public and landed some success in the West. I've seen most of his films, but can't say I am a big fan of his work. I'm not the biggest fan of...

It has been so long since we talked about the movie adaptation of the Kazuo Umezu manga Orochi that we completely missed the first teaser. Never fear. Nippon Cinema has picked up the first full trailer for it and by their own account it is much better than the teaser.

[Twitch] We have our two sisters, Kazusa and Lisa. For Lisa, no matter what she does, her sister Kazusa has done it better. Lisa is always told that she’ll never be comparable to her sister. As any sibling rivalry is wont to do it results in feelings of jealousy and vengeance. As Lisa grows she learns to hate and at times lashes out at the sister she once loved… [Nippon Cinema] A third girl named Orochi observes the situation and acts as a narrator for the story. Orochi is an ageless being who must sleep every 100 years. However, when she saves Lisa...