Hell Girl 1 (Hell Girl #1) (2024)

Watch the anime, skip the manga.

I'm a huge fan of the Jigoku Shoujo anime and this manga completely fails in conveying the eerie tone of the series. The manga was published while the anime was airing, so most of the chapters are original and they suffer because of this. I wouldn't even consider this canon, to be honest. None of the characters are really the same, the stories are short and rather silly, and many elements (the straw doll being a large one!) are completely missing. The artwork isn't even all that special, and I'm kicking myself for collecting the Japanese deluxe editions.

slu*t shaming is alive and well, isn't it.

Just finished the last story, in which a teacher attempts to rape a middle school student. They blame her. No one believes her when she tries to tell them the truth. Not even her mother, nor her best friend. Nor the school principal.

Isn't that lovely. It's just like real life, ain't it?

*ahem* Anger aside...

Hell Girl's not as exciting as I had hoped it to be. It's super repetitive, and the artwork is super inconsistent with what I assume the general atmosphere is supposed to be. That didn't help things at all.

From what I understand, too, the manga is a spin off of the anime series (or a companion or something. Regardless, didn't come first). I wish the manga had tried to emulate the anime's just a bit. I think it would've helped me with the creep factor than the cutesy art style that's used.

I mean, this?

Creepy.

This?

Maybe if you're afraid of Mahou Shoujo Goth Girl Scowly.

It just didn't fit the mood.

So, yeah. Super disappointed. Maybe I should just go watch the anime instead.

Empecé a leerlo hace unos días y la verdad es que me esperaba algo más emocionante.

Amo la historia, el hecho de que uno pueda vengarse de una persona que le hace mal (más allá de que no está bien hacerle daño a la gente, pero es un manga) es algo muy loco y cuando ví el anime lo lograron retratar a la perfección.

Pero no pasó lo mismo con el manga. Me pareció plano, y no tan emocionante. Igualmente creo que eso es porque uno espera encontrarse con algo similar al anime que es INCREÍBLEEEEEE.

Voy a ver de leer un tomo más, veremos qué pasa.

Just finished with the first volume, this anime/manga is one of my favorites. I so love the anime of this and I remember that I used to binge watch this with my cousin. Now, reading this was also good but I just enjoyed watching this series than reading the manga version I guess. It is much entertaining to see Ai Enma do her thing and her moves in the anime than here. But let's see I am just starting this anyway.

This manga has a pretty unique story. Each chapter is about a different person who has been wronged in some way. Some are so badly wronged to the point where it can ruin their life and they want revenge on the person who did this to them. They don't know what to do until they hear about a strange website that only appears at midnight.
If you type in the person's name who you want revenge on, then, Hell Girl will drag them to hell. But for this revenge, you must also pay a price. When you die, your soul will be taken to hell as well.

While I did like this manga, there was just something about it I didn't like, too. Maybe it's because of the thought of wanting revenge so badly that you want to send someone to hell. Maybe it's because the person who wants revenge will go to hell too. Or maybe both.

And in a few of the chapters, nothing would have ever happened if only people had listened to the main character of that chapter. For example, in chapter one the main character is in a store looking for a CD. She doesn't see what she wants and goes to leave. Somehow, a CD has gotten into her bag. She tries to tell the store owner she didn't put it in there, but no matter what he would not listen. And I'm not even going to get started on the chapter with the teacher.

So I did like it, but I have a few problems with it, I suppose. I will probably read the other books in the series and see how they are.

A very great story of seeking revenge and getting payback and making people "get a taste of their own medicine".

I found it a little confusing at first since for each chapter it kept switching characters, for telling different stories about hell girl. After the first two chapters I finally understood that for each chapter its a different story about Hell Girl.

I really like the concept to this story. I am sure that since this story is placed in the genre of High school and middle school it is directed towards high school students and their troubles and struggles during that time. And some of us hate and dislike people for really good reasons. Back stabbers, liars, thiefs, framers... and Hell girl will take care of all that for you. Sort of reminded me of Death Note, except Hell Girl caries out the death toll.

