Uzumakiwas one of the most hotly-anticipated anime adaptations in years, hyped as one of the most faithful adaptations of Junji Ito’s most famous manga. Still, episode #2’s release quickly hurt fan perception of the anime. The show’s noticeable drop in animation quality was remarked upon by several now-deleted posts by Jason DeMarco, co-founder of Toonami from hisBlueskyaccount. While it hardly offers a concrete explanation, the stiff animation and furious fan reaction overUzumakiepisode #2 and the rest of its run is evident in the community.
Junji Ito’s original 1998 manga forUzumakiis a three-volume series that has attained critical acclaim for its haunting imagery and eldritch worldbuilding with Kurouzu-cho’s spiral curse. The series is easily the most talked-about creation from the manga horror master, so the expectation from viewers, and in all likelihood, the animators, was that the show could be handled with care. However, given the reaction to the quality of theUzumakianime, this will likely be seen as the latesttrend of quality drops in the medium.
Why Fans Are So Upset About Uzumaki Episode 2 Explained
Spiraling Out of Control
Jason DeMarco posted three separate comments to address theUzumakianime’s noticeable quality drop, sparking fan outrage, saying that the viewers have a right to be annoyed and disappointed by it. The comments vaguely address the actions of “just one or two people” hampering production, that DeMarco couldn’t talk about what happened, and that they as a whole were “screwed over” leaving them few options. TheUzumakianime’s animation, such as the awkward movement in the lighthouse stairwell scene or the distractingly bad motion rendered in the “Twisted Souls” final scenes, is hard to overlook.
It’s fine, we knew this would happen. I can’t talk about what went down but we were screwed over and the options were A) not finish and air nothing and call it a loss, B) Just finish and air ep 1 and leave it incomplete or C) run all four, warts and all. Out of respect for the hard work we chose C.
After waiting so long, it makes sense people would be mad. Unfortunately I can’t tell them who to blame it on… but someone is definitely at fault here, and we all just had to do our best when things imploded. Maybe others would have made different choices. We did the best we could with what we had.
But again, a lot of ppl worked very hard on this show and I didn’t think the actions of just one or two people should be the reason it never saw the light of day. Maybe that’s the wrong choice, I truly don’t know. But those ppl have a right to be annoyed and disappointed. I’m glad you are digging it
DeMarco talks about how, despite these issues, there were options to cancel production and air nothing, finish and air episode #1 and leave it incomplete, or run all four, “warts and all.” This sets viewers up for disappointment in the rest of the anime and is a far steeper drop in quality thanNinja KamuiorThe Promised Neverlandseason 2. Fans feel outraged because theUzumakianime leveraged multiple iconic moments rendered in the first episode to overpromise and underdeliver, with the only explanations being vague finger-pointing.
Uzumaki Is Still Junji Ito’s Best Anime Adaptation, Despite The Animation Quality Dip
It Could Still Be Worse
As brilliant as Junji Ito’s manga is, anime adaptations have often fell short in terms of animation qualit, withUzumakistanding as another example of diminishing returns on its anime adaptations. It’s a strong case for why certain manga are difficult to transfer to the animated medium, such asBerserkandVagabond, due to uniquely high-quality storytelling practically made to thrive on the page and not on the screen. WithJunji Ito Collectionfrom 2018 andJunji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre, the prevailing criticism lies in its animation, with characters often feeling like lifeless adaptations of their popular manga.
Uzumaki Already Ruined One Important Character in Just One Episode
For the most part, Uzumaki is living up to the hype, but one change has completely ruined one of the story’s most important characters.
UnlikeUzumakiepisode #1, there are hardly any great moments in other Junji Ito adaptations for similar reasons to why episode #2 ofUzumakiwas poorly received. Moments likeIce Cream Busfromthe newly-releasedAlleycollectionfall flat despite reasonably strong voice acting, and it loses its gravitas compared to the horrifying still paneling of the original manga.Uzumakiis still thebest Junji Ito adaptation because of its strong first impressions, but the bar, unlike the one set by his manga, was not placed very high in anime form.
Uzumaki: Spiral into Horror
Cast
Uzumaki: Spiral into Horror is an adaptation of Junji Ito’s acclaimed manga, directed by Hiroshi Nagahama. The series unfolds in the town of Kurôzu-cho where inexplicable events related to spirals plague the inhabitants, leading to terror and madness. Highlighting the psychological and supernatural, the show follows high school student Kirie Goshima and her boyfriend, Shuichi Saito, as they confront the spiraling horrors that engulf their town.
