Shiki

Man, this is my favorite manga of all time. It is by far not the best written, the most insightful, nor the best drawn. However, it is the only manga that has duped me before I dumped it, and it is also the manga of my favorite character and my most hated character!

Now I must confess, I don't really feel anything when I read. I can tear up a little at sad parts and laugh at funny parts, but it's not powerful emotion. Even in Berserk, at the betrayal's climax, I was like, "meh, this dude is so ungrateful."

But boy, oh boy, Shiki is brilliant. Fuckin' awesome. I felt elation. I felt rage! The story takes you on a journey, through stupidity, to imminent extinction due to stupidity, to the most satisfying death I've ever read about, then to a fuckin' party, then at the finale, to the greatest betrayal--of the author, against you. And you never would have seen it coming, unless you actually stopped and thought about the symbolism but no one does at gory! action! death! scenes, so you can't even chuck the book away before the author nabs you. Because it ends right there.

Anyways, I don't really think it's spoilers to go ahead and say I'm a die-hard Toshio fan, and sometimes I surprise myself with my unfounded vicious hate of the Shiki. Then, I have to step back and think, hmmm, why do we have such great potential for cruelty and disgust? What about fear robs us of our compassion, our reason, our apathy? And then I reflect upon myself...but not really 'cause Toshio is my favorite character w00t Abraham Lincoln, vampire slayer

The Host. The Invasion of the Body Snatchers. The Lord of the Flies. Take all these three novels/movies, twist it to make it darker and more complex, and there you have it. The manga, Shiki, is born.

Story: 8
The plot itself isn't very original. However, what makes Shiki unique is the flow of the story and its characters. The beginning starts out a little slow in order to add suspense and mystery to the story. However, mystery isn't one the strongest point of this manga. What is truly amazing is how the chapters are often told in various perspectives. The chapters aren't necessarily episodic, but every few chapters or so are told in the perspective of one of the supporting characters. This helps add definition to the characters and allows the readers to understand the characters more and what they are going through. Although the general plot may seem simplistic at a glance, Shiki is much more complex. Readers will be astonished at how dark and primitive human nature can be, how fragile humans are as they begin to de-evolve, and how complex "good" and "bad" really are. The lines between good and evil, right and wrong are blurred within Shiki and readers are left wondering, who is truly "right" in the end...if there is one. The ending is generally satisfying as there are no plot holes or mysteries left unsolved. Nevertheless, the survival and deaths of certain characters will undoubtedly upset readers who felt close to those characters.

Art: 7
The art is fairly unique and actually quite fitting for this type of horror story. The fact that the colors used are generally black, white, and gray contribute to how terrifying the situation is within the village. The mangaka successfully added to the mood of this story with his art. The style adds quite a haunting effect to the story. The backgrounds are realistic, whereas the character designs are more memorable. The shading and the backgrounds flow together to bring focus onto the characters. The way the characters look and how they are dressed are used to bring attention to their personalities and their reactions to their current situation. Readers will find that how the characters look fit perfectly to how they act. Each character looks unique and memorable in their own way so that readers won't have any trouble confusing one of them with another.

Character: 8
All the members of the village will be introduced at the beginning of the story. The numerous characters introduced will bewilder and confuse the reader at first, but soon the major characters will come into play and the confusion will dissipate. The main characters and many of the supporting characters have detailed personalities and the chapters that revolve around the supporting characters help create definition to those characters. Given their situation, the characters acted realistically. The various responses from the villagers to their situation reveal how people will act in many different ways, depending on who they are and how their personalities were developed. The antagonists were also given depth as their backgrounds and motivations were explored in the later chapters. In general, the characters were well made and overall memorable.

Enjoyment: 9
Many readers will find the beginning slow and slightly tiresome, but as they continue to read Shiki and unravel the mystery, action and trouble are discovered and readers will not be disappointed to have read Shiki. Personally, I enjoyed this series because of the depth in the plot, the character development, and the exploration of human nature in this manga. The complexity of Shiki will definitely have readers remembering it in the future and the topics on human nature involved in the plot would make a good discussion among readers.

Overall: 8/9
Shiki is a wonderful manga that will leave readers reflecting on human nature and good vs. evil for hours on end. There is absolutely no doubt that those who have read Shiki will enjoy it and want to recommend it to others.

Shiki is a great manga because it keeps the stakes personal.

