Holiday Review #4: THE TOWN OF PIGS

 After years of struggling, American publishers have finally figured out that horror manga can be successful and that they don't have to exclusively lean upon Junji Ito for that success.

Nowhere is that more evident than with the up-and-coming publisher Star Fruit Books.  They not only established their own horror manga imprint but started licensing works by some of the horror mangaka who influenced Ito in the first place.

THE TOWN OF PIGS (Buta no Machi), by Hideshi Hino.  First published in 1983 and first published in North America in 2022.

PLOT:

A young boy is horrified when a horde of marauding demons storm into his town, destroy every building, and imprison everyone but him.  Their plan is as cruel as it is senseless: they will turn the townspeople into pigs for the sake of slave labor and food, and anyone who resists is gruesomely tortured to death.  The young boy refuses to flee, choosing instead to try to find a solution - any solution - to this dilemma, all while evading a fate worse than death.

STORY:

If you're used only to Junji Ito, you'll need to adjust your expectations when it comes to Hideshi Hino and The Town of Pigs.  You can see how the intense tone and creeping dread of this work would go on to influence Ito, but it operates much differently than even the weirdest or silliest of Ito's works.

If you try to apply even the slightest bit of logic to this story, it completely falls apart.  The Town of Pigs operates in the same fashion as a child's nightmare.  There is no explanation for what the demons are, why they invade, or how they transform humans into pigs.  Indeed, I'd even dare to call the ending pure nonsense.  It ultimately doesn't matter, though, because this manga is all about mood.  It's about putting you the reader into the mindset of our anonymous, helpless protagonist.  It's about the horror of separation, persecution, and pointless destruction.  It's about trying to keep yourself mentally strong against a force you are wholly unequipped to fight, one that will ultimately break you.  How much this instinctive form of horror works to paper over those leaps of logic will vary from reader to reader, but it can be quite effective if you're willing to let it.

ART:

Hino's artstyle is a study in contrast.  His characters are short, squat, childish looking creatures witih eyes permanently agog, little upturned noses, and the look of a person who hasn't slept well in a week.  Meanwhile, they are plunked into muddy, dank environments and subjected to gruesome, bloody tortures.  The presentation in panel and page is as plain as can be, as if Hino is forcing your to stare unflinchingly at the terrible acts as they happen.  It's not a traditionally attractive style, but it's one that fits the tone of the story well.

PRESENTATION:

Notably, I pre-ordered my copy before the establishment of the Blood Orange imprint.  As far as I can tell, there are no notable differences in the release before and afterwards, save for the fact that mine came with a postcard with an image from the manga as a pre-order bonus.

RATING:

The Town of Pigs won't be for everyone, but those willing to not think too hard about the details and let themselves get swept up in its pageant of horror may find it a welcome change of pace from most of the horror manga we've gotten in English up to this point.

This book is published by Star Fruit Books.  It is currently in print. 

Don't forget about our Holiday Review Giveaway! Let us know what your favorite manga of 2022 was and you might win a $25 RightStuf gift certificate!  Find out more at this link!