Category: Manga

What is Waterfall Basin about?

In this eighth chapter from the Tomie Collection, Waterfall Basin, we encounter a very strange man – the travelling salesman. This salesman enters a small mountain village one day, carrying a very strange product indeed. Within his briefcase, he carries a selection of small, neatly-tied packages. These packages, one of the villagers discovers, contain pieces of flesh.

Yes, it is safe to assume that the flesh is that of Tomie’s.

The villagers quickly tire of the salesman and his vile product, and chase him out of their village. He is chased up to the edge of a nearby waterfall, where he soon begs for his life. He requests his safe escape in exchange for him dumping his entire stock into the waterfall. They accept his plea and allow him to leave empty-handed. However, the villagers have no idea about the horrors that they have unknowingly brought upon themselves.

Soon after the Salesman’s escape, a very strange thing begins to happen. The bodies of young men start being discovered in the mornings, after having committed suicide off the side of the same waterfall. But what is summoning them to their deaths? And will there ever be an end to the deaths of these young men?

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Who is the mystery Salesman?

This was a strange story indeed. The idea of a random salesman turning up at a village to sell pieces of flesh (Tomie’s flesh) is one of Junji Ito’s weirdest ideas yet, in my opinion.

But do you know what? It works!

Within the context of the world of Tomie, this adds yet more interesting dimensions to the ever-winding tale. And the fact that Tomie herself almost takes a back seat to the story as a whole, was equally as interesting for me. Despite it being a story about her, it feels more centred around the events that she causes.

There is no single Tomie character here; there is only the legion of her that emerge from the water.

The most interesting question posed in Waterfall Basin, is who this travelling salesman actually is. Is he a former lover of Tomie’s who has cut her up like so many before him? Was he driven by madness to decide to distribute pieces of her to unknowing people? Or is he in fact conducting some kind of research into the effects that she could have on an isolated community? These are questions that we may never get answers to, and maybe that’s not a bad thing.

Some mystery can be a good thing, after all.

What to show and what to hide

The gruesome factor got turned up to eleven in this chapter. It also helped to solidify a big facet of Tomie’s character. It shows how she has no problem feeding on human flesh in order to regenerate. We saw this a little bit at the end of Revenge, but Ito has gone even further with that idea here.

Her power over the compulsions of others took on a whole new level too. She was able to summon people to their deaths from afar, ultimately to feed herself back to life. I wonder whether there is some kind of enhanced power that she is able to harness when there is a big enough group of her in one place? Or perhaps the village use that waterfall basin as their main source of water?

I really love how, even though Junji Ito isn’t afraid to show us visual horrors in his work, he equally isn’t afraid to leave some of it to our imagination.

In Summary

A strange one to write about for me, this was. To be honest the story feels very short, but is no less interesting than many of the former chapters. The introduction of the mysterious salesman raised yet more questions for me. However, I’m not worried about not finding out their answers. One of my favourite aspects of the artists I admire, is in the deep mysteries that they leave buried for us to imagine.

I think that Waterfall Basin would be an interesting introduction to the unique imagination of Junji Ito. There is good mystery, grotesque imagery and a haunting closing to the story.

Conversely though, I probably wouldn’t advise this as an introduction to Tomie. This is mainly down to the fact that some backstory is needed here I think. It really helps to know who she is in order to get a grasp of what is going on as a whole. Plus the fact that she isn’t really featured heavily in this story – at least not in the more traditional ways that she is in other chapters.

A great entry into the mythology, with some very iconic imagery, but perhaps best experienced in its proper order within the Tomie Collection.

What is Revenge about?

Revenge is the first standalone chapter in the Tomie Collection that I have come across, excluding the very first one. It takes place in a single afternoon and evening up in the snowy peaks of an unnamed mountain range. We travel with a group of three people who are hiking across this landscape – their reason unknown. During their journey, they come across a body buried within the snowy rocks. It’s the naked body of a young woman who, amazingly to them, is still alive. That girl, in case you hadn’t guessed it, is Tomie.

After helping her out of the rocks and into one of their sleeping bags, they start carrying her towards shelter. But it isn’t long until Tomie gets a mental hold over the captain of the expedition. Under her control, he gifts her all of his clothes and suffers the sub zero temperatures in just his underwear. Circumstances then lead to Tomie being left with a single member of the group, Tanimura. I wont ruin those circumstances for the people who are yet to read this chapter.

Later in the evening, Tomie and Tanimura make it to a cabin safely. Once inside, they each begin warming up together from the harsh conditions outside. But it isn’t long at all before Tanimura’s true purpose for the expedition is revealed. Not only that, but it seems that his presence is in fact linked to Tomie’s current situation and previously-buried state on the mountain. But how long will his mind stand against the will of Tomie, and what fates await him once their stories are revealed to each other?

