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Franken Fran Omnibus #1
Franken Fran (Omnibus) Vol. 1-2
The fan-favorite horror comedy about a monster girl who loves to "fix" people's problems...causing new ones in the process!
Meet Fran, the finest creation of the brilliant mad scientist, Dr. Madaraki. When the "good" doctor goes missing, leaving Fran alone in a house full of stitched-up monsters and scientific equipment, who better to take up his scalpel? With a combination of enthusiasm, skill, and heart that just can't be beat, Fran wields mad science with a sunny disposition to solve the problems of the lonely, downtrodden and lovelorn people who come through her door. But the people seeking help aren't always what they seem, and Fran's solutions are rarely what they expect...!
Meet Fran, the finest creation of the brilliant mad scientist, Dr. Madaraki. When the "good" doctor goes missing, leaving Fran alone in a house full of stitched-up monsters and scientific equipment, who better to take up his scalpel? With a combination of enthusiasm, skill, and heart that just can't be beat, Fran wields mad science with a sunny disposition to solve the problems of the lonely, downtrodden and lovelorn people who come through her door. But the people seeking help aren't always what they seem, and Fran's solutions are rarely what they expect...!
398 pages, Paperback
First published February 16, 2016
2 people are currently reading
153 people want to read
About the author
Katsuhisa Kigitsu
42 books17 followersKatsuhisa Kigitsu (木々津克久 Kigitsu Katsuhisa) is a manga artist best known for his work on horror-comedy series Franken Fran (フランケン・ふらん Franken-Furan), about a mad scientist who tries to use her skills to do good, to disastrous results.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
December 19, 2023
This mashup of Frankenstein and The Island of Dr. Moreau revels in goofy and gross body horror that Junji Ito might produce if he were more of a humorist. It also owes an obvious debt to Osamu Tezuka's Black Jack, Volume 1 with air-headed mad scientist Fran Madaraki zipping around and performing unlicensed surgery on people who have been recently injured or killed through accidents, murder, suicide, etc. The results of her life-saving or -resurrecting work are often grotesque perversions of what the patient may have wanted or karmic retribution for evil they may have done.
It's madcap nonsense that requires total suspension of disbelief, but the stand-alone chapters are like potato chips for the eyes -- You can't read just one! -- but they are also empty calories for your brain. Fran is less a character than a convenient plot device for every story, but maybe she'll grow on me . . . or graft her brain to mine and take me over.
Each volume ends with super-short fast-fiction horror stories seemingly unrelated to Fran, but some of which have their own recurring characters: a girl with an eyepatch who slays monsters with giant scissors and a boy wearing a hat, scarf and long coat who sees dead people.
FOR REFERENCE:
Contents:
Franken Fran 1
• Episode 1. Brains
• Episode 2. Chrysalis
• Episode 3. Take to Pieces
• Episode 4. Cosmetic Surgery
• Episode 5. God & Dog
• Episode 6. Unhappy Birthday
• Episode 7. Hold Me Tight
• Extra Episode: Movie Star
• Tales of Evil: At the Scene of an Accident
• Tales of Evil: Out of Body
• Tales of Evil: Who Are You?
• Review
• Extra
Franken Fran, Vol. 2
• Episode 8. Beautiful World
• Episode 9. Fake
• Episode 10. Cockroach
• Episode 11. Snow Light
• Episode 12. Multiplies
• Episode 13. Multiplies²
• Episode 14. My Little Sister
• Extra Episode: Bloody Veronica
• Tales of Evil: Beauty
• Tales of Evil: Help
• Tales of Evil: Not Peeping
• Tales of Evil: Spirit Photography
• Tales of Evil: Stopped
• Tales of Evil: Criminal
• Tales of Evil: The Past
• Review
• Extra
It's madcap nonsense that requires total suspension of disbelief, but the stand-alone chapters are like potato chips for the eyes -- You can't read just one! -- but they are also empty calories for your brain. Fran is less a character than a convenient plot device for every story, but maybe she'll grow on me . . . or graft her brain to mine and take me over.
Each volume ends with super-short fast-fiction horror stories seemingly unrelated to Fran, but some of which have their own recurring characters: a girl with an eyepatch who slays monsters with giant scissors and a boy wearing a hat, scarf and long coat who sees dead people.
FOR REFERENCE:
Contents:
Franken Fran 1
• Episode 1. Brains
• Episode 2. Chrysalis
• Episode 3. Take to Pieces
• Episode 4. Cosmetic Surgery
• Episode 5. God & Dog
• Episode 6. Unhappy Birthday
• Episode 7. Hold Me Tight
• Extra Episode: Movie Star
• Tales of Evil: At the Scene of an Accident
• Tales of Evil: Out of Body
• Tales of Evil: Who Are You?
