The horror genre, along with a manga series, is the equivalent of a perfect combination and a fascinating read in Viz Media’s upcoming omnibus re-release of Junji Ito’s ever popular manga, Gyo.

Ito is the king of all things horror in Japan for his chilling stories such as Uzumaki and Tomie that are widely viewed as classics. Ito has a reputation of putting his characters through the ringer, and testing their mental stability by putting them in such drastic circumstances in the quest for survival. The horror series Gyo taps into instinctual fears sparked from sea life, with mutated creatures responsible for many gruesome deaths.

The story centers on a couple with a will to survive and fight back, despite the high probability of their own demise. Ito (who writes and handles the art for his series) does a stellar job at providing readers with insanely talented examples of art and the grotesque visuals necessary for a horror manga.

Before even concluding the first chapter you find yourself interested in the pair, and are introduced to one of the sea creatures, jumping right into a unique story by the horror master. If you aren’t fond of the ocean or sea life, this tale will provide an extra dose of fear, and most likely keep you from open water for a little while. Gyo was initially released in 2002, but this most recent release is the perfect item for fans, with its hardcover bundle that contains over 400 pages of sheer oceanic terror that makes for a perfect binge read.

Gyo is set to be released by Viz Media on April 21st, and if you have the stomach to handle unfiltered horror, make sure to pick up a copy as soon as possible!

San Francisco, CA, March 24, 2015 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest publisher, distributor and licensor of manga and anime in North America, delivers a lavish new edition of one of the manga (graphic novel) genre’s most seminal horror titles with the publication of the GYO Deluxe Edition on April 21st.

This hardcover version of Junji Ito’s story of an invasion of the Japanese island of Okinawa by mutated sea creatures is presented in a definitive 400 page, 2-in-1 edition that features a new cover design and full-color endpapers. The GYO Deluxe Edition will be published under the VIZ Signature imprint, is rated ‘T+’ for Older Teens, and will carry an MSRP of $22.99 U.S. / $26.99 CAN.

In GYO, the floating smell of death hangs over an island. What is it? A strange, legged fish appears on the scene… So begins Tadashi and Kaori’s spiral into the horror and stench of the sea. Here is the creepiest masterpiece of horror manga ever from the creator of UZUMAKI, Junji Ito. Hold your breath until all is revealed.

“GYO is a truly unsettling work of horror, and this new Deluxe Edition presents the definitive version of the story in a handsome format,” says Masumi Washington, Senior Editorial Director. “Ito’s art will transform your mind, and like the sea life and human characters in GYO, you will never be the same again.”

Manga creator Junji Ito made his professional debut in 1987 and has gone on to be recognized as one of the greatest contemporary artists working in the horror genre. His critically acclaimed titles include TOMIE and UZUMAKI, which were adapted into critically praised live-action films, while GYO has been adapted into an animated feature film. The UZUMAKI and GYO manga editions are both published in English by VIZ Media in deluxe hardcover editions available under the VIZ Signature imprint. VIZ Media is set to publish Ito’s FRAGMENTS OF HORROR in the Summer of 2015. Junji Ito’s influences include classic horror manga artists Kazuo Umezu and Hideshi Hino, as well as authors Yasutaka Tsutsui and H.P. Lovecraft.

For more information on GYO or other Junji Ito manga titles published by VIZ Media, please visit www.VIZ.com.

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