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Standing on it’s own in a single time and place

Revenge is a chapter that stands completely on its own in the Tomie universe. And we get just enough background information to be able to understand the situation. I found that this approach to telling a particular part of Tomie’s life was very effective. I love how even though it is isolated from the main story lines so far, it still fits comfortably into the world as a whole.

Tomie, as a force of nature, has many strands of life and versions of herself floating around in the world. As we know, each time she is killed or cut up, she is able to grow back from the smallest molecule of flesh or blood. For this reason, it is entirely feasible for there to be countless – perhaps even unlimited – stories out there centred around any of these incarnations of the girl.

Also of interest, is that this chapter takes place at a single point in time – the mountain journey of the exploration team across one fateful afternoon. This, along with its single location in the snowy peaks of the harsh mountain landscape, give this story a claustrophobic feel. At least for me. The Kiss chapter had a similar tone with it being set mostly within Tsukiko’s apartment, but this is the first time within the collection that this idea has been expanded more fully.

Closing thoughts (with some minor spoilers)

Revenge is one of my favourite Tomie chapters, mainly because it poses more questions than it answers. Like what happened to the other pieces of Tomie that were scattered on the mountain by Tanimura’s brother? What drove that former boyfriend of hers to take her to that mountain in the first place? What was the ultimate fate of all three of the exploration team? We can always surmise their fates from what we see in the chapter. But I think it’s still left pretty open for the stories of each to possibly continue.

I’d probably list this chapter as one of the best ones from which to dip one’s toes into the story of Tomie. There isn’t any real extreme horror or gore in this one, aside from the last panels perhaps. But even those are pretty light from the pen of Junji Ito.

All in all an enjoyable read, and one that I often go back to from time to time.

What is Basement about?

Basement follows on directly from the events of Morita Hospital. We saw how the kidney that Yukiko received had mutated and formed a complete head – the head of its donor, Tomie. Well, the doctors managed to separate the head and remove it and the donor kidney out of Yukiko. The Doctors have now stored those pieces in a secret basement area for studying. They wish to understand how these body parts are able to regenerate. And regenerate they do – and at an alarming rate.

The main character in Basement is a young, inquisitive boy named Sato who is currently admitted to the hospital. He follows his nurse into that basement for clues to the rumours he’s been hearing of a mystery in the basement. However, he will discover more than simply a mystery as he bumps into the lady on everyone’s mind – Tomie. He also befriends Yukiko and starts to fall for her own unique charms. That is until Yukiko’s charms become threatened by an unstoppable force from within. (Sato is apparently one of those rare people not to fall for Tomie’s power – strong of heart and mind, it would seem.)

As the story continues we see how the flesh spirit of Tomie fights to return – back into the beautiful woman she was before. But now her DNA has multiple pathways within the Hospital from which to emerge. But what will happen when multiple Tomies emerge together?

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Changes

Basement is a story all about change and rebirth – like much of Tomie’s stories to be fair. We follow her as she fights to come back to the world of the living, becoming reborn and yet still maintaining the same consciousness as her previous incarnations. This is what I meant by the term “flesh spirit” above. She seems to be able to inherit memories from the past versions of herself, even carrying grudges along with them.

And remember Yukiko from the previous story? Her continuation in this is pretty interesting too. It seems that the use of Tomie’s kidney in her previous operation, although removed soon after, may have left some of its cells behind. And if Tomie gets her grip on you, no matter how slight, she takes a firm grasp and doesn’t let go.

What I found perhaps most interesting in this part of the Tomie series, was yet another aspect of her character that was revealed. Although all of the replicas originate from the same flesh, there seems to be some animosity between each of them. Like rival sisters each wanting to be the favourite. Except each will stop at nothing to physically rid the others from existence. Each and every Tomie wants to be the centre of attention, and will share that limelight with no-one – not even with herself.

In Summary

This third entry in the Tomie collection delves a little deeper still into her character. Although not nearly my favourite of the stories, it does give a good conclusion to the events of Morita Hospital. As such, you will want to at least read that previous chapter before this one. Many of the Tomie stories are quite self-contained. However, there are a few, like Basement, which will need the previous entries in order to give some context to the events.

What is Morita Hospital about?

Yuki is a school girl who is being kept at Morita Hospital awaiting a kidney transplant. She waits patiently while her condition slowly deteriorates. Often found sitting with her is her friend – a boy named Tadashi. The pair seem close, but the boy seems slightly withdrawn from the room when we join them.

As he leaves Yuki to her hospital room, she spots him out of the window walking with another girl. She knows nothing of the other girl, except for what she can see of her. This new girl is beautiful and has a distinctive mole under her left eye. We as the reader know that this is Tomie, but these people know nothing of her or what she is capable of.

Although it isn’t explicitly stated, I believe that this is the Tomie that Reiko found growing beneath the cave at the end of Part 1. Tadashi reveals how he met Tomie at the beach, which in itself isn’t that strange. But considering the fact that Tomie is referring to herself as Reiko, my theory is that she killed the original Reiko and assumed her identity. I can’t confirm this, but I like to think that this is what would have happened.

