Remina (ARC Review)

Even if you’re not at all familiar with horror manga, you may still have heard of Junji Ito, whose disturbing stories have made him the most known writer and illustrator of the genre.

When a scientist discovers a new planet, freshly emerged from a wormhole far away in space, he names it lovingly after his own daughter, Remina. The planet gains fame as it quickly moves closer and closer to Earth, but when it becomes clear that the thing is dangerous and seemingly hell-bent on consuming Earth, blame for the planet’s wrath falls on its namesake’s shoulders and Remina finds herself fighting for her life. A strange ride of cosmic horror and a story about both planetary and personal stardom, Remina was an interesting choice as my first foray into both Ito’s work and the world of horror manga.

Cosmic horror is not usually a category I reach for because I know that it can get weird, sometimes in a good way but often in an unbelievable way. Ito creates a story that is wholly original, but also very out there, and a certain level of suspension of disbelief is necessary in order to follow along. Although the idea of the story is indeed horrifying, the fear dissipates as the concepts become harder and harder to grasp, growing most absurd and outlandish as the novel progresses. 

Match this with some almost-obnoxiously obvious themes about fame and fan culture, often too-on-the-nose and exposition-heavy dialogue (that could be, to be fair, somewhat excused by translation), and a main character that is so devoid of personality that her lack of characteristics became her main trait, and Remina seems like nothing special.

And yet…

There are so many subpar situations in this story, but somehow I still wholeheartedly see the appeal of Ito’s work. Although it mostly misses its mark, the plot still gets kudos for its wild originality. And the visual aspect of the manga, the crux of Ito’s success from what I understand, is what makes it. Dynamic poses and incredible detail in both characters and settings are able to make the blandness of the black and white frames turn into something incredibly interesting. Above all, Ito’s ability to capture the grotesqueness of human facial expressions is unbelievable and will leave a lasting impression on me that has me wanting more of his work despite all of Remina’s flaws. 

I rated Remina 3 out of 5 stars. 

Thank you to Edelweiss and Viz Media for an early copy in exchange for an honest review!