Story: Junji Ito Collection is a horror anthology based on short stories by Junji Ito. Each episode has at least two stories, most self contained, others within a short continuity. Here's my recommendation list; Long Dreams, The Crossroads Pretty Boy, Slug Girl, Shiver, Gentle Goodbye, Window Next Door, Greased and Smashed. The less you know about these stories the better. They contain elements that range from paranormal horror to body horror.
Sound/Music: The OP grabbed me from the start. Really gets you hyped to dive in, but I don't think it's one I'll remember or listen to after finishing the series. As for the ED, I couldn't find myself sticking around to listen to it, which is a shame since it sounded okay from what little I heard. I felt that the stories worked better without the music since it rarely, if ever, added to the narrative. The music that was used was generic to say the least. I personally couldn't remember a single track used. The voice acting in some episodes certainly helped to set the tone far better than any music. Certain iconic characters had voices that were fitting to them, although the one-off narrators offered the best performances.
Art/Animation: If you take a look at some gifs of the show, the animation can be very stunning at times, sometimes even unsettling! But these moments were so few and far between it leaves you just hoping you'll catch glimpses every few minutes. There were instances were it felt as if several artists worked on a single episode, given only a few frames to animate. The quality of the show is highly inconsistent, laughably bad to just downright unfinished in some instances. Maybe it was due to budget constraints or poor directing but some episodes feel very unprofessionally done. Character expressions at times are very limited. Despite the attempts to capture Ito's style, the series' art direction was often inconsistent and jarring. Additionally, this series was based on body horror and gore. However, this is another element that rarely utilized to its potential. Attempts to hide the more violent scenes are not done in a way that adds to the suspense and violent scenes that are shown are rarely detailed enough to be considered "scary". The stories' narratives alone are usually what drive you to keep watching.
As a Junji Ito fan I was disappointed to say the least. I was excited to finally see these works adapted with the kind of care and passion they deserve. That's mostly what kept me going through the episodes. You can see glimmers of a good adaptation here and that's what's so disheartening. Nevertheless, I don't think this is a complete throwaway, there still some weirdness to discover if you're willing to work through its flaws. If at least one episode sparks your curiosity while watching, I cannot recommend Junji Ito's work more to you.
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