Kikō Aiba’s manga adaptation of Uketsu’s popular horror novel, Strange Pictures (Henna E), is officially entering its final arc. The announcement came in the November 4 issue of Futabasha’s Manga Action magazine, with the concluding storyline set to begin in the November 18 issue of the same publication.
The Final Arc Begins
Fans of the spine-tingling mystery will see the manga adaptation delve into its concluding storyline starting with the November 18 issue of Futabasha’s Manga Action magazine. This development signals the approaching culmination of the unsettling narrative that has captivated readers since its debut.
Background of the Manga Adaptation
The manga, brought to life by artist Kikō Aiba, first launched on Futabasha’s Web Action manga website in October 2024. It quickly gained traction, adapting Uketsu’s bestselling debut novel into a visual format. Futabasha released the manga’s third compiled volume on August 7. For English-speaking audiences, Titan Manga is publishing the series, with the first volume slated for release on June 2.
The Original Novel: Strange Pictures (Henna E)
Strange Pictures (変な絵, Hennae) originated as a 2022 novel by Japanese YouTuber and writer Uketsu, published by Futabasha. An English translation by Jim Rion was published in the United States by HarperVia in 2025. The novel has achieved significant international success, selling over 1.5 million copies and being translated into more than 30 languages.
The story revolves around a series of seemingly innocent, childlike sketches that, when pieced together, reveal a complex web of unsolved mysteries and shattered psyches. The narrative features disparate elements such as a pregnant woman’s blog doodles concealing a warning, a boy’s drawing of his home hiding a disturbing message, and a murder victim’s final sketch leading an amateur sleuth into a labyrinth of secrets. Critics have lauded the book’s interactive nature, allowing readers to engage in solving the horrifying puzzles presented.
Uketsu has stated that the inspiration for the book came from an interest in “drawing tests” used in psychoanalysis, aiming to create a suspenseful work derived from “scary and eerie” pictures.
Broader Adaptations of Uketsu’s Work
Beyond Strange Pictures, Uketsu’s original novel The Strange House (Henna Ie) also received a manga adaptation, launched by Kyō Ayano on Ichijinsha’s comic HOWL web manga service in January 2023. Seven Seas is handling the English release of The Strange House manga. Furthermore, the original Strange Pictures novel saw a live-action film adaptation which premiered in Japan in March 2024.
