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GYO
Book Released: 2003
Posted 09 Dec 2006
Writer: Junji Ito
Artist: Junji Ito
Publisher: Viz Media
5.00 out of 5 Stars
Reviewed by Hueso Taveras
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A death stench creeps through a seaside town in Okinawa, Japan,
bringing with it an abomination: mechanically legged sea-creatures
that attack humans. Tadashi and his sickened girlfriend Kaori escape
from death at the mouth of a prowling great white shark. Returning to
Tokyo, the pair visit the laboratory of Tadashi’s uncle Dr. Koyanagi
and his young assistant Yoshiyama. The sea continues to empty itself
of its mutated sea life in a seeming torrent of revenge. Faced with
growing peril, the four plunge into Dr. Koyanagi’s past as a young
inventor and his father’s tie to a pivotal moment in Japanese
history.
Junji Ito doles out layered, coarse
lines that add a level of richness and humanity rarely seen in popular
comics today.
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Critically acclaimed master of horror manga (Japanese comics),
Junji Ito creates a masterpiece of existential and sardonic horror in
GYO. Ito weaves social, political and historical threads with David
Cronenberg’s clinical eye to science technology and the moral
underpinnings reminiscent of 1950s EC horror comics. Not one to be
satisfied with just this, Ito adds the fantastical to the tapestry,
sending the reader into a world beyond comprehension.
Junji Ito doles out layered, coarse lines that add a level of
richness and humanity rarely seen in popular comics today.
His pen and
brush strokes carve out the gnarled, cold and slimy texture of the
mechanical grotesques as effectively as they do the gas-filled,
cluttered cityscape of modern-day Tokyo. His representative rendering
of the human characters, smooth panel transitions, and sparse use of
extreme camera angles focus the reader on the story itself. Using
traditional illustration techniques, the comic enjoys an organic feel
that could hardly be attained in a film using computer-generated
special effects.
GYO is a two-part black and white trade paperback with
full-colored, embossed-letter cover that recalls classic 70s and 80s
western horror films. Its 5 1/2" by 8" size makes it easier to carry
around than most trades.
Historically, the sea has been a symbol of the collective
unconscious. Unimaginably powerful creatures that defy human
understanding, lie dormant below the aqua surface, looming in the
peripherals of the world. This was the basis for many H.P. Lovecraft
tales and Junji Ito — a Lovecraft fan himself — continues to explore
this theme in GYO. If they wish to survive, end the destruction of
their country and save the deathly sick Kaori, Tadashi, Dr. Koyanagi
and Yoshiyama must delve into the sordid history of themselves and of
Japan.
Although the dialogue occasionally suffers from redundancy,
GYO shines as a gem of the J (Japanese) horror genre.
—CCdC—
Cover image used without explicit permission in accordance with the "Fair Use" provision of US copyright law.
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