Summary
Junji Itois a marvelous mangaka whose horror tales have intrigued their readers as much as made their skin crawl for decades. His stories have become cult classics, or in the case ofUzumaki, genre-defining series withhighly-anticipated upcoming anime adaptations. But with Junji Ito’sAlley, as the title suggests, he’s content with taking readers to some dark places, often right within the neighborhood, in some horrifying short stories of the macabre.
Alleywas recently localized by VIZ Media’s VIZ Signature imprint on August 06, 2025, as part of Ito’s growing library of works available for broad consumption in North America. While other recently released collections are among his most iconic, likeSoichiorMimi’s Tales of Terror, and even some creative collaborations like with the creators behindBetwixt,Alleyis possibly the most sinister set of tales yet.
Junji Ito takes audiences into an especially devious world of horror withAlley,featuring ghostly, ominous silhouettes, deadly mold, and ice cream buses.
Hello Kitty Has Never Been Creepier Than In Strange New Junji Ito Collaboration
A Junji Ito x Hello Kitty pop-up store will appear exclusively in Parco locations for a limited time.
One Alley Isn’t Enough to Contain Junji Ito’s Terrors
While Junji Ito has crafted many horrifying characters to endure far longer than their short stories, such as Tomie, Soichi, and Binzo, it’s fascinating when his stories as a concept can have a similar effect. Such is the case withAlley, with some of the most upsetting scenarios yet, includingspiritual possession, families with eerie boundary issues, and even aerial massacres. While some stories have an almost cautionary tale tone, like “Ice Cream Bus,” others have chilling and shockingly dark themes, such as “Mold” with surprising historical callbacks.
Some, but not all, ofAlley’sstories have been adapted to anime, such asJunji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre,down to their chilling endings featuring “Mold,” “Ice Cream Bus,” and “Alley.”
One alley isn’t enough to contain Junji Ito’s terrors. Despite the eponymous short story collection, it seems to be about howthe stories' various self-contained worlds in the form of neighborhoods and the evil, twisted realities that shape them. Some include malevolent spiritual possessions resulting in a spectral crime of passion, while others go a more disastrous turn, such as outright massacres. Junji Ito’sAlleyis an incredibly dark look at mundane topics like agriculture, especially when distorted with a macabre lens, as noted in several of its stories.
Junji Ito’s “Smokers' Club” Story Includes Horrific History
One particular story in Junji Ito’sAlleythat stands out is “Smokers' Club” in the middle of the book, referencing Western cigarette packaging but with secret, locally-grown tobacco cigarettes inside.But the truth behind cultivating these tobacco leaves quickly becomes menacing, with Nakaya revealing that he harvests supplies for these from tobacco plants growing around the local crematorium. Junji Ito does an excellent job providing his usual chilling storytelling inAlley, but in “Smokers' Club” the human ethics of smoking tobacco from sources with trace elements of human remains is chilling, but it doesn’t end there.
But the truth behind cultivating these tobacco leaves quickly becomes menacing, with Nakaya revealing that he harvests supplies for these from tobacco plants growing around the local crematorium.
The characters remind each other about what they readabout the Auschwitz concentration camp, how plants flourished in the years following its desertion, and how bone ash contributed heavily to this.It’s possibly the darkest historical reference inAlley, creating a discussion between the characters on whether it is in good taste to be smoking such an ominous product. Yet, they also talk about how, with this knowledge, they already eat the food grown locally despite other likely upsetting environmental factors. But that’s not the only edge Junji Ito’sAlleypacks.
Alley Features Incredible and Grotesque Illustrations
The Horror Master Depicts Characters Descending to Madness and Decay
One of the best topics to discuss about any Junji Ito work is hiswonderfully imaginative illustrations of grotesque imagery; after all, the visual impressions ofUzumakiare everlasting and iconic. InAlley, stories like “Mold” feature characters like the Rogi family, with a patriarch whose obsession with fungal mold is all-consuming in a stark, literal sense. “Ice Cream Bus” features some of the most chilling and horrifying endings in any of Ito’s stories, while “The Inn” plays out like a portal from hell being discovered in an obsessive quest to dig a hotel hot spring.
As mentioned in his foreword for theBetwixtcollection, Junji Ito feels these spaces or sensations are meant to evoke a psychological reaction of indecision and unease. This is reflected in the characters ofAlley’sshort stories, who frequently reap the disastrous consequences of their inaction.
These short stories play into differentrelatable fears explored by Ito, such as places between reality and illusion, such as the dream aspects of “The Town of No Roads” and the titular alleyway from the eponymous first chapter. As mentioned in his foreword for theBetwixtcollection,Junji Ito feels these spaces or sensations are meant to evoke a psychological reaction of indecision and unease.This is reflected in the characters ofAlley’sshort stories, who frequently reap the disastrous consequences of their inaction.
Still, the impressive aspect that makes any of Junji Ito’s work deserve revisiting is that each of these bite-sized stories is immensely worthy of discussion, such as their illustrations, Ito’s signature character designs, and the sinister scenarios ofAlley.Part of the appeal of horror for many readers is a way to address what scares them.WithAlley’smany real-world scenarios, like disapproving fathers and strangers peddling sweets, it’s a great way of illustrating those associated fears. It doesn’t hurt that Junji Ito’sAlleyis bound beautifully in a terrifying hardcover, being a stellar addition to any horror fan’s bookshelf.
Junji Ito
Discover the latest news and filmography for Junji Ito, known for Tomie and Uzumaki.
