Part of the reason that anime is considered such a diverse and creative medium of entertainment is the way in which it’s able to engage in such extremes when it comes to its subject matter. There’s an anime series for pretty much everything at this point, and there are various genres to cater to audiences that are both niche and mainstream.
There are certainly softer and child-friendly anime series, but the medium also has a reputation for how bloody and graphic it can get with its depictions of violence. Some anime push the envelope in this department, but then there are others that really go for broke.
10 Devilman Crybaby Turns Graphic Violence Into An Art Form
Go Nagai’s Devilman franchise has become one of the foundational horror series that tackles a metamorphosis narrative about the corrupting nature of power. Devilman Crybaby is the most recent take on the property and Masaaki Yuasa uses his fluid and template-defying art style to amplify the grandiose violence that fills the series.
There is endless carnage as Akira’s monstrous form indiscriminately tears bodies to pieces, but the animation and use of color make it almost seem beautiful in nature. Devilman Crybaby justifies its excessive nature by tying its themes into a larger commentary on violence and responsibility.
9 Berserk Is An Iconic Dark Fantasy Series That Pushes The Limits With Its Extremes
Kentaro Miura’s Berserk is an exceptional dark fantasy series that properly understands how to mix the genre’s eclectic sensibilities in a way that feels both fantastical and frightening. Miura’s gorgeous artwork is a major selling point for Berserk and there are beautiful splash panels that highlight excessive gore courtesy of Guts’ exaggerated blade.
There have been several anime adaptations of Berserk that try to properly capture the series’ magic. None of them are lacking in violence, and entire episodes can be devoted to Guts’ rhythmic destruction of demons.
8 Higurashi: When They Cry Unleashes Bursts Of Brutality That Transcend Its Genre
Higurashi: When They Cry has grown into one of the most surprising anime franchises of the decade and it’s proof of why a book should never be judged by its cover. The various Higurashi: When They Cry series adopt a colorful, child-friendly art style with adorable characters.
All of this is to have the audience lower their guard so that the graphic killings and time loop shenanigans hit even harder. Higurashi gets consumed with grisly murders, but these characters hit psychotic heights and rooms are covered in blood. Due to the series’ cyclical structure, these deaths are also repeatedly seen.
7 Genocyber Is A Neglected Body Horror Classic From The 1990s
The ‘90s are a golden time period for some of the most graphic and violent experiments taken on by the anime industry. Genocyber is a five-episode OVA venture that goes above and beyond and makes disturbing body horror its priority. Genocyber’s plot is surprisingly prescient and looks at a future dystopia that’s run by corporations with an interest in obtaining a new genetic and psychic weapon, the Genocyber. Genocyber meshes together humans, animals, and machines, which lend themselves to some highly memorable visuals. It accomplishes a lot in its brief span, and each installment features at least one unbelievable setpiece.
6 Elfen Lied Explores Deadly Powers And Doesn’t Shy Away From The Bloody Consequences
A lot of the time, the aggressive violence in anime is caused by over-the-top weapons, but series like Elfen Lied explore the horrors of when supernatural powers are the cause for bloodshed. Lucy is a biological weapon with extreme telekinetic abilities that allow her to blow up her targets with her mind. Lucy loses her memory and precariously integrates into society, but her inherent powers reveal themselves in graphic ways. Elfen Lied succeeds with how Lucy is alarmed over the destruction that she can cause as well as her search for her purpose in this world.
5 Another Examines Generational Violence Through A Deadly Curse
Violence for the sake of violence often rings as shallow, but Another is a clever horror and mystery hybrid that uses the brutal nature of its tragedies to only add greater urgency to the mystery at the center of it all.
Kouichi Sakakibara, a new transfer student to Yomiyama North Middle School, slowly learns about the school’s dark past and the death of a young girl back in the ’70s. Kouichi becomes a target for this violent curse and a wash of murder and bloodshed begins to once again plague the school.
4 Corpse Party: Tortured Souls Lets Loose A Haunted School That’s Full Of Evil
Some of the best anime series turn to video games for inspiration, and Corpse Party: Tortured Souls is a four-episode OVA series that adapts an RPG title from the 1990s. Corpse Party begins in a traditional manner where a small group of students meet at school to scare each other with ghost stories, only to get whisked away to a haunted educational institution. These students are completely without help and forced to fend off an entire school of demons and vengeful spirits. The anime is incredibly gory, but it really leans into a feeling of hopelessness for these lost students.
3 Parasyte Uses An Alien Invasion To Dissect Humanity In Gruesome Ways
Anime is ripe with series where an unassuming everyman becomes the host for some variety of monstrous threat that suddenly imbues him with dangerous abilities. Parasyte -the maxim- effectively creates an alien invasion with a species of extraterrestrials who infect and dispose of humans in deeply visceral manners. Parasyte accomplishes a difficult task in how it creates a genuine friendship between Shinichi and his parasitic partner, Migi. The series triumphs whether it explores sequences that are emotional or explosively violent in nature. That’s even what Shinichi’s duality is all about.
2 Deadman Wonderland Is Set In A Corrupt Prison Where Murder Is Entertainment
Deadman Wonderland is a delirious anime series that’s set in a vile prison amusement park where the battle between prisoners is treated like entertainment for a corrupt group of authorities. The deadly competitions that Ganta is forced to participate in are drenched in gore, but this is also an anime that casually begins with the murders of nearly 30 students.
Deadman Wonderland only grows more bloody and intense from there. Deadman Wonderland is especially disturbing due to how it commodifies violence and makes some legitimate points about the state of entertainment and corruption in the world.
1 Hellsing Makes Sure That Vampire Hunting Is As Bloody As Possible
There are certain expectations when it comes to particular genres of anime, and any series that revolves around the slaying of vampires and other supernatural creatures is expected to deliver a certain level of carnage. Thankfully, Hellsing and its concluding OVA follow-up, Hellsing Ultimate, make the grueling war between Van Helsing and Dracula as bloody as it should be. Alucard arises as a skilled warrior who takes pride in how efficiently he can reduce the undead to a mess of limbs. The Hellsing series are cathartic in how elegantly evil gets destroyed.
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