Tokyo Akazukin (Tokyo Red Hood) Vol. 1-4 Manga Review!

Before writing this review, it had been many years since I had last thought about Tokyo Akazukin (東京赤ずきん). An infamous ero-guro manga by mangaka Benkyo Tamaoki, Tokyo Akazukin (or Tokyo Red Hood as it’s commonly known as outside of Japan) lacked an English translation for many years. The content was clearly graphic, but the manga only being in Japanese made the content hard to decipher for most readers. I was one of these readers many years ago. As a teenager I was obsessed with finding and consuming any form of media that was listed as “one of the most disturbing – of all time.” Movies, music, comics, etcetera, as long as it was extreme, I was interested. While searching for disturbing manga, two titles came up more than any others. Those being Mai-Chan’s Daily Life by Uziga Waita (read review here), and as previously mentioned, Tokyo Akazukin by Benkyo Tamaoki. Mai-Chan’s Daily Life was easy to find in English, but Tokyo Red Hood remained a Japanese-only experience. I was able to look through the panels and found the art to be unsettling, but the actual story was lost to me. Thus, Tokyo Akazukin remained a mystery to me for many years. That is, dear reader, until I was looking for underground horror manga to read and stumbled upon a website that had listed ‘Tokyo Akazukin – full English translation’. Could it be, the mysterious manga I had waited to read all these years? Yes. I’m proud to say ‘Tokyo Red Hood’ has been translated into English by a nameless individual and I was finally able to decipher what the story was about. And I’m happy to say, it is well worth a read. 

Tokyo Akazukin was originally serialized in the monthly ‘Comic BIRZ’ magazine in Japan from 2003-2004 and was eventually released as a series of four tankōbon volumes. The story follows the titular Akazukin, a young girl who dresses exactly like the fairy tale character of Little Red Riding Hood, who is obsessed with a creature she refers to as “Mr. Wolf” who she desperately wants to get eaten by. Akazukin is immortal, and the only way she will ever be able to escape her curse is to be eaten by Mr. Wolf. As the story progresses the reader learns that Akazukin has no memories of her past and it is not clear to her why she has such a strong desire to be eaten by Mr. Wolf. Throughout the course of the four-volume series, we’re introduced to multiple characters that can be placed into two groups. Those who want to aid Akazukin in her journey to find Mr. Wolf, and those who oppose her. Heaven and hell collide, and the reader is exposed to an in-your-face experience full of graphic violence, sex, and body horror. 

The story of Tokyo Akazukin is one full of twists and turns. While it doesn’t necessarily break any new ground in the world of seinen or even ero-guro manga, it is a well written one full of interesting characters and plot points. The cast of characters in the manga never fully fit into a “good” or “bad” category, and all of them seem to exist in a moral grey area. This keeps the story interesting, as the line between good and evil frequently blurs and it is unclear who we should really be rooting for.  Unfortunately, the ending of the manga does feel very predictable, and the final volume of the series never goes anywhere unexpected.

But enough about the story, most readers who pick up Tokyo Akazukin in the first place are here for the shock value. The manga features many scenes of extremely graphic violence, with heads being blown apart, disembowelment, and limbs being severed left and right. While this is commonplace in ero-guro and seinen manga in general, what sets Tokyo Akazukin apart is the restraint that is demonstrated between these acts of graphic violence. Not a single act of violence in the story lacks a purpose, and this leads to these acts having much more of an impact. When a character was injured or killed the reader cares, as most of the characters are well fleshed out and have been important to the plot up until they are killed off. No character is safe in the story, which creates an almost palpable sense of danger across all four volumes. Still, none of this would have the same impact if the art was nothing short of incredible. 

Something I rarely see brought up when people discuss Tokyo Akazukin is the art style, which is a shame. Every frame of the series is beautiful, and Tamaoki utilizes empty space in a way that very few mangaka do. Pages crowded with bloodshed are followed by wide empty frames, with small pops of action that give the story a sense of scale. The artwork is genuinely beautiful to look at, and there was never a single point in the entire series that I felt that it could be improved. Manga is a visual medium, and I’m happy to report that this one is one of the most stunningly drawn I have ever seen.

Tokyo Akazukin was a mystery I was happy to finally be able to uncover, as the story was always interesting and well written. While the ending was predictable, the journey to get there was incredible. The manga’s graphic content was never pointlessly shocking, and the carnage found within always felt impactful. The gorgeous art style also helps cement this as one of the best manga series I have read in quite some time. I highly recommend this to all manga fans and not just those interested in ero-guro.

Manga: Tokyo Akazukin
AKA: 東京赤ずきん, Tokyo Red Hood
Issue: Volumes 1-4
Written by: Benkyo Tamaoki
Penciled by: Benkyo Tamaoki
Inked by: Benkyo Tamaoki
Colored by: Benkyo Tamaoki
Lettering by: Benkyo Tamaoki
Edited by: Blister
Cover by: Benkyo Tamaoki
Year: 2003

Studio: Comic BIRZ
Published by: Gentosha