• Review
• Extra
Franken Fran, Vol. 2
• Episode 8. Beautiful World
• Episode 9. Fake
• Episode 10. Cockroach
• Episode 11. Snow Light
• Episode 12. Multiplies
• Episode 13. Multiplies²
• Episode 14. My Little Sister
• Extra Episode: Bloody Veronica
• Tales of Evil: Beauty
• Tales of Evil: Help
• Tales of Evil: Not Peeping
• Tales of Evil: Spirit Photography
• Tales of Evil: Stopped
• Tales of Evil: Criminal
• Tales of Evil: The Past
• Review
• Extra
May 22, 2024
"Aaah! And now we’ll be together forever. You’ll never lose me again. Now play nice. Daddy…"
Word of advice… if you need surgery or you need to reanimate the dead, I would go to someone else…
Word of advice… if you need surgery or you need to reanimate the dead, I would go to someone else…
October 7, 2025
Vol. 1 - We follow the strange adventures of Fran, the stitched creation and daughter of the infamous mad doctor Dr. Madaraki who has recently disappeared from their home with other living creations. However, Fran happens to have her father’s unorthodox science skills and is happy to use them to help those in need for the right price. Some of her adventures include a greedy father, a vain high school beauty, a yacht birthday party and her starring in a strange horror film.
Vol. 2 - The second volume sees Fran with her helpful stitched hands getting involved with more situations such as helping a struggling artist with his vision, a cockroach infestation, a love triangle and her learning she has a little sister whose goals are the opposite of her. There’s also a handful of two-page horror chapters after the main story.
“Franken Fran” is a very surprising horror manga that does have its own surprises and scares. Her main plot-line of helping others are a real eyeful as they mainly can get a bit off color and even shocking, even if the formula gets a bit predictable. To me, its main positive is that it oozes a lot of twisted body horror that really gives you the chills, a bit like Ito’s art yet still interesting to look at.
A very odd but frightful manga that has plenty of art and story for manga and horror readers to enjoy, and maybe leave them awfully squeamish after seeing what’s inside these stitches. B+ (83%/Very Good)
Vol. 2 - The second volume sees Fran with her helpful stitched hands getting involved with more situations such as helping a struggling artist with his vision, a cockroach infestation, a love triangle and her learning she has a little sister whose goals are the opposite of her. There’s also a handful of two-page horror chapters after the main story.
“Franken Fran” is a very surprising horror manga that does have its own surprises and scares. Her main plot-line of helping others are a real eyeful as they mainly can get a bit off color and even shocking, even if the formula gets a bit predictable. To me, its main positive is that it oozes a lot of twisted body horror that really gives you the chills, a bit like Ito’s art yet still interesting to look at.
A very odd but frightful manga that has plenty of art and story for manga and horror readers to enjoy, and maybe leave them awfully squeamish after seeing what’s inside these stitches. B+ (83%/Very Good)
January 30, 2025
These stories aren't scary at all, though some of them do get existential. If anything, they're very silly. To be honest, I'm not the right audience for this series. I'm not into body horror nor do I share the same sense of humor as the mangaka so I find it downright tiresome.
April 10, 2021
I'm really interested in this series, but there are two problems: I know it contains both of my highly specific phobias, and the covers are way too embarrassing to purchase in public. I guess whether I get around to it depends on how brave I actually am, in more ways than one.
UPDATE: I just ordered it, so that's one thing down.
UPDATE 2: A pretty good manga, but be warned that there is a lot of explicit gore and nudity (though it's nowhere near as sexual as the cover would have you believe). It looks like it got my phobias out of the way in this volume, so in that respect I'm less nervous about continuing the series.
UPDATE: I just ordered it, so that's one thing down.
UPDATE 2: A pretty good manga, but be warned that there is a lot of explicit gore and nudity (though it's nowhere near as sexual as the cover would have you believe). It looks like it got my phobias out of the way in this volume, so in that respect I'm less nervous about continuing the series.
January 23, 2025
Well I did say I wanted something different and boy howdy is this different imagine the Frankenstein monster doing surgeries that most won’t or can’t do this definitely Has or tries to have a horror comedy element at times it just goes so far over the top that it’s just absolutely ridiculous and the times I feel it’s just tacked on just to be the Gora fact that it just makes me roll my eyes at it if you’re not a fan of war this is definitely not some thing I would recommend either to be honest I got bored with it about halfway through the first volume so I know there’s fans of the series out there I’m definitely gonna pass on this I just found it to be absurd
June 3, 2025
Gory, ridiculous, and so funny 😂 I need more!
