The Scariest Thing About This 80% Rotten Tomatoes Horror Anime is How Bad it Got After Episode 1

Horror anime can be tricky to make well, even though animation allows for incredible creativity and there’s plenty of source material to draw from. Junji Ito’s stories are often seen as perfect for adaptation, but the anime versions haven’t quite captured the same unsettling feeling as the original comics. What works so well on paper often loses its impact when translated to animation, failing to deliver the same fear and suspense.

The anime adaptation of Junji Ito’s Uzumaki started strong, but unfortunately, it quickly became disappointing. Like many adaptations with high expectations, Uzumaki lost its momentum after a promising first episode, failing to live up to its potential.

Uzumaki’s First Episode Is Everything Fans Hoped For in a Horror Anime

An Unsettling and Brilliant Start to Uzumaki

Uzumaki is a horror anime that took almost five years to create. Production was slowed down by the COVID-19 pandemic, various difficulties, and a commitment to making a high-quality adaptation. Originally announced in 2019, fans were eager to see the creepy town of Kurouzo-cho brought to life, hoping it would capture the disturbing visuals they enjoyed in the original manga.

The first episode of Uzumaki premiered on Toonami on September 29, 2024, and was generally well-received. Viewers particularly appreciated its striking black-and-white animation, captivating sound, and how accurately it brought Junji Ito’s terrifying story to life. From the unsettling death of Shuichi’s father to Azami’s disturbing transformation, the episode’s gruesome horror was hard to look away from.

The first episode of Uzumaki showed real promise, successfully capturing the chilling horror and suspense that made the original manga so popular. Unlike some of the less impressive adaptations of Junji Ito’s other stories, this episode was a strong and captivating start. If the rest of the series can maintain this quality, Uzumaki could become a truly memorable horror anime. While not flawless, it’s a fantastic beginning and sets a high standard for what’s to come.

Uzumaki Spirals Into Failure in Its Last Three Episodes

Uzumaki’s Final Episodes Underperform Compared to Its Promising Start

The first episode of Uzumaki effectively introduced Junji Ito’s signature spiral-based horror, but the remaining three episodes were disappointing. They lacked the atmosphere, suspense, and psychological depth fans anticipated. Adding to the issues, the animation was often awkward and inconsistent, raising questions about the show’s lengthy five-year production time. Characters sometimes appeared childish or moved unnaturally, making it hard to feel genuinely scared.

I noticed that the later episodes of Uzumaki just didn’t seem to know where they were going, and a lot of the horror ideas felt unfinished. The show really rushed things, and it suffered because of it. The scenes didn’t flow well together, making the whole story feel choppy and disconnected. One minute Kirie was dealing with Kyoko’s bullying, and the next she and Shuichi were completely focused on helping a couple run away from their parents. It was all so sudden and jarring, and honestly, it made the plot really hard to follow.

This town is being contaminated with spirals. —Shuichi Saito

Director Hiroshi Nagahama intended for the anime Uzumaki to have a slow pace, mirroring the swirling, hypnotic nature of a spiral. However, this artistic choice didn’t prevent the final three episodes from becoming problematic. Rather than building the intense, inescapable dread found in Junji Ito’s original manga, the anime’s conclusion disappointed many viewers with a noticeable drop in quality.

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Uzumaki Deserves a Better Anime Adaptation

Uzumaki Needs More Episodes

The Uzumaki manga consists of 20 chapters, but the anime adaptation is a much shorter series with just four episodes. This difference in length is a major reason why the anime’s final episodes were so disappointing. The first episode covered nearly two chapters of the manga, but the remaining episodes rushed through the rest of the story, losing much of what made the original manga so good.

With 8 to 10 episodes, or even a full 12-episode season, Uzumaki could have told its story at a better pace, avoiding the rushed feeling and disappointing ending it ultimately received. Despite high hopes for a great horror anime, Uzumaki’s shortcomings unfortunately made it a missed chance to truly shine.

2026-02-11 00:05