Review: HUNGRY FOR YOU: ENDO YASUKO STALKS THE NIGHT

 After that last review, we should look at more recent take on horror.  It should be something a little funnier, a little moodier, and maybe more than a little bit gay.

HUNGRY FOR YOU: ENDO YASUKO STALKS THE NIGHT (Endo Yasuko wa Yomayoicho ni Kakureteru), by Flowerchild.  First published in 2016 and first published in North America in 2018.

PLOT:

At a prestigious girls' school in Yomai town, a mystery haunts the student body.  Three girls have gone missing and no one knows who the culprit might be.  Shizue thinks she has stumbled upon the answer when she discovers her classmate, Yasuko Endo, drinking another girl's blood.  A chase ensues, but Yasuko ultimately makes a deal with Shizue: if Shizue will provide her own blood as needed to keep Yasuko's cravings at bay, Yasuko will help pay for Shizue's food and lodging.  Thus begins their strange relationship, one that only grows stranger as it grows to include a hyper-competitive rival, an incompetent vampire hunter from Texas, and a gal with an agenda of her own.

Review: SHAMAN KING

 With its recent rerelease, it's time to take a look at a suitably spooky Shonen Jump title from the past.

SHAMAN KING (Shaman Kingu), by Hiroyuki Takei.  First published in 1998 and first published in North America in 2003.

PLOT:

One night after cram school, Manta runs into a strange young boy in a graveyard staring at the stars.  This boy, Yoh, turns out to have the ability to see ghosts.  That's because he is a shaman, someone who can not only communicate with spirits but to summon them at will and use their unique powers in battle.  That skill soon comes in handy when the two have to deal with neighborhood bullies, angry ghosts, and a rival shaman named Ren who wants Yoh's favorite ghost for himself.

Review: ALIVE: THE FINAL EVOLUTION

We're back with a month of horror manga, and this time let's look at something a little different...and possibly a bit too timely, considering everything that's happened this year.

 ALIVE: THE EVOLUTION (Araibu - Saishu Shinkateki Shonen), written by Tadashi Kawashima & art by Adachitoka.  First published in 2003 and first published in North America in 2007.

PLOT:

Taisuke is an ordinary guy.  He lives with his older sister, who also happens to be the school nurse.  He regularly rescues his wimpy friend Hirose from bullies.  His other friend Megu berates him in your standard tsundere sort of way.  This story begins on what would be an ordinary day for all of them...until people start killing themselves en masse due to something known only as the 'suicide virus.' Things only get worse when Hirose is accused of murdering his tormentors.  Things get stranger still when Taisuke, Hirose appear to be immune to the virus and start manifesting strange powers.