The Ring films was one of my first experiences with Japanese horror. Although I’ve never seen them or read the novel, clips from the film made their way into my home.
In case you’ve never seen them, the plot revolves around a cursed videotape and a young woman crawling out of a well to kill you in seven days. Her name is Sadako, and she’s based on one of Japan’s most infamous ghost stories!
If you’re looking for a cute way to introduce someone to the franchise without scaring them to death, Sadako-san and Sadako-chan is for you!
What is Sadako-san and Sadoko-chan?
Sadako-san and Sadako-chan is a tie-in manga for the Sadako movie, a sequel to Ring 2. You don’t need to watch the films to understand the manga, but some of the questions are only answered in the movie.
Everyone knows that Sadako comes out of tv to kill you after watching a videotape a week later. But what happens when she finds someone who might be her reincarnation, despite the fact she still exists as a ghost?
And she even takes the same name as Sadako due to her not remembering what her mother named her. Not to mention the lack of CRT TVs and how everyone watches things on their phones.
Can Sadako-san adapt to this new age and continue to curse people? The short answer is yes, but the manga is sadly very short.
There are only seven chapters and an afterward, but it does tell an interesting story.
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Nothing beats horror regarding views, and Sadako-chan can help Sadako-san navigate the internet. But the only thing that sets Sadako-chan apart from other children in the manga is she can read minds.
Which is something that Sadako isn’t able to do. So we never see her mother, and the only other character we meet isn’t as developed as our main characters.
Nor do we see how Sadako-chan got hold of the cursed videotape or see her outside her home. Instead, we see her leave the wardrobe she’s usually locked in a couple of times, and events are mainly from Sadako-san’s perspective.
Some aspects of classic Japanese horror make an appearance. For example, Sadako-san possesses a teddy bear, uses her hair to make her presence known, and creepy dolls appear.
I’d recommend this manga to anyone who loves seeing cult classics being interpreted in a new way, and if you’d like to read more about the legend behind the Ring films, check out my reviews on The Girl From The Well and The Suffering!