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Witches / 魔女 #1-2
Witches: The Complete Collection
AN AWARD-WINNING COLLECTION OF INTERWOVEN TALES OF WITCHCRAFT!
On a visit to the capital of a small country in the far west of Asia, a British girl named Nicola falls in love. The object of her affection is Mimar, a young man who works at a bazaar—yet despite her attempts, he turns her down. Upon returning home to England, the ache of her unrequited love festers. After years spent obtaining wealth, fame, and the Secret of the World, Nicola returns to the bazaar to exact her deadly revenge upon Mimar and those he holds dearest.
This story is one of many in this haunting collection that features tales of witches and dark magic set around the globe and in outer space. Winner of the Excellence Prize at the 2004 Japan Media Arts Festival, Witches is written and illustrated by Daisuke Igarashi, the critically acclaimed author of Children of the Sea.
On a visit to the capital of a small country in the far west of Asia, a British girl named Nicola falls in love. The object of her affection is Mimar, a young man who works at a bazaar—yet despite her attempts, he turns her down. Upon returning home to England, the ache of her unrequited love festers. After years spent obtaining wealth, fame, and the Secret of the World, Nicola returns to the bazaar to exact her deadly revenge upon Mimar and those he holds dearest.
This story is one of many in this haunting collection that features tales of witches and dark magic set around the globe and in outer space. Winner of the Excellence Prize at the 2004 Japan Media Arts Festival, Witches is written and illustrated by Daisuke Igarashi, the critically acclaimed author of Children of the Sea.
392 pages, Paperback
First published May 3, 2022
59 people are currently reading
1143 people want to read
About the author
Daisuke Igarashi
48 books165 followersDaisuke Igarashi (五十嵐 大介, Igarashi Daisuke) is a Japanese cartoonist, acclaimed for his refined art style and philosophical themes. His manga often use sci-fi or magical elements to touch on the relation between mankind and nature.
Igarashi began his professional career in 1993 on the pages of the magazine 'Monthly Afternoon'. Therein, he published the stories composing Hanashippanashi (1993-1996), a few other shorts collected in the volume Sora Tobi Tamashii (2002), as well as his first minor success, the series Little Forest (2003-2005).
In 2003 the author started a fruitful collaboration with the alternative manga magazine 'Monthly Ikki', in which he serialised his most famous works to date: the anthological Witches (2003-2004) and Children of the Sea (2006-2011). Both series were awarded an Excellence Prize at the Japan Media Arts Festival, respectively in 2004 and 2009.
Igarashi's latest works are Umwelt (2017), collecting short stories appeared in various magazines between 2004 and 2014, and the 5-volume long manga Designs (2016-2018).
Igarashi began his professional career in 1993 on the pages of the magazine 'Monthly Afternoon'. Therein, he published the stories composing Hanashippanashi (1993-1996), a few other shorts collected in the volume Sora Tobi Tamashii (2002), as well as his first minor success, the series Little Forest (2003-2005).
In 2003 the author started a fruitful collaboration with the alternative manga magazine 'Monthly Ikki', in which he serialised his most famous works to date: the anthological Witches (2003-2004) and Children of the Sea (2006-2011). Both series were awarded an Excellence Prize at the Japan Media Arts Festival, respectively in 2004 and 2009.
Igarashi's latest works are Umwelt (2017), collecting short stories appeared in various magazines between 2004 and 2014, and the 5-volume long manga Designs (2016-2018).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 148 reviews
May 4, 2022
Top-tier artwork, even in the stories that come across as slightly underbaked. Igarashi's art is sketchy yet exquisitely detailed, full of lovingly rendered animals and natural landscapes interspersed with black-and-white psychedelia and some extremely upsetting body horror. The sense of awe, danger, and spiritual mysticism throughout this volume is exactly what I want from "witch stories", too; these aren't Halloween characters with magic wands and pointy hats, but women who are powerfully connected to nature, the sensory/sensual, and the "world beyond words".
July 3, 2023
Interesting, inspiring, but too messy and too shallow.
This is a collection of stories about witches. It successfully explores the themes of what most people would call "spirituality", contrasting instinct with rationality, thoughts with experience, humanity with nature, church with paganism, and men with women.
