I’m a long time fan of Junji Ito and was so happy to see he had a new book. The story was pretty meh, but the art style was amazing as always. I still enjoyed it and would recommend it to other horror manga fans. It wasn’t his best work but it was still an enjoyable read.

I don’t read enough graphic novels. There, I said it. I swore at the end of 2020 that I would add more graphic novels to my TBR pile, and here it is July and I’ve just now read my first of the year.

Luckily, it’s Sensor, by the amazing Junji Ito.

Sensor is horror on a cosmic scale. It may start in a small Japanese village, but it grows and expands to encompass the entire universe, a cold, chaotic place where entire planets are destroyed, and entire civilizations die in agony. That small village is nestled in the shadow of Mount Sengoku, a volcano that erupted 60 years ago, destroying the town. The volcano buried the town, leaving few survivors, and in doing so buried dark secrets.

When a young woman wanders into the village, she notices something strange—golden, hair-like volcanic glass fibers rain down on the streets, the buildings, the people of the city, and the people welcome it. They also welcome the girl, and say they’ve been expecting her.

Then things get really weird.

Sensor is a feast for the eyes and the mind, with a story that twists and turns as it pulls various characters into the orbit of the mysterious young woman. You may find yourself, as I did, flipping back through the pages, looking for connections, putting pieces of the puzzle together.

Ito is a master artist, carrying the story along on the strength of his exquisite pen work. He fills each panel with dense texture and detail. When the horror comes, and believe me it comes, it is truly horrific. Ito has an unflinching eye for nightmarish imagery, for transforming the human body into something squirming, pulsing, oozing, unrecognizable. He can also render scenes of astonishing beauty. He’s not a one trick pony by any means.

Sensor releases on August 17, 2021. Dive in, and let yourself be transported into other worlds by Ito’s golden hairs. You may not be the same when you return.

The horror manga master strikes AGAIN! I was really happy when I IMMEDIATELY got approved for this arc and boy did I start reading it immediately.

This horror manga follows a reporter trying to figure out what really happened to a village that disappeared and the lone survivor of this event. We follow his investigative skills and see him slowly figure out the truth behind the madness.

The images and the story was so GOOD! I couldn't put it down and I had to force myself to put it down. I truly enjoyed the story and just want to find out what really happened.

I would like to say thank you to VIZ media and NetGalley for providing me and E-arc in exchange for an honest review.

A Mystical Battle Between Light and the Darkness, That I Actually Understood


Here's a bit of a shock. The drawing here is fantastical, but it's always clear what's going on. The writing and dialogue can be cryptic and mystical, but it's always clear what's going on. The plot is all over the place, and characters come and go, and they even time travel or turn ghostly, but it's always clear what's going on. Go figure.

We have a golden haired heroine and a dark villain. We have an intrepid reporter who chases the story. We have magical golden stuff that floats in and then disappears when needed to keep the plot wheels turning. There are a number of interesting secondary characters who offer some monologuing and info dumping to keep the tale on track. Over the course of seven chapters the arc of the story unfolds. Heroine stumbles into a mystical place. Villain wants her power. Infatuated reporter starts to put it all together. Confrontation, battle, mystical interventions, denouement.

This could have been cheesy and predictable. But it wasn't. It's smart and touches on just the right balance of mysticism, action, horror, philosophy, religion, and the ineffable. At some point the author has said that he was aiming for "the mystery of the universe". That's a noble goal and this was a noble and very entertaining effort. It may not have been the scary creepfest one expects from Ito, but at the very least he gave birth to a worthy goddess and put her in the middle of an engaging tale.

(Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

Just when I was thinking that Sensor wasn't that creepy for a Junji Ito book, I was thinking it was just making relatively mundane things sinister... it got creepy big time. I kept expecting the extraordinarily beautiful character to be the terrifying one, but no, I got plenty of frights, and it was from sources I was not expecting. Things that I am now wary of due to this book: stray hair/fibers, aliens, bugs, meditation. It may not be the freakiest of his works, but it still lives up to the creepy standards of Junji Ito. (I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion.)

I read and enjoyed Uzumaki years ago and honestly have not thought about Junji Ito releasing more works until I saw this title pop up. It was nice to jump back into one of his worlds again. It has a definite atmospheric feel that is unique. I am not sure that many of my manga/graphic novel fans in my library would know about Ito's works, but this was a good reminder that it could very well appeal to people who are interested in something that's a little more out there in terms of not only story but also a unique art style that has a lot of compelling detail and patternwork. I do have to admit that I don't necessarily understand everything that's going on while reading, but I suppose that it would make it worthy of re-reading. Also, there is something that I feel just allows me to submit to the experience when it comes to Ito since it is unlike most of my other types of reading experiences and yet enjoyable all the same.

