Junji Ito Rings In The New Year With Twisted New Art

Junji Ito’s work as a manga artist has yielded some of the scariest stories released in the medium of fiction, with the mangaka introducing terrifying creatures and scenarios that have caused plenty of nightmares over the decades. Now, to help ring in the New Year and celebrate the “Year of the Tiger” according to the Chinese Zodiac, Ito has revealed new artwork that blends his sense of horror with his love of felines.   

Junji Ito has made some of the most bone-chilling stories not just within the realm of manga, but within the realm of fiction period. While the mangaka has weaved some truly terrifying tales, he also has a deep love of cats, having created a story under the name, “Junji Ito’s Cat Diary: Yon & Mu,” an autobiographical story that conveys the real life events of Ito and his partner owning cats and how the artist developed a fondness for felines. While this story hasn’t received an anime adaptation, and most likely won’t in the near future, it goes to show the versatility of Ito’s work as he is able to switch from horror art to adorable art.

Junji Ito took to his Official Twitter Account to share the new artwork to help ring in the new year, creating a new character that is a blend between human and feline while showing the versatility of his artwork that is responsible for creating some of the creepiest creatures in the history of anime:

新年あけましておめでとうございます。
本年もどうぞよろしくお願い申し上げます。 pic.twitter.com/twGnulBeoo

— 伊藤潤二 (@junjiitofficial) January 1, 2022

While Uzumaki is the next big anime adaptation for Junji Ito, there have been rumors swirling that a new anime series is in the works from the master of horror, though details about this potential adaptation are few and far between at this point. Recent years have seen Ito’s works continue to gain popularity, as Junji continues to create both short stories and long-form series to help the horrific ideas in his head arrive on the page. 

What do you think of this new artwork from Junji Ito to help ring in the new year? Are you counting down the days before the release of Toonami’s Uzumaki? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly on Twitter @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the world of Junji Ito.