Published in 2017 by Glénat, Blue Phobia is Eri Tsuruyoshi's first manga. In this breathless tale, the promising writer plunges us into a scientific horror whose tension is similar to that of The Thing or The Fly.
The story
A man wakes up tied to an operating table, with no memory of who he is or where he is. His panic increases even more when a stranger enters in a full suit… Ready to inject him with the strange contents of a syringe! It is then that a young woman with superhuman strength and limbs tinged with a strange blue color appears! After destroying the room, she urges the young man to run away with her. The two companions in misfortune embark on a frantic quest to leave the island on which they are held prisoner… Where research into the mysterious indigo disease is conducted.
Mystery and stone bone
Blue Phobia immediately plunges us into a horrific atmosphere of the most successful. By a striking style effect, Eri Tsuruyoshi places the reader in the shoes of the main character, amnesiac, discovering himself prisoner of a strange place. We are starting on an equal footing, ignorant of the situation. Everything we know boils down to two words: indigo disease. This is an orphan disease, the main symptom of which is to tint the body blue. But this is not aesthetic, since in the final stage, the disease transforms the bones of the subject into stone, and more precisely into marine sapphire, a mineral that would line the bottom of the oceans. The prognosis is therefore inevitable: it is death. If Blue Phobia is so scary, it is because the mangaka has been able to anchor her story very well in a credible scientific reality. The way guinea pigs are treated, as well as the revelations that accumulate as Kai regains his memory, create an atmosphere of tension. Added to this is a sense of urgency, both in the chase between the two fugitives and their jailers, and in the pace given to the story. Indeed, like Judge (Yoshiki Tonogai), the latter takes place mainly behind closed doors. The feeling of panic and suffocation is therefore present, increased by the long empty corridors of the laboratory… The action takes place almost without pause, in a kind of dizzying perpetual motion.
Graphic beauty and aesthetic horror
From the front cover, Blue Phobia, catches the reader's eye and does not let go. The electric blue presented by the bones and organs seen in transparency is equipped with a shiny varnish that retransmits the idea of minerality. This cold color is omnipresent and recalls the seabed from which the sapphire invading the body of indigo patients would have come. As we said in the introduction, Blue Phobia is the first manga by Eri Tsuruyoshi, published in two volumes in Japan, reduced to a thick one-shot in France. We therefore find some graphic errors, especially in terms of perspective or orientation of the bodies. Fortunately, these mistakes remain very rare and do not spoil the reading! We can thus fully enjoy the quality of the drawings provided by the mangaka, whose fine line immediately recalls that of Sui Ishida (Tokyo Ghoul, Chôjin X). Some striking scenes of realism are chilling! The edition in large format is thus an added value to enjoy this title. The treatment of the characters is not left out. Whether they are main or secondary, allies or enemies, their psychology is worked, their motivations credible. All are dealt with in a comprehensive manner both in terms of substance and form. This adds even more coherence to a breathless, synthetic but well-worked narrative to the end. Moreover, Blue Phobia goes beyond the "simple" horror narrative to carry in its wake an uncompromising questioning of societal values and the notion of progress. Does it always have to go through the ultimate sacrifice of some? Where can medical and energy innovation stop? How can we ensure that ethics survives scientific upheavals? Is there a limit to what man can do for the own good of humanity? The questions that emerge are multiple and fascinating. In conclusion, Blue Phobia unfolds a science fiction story mixed with horror perfectly conducted. The short format requires a synthetic story that Eri Tsuruyoshi masters to the end. It is therefore a manga particularly striking for its cold aesthetic and complex characters. We warmly invite you to discover it! To read an excerpt, click here !
