Dark anime

[Rheeer]

Another thread on anime sparked this question. I'm relatively new to the genre, and I'd like to know some of the darker animes out there. My friend turned me on to Witch Hunter Robin, and I loved it. I hate cartoony, overly dramatic anime (Speed Racer makes my butt hurt).

Using those couple things as guides, does anyone know what else is out there for me? Thanks in advance.

 

[Pojo]

There's an anime called Monster. I've only seen like 2 episodes, but it seems pretty dark. There is also Hellsing, Vampire Hunter D (I think that's what it's called). Death Note, Ergo Proxy, Elfen Lied...

 

[Wegs]

Death Note- A brilliant teenager becomes a serial killer with a notebook.

Code Geass- A prince tries to overthrow his own empire and kill his father.

Dark enough for you?

 

[MixyNyxi]

Hmmm, dark anime, eh? I’m not super familiar with this as much as other genres, but, well, lesse…

Le Portrait de Petite Cossette is fairly dark, gothic tale with sort of a twisted romance. It’s only a 3 ep OVA though (also a manga). Plot can be a bit convoluted for some, though.

If you like vampires, there’s always Hellsing and the Hellsing OVA series (also called Hellsing Ultimate). These can get a bit gory though if you are opposed to that. There’s Trinity Blood too, which is pretty good. Of course Vampire Hunter D and Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust for a more classic piece as well. Also, Vampire Princess Miyu possibly.

Serial Experiments Lain is a very surreal series that can have many different meanings. Not necessarily dark in a gothic sense like Witch Hunter or the vampire ones (more postmodern cyberpunk), but it’s interesting. I would classify it as dark.

X maybe.

Noir is less magic, surreal stuff and more guns, but its mood is similar.

Chrono Crusade has the religion, demons, and guns as well. It’s well done.

More currently, D Gray-Man might interest you, although the manga was better I thought.

Kuro Shitsuji (Black Butler) is a different type than these. It’s not as dark and has a different feeling. It has its silly moments. Still has a Victorian feel to it. I really enjoyed it. May not be for you, but you can check it out and see for yourself.

Just for kicks, this might not be what you are looking for, but Witch Hunter Robin was made by the creators of Cowboy Bebop. It doesn’t really fit your “dark” criteria, but it’s still a really good show about bounty hunters.

There’s more and I have no idea if these are what you are looking for. And there are certainly more, this is just a small list of what is coming to mind. But check them out and see. Hope this helps at least a little bit.

 

[d4l]

Elfin lied comes to mind, other than that i'm not really into dark anime.

 

[Rheeer]

When I have time, I will check for sufficient darkness. I've heard a lot about Vampire Hunter D. So thanks for the reminder to look that up. All of it sounds pretty dark, though. Thankee.

 

[Olliboll]

Elfin lied comes to mind, other than that i'm not really into dark anime.

YES! Elfen Lied, darker anime/manga is hard to come by

Also Neon Genesis Evangelion can be depressing sometimes. but the good kind of depressing when you just wanna watch more, more and more!

 

[Fire_lupine06]

Higarashi/ When They Cry is a good one....it starts all sweet and cute...but damn...it gets sickening in parts...

 

[Pojo]

Kuro Shitsuji (Black Butler) is a different type than these. It’s not as dark and has a different feeling. It has its silly moments. Still has a Victorian feel to it. I really enjoyed it. May not be for you, but you can check it out and see for yourself.

I just started watching that today (before you posted). At first it was a lot more comedic than I expected, but there are dark tones in there.

 

[Boogeyman]

Elfen lied beats all of the above suggestions. No fucking contest.

 

[YoungNastyman]

YES! Elfen Lied, darker anime/manga is hard to come by

Also Neon Genesis Evangelion can be depressing sometimes. but the good kind of depressing when you just wanna watch more, more and more!

Most episodes are dark, but I don't know if episodes like "Both of you, dance like you want to win" will entertain Balanced Chaos, but the rest and especially the movie definitely fits his needs

Elfen lied beats all of the above suggestions. No fucking contest.

This

 

[MixyNyxi]

I just started watching that today (before you posted). At first it was a lot more comedic than I expected, but there are dark tones in there.

Yep, that's true. The comedy was why I wasn't sure this would be up the OP's alley, but I figured I'd suggest it anyway. It surprised me at first too, but I liked it. Maybe I'm biased since that's a more current favorite of mine :biggrin:

 

[BadPenny]

There's a three episode anime series called Strait Jacket. It's about an alternate reality turn of the century world where magic works, but the only way to make it work reliably is to where these complex protective suits of armour (that look kind of like knights armour) to channel the energy in a way that doesn't do something harmful to the caster. Magic becomes commonplace, and used like any other tool for a wide array of applications in life. Periodically, however, a suit will malfunction, and the wearer will mutate into some Lovecraftian horror that goes on savage killing sprees until a professional "tactical sorcerer" that hunts the thing down.

It's based on a novel and manga series, and they have a writeup on wiki:

Strait Jacket - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Silikon]

Elfen lied for sure.

It manages to make you feel warm inside, want to kill yourself, and cringe all in a span of about 5 minutes. Definitely watch it if you want something more gory (and have ADD).

Other than that I don't watch anime really. I've seen the first half of Death note (and got bored and spoiled the last half) and it was okay but not as amazing as everyone said. If by dark you want something brutal and gory this is not for you.

EDIT: Oh yeah there's also Tokyo tribes or Tokyo tribe 2. If you've heard of goosh goosh...well that's where it came from. Mostly revolving around gang warfare.