The art works very well as the medium for conveying many of these themes, in a way words alone will have trouble succeeding -- which ties well to one of the main theme of this work, that words limit the truth of experience.
It has some very interesting things to say, and also some very silly things to say. It manages to beautifully covey the difference in mindset between the rational, calculating minds of industrial and church-going men, with the instinctual, experience-based spiritual minds of the witches. But it idealized bad concepts that should probably be labelled "new age", for example: atoms vibrate, therefore everything made of atoms vibrates, therefore by tuning your mind to these vibrations you can make the world do what you want. It's as silly and shallow as any of its contemporary new-age beliefs are.
The story is a bit of a mess. It jumps around, not only from story to story but within each individual story. A witch living in a cabin in the woods is suddenly called to protect humanity from a magical space-rock which warps reality (the story of the book/movie Annihilation comes to mind), and it's hard to tell what kind of story it tries to be.
Here's an out of context quote: "Hmph. So we fire an ICBM, not loaded with a nuclear warhead, but a nude witch." It actually happens in the story. While being completely wacky, it delivers the intended message: in the right context, spiritual knowledge can be more powerful than a nuclear warhead. Read the story for the full context, obviously.
This is a collection of stories about witches. It successfully explores the themes of what most people would call "spirituality", contrasting instinct with rationality, thoughts with experience, humanity with nature, church with paganism, and men with women.
The art works very well as the medium for conveying many of these themes, in a way words alone will have trouble succeeding -- which ties well to one of the main theme of this work, that words limit the truth of experience.
It has some very interesting things to say, and also some very silly things to say. It manages to beautifully covey the difference in mindset between the rational, calculating minds of industrial and church-going men, with the instinctual, experience-based spiritual minds of the witches. But it idealized bad concepts that should probably be labelled "new age", for example: atoms vibrate, therefore everything made of atoms vibrates, therefore by tuning your mind to these vibrations you can make the world do what you want. It's as silly and shallow as any of its contemporary new-age beliefs are.
The story is a bit of a mess. It jumps around, not only from story to story but within each individual story. A witch living in a cabin in the woods is suddenly called to protect humanity from a magical space-rock which warps reality (the story of the book/movie Annihilation comes to mind), and it's hard to tell what kind of story it tries to be.
Here's an out of context quote: "Hmph. So we fire an ICBM, not loaded with a nuclear warhead, but a nude witch." It actually happens in the story. While being completely wacky, it delivers the intended message: in the right context, spiritual knowledge can be more powerful than a nuclear warhead. Read the story for the full context, obviously.
October 15, 2023
Some mildly eerie and artsy short stories about witches from around the world, sometimes helping others and sometimes exacting a vengeance but always finding themselves on the outside of society. Lovely tone pieces with highly detailed illustrations.
FOR REFERENCE:
Contents: Arc I. Spindle, Part I -- Arc I. Spindle, Part II -- Arc II. Kuarupu -- Arc II. Bird-Riding Witch -- Arc III. Petra Genitalix -- Arc IV. Thief of Songs -- Arc IV. Beach
FOR REFERENCE:
Contents: Arc I. Spindle, Part I -- Arc I. Spindle, Part II -- Arc II. Kuarupu -- Arc II. Bird-Riding Witch -- Arc III. Petra Genitalix -- Arc IV. Thief of Songs -- Arc IV. Beach
May 31, 2022
dnf: art is absolutely(!!!) gorgeous and i was excited to read a manga about west asia but i was literally so confused...the events of the story jump all over the place i had no idea what was happening. but again the art was boots
April 9, 2023
Everything was all over the place and I didn't understand what the heck was going on.
March 18, 2023
This is a collection and I liked the drawing and the stories, some more than the rest. I'd give individual stories higher rating. I think my favourite was the Thief of songs story, which was the most character-driven story. The themes were clearer and my favourite sequence was in this story. Most stories deal with nature/magic as opposed to the modern tech. They feel out of time, with some elements seeming to be set in the past, but there's space travel. The stories are not subtle in their message, like an ending where a hamburger talks as the collective spirit of the forest and animals. Still, surprising to see this image in a manga.
July 21, 2022
A witchy collection of short stories that kind of blew me away.
