Strange Pictures, Vol. 1

変な絵 [Hen na E] #1

by Uketsu, Aiba Noriyuki (Illustrator)

The chilling manga adaptation of Uketsu’s bestselling horror phenomenon, brought to life by artist Aiba Noriyuki.

For fans of Junji Ito: this eerier mystery unravels in chilling childlike sketches and obscure clues that will haunt you long after the last page.

From Japan’s breakout horror sensation comes a chilling new manga experience. Strange Pictures is the spine-tingling manga adaptation of Uketsu’s bestselling debut novel, brought vividly to life by artist Aiba Noriyuki. Uketsu – the enigmatic masked writer who has become one of Japan’s most talked-about authors – first captivated readers with a novel that sold in the millions. Now, the terror unfolds panel by panel.

At its core lie nine childlike sketches. A pregnant woman’s doodles on her blog conceal a dire warning. A boy’s simple drawing of his home hides a message no child should know. A murder victim’s final sketch becomes a clue that drags an amateur sleuth into a labyrinth of secrets. Each picture is innocent at first glance ­– yet when pieced together, they reveal a web of unsolved mysteries and shattered psyches.

For fans of Junji Ito and modern psychological horror, Strange Pictures transforms the mundane into the macabre. Some images fade, but these horrors will be etched in your memory.

Genres: Manga, Horror

176 pages, Paperback

First published October 3, 2024

About the author

Associated Names:
* Uketsu
* 雨穴
* อุเก็ตสึ (Thai Profile)

Reviews

[wayward jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

If someone knows where can i find this manga let me know! Thanks!!

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bah j’ai adoré vraiment hâte de voir ce que ça va donner la suite ! Pouvoir retrouver une trame semblable à celle de the strange house mais avec un style de dessins différents c’est que du bonheur !

[vi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Already read the book so I know I’m in for something great, but I don’t remember the details ups

[Frank Chillura (OhYouRead) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve read Strange Buildings, but I’ve been wanting to read Uketsu’s other books. Seeing that this follows the first book, it helped me to get more info on how he set it up. Seeing as how his third book is all based around houses and buildings made in order to kill someone, I like that the first one, as the title states, follows pictures that tell a hidden story.

I didn’t know that this would be releasing, because had I known, I would have tried to read the book first so I could see how they differ. Which I still plan to do. There was a bit of a cliffhanger ending, so I’m wondering how the second volume will come about.

This was really interesting and I’ll definitely continue.

Thank you to the publisher and Edelweiss for my gifted eARC.

[Katie Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Strange Pictures is a really intriguing thriller/horror story. I absolutely loved my read of this manga, the mystery is so well written and the art style looks so neat. Everything is coming together so nicely, this mystery is definitely one that has me hooked in a really solid way. It was very attention grabbing from the beginning, the set up of the blog entries and the pictures were very well done. I enjoyed reading about the characters piecing things together and when the pictures were solved, though it brought even more questions and mystery it felt so satisfying. Then the ending of the volume...wow. I'm so excited to read more from this manga series, I need answers! Thank you to Edelweiss and the publisher for my complimentary review copy.

[✩｡°⋆ Lala ⋆｡°✩ · Rating 3 out of 5]

✦•┈๑⋅⋯ 𝚂𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚎 𝙿𝚒𝚌𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎𝚜 𝚅𝚘𝚕 𝟷 by 𝚄𝚔𝚎𝚝𝚜𝚞 ⋯⋅๑┈•✦

➝ • 3/5 ☆ •

☆꧁✬◦°˚°◦..◦°˚°◦✬꧂☆

I liked this one, even if it didn’t totally hit the level I was hoping for. The art is genuinely good and fits the tone well, but some of the panel transitions felt a little awkward at times, like the flow wasn’t fully locked in.

The story itself is where it really works. It’s interesting, tense, and has that slow pull that makes you want to keep going. And the cliffhanger absolutely did its job. I enjoyed the read overall, but I expected a bit more from it.

Still excited to get to the novel version, especially now that I’ve seen the world in comic form.

