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Posted October 26, 2014 by LJ Zenarosa in Anime/Manga
 
 

The Five Most Disturbing Anime Ever!

Halloween is definitely around the corner! We are not just talking about all the fancies of masquerade and costume parties, but people are even starting to plan on what to do for the upcoming long weekend. Anime enthusiasts have an exact idea of a perfect Halloween getaway — comfy clothes, popcorn or snacks in the side and a quiet place to watch their favorite anime series. Right? Absolutely.

So, here in Flipgeeks, we compiled five anime series that we think are cathartic, stupendous, mind-boggling, and probably, have the most incomprehensible notion of plots that might give your brain cells a twist that is hard to untangle. Fair warning our dear readers: If you will going to watch this anime, be prepared to be blown away. Let’s jump now, shall we?


NGE Logo

1. Neon Genesis Evangelion (Shin Seiki Evangerion)

  • Genre: Mecha, Post-Apocalyptic, Drama, Sci-Fi
  • Studio: Tatsunoko Production, Gainax
  • Directed by: Hideaki Anno
  • Produced by: Noriko Kobayashi, Yutaka Sugiyama
  • Episodes: 26 episodes plus three anime films (Death and Rebirth, The End of Evangelion, Rebuild of Evangelion)

Admit it, this anime is cool but totally messed up! Neon Genesis Evangelion already established its stand as one of the most disturbing anime ever produced for TV. It was pretty grim, depressing and full of psychological themes. Produced by Tatsunoko Productions and Gainax Studios, this anime featured the emotional journey of a teenage boy named Shinji Ikari who is recruited to become a pilot for a bio-machine named EvaEndofEvangelion Last Scenengelion, by the very shady organization named as NERV.  It was critically acclaimed, because it prominently discussed (implied or not) symbolism and themes about Christianity, Kabbalah,  Buddhism, Judaism and Shinto. (The use of concepts such as Fruit of Life, Eva, and Adam are just the classic examples.) It also utilized symbols that described what the character feels. Who wouldn’t be confused with the alternate endings of Episodes 25 and 26, which completely blew the viewers away? (Not to mention that God-like humongous Rei Ayanami at the last movie.)

Anyone still wondering why Shinji strangled Asuka at the ending of The End of Evangelion? Even us are still puzzled.

 

WhenTheyCry 2. Higurashi No Naka Koro Ni (When the Cicadas Cry)

  •  Genre: Mystery, Psychological Horror, Supernatural
  • Studio: Studio Deen
  • Directed by: Chiaki Kon
  • Episodes: Season 1 had 26 episodes and Season 2 had 24 episodes, and three OAVs (Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kira, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kaku: Outbreak)

Yes, the picture looks so cute and adorable, right? But, first impressions can be oh-so deceiving!

Higurashi No Naka Koro Ni, simply known as When They Cry in North America is adapted from a murder mystery game released by 07th Expansion. It is described as a sound novel where the gameplay requires little player interaction with the game mostly consist of text dialogues. It is also been adapted to manga with 38 volumes and four volume light novels. The story simply revolves around Maebara Keiichi moving to Hinamizawa until he stumbled upon a news about mysterious killings and then finding out in the latter part of the series that the killer(s) are the same friends that he always hang out with.

What makes this sound novel-turned anime series notable is that while watching it, it seems like you are becoming a part of the series itself. It’s like you are a scientist or a spectator and then, you are watching this happy people getting killed by another happy person — and then, you’ll start to ask “Wait? How did that happened?” You’ll be hooked to watch it over and over again until you find out why those killings happened. The anime is divided into several arcs which makes you submerge in different scenarios until you discover the reason why the most lovable girl in the class goes around carrying that large cleaver and started ripping off heads.

Maybe this video will give you a taste of what I am trying to say.

3.  Paprika 

Paprika

  • Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Thriller, Mystery, Horror
  • Studio: Madhouse
  • Directed by: Satoshi Kon
  • Screenplay by: Seishi Minakami, Satoshi Kon
  • Based On: Yasutaka Tsutsui’s Paprika

Japanese version of Inception, you say? If you like Inception, this will give you the same dose of that movie — but with a little twist. And yes, when we all hear the name “Satoshi Kon”, we all know that it’s going to be awesome.

