Uzumaki

In the town of Kurouzu-cho, Kirie Goshima lives a fairly normal life with her family. As she walks to the train station one day to meet her boyfriend, Shuuichi Saito, she sees his father staring at a snail shell in an alley. Thinking nothing of it, she mentions the incident to Shuuichi, who says that his father has been acting weird lately. Shuuichi reveals his rising desire to leave the town with Kirie, saying that the town is infected with spirals.

But his father's obsession with the shape soon proves deadly, beginning a chain of horrific and unexplainable events that causes the residents of Kurouzu-cho to spiral into madness.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Saitou, Shuuichi Main

Miki, Shinichiro Japanese

Goshima, Kirie Main

Satake, Uki Japanese

Kurotani, Azami ing

Ise, Mariya Japanese

Katayama, Tokuo ing

Matsuzaki, Katsutoshi Japanese

Yamaguchi, Mitsuru ing

Yamaguchi, Kappei Japanese

Maruyama, Chie ing

Kobayashi, Ai Japanese

Saitou, Toshio ing

Matsuyama, Takashi Japanese

Tsumura, Kazuki ing

Tachibana, Tatsumaru Japanese

Kujo, Eri ing

Horie, Yui Japanese

Togawa ing

Odagaki, Yuta Japanese

Terashima-Furuta, Maki Producer

Nagahama, Hiroshi Director, Storyboard, Theme Song Lyrics, In-Between Animation, Key Animation, Animation Director

Moriyama, Yuuji Director

Nagura, Yasushi Sound Director

Reviews

Jun 1, 2025

MooBouBies

Recommended

People made a big stink about the animations drop in quality after episode 1 when this first came out. I won't lie, it definitely drops off, and its pretty horrible in places, but id say it fits the corny horror vibe of Junji Ito very well. The vibe I got from the beginning was more of a horror comedy mix, at least I found myself laughing at most of the creepy things from the start, so the animation being stilted was more of a plus than a downside for me in that regard. Then again, Im really not much of a stickler for "good" animation ... generally, so if its a problem for you then fair enough.

I think people may take Junji Ito a bit too seriously if they think he was robbed by this adaptation. He's a bit like Stephen King in that he pumps out a ton of horror and his work has a surprising amount of depth, but hes not afraid to make you laugh and there's a sort of whimsical absurdity to what happens in his work.

That comedy also makes the disturbing parts all the more unsettling when they finally do hit. Different people may find different parts disturbing, but for me episode 3 was where things really started to freak me out (something that hasn't happened for me with horror media for a very long time) and I was fully with Kirie chan in experiencing the horrors of this world.

Id also like to praise Ito's sense of the balance between lore and horror. He keeps the lore simple and never lets the show get boring by discussing it too much. You're getting most of what you need to know through the imagery.

I was very pleasantly surprised by how much I liked this and how well it maintained its unique atmosphere given the amount of bad press it got, and id recommend it to anyone looking for a good short horror anime.

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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May 25, 2025

emberreviews

Mixed Feelings

Uzumaki is one of those rare, or at least used to be rare, instances of an anime immediately becoming infamous because of its production issues, and while I’d be remiss to gloss over the very obvious drops in quality, I still think there’s enough here for it to be a compelling horror series. The overall vibe of an entire town going batshit crazy due to internal forces they seem to have no control over was a perfect match for this body horror extravaganza, and the moments where the artwork manages to shine through delivered some exceptionally creepy and gruesome imagery, occasionally leaving me cringing from ... the imagined pain. It also nailed the more absurdly comedic aspects of these horrifying events in a manner similar to the works of Tsutomu Mizushima’s such as Another and Mayoiga, managing to keep the tone from stagnating while still keeping the tension high.
But, as I said, there is no denying that this production is a textbook example of reasons why David Zaslav is going to Hell. Some of this stuff is just plain laughable, and not in the intentional way I mentioned earlier, completely deflating the tension from an otherwise dramatic moment. I also found Kirie to me mostly uncompelling as the lead character, though Shuuichi’s doomer resignation helped bolster the overall sense of dread. Is it better than the source material? No, not even close, and maybe I was just in full cope mode while watching it, but this is not a completely broken series front to back. Try it out for yourself when you’re in the mood for some eerie, Lovecraftian horror.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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May 7, 2025

LegoC97

Not Recommended

60-SECOND REVIEWS

Look how they massacred my boy! My sweet, spirally snailboy!

Junji Ito is an auteur and Uzumaki is perhaps his greatest creation. And, boy, was I looking forward to this for YEARS since that initial announcement. Junji Ito has never once had a good adaptation of any of his works, but maybe MAYBE this would be the one.

And then to pull off one of the worst bait and switches I've ever seen, releasing a first episode which was fantastic and everything I ever hoped and dreamed it would be. Maybe a little rushed, but that's okay. Finally, a great adaptation! And then episode ... 2 released, then 3, then 4. Episode 1 is a strong 8/10 and worth a watch. The rest is a 3/10.

You know, perhaps the real spiraling horror is getting excited for every new Junji Ito adaptation only to be let down time and again.

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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