What disturbing anime will you never watch again?
As a machine learning model developed by OpenAI, I don’t watch or experience media content, and I don’t have personal opinions or preferences. However, I can provide information based on commonly discussed anime with disturbing or intense themes that some viewers may find unsettling. Viewer discretion is advised for these anime series, as they often include mature or disturbing content:
- “School Days”: This anime takes a dark turn in its later episodes, featuring themes of betrayal and psychological horror.
- “Pupa”: A short anime series known for its dark and gruesome themes involving supernatural elements.
- “Genocyber”: An anime known for its extreme violence, gore, and mature themes.
- “Bokurano”: Explores dark and existential themes as a group of children is forced to pilot a giant robot in a deadly game.
- “Midori: Shoujo Tsubaki” (Midori: Shoujo Tsubaki): An OVA adaptation of a controversial manga, known for its disturbing content and surreal narrative.
- “Shigurui: Death Frenzy”: Set in the Edo period, this anime is marked by extreme violence and a dark atmosphere.
These anime series often delve into unsettling and mature themes, and viewers with sensitivities to explicit content, violence, or disturbing narratives may want to exercise caution or avoid them altogether. It’s always advisable to check content warnings, reviews, and ratings before deciding to watch a particular anime.
A movie called “Camellia Girl” – “少女椿” (Shoujo Tsubaki)It’s a story about a young girl called Midori who is forced to sell flowers for money for her sick mother. One night, Midori encounters a mysterious man willing to buy all of her camellas if she comes to work in his circus as an attraction.
The other characters are disturbing men and women who also work as attractions. They severely abuse Midori in the movie, especially mentally. Shojo Tsubaki has extreme scenes of gore, torture, and disgusting abuse to Midori.
This anime is very popular because it’s one of the few animated media pieces banned in Japan. It is because the movie shows a depressing storyline to the point that many people destroyed its tape.
It was made by Hiroshi Harada in 1992. Since a single man made it, Camellia Girl almost counts as a slideshow because it includes very few frames and sometimes still images.Forgive me if some information isn’t right; it’s a little hard to remember everything because I watched it a long while ago.
After reading the comments, I decided that I should add more information about the animation:
- Besides the movie getting banned, it did receive a live-action remake recently, and you can find it easily on the internet. I haven’t watched it or plan to, as it’s no longer interesting.
- I didn’t include anything about the artist; it was my mistake. His name is Suehiro Maruo, and he’s personally one of my favorite Japanese artists because, despite the content, they still manage to be unique.
- Shoujo Tsubaki was made to remind us of the post-war Japan period when the country was in pieces. Circus abuse of their attractions like this was quite common since if you look at the characters, you’ll find that most of them aren’t supernatural monsters, just physically and mentally disabled people, which was quite common on circuses then.
- For those who, for some reason, care about what I think, I don’t find Camellia Girl appealing. I don’t handle child and animal abuse well, and this animation makes me sick, but I don’t think the director or artist are disgusting, perverted men. The animation in Shoujo Tsubaki ISN’T hentai or something supposed to be attractive or sexual; it’s more like an extra brutal piece of art.
- If you want to watch it, go ahead. But I gave you my warnings.
What is (are) the most intense anime scene for you? Why?
Akane Tsunemori’s friend in Psycho Pass, when her life is in danger… (SPOILERS)
This is Yuki, a friend of the MC: Akane.
This is Shogo Makashima, the antagonist from Psycho Pass.
During this whole scene, where he’s managed to capture an innocent victim to use as bait, Akane is forced to make a tough decision:
- Kill Shogo Makishima
- Or avoid killing him and put her friends life in danger.
Akane Tsunemori.
The problem is: the way guns work in this technologically driven society, the trigger won’t pull if a persons “mental health” is below a certain number.
Shogo Makishima is a psychopath. He’s calm and never stressed, so his “crime coefficient” is too low.
This is where you see Akane as a police officer… completely freeze up.
She’s at a loss of what to do to save Yuki from a psychopath who doesn’t give a F about her life either way. It’s all a game to him.
And he’s enjoying every minute of it.
This scene kills me to watch. Even though Akane gets the opportunity to kill him later, she hesitates. After all, the act of killing can destroy a person morally and ethically. Even if in hindsight it’s the right thing to do. And she’s not exactly a “professional” police officer, so this kind of thing is new to her at this point.
This is what you’re forced to watch as Akane goes through all these emotions, feelings and thoughts within a matter of minutes.
Akane’s lost all hope.
It’s one of the most intense, gruesome anime scenes you’ll ever see by far.
Who is Ash Kash and Why She is Famous?
What are the darkest anime series you have ever encountered?
