*Spoilers*

Junji Ito’s horror brand is surreal, ridiculous, disgusting, disturbing, melancholic at parts, and outlandishly creative. The original Gyo was very much all those things, so how much does the anime adaptation by Ufotable measure up?

This adaptation is generally an original script, with the main concept of having “walking fish” and a couple of borrowed scenes from the manga to string together this Ufotable’s version of “Gyo”. The result is a fairly entertaining horror flick which looks like Junji Ito, is disgusting like Junji Ito, is screwed up like Junji Ito, is disturbing like Junji Ito, but is not Junji Ito.

Why is this?

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CHARACTERS

First major change- Kaori and Tadashi’s roles were reversed. Kaori is now the protagonist, and receives a major attitude makeover as well. The manga!Kaori was frankly, a bitch. She whined a lot, refused to kiss Tadashi unless he brushed his teeth, and needed a lot of rescuing. Manga!Kaori was weak, and felt like nothing more than a plot device. In that sense I personally liked anime!Kaori a lot more, and this made it a lot easier to sympathize with her. I read reviews where people were complaining about how anime!Kaori lacks character, but personally I think this is not true. She essentially took on manga!Tadashi’s attitude and characterization, and was a lot more mature, emphatic, and proactive in the OVA. I thought that the scene where she casually disposed of the rotting fish corpse in the villa really rocked, it was a testament to the sort of protagonist she is- a girl who isn’t afraid of getting her hands dirty.

You mean manga!Tadashi, the original Gyo protagonist? Sorry, demoted to extra!

Tadashi was originally a very sympathetic and interesting protagonist in Gyo ( manga ); and is one of Junji Ito’s more likable heroes. Despite manga!Kaori’s imperfections, he did not think twice about saving her, and was still willing to love her after she turned into a gas-bloated zombie. In all honesty, I do miss manga Tadashi, and I wish that he was given more screen-time. Unfortunately, the only glimpses of “Tadashi” we see are in anime!Kaori. A side effect of reversing their roles was the fact that Tadashi’s role was reduced to practically nothing, and he becomes the plot device to bolster Kaori’s character. ( Is this a reflection of Junji Ito’s flawed characterization in the manga? )

the most slice of life shot you’ll get in Gyo

Their relationship in the OVA is also far more tranquil and peaceful compared to the manga, so in that sense, some fans may not like how Kaori and Tadashi are portrayed as “too perfect”. This is actually a key factor into Junji Ito’s story brand; Junji Ito does not write “perfect”. His characters and circumstances are sometimes so deliberately flawed that they add to the grittiness and atmosphere of the story.

Every horror movie needs annoying characters whom you just *KNOW* are going to have horrible things happening to them just BECAUSE.

Exhibit A: Erika, skanky bitch who shags any guy who talks to her.

Erika’s purpose was honestly to fill Kaori’s original role as the “bloated zombie chick”. She is also meant as gratuitous fanservice- because never in my life would I imagine Junji Ito drawing naked, bouncy chicks and sex-scenes just for the heck of it. LOL, even the way she gets attacked by the infamous “GASHUNK” shark is fanservicey- her skirt gets torn, we see her skimpy underwear, and she runs away, boobs bouncing. She was entertaining while she lasted. Like a packet of potato chips. Empty food.

Yep

Exhibit B: Aki; plain-Jane side character meant to elicit pity

….Except she doesn’t elicit an ounce of pity from viewers and is completely irredeemable. Her purpose is to fill’s Tadashi’s scene ( the one where he falls into the pit ).

Kaori gets assistance from Shirakawa

Shirakawa is an original character who aids Kaori in her mission to rescue Tadashi. He is not a bad character and actually manages to be sympathetic towards the end. Still, there is not much to be said about him, he does not really add nor subtract to the plot.

Doctor Koyanagi

They retained Doctor Koyanagi, who is one of the original characters true to Junji Ito’s kooky style. However, he only features in a few brief scenes and is quickly put aside. ( I wanted to see his lovely assistant get animated, but they did not include her D: )

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PLOT

The timeline and events of the OVA is pretty similar to the original manga, albeit with different characters and a couple of altered/omitted scenes. Overall it had a good pace, and did not feel draggy. I would have liked them to expand on Doctor Koyanagi and his insanity to be honest; I felt as if it would have contributed to “flavoring” the OVA to feel more “Junji Ito”-ish.

They did retain the Circus scene, which is twisted and morbid enough. Unfortunately it did not feel as fleshed out as in the manga.

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OVERALL

I personally enjoyed the OVA. I watched it with no expectations other than to see Junji Ito’s grotesque creations brought to life on the anime screen, but die-hard fans who are hard-pressed for a faithful adaptation of Junji Ito’s Gyo may be disappointed at the alterations, which may have compromised on the overall Junji Ito feel of the story. However, as a standalone, it is entertaining enough.

There is a slightly different kind of despair in the OVA and the manga. I think that sticking to the original Gyo might result in a grittier, darker, and perhaps less forgiving anime- which is also a good thing ( given that this is Junji Ito we are talking about ).

I suppose, in essence, the OVA feels like a watered down ( in terms of horror ), but sexed-up version of Gyo. You see hit and miss scenes of perversion going on in parts of the OVA, which feels out of place in a Junji Ito story. Also, the grotesqueness of the “bloated-zombies” are not completely translated into the anime, perhaps due to the medium used ( less raw lines and no black and white ), so it doesn’t feel as scary. I even go as far as to say some: ( read, Tadashi ) look rather adorable. It can however; be genuinely disgusting, thanks to the sound effects as certain “pipes” enter certain “holes”.

I leave a few choice screen-caps to end my post.

Tadashi is quite an adorable zombie.

apocalyptic skies have never looked so lovely

Happy Gyo-time.

EDIT: BY THE WAY!

No “Gashunk” sound effect from shark.

I am disappoint.