I really enjoyed the stories. I am glad that the people who werebetrayed for inhuman reason got what they had coming to them.

i picked this one up a while ago at the store, and had to put it back. the concept could have been great. but the people who called on her, and condemed themselves did so for rather dumb reasons. okay, not for stealing receipes, and that sort of career ending deal. but for things like being bullied at school. why not confront people? that's basically what happens anyway, and now you're stuck with sulfur and brimstone. it could have been written better to where you relate to the characters' desperation and trapped feelings. but, this would mean instead of like 4 cases, you have only one or two per book. you need time to develop stories, i wish authors would remember this. being super awesome in your head does not always equal super awesome on paper.

This story was actually quite interesting, and I just found out it was anime also (bit of a difference though apparently). When I first saw this on goodreads, I wasn't sure about reading it (not into a lot of horror). I saw it at the library and thought of giving it a shot. Def recommend for pleasure reading. =)

I loved this manga so much!
I feel like a say that about every manga I read but I do mean it!

I love the storyline, it's a cool concept, it kinda reminds me of Death Note but a lot shorter.
I actually like how every chapter is a different story.
Can't wait to see what's in volume 2!

AWESOME ^^ ^^ ^^

It is said that at midnight, each night a website called Hell Correspondence opens up. If you type in the name of the person you hate the most, the Hell Girl will drag them down to hell, with your soul as compensation. Is Hell Girl merely a fable? Or is there some truth to Hell Correspondence?

Jigoku Shoujo, or Hell Girl, is something I’ve been familiar with for a very, very long time, but never before have I properly consumed any of its media as intended. It’s essentially as I thought it was, except that Ai Enma (Hell Girl) doesn’t have as much screen time yet as I know she eventually gets. So far, she’s more of an entity than a girl, with the stories of her clients taking precedence in each story, leaving Ai to repeat the same process and same phrases in each chapter.
Hell Girl aged a little strangely. I can see how it was very good for its time, but I don’t think it would manage to gain much traction today, not even with a reboot to call upon its fans of the past. Overall, Hell Girl is still good but I feel that it belongs in the past.

Lastly, I will say that Hell Girl did not begin as a manga. The manga is a part of the Jigoku Shoujo Project and was produced in conjunction with the anime, i.e., they debuted and were produced during the same timeframe and different people held control over the two media. The anime does better at encapsulating the eerie tone intended for Hell Girl, while the manga only feels reminiscent of Hell Girl, as if it were made as the light novel (I mean, manga) version of Hell Girl.

I started collecting this manga after watching the anime, which is a little backwards for me, usually I read the book FIRST!

This series turns bad karma into some very eerie and incredibly beautiful artwork. Themes of betrayal that most people deal with in their lives are featured heavily and Hell Girl, herself a haunted soul, poses the question to the put-upon, if you could have revenge, would you give up your soul too?

It’s pure loveliness for horror and manga fans, read it while wearing a cute kimono for an extra boost of fun.

THIS IS FOR ALL THE MANGA VOLUMES!

I love the stories! From start to finish, there are no dull episodes. I love the history of how Ai Enma becomes the Hell Girl. It's sad and heartbreaking. I also love that the stories for the 3 side kicks are included. I discovered that there are more Hell Girl mangas and I'm planning on reading those next.

Overall, I love this manga!

I really wanted to like this manga. It's got a bit of everything I like. The artwork is cute, it's in an episodic format (each chapter is a different story), & the plotline is interesting. The idea of being able to send an enemy to hell by entering in their name on a hidden website is an interesting idea. While the idea of retribution via an outside party has been somewhat done before, this was a good approach. However, that's about where my admiration stopped.

The plotline revolves around Ai (Hell Girl), an ageless entity who collects names of the deserving (and sometimes undeserving) for retribution. The cost of sending your enemy or rival to hell? You eventually join them in eternal torment. While this format works for the first few stories, eventually I started to wonder if any of these characters actually thought about whether or not their revenge was worthwhile & if they'd really tried to solve their own problems themselves. After the first 2 stories I was struggling to really want to finish the manga or even care about the characters. Some of them really seemed to be at the end of their ropes, which made their desperate move of registering on Hell Girl's website somewhat understandable. However most of them just appeared to be rather whiny & unlikeable, as in the case of the would be girl chef. Her store was constantly trashed, robbed, & slandered, but did she ever think about leaving the area to get a fresh start in a new town?