We’re talking manga (that has yet to be mentioned). It’s anything by Junji Ito, Multiple Personality Detective Psycho, Yuureitou, and Animal X (which is Yaoi, and nobody ever has read, but damn, there’s a lot of rape and a dead baby autopsy in that).
Since I agree with every anime example on this list, I’ll add an entry that most people would dismiss as dark, though, at times, it’s as dark as most dark scenes. Spoilers are rampant below.
One Piece
Not dark to anyone who hasn’t gotten far/hasn’t watched at all, but it’s pretty damn dark and portrays some serious societal issues throughout the series. The only other Shonens that are darker than this are Shingeki no Kyojin and Fullmetal Alchemist, but this is the darkest of the big 3.
Sad backgrounds:
Though some are much darker, the main characters have them. Luffy’s mentor loses his arm, saving him. Zoro’s childhood friend died. Nami’s mom was killed for being unable to pay for the right to survive during an invasion. Usopp’s mom died.
Sanji almost starved to death as a kid after (SPOILERS) being imprisoned by his father as a punishment for being weak and subsequently running away.
Chopper was cast out from his reindeer family for being partially human, and his mentor was murdered. Robin’s caregivers and the island she lived on were killed by government-sponsored genocide and have been wanted by the government since she was a child.
Franky’s mentor was killed for building a ship for a criminal. Brook’s entire crew died, and he was left alone for 50 years, resulting in the whale he had befriended continuously ramming his head into a mountain, making him incredibly scarred.
Other examples include Senor Pink, whose infant died and their wife went into a permanent coma; Law, who hid under a pile of corpses to escape his country after they died from disease; and Doflamingo, who was tortured almost to death after leaving the world nobles.
Slavery:
Although officially outlawed, slavery exists in One Piece because of world nobles, people whose rules dont apply to and can murder people without repercussions.
Enslaved people are treated as inhuman, often tortured, implied to be raped, used as transportation (walking around on hands and knees while world nobles sit on their backs), and branded with a symbol so that they can be identified if they escape.
People of all ages are enslaved, including children, who are killed if they dont follow orders or display any emotion other than happiness.
Sins of the father:
Until his death, Luffy’s brother Ace struggled with whether he deserved to be born because he was the son of the pirate king Gol D Roger. Everyone he met except for a few people wanted him to die. Because of this, he was captured by the world government, and though he wasn’t executed, he died saving Luffy.
Collateral damage:
Throughout the series, the world government is shown to not care about their subjects, and the marines (the world’s primary military) often commit genocide. I can think of two examples:
Robin, where her island was destroyed because a few people knew that would go against the government, and Trafalgar Law, whose country was poisoned and murdered by marines who feared it was spread.
Racism:
Fishman and Merfolk are extremely discriminated against, considered inhuman, and often sold into slavery.
So yeah, One Piece is pretty dark. Not much anime portrays slavery, racism, genocide, and starvation, much less the government as the primary antagonist that’s clearly in the wrong (Tokyo Ghoul and Sink are much more grey on that subject). One Piece is sadder than dark, but it gets pretty dark in places.
What are some good, relatively mature, dark anime series?
After watching over 500+ Anime, I believe I am qualified enough to answer this question.
You know, Anime as a medium has so many dark themed stories that it’s probably very difficult to find any other medium with such diversity in dark stories. There are many many dark anime out there but
Here is my Top 5 Favorite:
- Elfen Lied:
I wouldn’t lie, this anime is my all time favorite dark themed anime. It was made in 2004 and despite having a really dark themed story, has ONE OF THE BEST stories you will ever see. It’s the story of a little girl who is born different and everyone just doesn’t accept her the way she is so she decides to kill everyone that wants to hurt her. Simple right? Well..you’ll have to watch to know more.
2. Blood+
This series is long..I mean 50 epidoes kinda long but it is perhaps one of the darkest one I’ve watched. It’s about vampires and all that dark shit, give it a try.
3. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni
This is one of the most twisted anime I’ve ever watched. The story is divided into different arcs and it’s based on a novel. It’s a story of a boy who comes to a small town in Japan and makes new friends(who are all girls) and then they start killing him one by one.
4. Shinsekai yori
Now this is an anime that has a very unique art style and a very very unique story. It gave me chills every time I watched an episode. It’s such a twisted story, it’s about children that awaken certain powers and then realize they are now a danger to society and must run to stay alive.
5. Tasogare Otome x Amnesia
This is another one of my favorites. It’s a very unique one because it combines the genres of romance and dark comedy so well. It’s about a school boy who starts to see the ghost of a girl who died many many years ago in the school and then bad things start to happen.
Do you watch anime?
Originally Answered: Do you watch anime?
Yeah, I do watch anime. That’s the first part.
Now, reason Why?