☆꧁✬◦°˚°◦..◦°˚°◦✬꧂☆

If you like:
✔️ 𝙴𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚎 𝚟𝚒𝚜𝚞𝚊𝚕𝚜
✔️ 𝚂𝚕𝚘𝚠 𝚋𝚞𝚒𝚕𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚘𝚗
✔️ 𝙿𝚜𝚢𝚌𝚑𝚘𝚕𝚘𝚐𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕 𝚞𝚗𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚎
✔️ 𝙲𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚙𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚖𝚢𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚟𝚒𝚋𝚎𝚜
✔️ 𝚂𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕 𝚜𝚕𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚕𝚢 𝚘𝚏𝚏
✔️ 𝙲𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚏𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚎𝚛𝚜

📅 Pub Day: 𝙹𝚞𝚗𝚎 𝟷𝟼 𝟸𝟶𝟸𝟼 📚
💌 ARC gifted via 𝙴𝚍𝚎𝚕𝚠𝚎𝚒𝚜𝚜 from 𝚃𝚒𝚝𝚊𝚗 𝙼𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚊. All opinions are my own.
🗣 QOTD: Do cliffhanger endings make you excited or irrationally angry?

[Carly-ann Clements · Rating 5 out of 5]

[thank you Titan Comics for providing a review copy]

I am a big Uketsu fan and have already read Strange Pictures so I was so excited to experience their clever and unique story through a different medium. And boy, did it not disappoint.

Volume 1. Follows the first mystery in Strange Pictures. The story is exactly the same as Uketsu’s tradition novel but the use of constant images allows the investigation to flow and provide an even speedier read - impressive given the novel is also extraordinarily quick.

The manga is definitely a fun way to experience this murder mystery and I can’t wait to read volumes 2 and 3. It was a great refresher.

[Anna Maria D'Ambrosio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seppur io sia a conoscenza del fatto che questa storia non nasca come manga ma come “sketch-mystery”, qualcuno dica ad Uketsu che ha delle bellissime idee, ma che non ha decisamente l’arte della narrazione in forma di romanzo. Infatti, il manga - questo primo numero - mi ha convinta decisamente di più rispetto a come era accaduto con il libro pubblicato da Einaudi.
Non ci sono le ripetizioni a prova di scemə, le ingenuità sono minori e, quindi, ci si può godere la storia entrandoci per davvero, e rabbrividire con lei.

[Christian Luigi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meno interessante de "La strana casa" (il concept dell'horror coi disegni è un po' trito e ritrito, soprattutto dopo Teddy, almeno i disegni delle planimetrie di case erano più originali ed "enigmistici"), l'accoppiata scrittore-mangaka funziona molto bene, l'estetica e il ritmo sono giusti, forse troppo breve il volume, probabilmente per motivi editoriali (vorranno farne più possibili per un lavoro che richiederebbe meno pagine?). Generalmente, consigliato. Ma consiglio di più "La strana casa".

[Kamons · Rating 4 out of 5]

ถ่ายทอดจากนิยายเข้ามาเป็นรูปแบบมังงะได้ดีเลยเห็นภาพชัดเจน ไม่ต้องจินตนาการเยอะ สมมติว่าเราไม่ได้อ่านฉบับนิยายแล้วข้ามมาการ์ตูนก็น่าจะรู้สึกว่าน่าสนใจดี

[Nein · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's fun to read it. Waiting for next volume

[Lee Shain · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't think it matters how many times I have read this story, it never stops to amaze me

[Marika C. · Rating 5 out of 5]

il primo volume è molto fedele al libro 😎

[L ྀིྀི · Rating 5 out of 5]

Banger en manga aussi

[Jace Beleren · Rating 4 out of 5]

un vrai plaisir de replonger dans cet univers par un autre bout, par contre l'architecte va clairement devenir un tueur en série
sa façon de penser est bluffant e et flippante à la fois 😂

[Alessandro Pensi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interessante, ma l'impostazione è troppo simile al precedente manga di Uketsu, La strana casa

[Amanda K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great first volume to set up the rest of Strange Pictures.

[El · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,5 stars