Only the cult series that turn violence into a form of art.
Gore is an integral part of anime, allowing its creators to tell complex stories that are not limited by genre or age restrictions. And sometimes the violence in anime surpasses many horror movies.
We have chosen five bloodiest anime titles, where the level of violence is off the charts.
1. Hellsing Ultimate, 2006-2012
The secret organization Hellsing protects the British Empire from the undead and other supernatural forces. Their main weapon is a super-vampire and expert marksman named Alucard. The attacks of the undead on the civilian population become more and more widespread, and it soon becomes clear that Alucard is being hunted.
This is a good example of combining a quality story with an extreme level of violence. The vampire theme fully justifies the abundance of bloody scenes. And at the center of the plot is an incredibly charismatic character – Alucard is consistently included in various lists of the greatest anime characters.
2. Akame ga Kill!, 2014
Young Tatsumi moves from the countryside to Tokyo and joins the Night Raid, a secret unit of revolutionaries bent on overthrowing the Emperor. As the revolution gains momentum, the Night Raid's actions become increasingly violent.
The central topic of the series is betrayal in its various forms, which becomes the main driving force of the plot. It is first and foremost an intense action and political thriller, with brutal and inventive murders adding to the tension of the story.
3. Chainsaw Man, 2022
Denji's life has gone downhill: his father died, leaving him with huge debts to the local mafia, and now he is forced to work them off. His job is to hunt demons, and Pochita, a charming demon dog with a saw sticking out of its head, helps him.
After another not-so-successful fight, Denji merges with Pochita and gets the superpower to turn into a chainsaw, and from that moment on, his life changes forever.
The plot of this anime balances on the edge of classic stories and parodies of genre cliches. It has a place for cynical humor, vulgar teenage jokes, and ruthless cruelty that never feels primitive.
4. Elfen Lied, 2004
On the street, students encounter a homeless girl named Lucy who suffers from amnesia. They offer her shelter and help, unaware that she is actually a mutant serial killer with a split personality and psychokinetic abilities.
The number of victims in each episode of Elfen Lied is in the dozens, severed fingers and limbs fly off left and right, blood flows like a river, and the perpetrator of all this looks at you with eyes full of pain and sadness. All this is combined with a wealth of cultural references and a philosophical subtext.
5. Another, 2012
Koichi is a newcomer to a provincial school, but he immediately senses the oppressive atmosphere that reigns there. The teenager believes that the fear in his classmates is caused by a modest girl with an eye patch who turns out to be a ghost.
She died suddenly more than 20 years ago, but the students were never able to say goodbye to their friend.
The series is based on the manga of the same name, which in turn is based on the 2009 novel by Yukito Ayatsuji. The creators of the anime manage to preserve the atmosphere of uncertainty that is the main characteristic of puberty. A series of mysterious deaths is also no coincidence – it emphasizes the instability of the inner world during adolescence.