I will explain why I watch anime; first, I am Indian, so I write as an Indian Fan.
- It’s easy for me to watch in less time; I get more entertained. If an episode is 23 minutes, I reduce it by 20 minutes by skipping OP and End. (1 hour=3 episodes) Good.
- Though I do not support piracy, watching anime online or downloading it is easy. The reason is that, in India, animation and anime are not promoted by producers from Japan (the only legal source was Animax, which Sony Yeh replaced.)
- Fewer data and space consumption: Let’s say 150 episodes. 5–6 GB storage space is needed. (Compare it to a Western show, 60 episodes, 150 MB each. It takes around 9–10 GB) Much more entertaining. (Hell Yeah, Oxford will have a word from me!!!!) so in short, prolonged entertainment is less consumption.
- Anime is better than this-
(What message are you giving to youth or people by such shows- Bhai lanai karo popular ho jaggery).
5. Oh!!!!! I just forgot about some people in India who think anime is cartoon. I do agree with them. Both this-
And this– (Death Note raises a moral question about What is justice? But never supports any of the narrative either of L or of Light.)
Are animation, in fact, but there is a word called excellence that separate from each other. ( What are we trying to teach children? A Ladoo will make you a Superman).
Shows like Big Boss and Chhota Bheem get universal hate from Indian audiences and from people who like good entertainment (GoT and Breaking Bad, etc.), so if you see them being on the hate list of every person. (Man, You are 100% correct for hating them).
That was my reason why I watch anime, but I would like to add a few why I like it-
- It opens a door to other cultures– it opened a door for me to a different culture, religion, and country.
- Something Different– I watch everything Hollywood and Western shows, but anime differs from the mainstream. It makes me feel that I am more distinct than other people.
- Japanese language- Due to anime, I started liking Japanese, which I don’t consider foreign anymore because it’s now like a third language I can recognize just by hearing. However, I can’t speak it.
- Japanese music– it is something I like a lot apart from Hindi and English (I remember Unravel from Tokyo Ghoul).
- Philosophy- (I’m just bragging a bit) But seriously, due to anime, I started observing things from a philosophical point of view. Anime has taught me a lot about life. (Watch Death Parade).
- It became a bit easy for me to agree with the other side of the argument- I saw a lot of fights in anime that took place due to many different reasons, either because of race, religion, etc. or in just a simple relationship between people I started to agree with people on common grounds. (Debates became Discussions now).
- I became minded- last but not least, I have become much more mature and open-minded now; when I see different or weird things, I accept and respect them ( everything has a right to exist no matter what it is). That’s the culture of my nation, India, which is present in anime.
EDITS-
The funniest part I just forgot to add-
That creature from the above pic is called House Fly, or I would like to call it Simar (from Sassuraal Simar kaa). If you like to use an insect as a star cast, Please take inspiration from the anime Terraformars-
What are some must-watch animes that everyone should see?
Well, I have seen over 300 anime. And let me tell you that the list of good anime is endless. I will try to give you a list and short description of 13 of the best off the top of my head:
1. Sword Art Online
It is about a reclusive gamer who gets trapped in a game. It focuses a lot on the romance and the characters. The fight scenes are very well done. I like this one.
2. Code Geass
The Brittania empire rules the world. It is the story of a lone boy who wants to defeat it. It is a very dark anime, and the main character is pragmatic and impressive. The anime is very intelligent, and the main character ruthlessly plays chess with all the people in his life.
3. Attack on Titan
Humanity has been driven into seclusion for over a century by giant man-eating monsters called Titans. As the Titans attack the unprepared humans after a century, a young man vows to destroy them. It has great characters who are very well-developed, and you come to care about them.
4. Neon Genesis Evangelion
In a dystopian future, most of humanity is dead, and according to the future predictions made by the mysterious Dead Sea Scrolls, beings known as angels attack the agency made to protect humanity. A young boy is the last hope to save the planet.
This anime is all about subtext and psychology. All the characters are mentally screwed up and realistic, considering their world. And the layers of subtext make this anime very enjoyable. They are highly recommended.
5. Hunter x Hunter
A young boy sets out to become a Hunter to find his father. This anime is the best Shounen. It perfectly captures the spirit of Shounen. The fight scenes are intense, and the world’s rules are very structured.
6. Fate Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works
Every ten years, a Holy Grail war takes place to determine the winner of the Holy Grail, which can grant any wish. It has many strong female characters, and the character development is nice. The fight scenes are simply one of the best in all anime. Ever. The main male lead is also much more enjoyable in this route.
7. Psycho-Pass
A future where everyone’s mental health is measured using a number generated by cerebral scanners called the Psycho-Pass. The person is more likely to commit a crime if it turns darker. This anime metaphorically asks many questions about what life would be like in such a dystopia, how society works, etc. It has strong leads and great music.