All I knew about this before going in was that it was called "witches". I found it so refreshing and interesting that these weren't your everyday black cat and broomstick tales, these stories explore the theme of witchcraft and nature and magic in ways that I have not seen before.
Several times I had to stop and just absorb the wonderful artwork and take in the story, it's really fantastic. I really love the way that witchcraft and witches are explored in this book, and I would have to wholeheartedly recommend it.
4.5/5 Stars.
All I knew about this before going in was that it was called "witches". I found it so refreshing and interesting that these weren't your everyday black cat and broomstick tales, these stories explore the theme of witchcraft and nature and magic in ways that I have not seen before.
Several times I had to stop and just absorb the wonderful artwork and take in the story, it's really fantastic. I really love the way that witchcraft and witches are explored in this book, and I would have to wholeheartedly recommend it.
4.5/5 Stars.
September 12, 2022
DNFed at 160..? pages. This book was all over the place. I didn’t care for the characters at all. I had no idea what was going on. The extra star is for the incredible artwork but other than that I really didn’t like this book.
April 15, 2023
The artwork was impressive but I just couldn’t follow the author’s train of thought.
March 3, 2025
Daisuke Igarashi has some of the most beautiful art I've seen. He can make a boring story come to life.
December 21, 2025
#daisukeigarashi yi @marmaracizgi bastığı için şanslıyız. Hiç haberim yoktu, belki olmazdı da… #DenizinÇocukları serisinden sonra şimdi bu one shot, ortak temalı hikaye derlemesi geldi.
Çizimler yine enfes. Çok güzel. Bu adam bir de daha net drama çizseydi nasıl keyiflenirdim kim bilir :) zira aslında eserlerinin temel temasına düşkün değilim. Mutlaka #spiritüel şeyler üzerine yazıyor, çiziyor, kurguluyor. Buna rağmen, bunu da olabildiğince kaliteli ve özgün bir şekilde yapıyor (ki ben dahi keyifle takip ediyorum).
Mangadan büyük boyutlarıyla, kaliteli baskı ve şömiziyle bir defa göz dolduruyor. Mutlaka şans verilmesi gereken sanatçılardan.
Ayrıca bu eser Türk okura sürpriz bir ilk bölüm ile başlıyor 🧶 (np: #kilim / fatihkısaparmak) 🙃
Çizimler yine enfes. Çok güzel. Bu adam bir de daha net drama çizseydi nasıl keyiflenirdim kim bilir :) zira aslında eserlerinin temel temasına düşkün değilim. Mutlaka #spiritüel şeyler üzerine yazıyor, çiziyor, kurguluyor. Buna rağmen, bunu da olabildiğince kaliteli ve özgün bir şekilde yapıyor (ki ben dahi keyifle takip ediyorum).
Mangadan büyük boyutlarıyla, kaliteli baskı ve şömiziyle bir defa göz dolduruyor. Mutlaka şans verilmesi gereken sanatçılardan.
Ayrıca bu eser Türk okura sürpriz bir ilk bölüm ile başlıyor 🧶 (np: #kilim / fatihkısaparmak) 🙃
July 7, 2022
Cool, minimal, cinematic...definitely doesn't hold your hand and allows its mysteries to lurk in the details. Like most manga, you can read it in a flurry of a weekend.
June 21, 2023
3.5*
I don’t think I’ve ever read a graphic novel with such intricate, detailed artwork before. So many pages filled with incredible work! Unfortunately, I just felt like the stories were lacking a bit, especially the first one. I almost didn’t continue reading because of how boring/almost confusing it got to be, but thankfully most of the other stories flowed decently.
I still think this is worth a read, especially if you love witchcraft + mythology, but I don’t think anybody is missing out by not reading this.
I don’t think I’ve ever read a graphic novel with such intricate, detailed artwork before. So many pages filled with incredible work! Unfortunately, I just felt like the stories were lacking a bit, especially the first one. I almost didn’t continue reading because of how boring/almost confusing it got to be, but thankfully most of the other stories flowed decently.
I still think this is worth a read, especially if you love witchcraft + mythology, but I don’t think anybody is missing out by not reading this.
