The article “Mold” / “Library Vision” from Junji Ito Maniac Season 1 Episode 6 Recap first appeared on Ready Steady Cut.
Spoilers are included in this summary of the Netflix anime collection Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre’s Season 1 Episode 6, “Mold” / “Library Vision.”
The story “Mold,” which was translated from the eighth edition of Junji Ito’s horror anthology Slug Girl, is yet another unsettling account of a situation that is quickly becoming worse and is heavily based on one of my least favourite things: dirty homes.
Junji Ito Maniac Season 1 Episode 6 Recap
But to call this messy is an understatement. The main character, Akasaka, returns home after spending a year abroad to find that his brother, Seiji, has rented out his apartment to the family of Mr. Rogi, his former homeroom teacher. When Akasaka arrives, the area is in a terrible state and covered in mould. Through flashbacks, which Junji Ito Mania hasn’t utilised a lot so far, we learn how Seiji was forced into the rental, but importantly, we don’t learn what caused the house’s damage until much later.
This is a fantastic rendering of the mould, which develops with time and eventually takes over the entire property, and the atmosphere inside the house is authentically wet and revolting. The Rogi family was infected by it, and Akasaka finally learns this through Seiji. The sight of the infant in the Rogi family crawling around while bubbling with the fungus is one of those images that will stick with you longer than you’d like.
Also Read: What’s coming to Netflix in February 2023?
Akasaka eventually learns that the mould originated from the dead Rogi family members and that it had grown out of their corpses and spread throughout the entire house. In the final scene of the episode, a worn-out and corrupted Akasaka mutters the word “itchy” to himself as he scrapes his own face.
A unique approach to generational trauma is “Library Vision,” which is based on “Library of Illusions” from New Voices in the Dark. Additionally, it is purposefully vague rather than clearly supernatural.
The main plot revolves around Goro, a man who is totally devoted to his library. He has added several volumes of his daily notebook to the collection, and he psychopathically chastises his wife Koko for reading a book without telling him.
Also Read: Finding out When Season 2 of Arcane Will Be Available on Netflix and Who Will Be in It!
When Goro’s parents’ favorite books eventually vanish, he starts to encounter apparitions who appear as the characters from those stories and speak the books’ text to him. Goro eventually succumbs to the same destiny as his father, believing himself that he must commit his whole collection to memory—a process that quickly drives him insane. Goro’s diaries, read by Koko, provide some context for how Goro’s literary preoccupation is a disguise for personal tragedy.
Goro burns himself, his journals, and his library in the final scene of the episode.
Netflix is the only place to see the anime collection Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre Season 1 Episode 6, “Mold” / “Library Vision.”