A series of deaths occur in a small traditional japanese village, Sotoba, and it all started after a certain family inhabited an abandoned mansion, it turns out they are vampires. It's a bit slow paced at the beginning, because of its focus on world building, but the mistery is ever present, and pays off in the end. The struggle of the village is all the more enjoyable because of its small scale, we get to know everyone and every nook and cranny (with details about the national road, the temples, houses) and we are more invested in the story because of that. Another great aspect it achieves, is the suspense in which it slowly builds upon, the bigger picture is never clear and as the story progresses, every character intertwines and the conflict tightens. It brings up numerous memorable and shocking scenes and leaves no plot points loose.

The diverse personalities of the characters responding to the terror in different ways makes it all interesting. We have two factions, the villagers who try to understand what is happening, trying to survive; and the Shiki, a group of undead who are responsible for the misery of the vilage, and we care about the fight that happens with both, who will survive and be the dominant species. Human nature is a constant theme, the fear of not being the dominant species and the struggle for survival, keeps us questioning who is truly achieving the right thing.

The art conveys the story in an unique and haunting way. I struggled to enjoy it and didn't find me staring at a page admiring the drawings, just finished reading and went to the next page. But it sets the atmosphere and suits the horror theme. The lack of detail is made up for with the shading and facial expressions (you truly feel their fear and discomfort). All the characters have exaggerated traits that keep them unique and memorable.

I was not expecting to be so engaged, and was quite surprised about how it told a classic concept such as vampires, the events are well thought out and are so intriguing, plus you are fully invested in the characters, their fate, and the fate of the village that you keep on reading.

This review contains medium SPOILERS: I will give away the premise that is established after about two volumes. Basically, I am going to tell you what "Shiki" means. No less and no more.
However, I think that this being a mystery manga, you may enjoy going into it as blind as you will. If that's the case for you then do avoid reading this review (any sort of information on the manga for that matter); go ahead and give it a try!


Shiki is one of those works which demonstrate beautifully how a concept that seems old and uninteresting can be revived to make for a refreshing setting. When the village of "Sotoba" is haunted by mysterious deaths everybody seems clueless concerning the origin of the proclaimed epidemic. Only a few individuals have the bravery and recklessness to dare think it could be the "Okiagari" - later named Shiki - causing the calamity. These so-called Okiagari are people who were once dead but have risen and are thereon blessed to live forever but cursed to feed on human blood.

This premise alongside with each characters motivations is what drives the plot. What keeps the story so lively is the excellent writing. Each chapter will focus on one particular character. And although these tales appear to exist independently of each other, they slowly begin to intertwine. Another good feature of the storytelling is that, as a reader you are never given the complete picture. Leaving you in the dark for most of its duration the manga makes for a very suspenseful read.

The concept which this manga is centred around (vampirism) comes across as ever so fresh. That's because Shiki takes a surprisingly serious approach to the theme having its characters deal with many of its social and moral consequences. As the Okiagari are not simply used as a setup for an action or a horror story but are treated like the dilemma that they really represent, everything becomes that much more believable as well as thought-provoking. The story is rich in allegories and all sorts of symbolisms relating to questions of justice, ethics, human nature and many more.

In this turmoil of justice and injustice, compassion and instincts, survivability and principles, each (main) character has his or her own point of view. Some of them more clear-cut than others.
The good thing about the cast is that it's big and it's rather diverse.
But while it is the convictions of the key characters that push the plot, these lead characters themselves do not undergo as much development as one could have expected. Especially considering the complete 180° (or is it 360°?) shift that the plot with its various twists achieves.
Even though the themes and topics are all there, sometimes one might wish that a particular point of view (say the moralist's, the nihilist's, the speciesism's) be a little more openly expressed by a specific character. It's oftentimes you contemplating, not the characters.

If their contentual expression may be lacking at times, the characters' visual appearance certainly doesn't. The art style is something to get used to with very spikey hair and largely exaggerated facial and bodily traits. I think that the general art style is probably subject to taste but if you keep an open mind I definitely think you too will appreciate the great variety that it offers. If anything, I think it adds to the feeling of the manga.


In the end, what sets Shiki apart from other series of the supernatural genre is the commitment to explore the actual implications of a pop fiction topic. This story is executed candidly, brutely and without any sort of melodrama whatsoever. There are next to no comedic moments in Shiki, instead numerous shocking, moving and memorable ones.
Although in my opnion the (very) end makes the symbolism a bit too amiguous the rest of the series is an absolute treat. Even if you will be left alone to do so don't miss the chance to ponder over what is means to be a Okiagari, or a human being or both.

Shiki is based on a novel by the same name published in 1998 by Fuyumi Ono. Although most of the story is almost the same, there are some differences. The main difference is that one of the supporting characters on the novel, becomes a main one in the manga (Natsuno Yuuki).

