Otherside Picnic Review: Two Women Explore a Dimension Full of Internet Folklore Monsters and Fall Into Each Other
by Iori Miyazawa / Eita Mizuno
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Quick Take
- A genuinely original horror-fantasy premise — the Otherside manifests as dangerous versions of Japanese internet urban legends, creating creatures and situations that are eerie specifically because they come from real (or real-seeming) online folklore rather than traditional mythology
- The central yuri relationship develops naturally through the shared danger of exploration rather than as a separate romantic subplot
- 8+ volumes ongoing in English; one of the more inventive ongoing fantasy horror series available
Who Is This Manga For?
- Readers interested in Japanese internet culture and urban legends as fantasy source material
- Anyone who wants yuri romance integrated into genuine horror-adventure
- Fans of portal-fantasy exploration with real danger and genuine mystery
- Readers who want ongoing series that builds both relationship and mystery consistently
Content Warnings & Age Rating
Age Rating: T (Teen) Content Warnings: Horror imagery drawn from internet folklore and urban legends; psychological disorientation as a recurring threat; yuri romance as central relationship (explicit rather than subtext); exploration dangers including potential death
A T rating — the horror is unsettling rather than graphic.
Yu's Rating
| Category | Score |
|---|---|
| Story Depth | ★★★★★ |
| Art Style | ★★★★☆ |
| Character Development | ★★★★★ |
| Accessibility for Non-Japanese Readers | ★★★★☆ |
| Reread Value | ★★★★☆ |
Story Overview
Sorawo Kamikoshi stumbles into the Otherside — a dimension accessible through certain locations where reality breaks down. There she finds Toriko Nishina, a young woman who has been exploring it searching for a woman who disappeared into it.
The Otherside is dangerous in specific ways: it manifests creatures and situations drawn from Japanese internet urban legends — the "Kunekune," the "Hasshaku-sama," various creepypasta entities — but made genuinely lethal and disorienting rather than simply atmospheric. Sorawo's eye and Toriko's hand have been changed by their exposure to the Otherside, giving them abilities that help them survive.
The series follows their exploration as a partnership that becomes a relationship.
Characters
Sorawo Kamikoshi — A protagonist whose pragmatism about the Otherside's dangers makes her more interesting than the typical horror adventure hero — she is not brave so much as calculating about what is survivable, and her growing attachment to Toriko complicates those calculations.
Toriko Nishina — A more impulsive explorer whose search for the missing woman gives the series its overarching mystery — her warmth and her recklessness are two sides of the same character, and her relationship with Sorawo is the series' emotional core.
The Otherside's entities — Each drawn from specific Japanese internet lore, each with their own rules of engagement — the variety of threats keeps the exploration from becoming repetitive.
Art Style
Mizuno's art renders the Otherside's distorted reality effectively — the entities are given visual specificity that makes them disturbing rather than simply monstrous, and the dimension's visual language communicates the wrongness of the space. The relationship between Sorawo and Toriko is given visual warmth that balances the horror register.
Cultural Context
Japanese internet urban legends (net urban legends or "net myths") are a specific subgenre of contemporary folklore — stories that spread online with the authority of truth, involving entities that exist in specific locations or can be summoned through specific actions. The series treats these as genuinely based on something real about human fear and collective storytelling.
What I Love About It
The entities are scary in a specific way — they follow rules that partially make sense but not completely, which creates the particular unease of horror that has its own logic but not one you fully understand. The Otherside feels like a real place with consistent properties rather than an arbitrary danger generator.
What English-Speaking Fans Say
Western readers describe Otherside Picnic as one of the most original ongoing horror-fantasy manga available — the internet folklore source material is cited as genuinely refreshing after decades of traditional mythology, and the yuri relationship is praised for developing naturally rather than being forced. Readers familiar with Japanese internet culture get more from the specific folklore references.
Memorable Scene ⚠️ Spoiler Warning
The sequence with the Hasshaku-sama — one of Japan's most famous net urban legends — and how the series adapts the entity's specific rules into an encounter that uses everything Sorawo has learned about the Otherside, is the series' most impressive integration of the folklore source material with genuine horror-adventure craft.
Similar Manga
- Made in Abyss — Portal exploration with genuine danger and mystery
- Girls' Last Tour — Two women exploring an empty world, different tone
- Bloom Into You — Yuri romance with careful development, different setting
- Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess — Yuri fantasy, similar relationship development
Reading Order / Where to Start
Volume 1 — Sorawo's first encounter with the Otherside and her meeting with Toriko are established immediately.
Official English Translation Status
Seven Seas Entertainment publishes the ongoing English series. 8+ volumes currently available.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Internet folklore source material is genuinely original
- Horror entities have specific rules that make them interesting rather than simply dangerous
- Yuri relationship develops naturally through shared experience
- Ongoing with consistent world-building
Cons
- Some folklore references are more accessible to readers familiar with Japanese internet culture
- Ongoing with no complete resolution yet
- T rating entity encounters may be too unsettling for some readers
Format Comparison
| Format | Notes |
|---|---|
| Individual Volumes | Seven Seas; ongoing |
| Digital | Available |
Where to Buy
Get Otherside Picnic Vol. 1 on Amazon →
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*Affiliate link — I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Written by
Yu
Manga Enthusiast from Japan
I grew up in Japan and manga literally saved me during a tough time in elementary school. My English isn't perfect, but my love for manga is real — and I want to share it with you.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.