horror graphic novel

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Lenni Reviews: “Mao” Vol. 13, by Rumiko Takahashi

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

This volume reveals who killed Sana and what Yurako really is.

A lot of this is learning about Mei and why she works with Shiranui while the main group deals with a  corrupt industrialist (there are a lot of crappy elites in this series) and other than the overarching plot evolving Byoki, Nanoka’s abilities, and the secrets being kept in the background, I like watching Mao work and hearing about the various entities they battle. I like a nice mix of ‘villain of the week’ and long form story in my media and this series is doing that pretty well so far! 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Dark Gathering” Vol. 3, by Kenichi Kondō

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Keitaro, Yayoi, and Eiko are actively hunting spirits together but regular life must go on so Keitaro gets a job tutoring Ai, a young lady who is plagued by bad luck and spirits.

This volume has much less breaks for humor so, it’s pretty fucking creepy. Yayoi is less creepy cute and more genuinely terrifying, the spirits are getting stronger, and its fucking fantastic. I am psyched for the next book as this one was gripping and scary. 4.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Lovesick” by Luana Vecchio

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review. Trigger warning for nudity, sex, and gore. 18+

Domino is a popular dominatrix on the dark web red rooms but her infamy puts a target on her back and the demented little world she’s created may fall apart, robbing her of her ultimate dream: to be cannibalized.

This is a fucking brutal ride. It’s the type of media that I struggle to say I liked or enjoyed it, due to the content but I couldn’t stop reading it. The whole thing is about people who get off on the thought of being killed and eaten and the people who organize events to make that happen so they can consume human flesh. Content warning for blood, guts, sex, violence, maybe grooming… Just don’t read it if anything about killing and eating people triggers you. The art has a perverse beauty to it at times and does not shy away from the visceral details of the subject matter. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead” Vol. 11 by Haro Aso & Kōtarō Takata 

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

The group goes on a pilgrimage to visit 88 temples in order to cross that off of Akira’s bucket list. Along the way, Beatix is captured by thieves and the rest rush to save her. After that adventure, the group ends up on a yacht full of rich people who only want to party.

Sometimes it feels a little forced when they have to deal with the zombies. I get they have to since that’s the entire point but it’s getting predictable. I still enjoy our group but cramming in zombie attacks feels formulaic this time around. 3.7 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Choujin X” Vol. 3, by Sui Ishida

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

The Yamato Mori trains choujin to either become keepers or just to keep control of their abilities so they can lead a normal life. Ely is doing very well but Tokio is struggling not only with his abilities but what he wants for his future.

This volume is fucking WILD. The paper chojin is insane an so creatively done. I thought this was going to be mostly training but there is a ton of action and variety in the different abilities a choujin can have. My jaw actually dropped while reading this. And that damn cliffhanger at the end? This is a great volume. 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Mieruko-chan” Vol. 6, by Tomoki Izumi

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Mieruko returns to that creepy shrine with Shindou and Mitsue to do something about the creatures haunting her best friend, Hana.

This volume was crazy, finally facing such a huge spirit and it’s genuinely terrifying. This series had fantastic creature design but still can handle being cute when it has time to be around all the horror. We also get some back story on Mitsue and her student, Shindou; who are amazing as they try to battle these creatures. It’s all coming together in what I hope will be a fantastic conclusion. 4.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Dark Gathering” Vol. 2, by Kenichi Kondō

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Yayoi wants to help Keitaro eliminate his curse, the curse he shares with Eiko. To do so, they must gather more spirits to increase their abilities but meanwhile, Keitaro and Eiko still try to maintain a normal life; starting by attending college orientation.

If you like Mieruko-chan, I think you’ll like this series as well. It has some humor to break up the scares and tension but not so much as to disrupt the scary tone. It leans much more towards horror plenty to amp up the tension. The spirits give me the shivers; the designs of them are fantastic and I can already see the plot with the big baddie perking up. Very awesome so far but – no spoilers – Eiko… Yikes, girl. Just yikes. 5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Dark Gathering” Vol. 1, Kenichi Kondō

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Keitaro avoids the supernatural due to his unusual magnetism when it comes to spirits. All he wants is a regular life but when he takes a tutoring job, he meets the young Yayoi, who is on a mission to capture ghosts and ghouls in order to find the one that took her mother’s spirit. His childhood friend and Yayoi’s cousin, Eiko, is all to eager to help out.

The art style does creepy and cute very well, especially the nightmare fuel of pulling demon hair out of your throat (seriously, that’s a recurring nightmare of mine). The premise and execution so far is perfect. Keitaro has an interesting backstory to explore and Yayoi is very entertaining and scary to watch. Strong start to the series. 4.9 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Soichi” by Junji Ito

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

This is a collection of ten stories featuring the creepy Soichi from the Tsujii family.

While I am a fan of Ito’s work and there are some creepy moments in this collection, I felt less scared or unsettled and more “Wow, I’m watching this kid just be a dick head” and the wackiness that ensues around him. I was annoyed with him by the end of it; which may have been the point but I didn’t have the sense of unease Ito’s work usually gives me. Not bad but Soichi is grating in large doses. 3.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Parasocial” by Alex de Campi & Erica Henderson

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

His acting career fading and marriage ending, Luke attends a convention to sign things and take pictures to earn money for his upcoming child support payments. After an exhausting day, he has a car accident and a fan of his stops to help, only for her to take him prisoner.

It’s no Misery but this is a freaky read. It’s very story driven and shows the dangers of obsessive fans but it’s too short. It says a lot and deals with how social media plays into these things, it has some legitimately scary moments but I think there should been more story and less creator notes at the end. 3.5 out of 5.

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