August 18, 2016
This series is probably not for the faint of heart. It contains my gruesome depictions of corpses, internal organs removed from and/or spilling out of the body, and also almost every chapter’s ending plays some sort of mind game on you. If you enjoy those kinds of things, then this series will be right up your alley.
April 2, 2017
Imagine Frankenstein's monster is a do-gooder Pollyana with the same artistic flair as the good doctor. Funny,twisted, shocking,surprising and thought provoking.
March 19, 2017
I stumbled across this at a bookstore downstate, spine facing outward. When I picked it up and saw the cover, I immediately had second thoughts, assuming it would be just mindless fanservice like, say, Monster Musume...but it wasn't shrink-wrapped like that was. Besides, I already had it in my hand; immediately shoving it back on the shelf would've seemed suspicious. So I flipped through it a bit--yeah, there's fanservice here, but the main focus is weird horror, which is right up my alley. In truth, with all the gore and the not-infrequent nudity, it probably should have been sealed, but if it had, I would've missed out on a really enjoyable series.
The best way I can describe Franken Fran is that it's a mix of Petshop of Horrors and House, M.D., with more than a hint of Tales From the Crypt. In layman's terms, what we have here is an episodic series of (mostly unconnected) horror vignettes, with a heavy focus on the grotesque and the bizarre. All of them center on someone coming to Fran (or sometimes looking for the doctor who made her), for some kind of medical treatment, which always ends with a sickening twist. Some are better than others, but by and large, if you've go a strong stomach, and you don't mind a short-form format to your horror stories, there's a lot to like here.
The art is nicely detailed, and features the best-drawn "aberration"-type monsters (to steal a term from D&D), I've seen in manga, this side of something written by Junji Ito.
In terms of characters, the only two prominent recurring ones are Fran herself (a delightfully chipper, yet perpetually tired Frankenstein's monster-esque creation with incredible surgical skills), and Okita (a former patient of hers, whose head has been grafted onto the body of a house cat). There are a few other members of her Addams Family-style household who pop up semi-regularly, but they usually stick to the background. Thankfully, Fran is a likable enough character (as long as you're not bothered by her odd vocal tic of drawing out random words), and Okita is bizarrely chill and even grateful for what Fran's done to/for him. His character embodies an interesting counterpoint to all those whose lives are ruined by Fran's attempts to help.
As for the stories, like I said, they aren't all winners, but they are all memorable. From mob bosses, to millionaires, to average high school students, to creepy stalkers, there's a wide variety to the clients who come to Fran for assistance, so you'll never quite know what to expect with each tale. So long as you don't mind the lack of a larger narrative tying things together, Franken Fran has a lot to offer, in small chunks.
This series clearly isn't for everyone, but if you like your horror visceral, stomach-churning, and darkly humorous, chances are you'll enjoy Franken Fran. It's not all sex and fanservice, like the cover would have you believe.
The best way I can describe Franken Fran is that it's a mix of Petshop of Horrors and House, M.D., with more than a hint of Tales From the Crypt. In layman's terms, what we have here is an episodic series of (mostly unconnected) horror vignettes, with a heavy focus on the grotesque and the bizarre. All of them center on someone coming to Fran (or sometimes looking for the doctor who made her), for some kind of medical treatment, which always ends with a sickening twist. Some are better than others, but by and large, if you've go a strong stomach, and you don't mind a short-form format to your horror stories, there's a lot to like here.
The art is nicely detailed, and features the best-drawn "aberration"-type monsters (to steal a term from D&D), I've seen in manga, this side of something written by Junji Ito.
In terms of characters, the only two prominent recurring ones are Fran herself (a delightfully chipper, yet perpetually tired Frankenstein's monster-esque creation with incredible surgical skills), and Okita (a former patient of hers, whose head has been grafted onto the body of a house cat). There are a few other members of her Addams Family-style household who pop up semi-regularly, but they usually stick to the background. Thankfully, Fran is a likable enough character (as long as you're not bothered by her odd vocal tic of drawing out random words), and Okita is bizarrely chill and even grateful for what Fran's done to/for him. His character embodies an interesting counterpoint to all those whose lives are ruined by Fran's attempts to help.
As for the stories, like I said, they aren't all winners, but they are all memorable. From mob bosses, to millionaires, to average high school students, to creepy stalkers, there's a wide variety to the clients who come to Fran for assistance, so you'll never quite know what to expect with each tale. So long as you don't mind the lack of a larger narrative tying things together, Franken Fran has a lot to offer, in small chunks.