October 1, 2024
7/10
Przyjemny zbiór eksplorujący różne rodzaje magii, czasami czułam się źle przez to, jak szubko się go czytało, musiałam się celowo zatrzymywać by popodziwiać detale ilustracji
[bardziej letnia niż jesienna manga]
Przyjemny zbiór eksplorujący różne rodzaje magii, czasami czułam się źle przez to, jak szubko się go czytało, musiałam się celowo zatrzymywać by popodziwiać detale ilustracji
[bardziej letnia niż jesienna manga]
March 6, 2025
3.5
The stories feel incomplete and choppy.
I feel like each story would have been better as its own complete book because each story is genuinely really interesting but they feel rushed:(
The stories feel incomplete and choppy.
I feel like each story would have been better as its own complete book because each story is genuinely really interesting but they feel rushed:(
March 27, 2025
The art in this book is beautiful, detailed, and expressive. I love reading stories about magic and the occult; this collection satisfied my hunger and transported me into that world. Petra Genitalix and Thief of Songs are my favorite. They are so wonderous and the characters left such an impression on me.
"Go out and take measure of the world. Use your own self as the ruler."
"Go out and take measure of the world. Use your own self as the ruler."
May 29, 2024
milo mi się czytało, najbardziej spodobała mi sie historia 'kuarupu'
March 26, 2023
2.5/5 but not feelin a three start round up, my fave was thief of songs, i love igarashi’s sketchy n broken line style but it was a bit too far down that road n difficult to decipher in certain bits, igarashi does a great job of attaching description to the burst of life felt in nature, just didn’t fully connect to all of these stories n some felt a bit skeletal
July 4, 2022
“Go out and take measure of the world. Use your own self as the ruler.”
Beautiful art, beautifully unexpected stories about unconventional and unlikely witches.
Beautiful art, beautifully unexpected stories about unconventional and unlikely witches.
March 6, 2023
Underwhelming. The art just hardly redeems it.
May 17, 2024
3.25/5
Trudno mi opisać moje zdanie na temat tej pozycji, z jednej strony przekonują mnie myśli przez nią przekazywane, z wieloma się zgadzam (druga z historii która nie była moją ulubioną uderzyła mnie mocno końcówką i tym przekazem), historie nie są jakoś bardzo mocno skomplikowane, z drugiej strony coś mi trochę tu nie pasowało, ale nie potrafię dokładnie ocenić co
Trudno mi opisać moje zdanie na temat tej pozycji, z jednej strony przekonują mnie myśli przez nią przekazywane, z wieloma się zgadzam (druga z historii która nie była moją ulubioną uderzyła mnie mocno końcówką i tym przekazem), historie nie są jakoś bardzo mocno skomplikowane, z drugiej strony coś mi trochę tu nie pasowało, ale nie potrafię dokładnie ocenić co
October 22, 2023
So good and weird. I mean there's a story in this about a witch who goes to space in order to save humanity from the next Cambrian Explosion. Also the art is perfect. Read this and Igarashi's Children of the Sea.
June 18, 2024
I wanted to like this so bad. The concept is really cool! Yet with each story, it gets more confusing and difficult to follow. And as much as I enjoy the art, it's hard to make out what's going on at times.
August 4, 2024
wild and fucked up road
but the art is insane!!!!!
but the art is insane!!!!!
July 27, 2025
What a strange and beautiful set of stories. The delicacy of the line work serves to heighten the beauty and horror of the works.
December 9, 2023
,,witches don’t think. witches just know.”
2,5
kreska piekna ale to bylo tak choatyczne ze nic nie rozumiem prawie
2,5
kreska piekna ale to bylo tak choatyczne ze nic nie rozumiem prawie
October 6, 2024
Przepiękne ilustracje, niejednokrotnie zachwycałam sie nimi dłuższa chwile. Niestety chyba ta forma historii nie jest dla mnie
February 13, 2025
Gorgeous art work. I feel like you aren’t meant to understand this as a narrative work of fiction. It’s…more of an exploration of witchcraft. There’s a feeling of unsettling but divine womanhood.
Read
May 2, 2025DNF / started reading this like two weeks ago and already forgot what happened and don’t feel like pushing through unfortunately lol
Displaying 1 - 30 of 148 reviews