Changes: Junji Ito's Snow White

Revision as of 17:42, 6 April 2019

Junji Ito's Snow White is a one-shot originally published in December 2014 in Bunkasha's Manga Grimm Dōwa (Manga Grimm's Fairy Tales). As the name suggests, it is Junji Ito's take on the classic fairy tale, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.

Plot

A queen receives an antique mirror which can speak to her. It compliments her beauty and says that she is the most beautiful woman in the world, fueling her vanity. One day, the mirror tells her she is only the second most beautiful woman in the world; she has been eclipsed by Snow White, a peasant girl the king adopted as his daughter. Learning that her husband is having an affair with Snow White, the queen has the latter banished to the dungeons. When the mirror continues to insist Snow White is more beautiful, the queen orders her to be murdered.

However, a few days later, the mirror again declares that Snow White is the most beautiful woman in the world; shortly afterwards, the queen is informed that Snow White's corpse has been revived. To her shock, she sees a living Snow White surrounded by glowing orbs; a servant identifies them as the spirits of seven dwarves who were buried underground. The infuriated queen has Snow White killed over and over, but the dwarves always revive her.

Desperate to destroy Snow White's beauty once and for all, the queen commands that the girl be burned alive. During the execution, the spirits of the dwarves push the queen into the fire, immolating her along with the object of her jealousy. In a final irony, Snow White becomes a charcoal statue, beautiful even in death; the queen, on the other hand, is reduced to an ashen skeleton.

@@ Line 6: / Line 6: @@
 However, a few days later, the mirror again declares that Snow White is the most beautiful woman in the world; shortly afterwards, the queen is informed that Snow White's corpse has been revived. To her shock, she sees a living Snow White surrounded by glowing orbs; a servant identifies them as the spirits of seven dwarves who were buried underground. The infuriated queen has Snow White killed over and over, but the dwarves always revive her.
-Finally, the infuriated queen commands that Snow White be set alight to destroy her beauty. However, the spirits of the dwarves push the queen into the fire, and both women burn to death. All that remains of the queen is her ashes, while Snow White's beauty endures as a charcoal statue.
+Desperate to destroy Snow White's beauty once and for all, the queen commands that the girl be burned alive. During the execution, the spirits of the dwarves push the queen into the fire, immolating her along with the object of her jealousy. In a final irony, Snow White becomes a charcoal statue, beautiful even in death; the queen, on the other hand, is reduced to an ashen skeleton.
 [[Category:2014 Manga]]
 [[Category:One-shot]]