The Stories That Really Gave Me the Psychological Heebie Jeebies
Junji Ito’s short stories and the twisted tales of terror (try saying that five times fast) that got to me most of all!
Strolling through an FYE store at the mall at 2pm on a Wednesday, I saw the first book I’d collect from Junji Ito. Once I opened the cover of Shiver, my dark little horror encrusted heart fell fast and hard (especially once I tripped over an overly decorative advertisement stand).
Right then and there I secretly pledged undying cult-like loyalty to the horror stories of Junji Ito (yes, I say this for dramatic purposes, but if anyone is starting a cult around this guy, count me in).
The Enigma of Amigara Fault (short story included at the end of Gyo)
This story is definitely a slow burn, but the final image literally makes you stop, narrow your eyes, screw up your face, question if you’re seeing it wrong, and then realize you’re seeing it correctly. Read the entire story to understand what I mean. You won’t regret it!
Greased (originally published as Glyceride, final story of the Shiver anthology)
If you spent the first day of puberty feeling as though you had tiny rocks underneath your skin (sometimes called pimples), then this story is about a thousand times worse.
Hellstar Remina
It’s one thing to come face to face with someone who may have an ax and may or may not be a murderer – there’s hope for escape. However, if the planet you happen to currently inhabit is next on the list for a sentient, star-sized planetary giant, then…yeah, you’re pretty screwed. Let’s just say if you’ve seen every Alien movie currently available, and don’t mind that most of the characters don’t make it, you’ll love Hellstar Remina.
The Whispering Woman (final story in Fragments of Horror anthology)
Indecision. Not an uncommon occurrence. The level it affects Mayumi is down right debilitating. The story ends well…I think.
This short story by Junji Ito empathizes with anyone who has felt the particular pang of this pit of dread knows it well, especially when you have to decide on breakfast, lunch, and dinner…every day…for the rest of your life.
The Long Dream (included in Shiver anthology)
This is a short story that Junji Ito himself said he had made up in junior high or high school after a discussion he had with his sister,
“It was the idea that when a person dreams, it’s just a moment. That no matter how long the dream might be, objectively, the time you’re actually dreaming is a mere instant. I found this interesting, the difference between real time and subjective time… (p. 315, Shiver)”
The thought experiment presented in this story was particularly irresistible. Sleeping through the night and feeling as though your dream lasted one year, ten years, one thousand years…a millenia? Now, make that dream a nightmare, and anyone can understand why this situation is a specific sort of hell. Sweet dreams!
The Face Burglar (Originally published in Monthly Halloween, December 1987).
Having been a twin since the day I and the doppelganger who passes for my sister were born, it’s sometimes been very surreal to share a face with someone. Now…if someone STOLE my face, then I probably made the mistake of getting drunk in a foreign country with the wrong crowd. Either that or I bumped into a character named Kamei in this short story by Junji Ito.