This series clearly isn't for everyone, but if you like your horror visceral, stomach-churning, and darkly humorous, chances are you'll enjoy Franken Fran. It's not all sex and fanservice, like the cover would have you believe.
July 31, 2022
Franken Fran von Katsuhisa Kigitsu ist purer Bodyhorror, Körper werden zerhackt, zerrissen, neu zusammengestellt, ein Kopf wird am Körper einer Katze befestigt und alles mit guten Absichten. Das alles erinnert etwas an Re:Animator oder auch die frühen David Cronenberg Filme. Jedes Kapitel erzählt eine andere Geschichte und bauen selten aufeinander auf, wir bekommen Liebe, Rache, Verbrechen hier wird sehr viel Abwechslung geboten, wie es sich für eine Anthologie Serie gehört.
Die Zeichnungen sind sehr gut, auch die Blutigen Gore Szenen und davon gibt es einige sehen wirklich großartig aus. Die Monster Designs sind Abwechslungsreich und sehr gut gelungen und Fran ist trotz ihrer Narben und Bolzen im Kopf sehr Niedlich.
Die Hauptfiguren bekommen leider sehr wenig Hintergrund Story, auch wenn einige davon wirklich gut sind, bei den Nebenfiguren, ist alles Bund gemischt, von Idioten und Verrückten bis zu Netten und liebenswerten Figuren bekommen wir einiges geboten. Fran selbst ist ein toller Charakter, sie ist Liebenswert, verrückt und ihre Experimente, macht sie nicht, weil sie Böse ist, nein sie will nur Helfen.
Franken Fran ist makaber, blutig und auch komisch, und welche Kreaturen sie erschafft ist wirklich einfallsreich und genial, dazu schaut aber selbst in die Bücher rein. Wer Dr. Herbert West mag wird Fran Lieben. Von mir ☆☆☆☆☆
Story:
Hauptcharakter dieser Horror-Komödie ist Fran, eine aus Haut- und Körperteilen zusammengenähte Schönheit. Ihre Fähigkeiten in anatomischer Rekonstruktion mithilfe von diversen Techniken sind enorm und ab und an recht komisch und zum Teil auch gruselig. Diese Fähigkeiten erlernte sie von ihrem Vater/ Schöpfer, dem weltbesten Chirurgen Dr. Naomitsu Madaraki. Während seiner Abwesenheit hat sie seine Arbeit und sein Zuhause übernommen und führt dessen Arbeit weiterhin fort.
Die Zeichnungen sind sehr gut, auch die Blutigen Gore Szenen und davon gibt es einige sehen wirklich großartig aus. Die Monster Designs sind Abwechslungsreich und sehr gut gelungen und Fran ist trotz ihrer Narben und Bolzen im Kopf sehr Niedlich.
Die Hauptfiguren bekommen leider sehr wenig Hintergrund Story, auch wenn einige davon wirklich gut sind, bei den Nebenfiguren, ist alles Bund gemischt, von Idioten und Verrückten bis zu Netten und liebenswerten Figuren bekommen wir einiges geboten. Fran selbst ist ein toller Charakter, sie ist Liebenswert, verrückt und ihre Experimente, macht sie nicht, weil sie Böse ist, nein sie will nur Helfen.
Franken Fran ist makaber, blutig und auch komisch, und welche Kreaturen sie erschafft ist wirklich einfallsreich und genial, dazu schaut aber selbst in die Bücher rein. Wer Dr. Herbert West mag wird Fran Lieben. Von mir ☆☆☆☆☆
Story:
Hauptcharakter dieser Horror-Komödie ist Fran, eine aus Haut- und Körperteilen zusammengenähte Schönheit. Ihre Fähigkeiten in anatomischer Rekonstruktion mithilfe von diversen Techniken sind enorm und ab und an recht komisch und zum Teil auch gruselig. Diese Fähigkeiten erlernte sie von ihrem Vater/ Schöpfer, dem weltbesten Chirurgen Dr. Naomitsu Madaraki. Während seiner Abwesenheit hat sie seine Arbeit und sein Zuhause übernommen und führt dessen Arbeit weiterhin fort.
May 25, 2025
This manga certainly isn't for everyone, and with the cover looking like that I understand people's hesitance at picking it up. I certainly got a look when I picked it up at my local used bookstore!
But the humor mixed with horrific elements really hits for me. I love Fran as a character, her shaky speech and her straaanngee way of speaking only makes her more endeared to me. Her mentality of saving lives by just... ruining them for good is so fun!
