Junji Ito Pop Up Shop Creates Anime Horror House

By Evan Valentine

2023 is set to be a big year for anime with series such as Trigun, Vinland Saga, Attack on Titan, and many others looking to return to the small screen. Next month, however, things are planning to get pretty spooky in the anime world as Junji Ito's newest anime adaptation, Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre, will arrive on Netflix on January 19th. Compiling a number of short stories for their first time on television, Maniac also has a pop-up shop that will hit Japan and offer scary merchandise from Ito's terrifying creations.

Pop-up shops focusing on anime are nothing new in Japan, with franchises such as My Hero Academia, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, and Jujutsu Kaisen being only a few examples of merchandisers that haven't made their way to North America but create plenty of unique items for anime fans all the same. With the upcoming Maniac, the anthology series might focus on new stories that have yet to hit the streaming service, but some familiar faces from Ito's roster will appear both in the anime adaptation along with the pop-up shop. For example, the store opening in Japan will feature some creepy recreations of Tomie, easily one of Ito's most popular characters who even received a handful of live-action films.

Junji Ito's Funhouse

Junji Ito's Pop-Up shop has found its way online with photos and videos showing us both the inside and outside of this haunted house, open from December 30th the March 19th, that pays homage to the many creepy creatures that the master of horror has created over the decades:

Japanese Tales of the Macabre isn't the only Junji Ito anime adaptation in the works, as fans still wait for the arrival of Toonami's Uzumaki adaptation. Delayed due to COVID-19 originally, the release date was pushed back indefinitely, though should it arrive next year in 2023, it might be one of the biggest years for horror anime in quite some time.

Do you think we might see Adult Swim's Junji Ito adaptation arrive at some point next year? Which anime pop-up shops would you love to see hit North America next year? 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. 

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