Black Paradox

Four strangers make a suicide pact online, when they meet up in person to commit the deed, their lives get turned upside down by their own mirror images. A shadow, a robot, and the person staring back at you in the mirror are all ways to a wondrous land of light - and death. Will these four strangers complete their pact by their own hands or will they turn their lives around but die in the process... Or who knows, they may all live to tell the tale of the black paradox. The entire vibe of this manga felt like a horror movie, and I don't mean just because of the gore, the scares, and the suspense. There's a certain presence in older horror movies, especially from the 90s, that just gives you the creeps and all the feels, that same je ne sais quoi was in Black Paradox. At first, I had no idea what was going on and was a bit confused because some of the elements didn't quite fit in the beginning, but by the end, it made complete utterly terrifying sense. There were a lot of twists and turns, the plot was solid, and while the characters at times were a bit obnoxious, they were definitely engaging. It almost felt like the characters got what they deserved by the end, which I felt was pretty cool as they started off wanting to end their lives. But that's not to say that the ending was... necessarily good for the characters, but it felt satisfying. I can't say much more without spoilers, so I'll just stop here by saying this is probably one of the best stories I read by Junji Ito, and it is absolutely perfection for the spooky season!