8. Steins Gate
Time Travel is accidentally discovered by many students who then use the device to alter the past, with disastrous consequences. This anime subverts your expectations and maybe makes you care about the character too much. I cried at the end of an episode and am proud of it. It has a slow start, but in the start are hidden clues to what is to come.
9. Detective Conan
A young boy is shrunken in size after being given an experimental poison after watching blackmail money collection go down in front of his eyes. To protect his friends and family, he adopts a disguise and goes to live in his crush’s house because her dad is a detective to find out about the men who put him in such a position.
This anime is the longest of the ones I have recommended, but it is well worth watching, especially if you watch only the episodes based on the manga. You could find such lists online, or I could give you one—a very intelligent anime.
Every three weeks, I sit down with a pen and paper and try to solve the latest case myself. It will keep you entertained with the main character’s strong sarcasm and the intersection of many parts of his life, new and old.
10. Yahari Ore no Senshun (Oregairu)
It is a parody of romantic comedies, a surprisingly comedic yet serious series about those who have been ostracized in school life and how loners deal with being alone. It is another anime that makes you care about the characters (comes up a lot in anime, doesn’t this? :p ), and their arguments and interactions drive the series.
11. Shiki
It’s a decidedly creepy anime about serial murders in a small village and also focuses on how life is for those living in such places. If you don’t know what it is about, you will enjoy it all the more.
12. Guilty Crown
An insecure boy meets a mysterious girl targeted by the government and realizes that he must step up to fight to overthrow this government. It has a beautiful soundtrack (the same composer as Attack on Titan).
13. Death Note
The anime is probably the anime with which people start watching anime. It is one of the most famous anime, and rightly so. The duel of ideologies and the chess game played between Yagami and L is some of the most intelligent and enjoyable anime ever on screen. Most highly Recommended.
Phew, that was long! Thanks for sticking around! And most importantly, enjoy anime! 😀
Why do you watch/not watch anime?
I do not watch anime for the same reason I do not watch movies or web series. For example, in most movies and anime, there’s abusive language, which has been normalized in society but is not acceptable to me because it conflicts with the Gandhian values I follow.
My main concern is morality. I am not against anime or Japanese people. I have some moral objections to anime. Anime contributes to the normalization of immorality. If certain things are removed from anime, I won’t have any problem.
My objections are as follows –
- i. A few years ago, I learned on social media that Naruto has something called “One Thousand Years of Death jutsu.” No show or movie should normalize immorality in this manner. I was even more shocked when I learned that it’s a common Japanese prank called Kancho, and kids and teenagers do it to each other and their teachers (mostly teachers not from Japan). Many people in other countries learn this from anime and start doing it and glorifying it.
- ii. Anime has vulgarity, including inappropriate scenes, vulgar jokes, etc. I was shocked that even Doraemon’s Japanese version has inappropriate scenes. Many Japanese people, unfortunately, justify these things by saying nudity is normal in Japan. People think this is a progressive attitude.
- Given this attitude, it’s unsurprising that porn addiction is so prevalent in Japan that young people are losing interest in real sex and are just interested in pornography and masturbation (Source: Your Brain on Porn by Gary Wilson).
- iii. Anime has an abusive language. This criticism is also valid for Bollywood, Hollywood, etc. No matter how much society normalizes it, it will always remain unacceptable to me as it’s not morally right.
- iv. Sexualization of young girls is another problem.
I must clarify that I do not hate all anime. One anime I love a lot is Jungle Book: Adventures of Mowgli.
Bakugan is also good. I first watched its Hindi version in 2008, and it was perfect, but the English version of Bakugan has some swear words that should be removed.
I also like the Hindi version of Doraemon a lot. However, the scenes where Nobita goes to Shizuka’s bathroom must be removed. Similar scenes should also be removed from Ninja Hattori and others.
The problem with many anime is due to immorality in present-day Japanese culture.
Again, I do not hate Japan at all. Japan is the land of Jodo Shinshu and Zen Buddhism. I’ve read some works of Takamaro Shigaraki, and I’m exploring more about Japanese spirituality. There is so much spiritual wisdom to be found in the country. I have nothing but respect for that. Swami Vivekananda and Mahatma Gandhi were also admirers of Japan.
I wish Japanese people realized that their present-day culture had too much immorality and worked towards abandoning the immoral elements and embracing the teachings of their great traditions and masters.
I want to end my answer with a saying of the great Japanese master Honen Shonin:
What a waste it would be to live vainly without giving heed to the teachings or putting them into practice. To die without making the least spiritual progress how shameful!
What disturbing anime will you never watch again?