Episode 199 – A Hauntingly Good Episode

The Anime Addicts Anonymous Podcast does their annual Halloween Episode!  We talk about what Japanese people find scary and how that plays into anime, along with some of our favorite anime in the horror genre!  Also, impressions on the new season, what passed, what failed?

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni – Especially every 4th episode for some reason

Hell Girl – I haven’t seen this anime but the premise is interesting and I’d like to see it.  Somewhere in the vast sea of the Internet, there’s a website that can only be accessed at the stroke of midnight. Known as the Jigoku Tsushin, rumor has it that if you post a grudge there, the Jigoku Shoujo will appear and drag whoever torments you into the inferno. Very little is known about the girl—all we know for sure is that she lives with her equally enigmatic grandmother, that three magical straw dolls accompany and serve her, and that whenever a posting on the Jigoku Tsushin moves her, she becomes the Jigoku Shoujo.

Attack on Titan – Recent, fun watch for those that haven’t seen it.

Elfen Lied – This is obviously a classic that most people have seen.

Mononoke – A story of a medicine seller who expels evil spirits.  Based off of the “Mononoke”

arc in Ayakashi Samurai Horror Tales.

Denpa Teki na Kanojo – A really nice 90 minute ova.  Easy to watch with well constructed, well paced stories that make for a fun, and aggressive watch.  Very strong stuff.

High School of the Dead – This anime is fun fun fun.  Starts off with the action immediately and doesn’t let up on the zombie action!

Devilman – Classic from the 70s

Aoi Bungaku – Some are more “horror” than others in this anime but it ranges from gory, to disturbing, to both.  My favorite is the story arc of the bandit in the woods who kidnaps women and his most recent acquisition has him cutting off heads and her keeping them as prizes.

GeGeGe No Kitaro – You gotta mention a classic right?  Not traditionally “scary” but the depictions of Yokai are fantastic and it is by the “god” of the Horror Anime Genre – Mizuki Shigeru.

Abandon the Old in Tokyo (manga) – This one is also not “traditional” horror by western standards but makes the list for me based on how psychologically disturbing it is.  Originally 8 stories published by Gekiga artist Yoshihiro Tatsumi, Abandon the Old in Tokyo follows and “average” man as his stories exposes the dark and gritty underbelly of tokyo.

Perfect Blue – While arguably more in the psychological thriller genre space Satoshi Kon’s Perfect Blue perfectly sells the dark foreshadowing and impending sense of dread found in the horror genre.

Vampire Hunter D movies – Although they frequently feel more like action movies with a horror motif, these movies belong in any list of best “horror” anime.

Blood: The Last Vampire – A fun little experimental movie from Production I.G. The first anime film to be completely animated with computers. At 45 minutes, it’s short and sweet and gory as hell.

Magnetic Rose – Probably the best installment in Katsuhiro Otomo’s 1995 anthology film “Memories,” and one of the scarier anime I’ve ever seen.