Another flaw is that you never see any of the people actually fully realize their choices & their mistakes. None of the clients ever fully understand what "eternal suffering in hell" means, & as such they never appear to regret their actions or fear their deaths. They all assume that they'll live for a long time. It would have been refreshing to see that realization (and maybe it'll happen in future volumes), but at the moment the characters are all one sided & cliched.

If I see any future volumes in the stores I'll glance at them, but there would have to be some serious improvements before I'd consider actually buying this story. I gave the volume 3 stars due to the cute artwork & a novel idea for a manga. I've been told that the manga improves & I hope it does. Otherwise it's just another manga that pulls out every cliche in hopes of selling to the mass market goth & horror crowds.

I was very excited when I saw the cover of Hell Girl - Volume 1 and read the back of the book to see what it was about. After all, the cover is pretty cool-looking.

When I started reading, the first story was jumbled and confusing. Maybe the translation and adaptation wasn't very good, or it was poorly written. I'm not really sure where the problem was.

I really enjoyed the character Ai Enma and think that she is totally awesome. But we really don't get to know her at all. How did she get these powers? Is she a demon spawn? Does she work for the devil? Is she from Hell itself? None of these questions were answered in this book.

The other problem I had with this collection of stories is that all five stories are stand-alone tales. There really do seem to be a lot of angry third year middle school students at that one school. It is basically the same story told five different times with different characters. I always knew what was going to happen, so it became kind of tedious.

On the other hand, the artwork is great and the stories are interesting, but repetitious.

I find it hard to believe that just because some bad person is picking on some of these characters that they are willing to have this person killed and then when they die, they will live in eternal damnation for the rest of time. Wouldn't they just confront the nasty person and get them out of their lives rather than having an eternity of torture thrust upon them? That certainly isn't a choice I would make, nor would most people, I believe.

Overall, Hell Girl - Volume 1 is readable, but the concept is flawed and the book wasn't very well executed. There are too many questions that were not answered and the reader is left confused and bewildered. Maybe things will be better in Hell Girl - Volume 2. I can only hope so.

I rated this book a 5 out of 10.

I thought this was supposed to be a horror manga, and the rating is 16+, so I thought it would be gory at least, or have nudity or swearing. Or maybe have a mature storyline. The chapters were episodic in nature and unrelated to each other, aside from the inevitable appearance of Hell Girl, who will take your enemy to hell for the price of your eternal soul - she can be contacted easily through her website. The enemies then find themselves besieged by the same things they did to their victims, who all have no qualms about giving up their eternal souls and generally seem quite pleased with themselves at the end of each chapter. "An eternity in hell is a small price to pay," they all seem to think.

This should have been apparent to me when Stacy's daughter (who is about 12 years old) said she had read them as we discussed the 16+ rating. Hell Girl does seem to have been written for a preteen audience, if you think simplistic plot / moral dilemmas are suitable for preteens. Personally, I think preteens appreciate more from what they read... The artwork was okay but I probably won't be reading more of this series. CLAMP's xxxHolic might be a better choice if you want a manga about people suffering for their sins, and probably has a lower age rating as well.

I didn't really know anything about this series when I got it -- it was in a random box full of mangas I received. That being said, it looked really interesting and I was excited to check it out. Unfortunately, it was kind of disappointing. It wasn't a bad story -- but after the first one I expected the storyline to develop some and it didn't. Ultimately, this series is the same story over and over -- someone does something wrong to someone else. The victim decides they want to get revenge and send them to hell, but then they have doubts and almost change their mind. Then, the bad person does something even worse that pushes the victim over the edge ultimately making the victim send the bad person to hell. I expected some variety or some kind of larger plot, and based on the ones I read (books 1, 2, and 4), there isn't one. It's all more of the same just with different types of "bad people".

