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Translated Horror manga is common nowadays. Walk into any book store, go to the manga section and you’ll see a variety of horror titles. The problem? Only a few artists are published here and those that are dominate the shelves (looking at you Junji Ito). But Dark Horse Comic’s have quietly been publishing one of the best horror titles to hit the states since 2006 and I rarely see anyone talking about it.
The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service centers around a group of 5 college students who are attending a buddhist college in Japan that specializes in Mortuary professions. Without any prospects post graduation, these four students band together to start a business in the guise of a school club that will see them delivering corpses in need of going where they need to be. The reason? So the dead can move onto the afterlife, you see in their line of business the clients are the dead. If you’ve stuck around this far you’re probably wondering what makes this special; and that’s the super natural aspects of the story. The main character, Karastu can speak to the dead, or more like, the dead speak through him due to a spirit that seems to have attached itself to him. This leads the gang into a mystery of the month type of format that doesn’t feel formulaic due to the variety of stories and themes fueling them. This title also gives an insight into how Japanese culture looks at death, various burial methods and how the Japanese people grieve and mourn over losing a loved one. The main cast are varied and interesting and there’s this great interplay between them. There is a through-line story here between the more episodic stories that centers around Karastu and the mysterious spirit if that type of storytelling is more your thing.
Dark Horse is slow moving on this title, no doubt due to the extensive translation that this series requires, and if I’m permitted to wear my tinfoil hat for a second; low sales. The first 14 volumes were published as singles, but Dark Horse opted out to start publishing them in 3-in-1 omnibus volumes with the 6th omnibus styled volume slated for a March 2025 release date. When I say this title is worth any horror fan’s time I’m not kidding; tag along with Karastu and friends and let me know what you think.
You can order The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service from the Dark Horse website HERE