I really loved this! Super atmospheric and creepy--just what I was hoping from Ito. While not as viscerally unhinged as his previous books, Sensor still manages to burrow beneath the skin and raise the hairs on your neck. There are the expected moments of The Thing-esque body horror, but what I loved most about this book is its considerations of faith and the human thirst for knowledge. Definitely recommend.

Another mind bending story by Junji Ito!! I can't believe he manages to keep coming up with these creative stories. A little bit like Steven King's Carrie, but with the flair and creativity that only Junji Ito could think up.

as others have said, not really horror, and not even heavily philosophical. nothing has grabbed me like uzumaki did. between sensor and remina there are some christian elements in ito's newer work that probably disproportionately put me off from them.

Very original and yet very familiar in the way of many of Ito's earlier works. I think this will greatly appeal to fans of classic horror where exploration leads to a confrontation and subsequent release of something supernatural, but also to those looking for something strange and new. While not as frightening as something like Uzumaki, the ideas and concepts in Sensor are worth contemplating and exploring. I'm still thinking about the ending now that I'm done.

Another great title from Ito! This is a creepy cult filled one, about a young woman who mysteriously survives a volcano eruption thanks to mystical golden hair. Ito always nails giving his readers a sense of dread and disgust, and this story really delivers. It's a great addition to a collection where patrons are interested in Horror manga, but it's not as absolutely gut wrenching as Spiral was. Thankfully. I don't know if I can relive that one. Still, I do suggest this for purchase for any and all libraries.

This was a pretty good read! It went in a direction that I was not expecting, but it still has that Junji style that is enjoyable to dive into.

Normally, I love Junji Ito; the art, stories, weirdness, creeping sense of doom. I love all of that. But this one...I don't know. I just couldn't quite get into the story. It felt a little aimless, kind of convoluted. I'd still recommend it. I mean if you like horror and manga, you might as well read it. But, this one fell short for me.

I can't exactly tell you why I keep reading Junji Ito other than he has a tendency to get under your skin. Reading his work follows a similar pattern for me: I begin the story, I often get confused by something, I probably get grossed out as well, I make note of a couple *really* great horror images, and I'm left feeling "huh." It's predictable and fun and always a bit confusing.

Sensor is primarily about volcanic hair, otherwise known as Pele's hair, which I had to google. Volcanic hair is a type of lava where it is formed into thin volcanic glass fibers that resemble hair. Volcanic hair of the golden and black variety is of utmost importance in this story because it provides telepathic powers and connections to the entire universe.

The entire collection is one story broken into 5 sections. Each section would introduce a new concept (suicide bugs, mirror phenomenon, stalking, religious cults, Christian persecution, etc) that would somehow tie back to this cosmic conglomeration of interconnectedness, light vs darkness, good vs evil, and general cosmic horror. It was weird but I do think it worked. I don't think this review is representing how off and askew this made me feel, which is another thing I associate with Junji Ito. So, I'm just gonna end it here and say 3 mildly enjoyable if odd stars.

A beautiful tale that creeps it's way deep into your mind. A great place to start for those unsure of where to begin with Junji Ito and great for anyone concerned about Ito's heavy horror themes.

Similarly to Remina, Sensor is centered around a woman that people are hunting and she also ends up being crucifed momentarily. However, in contrast to Remina, this mysterious woman has a lot more agency and depth. It didn’t feel like a chore to read Sensor, in fact I was greatly interested in seeing how this mystery with the hairlike volcanic ash would play out.

There’s an authors note at the end about how he utilised the news reporter as a way to tell different parts of this woman’s story, to help weave it all together, and explore the butterfly effect of this one event. I also enjoyed the narrative of sacrifice and exploring how the taste of power can be a tool of corruption for many.

Another aspect I really appreciated with this one was how quickly Ito’s work can transform from the beauty of tje fibers, to the grotesque giant cloud-brain descending on all. Truly a masterpiece.

This was a bizarre, unsettling read, very off-the-rails in a way that was sometimes extremely fun and sometimes just confusing. The moments of classic Junji Ito grotesque horror spreads are absolutely incredible, but even the author pretty freely admits in the afterword that the full package is maybe not up to the very high standards he's set for himself over the years.

Ito’s afterward to the book actually addresses my reservations in wholeheartedly endorsing his latest translated work, Sensor. It’s an episodic story with some truly creepy and creative stops within the story, but the larger arc very much gets away from the writer. Ion the whole it’s is still well worth reading, especially for fans of Ito’s brand of horror but he is capable of better.

I liked Sensor but compared to other books by Junji Ito this wasn’t as enjoyable. While it has horror elements this story is more philosophy based. The meaning of the universe, the devotion, the mania behind people desperate for answers.

I was expecting more horror that I’m used to with Junji Ito and while this definitely “horrific” in parts it isn’t the same. I do like how the story begins as one thing and then just expands with each new chapter. It is an interesting read just different.

There is a full length review forthcoming on my site, MangaLibrarian.com and on my YouTube Channel! I go in depth on my analysis there.