Junji Ito is always able to write such fascinating stories. The art is fantastic as usual. There's never been a story Ito has written that wasn't beautifully drawn. It did take me a while before I was able to invest myself into the story.

Black Paradox by Junji Ito is a creepy and unsettling long-form manga. Four suicidal people meet up to get it over with, but somehow end up with more than they bargained for. Interesting and gripping, highly recommended for horror readers and obviously any Junji Ito fan. Very solid.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for an eARC for me to review.

Black Paradox was a highly anticipated release for me and it did not disappoint.

The artwork is exactly what you’d expect from Ito, brutal & beautiful with a smattering of gore, the balance between these always perfect for the story.

The story itself was much slower than some of their other works, but I felt this really benefitted the theme of loneliness which seemed to be overarching throughout the entire book.

Another triumph from Junji Ito. This has some of my favourite stories that he has published, and art that is just as beautiful as I've come to expect from his work.

This was my first time reading Junji Ito and I was pleasantly entertained. I found the characters to be morally grey and that is one of my favorite things to look for in books. The way he draws is just amazing and unlike no other mangaka.

Black Paradox is a strangely meta horror story about life and what's beyond that will turn your stomach and creep into your bones.

If you've read anything by Ito, you know he's an odd duck. This story is the oddest I've read by him so far (which admittedly isn't that much yet), and while his writing still isn't that great, I did really enjoy this one; I saw some of the twists coming, but there were others that were very "wait, what?!?" I want to talk about what happened SO BAD but I also don't want to spoil anything, because this is just so bonkers and I had so much fun watching it unfold. This is very creepy, not necessarily scary, it's more like uncomfortable "ew" I think. Some interesting commentary on society, especially the effect money can have on one's outlook, and some dark humor. At first, the story seems like it's going to go one way (which would also have made a good story), but then something happens that will make you wonder if the drugs are kicking in, even though you didn't take any. That's what sucked me in - that "we are taking a trip through a fever dream" feeling, and this delivered. Was this a beautifully written tale with no plot holes and no moments that make you say "that's not how that works"? No. But was I not entertained? I was, oh my yes, I was.

#BlackParadox #NetGalley

Junji Ito's Black Paradox is wonderfully horrific, grim, and bleak. Readers will get that familiar Ito feeling of dark amusement, incredulous glee, and a hollow gut whilst turning the pages of this novel. Mr. Ito never disappoints and neither does his gore speckled pages of haunting horror. Black Paradox has the sci-fi feel of Remina but the character-centric writing was a change of pace for Ito. Another great novella for the shelf!

The translation is extremely good. The illustrations are spooky and nightmare inducing in way that's very uniquely Ito. It was nice to see a more sci-fi horror story and the concept was intriguing, however this one wasn't 100% for me. I liked the parallels to overuse of non-renewable resources, but for me there was a lot more telling than showing. All of that being said, I did enjoy reading it overall and it would be a neat addition to any manga or graphic novel collection.

What: Horror manga from the revered Junji Ito
About: collection of shorts featuring Ito's signature themes of body horror, grotesque imagery, folklore run amok
Features: dread, story twists, ink that oozes from the pages
Assets: artwork that stays with readers long after finished
Obstacles: Ito has stated that he never knows where a story is going to go, and that ending stories is a challenge. Often, the artwork and feel makes up for an abrupt story finish.
Who it’s for: J-horror fans, readers who value artistic achievement over story, long-time Ito fans.

ARC From Netgalley.

The manga master of horror strikes again...
Junji Ito has one of the most creative minds in manga and if you can tolerate the craziness and horror, you absolutely should be reading his releases.
In Black Paradox, we have four characters (Maruso, Taburo, Pii-tan, and Baracchi) who all met on a suicide website. As they head out to the woods together to help each other die, something goes wrong when Pii-tan comes back from the other side, vomiting a crazy glowing ball. Named Paradonite, a very hard mineral, also contains a human soul. How will this change their lives? (In ways you would never expect...)

Seriously, if you don't know about Ito by this point, you've got a lot of catching up to do.
Strong recommend. Easily one of my favorite manga creators.

While not my favourite title by Junji Ito, Black Paradox still has a good horror story intertwined with science fiction. I found it difficult to like or engage with any of the characters, but the story itself was intriguing. The creation of the sought-after paradonite is disturbing!

This is probably my least favourite Junji Ito book I've read, and I've read most of them. That being said, I found the characters fascinating, and as usual, I couldn't put this down. Everything Junji Ito writes is dark, twisted, gold. I hate reading his books, but I love them so much. I liked that this was one of his ongoing stories. It's really messed up. Exactly what we all expected.

Junji Ito never disappoints, and Black Paradox is no exception! This story starts hauntingly realistic and twists into a fantastically terrifying version mirror the horrors of humanity.

Much like Ito's previous work, Black Paradox is filled with existential dread and eldritch horrors. Though the plot didn't fully grab me the way his other work has, I did find the other world filled with these precious jewels compelling in its horror, and was enthralled with the experiments plot point. The art work is where Ito shines most, with his iconic contrasts of beauty twisted into the downright unspeakable. He has a way of bringing visual terror that sets a high bar for his peers in the industry the world over. It is too bad I ultimately found the larger plot more bland that it was hard for me to return to.

This is probably my favorite Junji Ito published in the past few years! The story really nailed the body horror AND existential dread. There was also some great character development, which I sometimes think is lost in some of Ito's works.

Absolutely BIZARRE!

Four people brought together to commit suicide, each time their attempt thwarted by some bizarre occurance, a character who has a premonition of it all, portal farming... its got everything you could want from Ito in a longer form story.

I enjoyed this one, more than the recent longer stories i've read by Ito recently.

Thank you so much NetGalley and VIZ Media for the opportunity to read my first Junji Ito manga! I'm not sure what I was expecting when I started this, but it sure wasn't where the story went - and I love it. I finished this hours ago and it's still on my mind. This creeped me out, made me think, it made me go WTF - everything I was expecting from Junji Ito. I can't wait to read more!

Junji Ito's stories have always been a mixed bag for me, but I liked Black Paradox. The characters are written fairly flatly, but Ito weaved enough of a compelling mystery to make me want to finish the story. It's definitely something I'd recommend to Ito fans, and it wasn't too complex nor too simple of a narrative to serve as a recommendation for a wider audience of horror and suspense fans.

This manga was so weird! But like in a good way and it forces you to think about this idea of what it means to be human. It also forces the reader to confront the unknown and the limit for human greed,

Ito's art style is fascinating - simple pen strokes that cultivate the horror and agony of knowing the end - whether it's yours or someone you know- and how much anxiety can honestly affect a person.

I'm super late on actually reading this and I've already purchased it for my library's graphic novel collection but...

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC!