When it comes to modern horror comics, there is perhaps no one more unsettling or terrifying than Japanese manga artist Junji Ito. Heavily influenced by Kazuo Umezu, whose own work is rather horrific, Ito’s works have haunted readers for nearly three decades now. His stories vicious, cruel, and strangely believable, which makes them all the more prone to inducing nightmares, the worlds he creates are never safe, dangers lurking in the most unusual and fascinating of places.

Born in 1963 in the Japanese prefecture of Gifu, Ito didn’t fall immediately into the path of a manga artist. Rather, he wrote stories and practiced his art while he was a dental technician, only submitting his first story, Tomie, in 1987 to the manga magazine “Gekkan Halloween”. This story went on to get the Kazuo Umezu Prize, no doubt a huge honor for Ito.

Since then, Ito has released a large amount of highly detailed and intricately designed works. He continued the Tomie series, which has since been turned into a long-running J-horror franchise. His series Gyo, which ran from 2001-02, was turned into an anime in 2012 (it’s mediocre), while the multi-chapter series Uzumaki was converted into two video games and one live-action film, which came out in 2000.

Related: [Visions Of Horror] Junji Ito’s ‘Tomie’

I became introduced to Ito’s works by renting the first few Tomie films, as well as Uzumaki. It was here that I got a taste of the master storyteller/artist and the horrors he creates. Later on, I would stumble across “The Enigma of Amigara Fault”, a one-off manga that is absolutely horrifying. Essentially the ultimate case of Freud’s “death drive”, the act of venturing into something with the knowledge that it might, and most likely will, result in a poor outcome. It’s like when people stand on the edge of a cliff and suddenly have the urge to jump, even though there is absolutely no reason to do so.

Later, I would buy Gyo and borrow copies of Uzumaki, inexorably drawn into those worlds, much the same as the characters within are powerless to resist the forces that beset them.

Then, the ultimate cocktease occurred: Guillermo del Toro announced that Ito would’ve been a part of Silent Hills, the cancelled Konami game that would’ve also featured Hideo Kojima and Norman Reedus. Suddenly, many of the visuals in P.T. and the official Silent Hills concept trailer made so much sense, their freakish appearances perfectly in line with the artist’s works. Alas, we’ll never know what was in store for us as the game is undeniably dead in the water.

Having recently reread Uzumaki, I found myself wanting to spread the gospel of Ito’s work. Much like how some of his characters are harbingers of impending doom, death, and destruction, I am here to hopefully usher forth a resurgence of interest in his work. Go to your local comic book store, Barnes & Noble, etc…, and see if they have any of his material. If so, just get it. Don’t think about it. You’ll thank me, even if your nightmares and restless sleeps won’t.