As I said before, the story concept isn't a bad one, but after the first manga I got the idea and as I read through the next two, it just seemed kind of pointless because it was the same story over and over in different ways. The artwork was well-done, though.

Re-read 2021: Decided to re-read this series next! I know I quite liked it (and loved the anime series). In this one we see various stories and how they all end up sending someone to hell. The reasons vary from that someone is stealing ideas and even breaking in to being threatened by someone and even injured beyond repair. I love that Enma Ai is always around in one way or another. Like during the school stories she is there as transfer student. The stories are quite depressing and some do end on attempted suicide (Enma generally saves them before they die). My heart breaks for what some of these characters have to go through, like the girl who was almost abused by the teacher, or the girl who was so proud of her bakery only to have her recipes stolen and other things happening.
Definitely a very dark manga.

I picked up this series on a whim, because of a special bargain price on the whole set at a used book store. While some of the stories are repetitive, if you space out the reading a bit and don't try to rush through the whole series, it is quite good.
The entire series is based on the traditional concept that if you set out to seek revenge, you should dig not one grave, but two.
Thus, a special web site will let you seek revenge, but only at the eventual cost of your own soul, no matter how innocent you might be. Will you pay that ultimate eternal price to get revenge on someone for a horrible crime against you or your loved ones? In this first volume, the choices are fairly simple, but they grow more complex and intriguing.

I really like the art style. a few things weren't really explained well but I could understand some of the confusing parts because my friend showed me clips of the anime. also knowing Ai's voice in the anime made the manga feel creepy like it should be. her reaper like visits weren't executed well as creepy but later chapters did better at it than the beginning. I was a little bothered that some people found kinda petty reasons to send someone to hell or felt their problems were worth damning themselves as well. were most of their self esteem really so low that they thought No one else could do anything? things can only get better if they disappear? also there is very little character development. I love Ai's mystery but I'd also really love a background story. maybe if the chapters weren't always from the point of view of the victims. I enjoyed this but it left me with questions bout the common factor in each chapter, hell girl.

This was a favorite anime of mine back in high school so I figure that it'd be cool to revisit it via the manga. The anime is actually very faithful to the manga from what I remember. Hell Girl just has such a cool concept. It's all about taking vengeance but at the cost of one's soul. It is dark an mysterious and it combines the paranormal with elements of real life struggles and tragedies. Ngl it's very satisfying to see certain characters get what's coming to them. Enma Ai is a compelling character. But I was always the most fond of a character who hasn't yet been named in the manga; Hone Onna . This is just a good read over all and I finished it in one sitting.

Have you ever heard of Hell Correspondence? It's a site you can acces only at midnight. If you write in the name of someone you hate... Hell Girl will avenge you and ferry the target of the revenge straight to Hell. But remember! When one person is cursed, two graves are dug.

I love this manga so much. (Anime too.)
This is something so comforting for me to read, and always when I'm sad or feeling unwell, I read this manga. I just love the Hell Girl and her companion. Not that I would need of their service, but I like this concept.

I don't say this often but the Anime is better by miles. I will still continue to read this series to see if it gets any getter. But Ai Enma is just not as scary in the manga as she is in the anime. Plus I don't like the fact that for some reason she's just a high school student and everyone knows her, kinda ruins some of the mystery.

I liked this manga better than the anime version, but the episodic nature — rather than an overarching plot — does drag down the intensity and power of each individual story. I have volume 2, but who knows if I’ll read the rest of the series after that (especially since it’s out of print).

I used to be very into Hell Girl when I was younger, and it’s a nice “comfort” read picking up years later. This volume is predictable, I basically have the stories still memorized, and the anime is definitely better… but I still really enjoy it. 💕

This was so good 😊 my kids enjoyed it also

much prefer the anime to the manga. the illustrations are beautiful but the stories are much harder to follow and don't flow well.

I really like this book but it kind of repeats everything over and over again.

2,5/5

This had some real fun stuff, but it was too repetitive. Every chapter was just a riff on the exact same thing.