Uzumaki episode 4: Anime vs manga comparison

Uzumaki episode 4 was released on October 20, 2024. After a rollercoaster ride of below-average CGI combined with frequent horrifying animation sequences, the anime series ended with an 'acceptable' climax episode. One of the biggest reasons behind this was the extended time the episode spanned, 32 minutes, which made the adaptation of 6 chapters possible.

Amongst the disappointments in the episode were some glitchy panels like Shuichi falling down the spiral ruins. However, these blunders were overshadowed by improvisations like the aesthetic animation of the spiral ruins and the addition of an anime-original climax featuring the continuation of the spiral curse to the next generation.

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Comparing Uzumaki episode 4 to its manga chapters

Uzumaki episode 4: Slight improvisations to make the episode brief

Chie as seen in the anime (Image via Adult Swim)

Uzumaki episode 4 commenced with the adaptation of chapter 14. The episode featured whirlwinds that could be easily generated due to the Dragonfly Pond. One of the improvised details in the episode was Chie's involvement with the children that were tied.

In the episode, she didn't interact with these kids whereas in the manga she freed them and later followed them. After following the kids, she was attacked by them after which Kirie and Mitsuo saved Chie. All of these improvisations were likely done to make the chapter's impact on the episode shorter, even though the episode was longer than expected.

Kirie's group encountering the Dragonfly Gang (Image via Adult Swim)

Uzumaki episode 4 then adapted chapter 15, titled Chaos. After getting rejected by the shelter, Kirie and his entire family exited and looked for another refuge. The episode, again, skipped some details to make the adaptation material less. In the episode, Kirie and Chie visited the shelter once, whereas, in the manga, they visited twice and were rejected on their second visit.

On the other hand, Kirie's father's disappearance was left vague in the episode however in the manga series, his condition was already 'critical,' hinting at this disappearance against the Dragonfly Gang. The adaptation of chapters 16-18 was pretty straightforward and could be considered the direct animation of the manga panels into a motion picture.

Uzumaki episode 4: 'That' Shuichi scene and the 'aesthetic' adaptation of the spiral ruins

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Uzumaki episode 4's last part featured the adaptation of the final chapter, chapter 19. This chapter was the most crucial part of the anime series because it featured the spiral ruins whose adaptation was to showcase the true horror of the spiral curse. However, before its adaptation, the production team generated a blunder that became a tag to the episode.

As Kirie and Shuichi descended the stairs towards the spiral ruins, the former was attacked by a human lying on the ground. As Shuichi tried to save her, he was attacked and fell down the stairs. Shuichi falling was just an image, instead of an animated sequence, hinting at the recklessness of the production team.

The spiral ruins as seen in the anime (Image via Adult Swim)

Leaving such traumatic scenes behind, the magnum opus of Uzumaki anime could be the animated sequence of the spiral ruins. In the manga series, the spiral ruins were showcased as a two-page panel, robbing it of its glory for the fandom that has a hard time picturing a situation from a drawing.

However, the anime did it justice by adding a hallucination effect to the spiral ruins. Not only did this signify the true horror of the spiral curse, but it was also capable of making the viewers nauseous, giving justice to a panel that the fandom was not expecting.

Uzumaki episode 4: An anime-original scene signifies the eternal hex of the spiral curse

Eri as seen in the anime (Image via Adult Swim)

Instead of adapting the lost chapter, Galaxies, Uzumaki episode 4 went anime-original. Centuries after the destruction of Kurouzu village, another village was built over the dead one which featured the story of Eri and Satoshi (whom the fandom considers the reincarnation of Kirie and Shuichi).

However, unlike in the past, Kirie's reincarnation, Eri, recommended escaping the village because she could feel the horror from the spirals. This showcases the timeless jinx of the spiral curse which never ends.

Final thoughts

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Unfortunately, despite the series having a decent finale episode, this couldn't cover the blunders it did in episodes 2 and 3. However, this was another reminder that horror anime adaptations are still far from human vision, even though episode 1 was above average in all conditions.

The only thing that the production team could have done was to increase the episode amount which could have ensured a much better pacing. However, considering how the series took more than 5 years to produce, it was still somewhat injustice towards the horror fandom.

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Edited by Tiasha