Uzumaki already ruined one important character in just one episode

Warning: Spoilers ahead for Uzumaki Episode 1The long-awaited adaptation for Uzumaki has finally arrived, and while it’s off to a good start, it’s already ruined a key character in just one episode. The hype behind the anime adaptation of Junji Ito’s masterpiece has died down over the past year. The trailers looked promising for a faithful recreation of the manga after many understandable delays. However, now that the series is here, there is one important character who seems to have undergone the most serious changes.

Shuichi Saito is the boyfriend of Uzumakis primary narrator, Kirie Goshima. In the original manga, he was depicted as a character who sensed strange things happening in their town of Kurozu-cho, but just viewed them as strange coincidences. However, when his parents die after his father’s strange fascination with spirals, Shuichi begins to spiral into madness as the curse of the town begins to show itself. His role is important to the story. however, In the anime, his character has changed for the worse As he has been obsessed with the strange shape from the beginning.

Shuichi Saito begins the series with an obsession, rather than developing it over time

He needs time to go crazy

The change in Shuichi’s character from the first episode completely upends his arc over the course of Uzumakis history. In the manga, It was a slow creep into madness as he watched the spiraling curse overtake his parents. In fact, it gets so bad for him that he becomes a recluse after his mother’s death because of how often he notices spirals around the strange happenings in Kurozu-cho. It’s crazy that happens because the curse hit him so close to home, making him a believer in the power she holds over the town.

By shifting things to make him at the same level of insanity he was in later chapters before his father even died, His bow changes completely to make him always aware of the curse. There is no time for him to slowly begin to realize strange things that happen to his parents before he eventually draws the conclusion that the city is cursed. He is only ever known, and it plays against Shuichi’s original image as a fearful person who completely melts once he sees the truth behind the strange happenings in Kurozu-cho.

Shuichi’s character change ruins his role in “The Scar”

His reaction to Azami makes no sense in the anime

Uzumakis adaptation of the manga’s third chapter, “The Scar,” is where the issue with Shuichi’s character change is most prominent in the first episode. In the manga, at this point in the story, his parents are both dead and His paranoia took full form. This leads him to become a recluse as he begins to see spirals everywhere he goes. So, when Kirie meets him and brings Azami with her, it is clear why he notices that something is up with the latter. His obsession has gotten to the point where he knows the signs of when the curse is starting to take shape.

The anime, however, throws his reaction to Azami’s presence before his father even died. Without losing his parents and developing a sense of paranoia, It feels strange for him to react to Azami the way he does. His exposure to the Spiral Curse at this point was minimal, as he only noticed that his father was obsessed with the form. Without this crucial development in his character, his role feels incredibly out of place in what is commonly known as one of the most terrifying chapters of manga. Its visuals absolutely meet the expectations of ITO fans, but the story around it just doesn’t work as well.

Shuichi’s anime arc no longer fits the story’s spiraling themes

It’s not really a spiral if he’s already halfway down

The worst part about Shuichi developing a spiraling obsession before the story has truly begun is how it plays into the overall themes of Junji Ito’s graphic novel. The whole point of Uzumaki is to show a town succumbing to madness as more strange events begin to occur. In order to reflect this, things must have a status quo in the beginning, before things go off the rails, just as a spiral has a clear beginning of its curve. Shuichi is introduced while his sanity is already swirling completely, as he fits into the theme of the story.

With only four short episodes available to tell Junji Ito’s massive horror story, it’s clear that shortcuts have to be made for everything to be told. However, the changes made to Shuichi are too overwhelming to ignore. His spiraling descent into madness is what made his character interesting in the manga, especially with Kirie being an outsider looking in until she experiences her own exposure to the curse. It is a character sheet that has completely ruined Shuichi in Uzumaki In one episode, and although there is still more story to tell, it is difficult to really establish how he fits into the message of the story in general.

Source: Adult swim