Paprika is based on Yasutaka Tsutsui’s novel that goes with the same title. It is about a renowned scientist named Dr. Atsuko Chiba who invented a new psychotherapy treatment that is called Dream Therapy. In this therapy, there is a device called “DC Mini” which allows the user to see or view somebody’s dreams. Dr. Chiba helps her psychiatric patients using this therapy and the device, with the help of her alter-ego named Paprika — which is the persona she uses in the world of dreams. Everything goes well, until one of the prototypes of the machine is stolen and some of the details of the said crime suddenly appeared in the dreams of Detective Toshimi Konakawa. It’s now up to Dr. Chiba and Paprika to bring back the prototype before it lands to the wrong hands.

Aside from its dreamy soundtrack, what set asides Paprika is that it is a movie where you initially presume it doesn’t make sense, but after watching it, you’ll feel dazzled by the whole scenario of solving crimes using the dream machine and how amazingly Kon uses his talent in directing. The animation is colorful, yet puzzling. The flow and timing of the movie is almost perfect to the plot. There are some scenes that are hallucinatory — but at the back of it, it is actually reality. It’s a cerebral extravaganza that I am sure you will like.

Oh, and a little trivia — Inception was inspired by this anime film.

Perfect Blue Poster4. Perfect Blue

  • Genre: Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Drama
  • Studio: Madhouse
  • Directed by: Satoshi Kon
  • Screenplay by: Sadayuki Murai
  • Based On: Yoshikazu Takeuchi‘s (パーフェクトブルー Pāfekuto Burū)
  • Released: July 1997

Yes, another Satoshi Kon movie. This is entirely different from the Perfect Blue drama series that you might find in your search engine. Fair warning too, this film is not for someone who cannot handle disheartening scenes. You might lose your thoughts after.

Perfect Blue is an anime film that was released last July 1997, where it features the life of Mima Kirigoe. After deciding to leave a Japanese Pop Group named CHAM!, Mima becomes a victim of stalking, starts receiving mysterious calls and fax messages and even a website where it is written in a very detailed way. (Disturbing eh?) She tells it to her manager, but it all goes for naught. She moves on and lands on a big project, a crime drama series. However, the producers cast her as a rape victim in a strip club for the show. Her manager warned her that this will ruin her image, but Mima accepts it. The rape scene traumatizes her. It even comes to the point where she starts questioning herself, her persona and even the borders of reality from her work in the series. And then, the murders start — with the suspects revolving around the management, the staff and the artists that are involved in that particular scene.

This story has a solid script. It is written beautifully and can make you feel sympathetic with Mima’s disarray of emotions. The pacing was almost perfect believable granted the emotions shown in the animation. It is gritty and bold, but it was exciting. However, after watching this, I highly recommend you to watch a few episodes of Teletubbies to bring back your happy thoughts.

5. Serial Experiments Lain (Shiriaru Ekusuperimentsu Rein)

Serial Experiments Lain

  • Genre: Psychological Horror, Sci-Fi, Drama, Cyberpunk
  • Studio: Triangle Staff
  • Directed by: Ryutaro Nakamura
  • Produced by: Yasuyuki Ueda, Shojiro Abe
  • Episodes: 13 Episodes

Serial Experiments Lain crosses the boundary of sci-fi and psychological thriller in a Matrix kind of way. Written with utmost caution and risk, this anime series depicts a lot of personification in the form of the character of Lain. The series starts off in a very slow pace of showing a girl (Lain’s schoolmate) who commits a suicide and then, a number of strange events suddenly appeared one after the other, such as receiving an e-mail from the dead girl, saying that she is still alive and just abandoned her flesh and body. Lain also received the same e-mail which made her more curious in finding out what exactly happened to her schoolmate, and then she discovers The Wired and herself. Alice in Cyberland slash The Matrix anyone?

This anime embraces the notions and ideas of philosophy, computer history, cyberpunk literature and the conspiracy theory. (That’s a load of information to digest.) It was labeled as weird and off to the center to the traditional anime that we knew. However, what sets this anime apart is how the main character herself carries the plot along the way. The plot was environment centric which helps you to further understand what’s going on. It might be slow at first, but if you get to enjoy the next couple of episodes, I am sure you’ll enjoy the rest of the series. There’s a eerie stillness in each episode, but there’s an excitement lurking beyond that stillness. If you want a different dose of cyberpunk, this one is for you.


LJ Zenarosa

 
Nurse by day but a geek 24/7. Cat Lady who loves wrestling. And can eat lots of sweets -- like a LOT.