Ju-On, or The Grudge, is infamous in the horror cycle and after a number of films, spin-off and a video game, it was only a matter of time until a manga about it was published. But like the video game, the manga has none of scare factor or charm of the films.

Story: Volume one adapts the story of the first and second television films Katasumi and 4444444444 and Ju-On: The Curse. It's a faithful adaption however the cross from film to manga means it lacks the suspense, the scares and the overall wow factor. The story is mediocre and almost boring.

Art: The art isn't that great and in places it's more funny than scary. Some parts of the art however, particularly the more gorey scenes have far much detail and effort put in that the majority of the manga. The art is nothing to rave about, it's very generic.

Character: Because it's such a short manga, there's little character development, as most of the characters are killed off pretty quickly. The interpretation of Kayako Saeki (aka The Grudge) however is very interesting. In some scenes she is shown as merciless ghost intent on destroying everything she comes into contact, yet in other scenes she's shown as loving and caring towards Toshio - in some parts she even has speech instead of her usual death rattle. Other than that, the characters are pretty bland and uniform.

Enjoyment: Being a huge fan of the Ju-On franchise, I was pretty disappointed with this. It's pretty much like the books that are written to accompany films after their release. I was pretty bored throughout reading it.

Overall: Ju-On lacks the scares, charm and the suspense of the films and its a poor adaptation in my opinion. Still, it's a good introductory manga and if you're a fan of the series, I'd give it a read. There's some pretty good pages, but other than that, it's pretty much mediocre at best. 5/10.