Beyond the Spiral : Azami Kurotani's Character as a Platform for Fan Work in Junji Itō’s Uzumaki

Previous studies on Itō Junji’s Uzumaki have focused on narrative and diegetic elements of this manga, but have left aside one of the most important elements in any narration, the characters. This paper presents a theoretical examination on the concept of character and the two distinctions prop osed by manga critic Itō Gō (2005) kyara and kyarakutā, and further considers their relationship with fan practices while at the same time tries to theorize about the reasons why some characters like Kurotani Azami, Kawakami Tomie or Hatsune Miku can become popular among fans and reach platformativity potential. The first part of this paper explores what happens when a character is detached from their diegetic restraints (kyarakutā) and enter a proto-character state (kyara), and their potential to move across media becomes exponential. The second part explores what it takes for a character to be considered a creativity platform (Condry, 2013) and shows that the popularity of some characters is largely influenced by how producers encourage and sustain particular consumption-centered practices among fans. Finally, under the light of some basic concepts related to participatory culture and fandom practices proposed by Jenkins (2018), and a close analysis of some reiterations of Kurotani Azami across different media, it was shown that through their work, fans can turn a character into a platform of creativity.