STORY- Shiki starts as a horror/mystery slow pace story about sudden unexplainable deaths occurring in one small village, Sotoba. The deaths seem to have started since the Kirishiki family moved to the village. Our protagonists are Muroi Seishin the monk, Ozaki Toshio the doctor and Natsuno Yuuki a student and the little mysterious Kanemasa girl named Sunako Kirishiki. While the supernatural events occur, later the drama starts and that´s when you get addicted. The bonds, the friendship, betrayal and pain. You cannot stop reflecting about the nature of humans and vampires, and who of them is right or wrong.

ART- Considered as ugly by many because of the weird hairstyles and colors, i personally find it unique. The hairstyles sure are weird and so are the outifts, but once you´ll get used to it, you cannot imagine them with normal hair or clothes. You´ll even start to adore them. They´re fashionable. The art must be unique because its a unique manga.

CHARACTER- All characters in Shiki universe have name even the ones who almost do not appear. Many of the supporting charas had full chapters dedicated to them. Some people may find it boring because that way the main characters have much less "screen-time", and it certainly leads to a bit of anxiety waiting to see the main characters, because their chapters end always in a cliffhanger and you want to see what´s next, not the story of a random supporting character. But that keeps you even more excited.
The main characters are extremely well constructed and with a very detailed personality. You´ll love them or you´ll hate them, there´s no "middle" here.

ENJOYMENT- A great one. Once you´ll get through the slow plot of the first chapters, later the story takes a twist and everything starts to happen fast and in a twist. You will get hooked, you´ll be cheering for your favourite characters and cursing the ones you hate, because this manga gives you a mountain of emotions.

OVERALL- Outstanding. And here you´ll get the chance to see the "continuation" of the characters you saw in the anime or novel version.

The premise of the story is intriguing and rather refreshing. The story has a certain draw to it that kept me reading chapter after chapter. Unfortunately, the characters destroy any suspension of disbelief I had. It’s been a while since I’ve encountered such an entirely retarded cast of characters. I feel the story could have ended in 10 chapters if only the characters had a minimal IQ of 80. The characters are rather bland with limited development, but not completely uninteresting. For example, the bond between Natsuno and Tooru was fun to read about. It’s a tragedy that it wasn’t further explored though. So many characters were introduced, then killed off without elaboration that 95% o f the cast was forgettable. The main characters suffer an overabundance of tropes and lack depth. The art is passable, but won’t win any awards/ At times, the characters’ bodies are so elongated that you wonder if the artist drew this while laying down. Overall the manga felt shallow and predictable with a few redeeming qualities. 6/10

This is a pretty great manga series!! I've never been so addicted to a story. I finished this one in two days! I really loved it, the amount of clues this manga leaves out in the open is honestly breathtaking. Even though it was hard to keep up with all the characters, you still get motivated to read more? But man. Prepare for the ending, is all i'm sayin.
I stumbled upon this Manga just after re-watching Higurashi (Kai), and while I can't draw that many similarities between the two, they've both got this overarching sinister feel, as well as constantly bending your expectations. The art was one of the high points for me!! Some of the panels during the middle of the story had angular shots which I loved to see. I'm a massive fan of this 2008/2010 manga style. I really loved the relationship between Natsuno and Tooru! They really kept me reading for way longer than my tiny heart could handle. The story also doesn't take its gore lightly! Which is a plus in my book, but maybe not yours. Super enjoyable, would totally recommend!!

Shiki is a manga based off a novel. Drawn by Fujisaki Ryu, this manga is one not to miss. It takes place in a small, Japanese town of a population of 1300. We start off with Megumi, a 15-year old girl who hates the town. She is interested in only two things in the town: Yuki and the huge Mansion. A msyterious family moves into the mansion. Megumi pays a visit and goes missing. The police later find her very ill. A few days later, she dies a msyterious death. Suddenly, more deaths start occuring.


Story:
The story is very captivating and keeps you at the edge of your seat. It's extremely well-written. It's very different from the usual manga we see today. I'm very interested in finding the novel this is based off of.

Art:
The art of 'Shiki' is incredibly beautiful and haunting. The syle is unique and refreshing. You can see the details Fujisaki did to impact the story itself. Truthfully, the art is far above most shounen manga out there.

Character:
Some characters are a bit boring ,but all of them contribute to the plot. It's hard to remember them all because there are so many.

Enjoyment:
You will enjoy this manga and you will want to spread the word about it.