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Tomie is a spoilt brat

We start to see the spoilt brat side of Tomie in the Morita Hospital story too. When she is walking with Tadashi, she tries to get him to buy her some new earrings on a whim. Unable to afford any more financial offerings of love, Tadashi unwillingly causes her to go storming off in search of a rich man who can cater to her wants.

A common thread of her personality is the wanting to drain the men who dote after her of all of their money. She just wants to be pampered and waiting on; told she is beautiful; and never crossed or betrayed in any way. I agree with not being betrayed, but what she considers betrayal, and what normal people consider betrayal, are two completely different things.

I felt that this story went further in developing her character for us than her first outing did. Of course, that initial story we discussed last week was just the kernel of the idea. Once he had received the praise he did for Tomie part 1, I assume it gave him the conviction to go further into his imagination, leading him to really begin fleshing her story out.

The organ donor

Due to an unfortunate encounter between Tadashi and Tomie, she ends up in hospital and ultimately dying. The doctors then, under advisement of someone claiming to be Tomie’s next of kin, decide not to let her healthy body go to waste. I won’t spoil who this apparent next of kin is, but it is somebody you may know from before.

It turns out that she also happens to be a perfect match for a certain patient awaiting a certain kidney transplant. The operation goes ahead and with great success. However, the spirit of Tomie is strong and she can not be killed – not easily at least. Her darkness will always find a way back to the light, squeezing through the cracks from within any living flesh.

In summary

The second part in the Tomie series continues pretty much from where we left off. However, it does take the story into a new direction with new players. This seems to be a running theme throughout the series. Tomie will show up in new people’s lives and pretty much just put them through hell.

Although not my favourite in the series, Morita Hospital is another layer across the character of Tomie. I think Junji Ito was really starting to find his feet with his artistic style in this chapter. Especially with the final panels and seeing just how Tomie manages to keep her spirit alive.

This first entry in the Tomie series is fascinating to me for two reasons. Firstly, it is the starting point for all of the stories that follow. Perhaps not all of them are linked to this specific incarnation of her, but it is our first meeting with the young lady. And since she has gone on to have such a huge legacy within the world of Horror Manga, is worthy of discussion.

Secondly, it is the first manga story that Junji Ito completed – while he was still a dental technician. He submitted it to the Umezu Awards where he went on to earn an honourable mention for it.

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The beginning of a legacy

In this first entry of the series, we are introduced to Tomie and how she has seamingly managed to rise back from the dead. Of course, we only know this at the start from the account of Tomie’s friend, Reiko. However, we come to learn that not only did she in fact die, but that the witnesses went to some very extreme lengths to hide her body.

We learn how she has most likely been sleeping with her Teacher, who himself is also married. This in itself is a light introduction to a large facet of her character – that she really has no moral boundaries. If she wants something she goes after it. And most of the time she gets what she wants.

There isn’t too much in the way of Ito’s signature “body horror” in this story, save for the very last panel. But gosh how I loved how he decided to close this first chapter. We get to glimpse the genesis of Ito’s flourishing talent in that very last scene.

The start of a great artist

Junji Ito is now regarded as a titan within the horror manga community – in all manga in general, in fact. When you look back at this chapter after seeing his more recent stories, you will notice the difference in quality immediately. The detail isn’t anywhere near where we now know his work to be. But that does not detract from the story’s impact.

What you have to remember is that this is his first published story. It feels akin to the debut albums of great bands – like Nirvana’s ‘Bleach’, or The White Stripes’ eponymous debut. Yes, it’s rough around the edges and not indicative of the quality that comes later, but it is the honest, unfiltered core from which his talent would come to grow.

In Summary

The opening chapter in the Tomie series is a staple in the chronology of the Horror Manga genre. It not only begins the life of the beloved Tomie, but also marks the beginning of one of the most exciting artist careers within this world.

While this won’t show you the wildest imaginings of Ito, or his better artistic work, it will enrich your knowledge of the genre. I’m eternally grateful to Junji Ito for keeping Tomie’s story open like he did in this one. And also for continuing this lasting saga for the years that have followed.

Welcome to the story of Tomie.

Final thoughts with slight spoilers

I can only imagine what it must have been like to read this when it came out. Without the knowledge of Ito and his now-heavy back catalogue. That moment two thirds in when the teacher stands over Tomie’s dead body with his students. All stripped down to their underwear and ready to cut her up into twenty pieces with knives and saws.

As mentioned above, the only real body horror in this story is on the closing page. And that whole regrowth from one of the parcels of Tomie’s dismembered body parts was cool as hell. This was the demonic glue that brought the whole chapter together for me. Not only did she arise from the dead in some ethereal way, but that she is physically capable of regenerating from separated pieces of her body.