It does have a lot of body horror, and not just with human bodies! I don't find it scary as much as I find it funny. I would call this manga very cute, though I know not many others would call it that (lol).
If you like Soichi or Gyo from Junji Ito, I think this manga is up your alley. It's a mix of silly characters with well-drawn horror!
Now if only the cover weren't so embarrassing to hold in public.
But the humor mixed with horrific elements really hits for me. I love Fran as a character, her shaky speech and her straaanngee way of speaking only makes her more endeared to me. Her mentality of saving lives by just... ruining them for good is so fun!
It does have a lot of body horror, and not just with human bodies! I don't find it scary as much as I find it funny. I would call this manga very cute, though I know not many others would call it that (lol).
If you like Soichi or Gyo from Junji Ito, I think this manga is up your alley. It's a mix of silly characters with well-drawn horror!
Now if only the cover weren't so embarrassing to hold in public.
June 28, 2022
i don't like the way goodreads has you review manga. i could individually review each volume but i read manga in one chunk and rarely space it out.
i like disconnected horror anthologies. don't let the cover fool you any nudity in this just further contrasts the horror. junji ito lets you sit with uncomfort and disease but franken fran throws the next story at you faster than you can handle since it's all episodic. it can be silly and terrifying and balance both at the same time. my personal favorite pieces are based on real diseases with just that extra hint of plausibility. if you don't want to read them all, i'd at least suggest the first volume.
i like disconnected horror anthologies. don't let the cover fool you any nudity in this just further contrasts the horror. junji ito lets you sit with uncomfort and disease but franken fran throws the next story at you faster than you can handle since it's all episodic. it can be silly and terrifying and balance both at the same time. my personal favorite pieces are based on real diseases with just that extra hint of plausibility. if you don't want to read them all, i'd at least suggest the first volume.
October 25, 2023
Don't be fooled by the cover. This is excellent horror comedy, and Fran is fully clothed.
Fran is an undead genius mad surgeon whose unique understanding of the concept of "healing" provides deliciously absurd comedy. If anything, Franken Fran reminded me a bit of Dorohedoro. The art's great, too. I just wished Seven Seas had printed this in the larger trim size they use for top series like Don't Call it Mystery and Homunculus. Great Halloween fodder!
Fran is an undead genius mad surgeon whose unique understanding of the concept of "healing" provides deliciously absurd comedy. If anything, Franken Fran reminded me a bit of Dorohedoro. The art's great, too. I just wished Seven Seas had printed this in the larger trim size they use for top series like Don't Call it Mystery and Homunculus. Great Halloween fodder!
August 28, 2024
Broke out reviews for both issues individually. Franken Fran (FF) is a teenage 'girl'(?) who has extensive knowledge of surgery. She takes it upon herself to 'help' people by doing surgery on them that no one else can/will do on then. FF herself seems to be made of 'patchwork' flesh (similar to Sally in The Nightmare Before Christmas). Extreme images of surgery and torture.
April 14, 2018
Its fun, entertaining and yet so twisted that it hits all the right notes for me personally.
Amazing casual pickup and read + the shorter - non connected chapters make it all the more appealing.
Highly recommended
Amazing casual pickup and read + the shorter - non connected chapters make it all the more appealing.
Highly recommended
August 12, 2023
This was a fantastic body horror manga. It's very bloody, despite what the covers will have you believe. There is one scene of diet culture that made me roll my eyes, but other than that this was a creepy bloody good time.
December 26, 2025
Beautifully detailed artwork, maybe sometimes a bit too detailed for the subject matter. 😁 Terrifically quirky main character working tirelessly to help people and advance science! Very inventive stories with interesting twists!
May 8, 2017
Hysterical and gross.
July 11, 2017
Kombinace černého humoru s až groteskním body horrorem (většinou doslova) málokdy zklame.
October 24, 2017
Reminiscent of Junji Ito, but more lighthearted.
October 28, 2023
Funny and gross. Great Halloween read. Not for the faint of heart.
April 1, 2024
Really liked how nearly every chapter was self contained
March 30, 2016
When I found out that Franken Fran was licensed in the US, I was mildly surprised! I mean, it's my favorites horror-comedy manga (not that many manga can fall in that category) and all, but it has some pretty graphic and heavy stuff that occasionally borders on the tasteless. Either way, I'm glad that it's here, and collected in an omnibus format too! The translation's a little different from the scans I'm used to, specifically Fran's voice, but I can't complain! I recommend this to anyone who can stomach some serious gory shit.
July 27, 2020
Fran is such a nightmare.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews