Have you watched too many Isekai or Action anime shows to know the most powerful guy is always coming as the winner at the end of the fight? Then that feeling of unpredictability is what you really need right now.
When it comes to the genre of thriller anime shows, we have no cliches, it’s all about who survives at the end of a fight and who doesn’t. Don’t you believe me? Follow us along till the end and let us give you a reason to believe us with these 42 Thriller Anime Shows To Watch That Will Keep You At The Age of Your Seat.
Normally thriller anime genres have most of the time multiple overlapping sub-genres. The Thriller anime genre, in particular, is placed under the category based on the moods they bring out, it may give you a warm feeling of fear, excitement, suspense, anxiety or anticipation.
As a matter of fact, the anime listed here are totally random and are not based on any ranking, because of this if you even picked a random anime show from our list, it will not disappoint you for sure.
1. Castlevania
Most of you should already know Netflix’s Castlevania, and how good it is, and those who might not know the show should at least know about the legendary games of Castlevania. The anime show is also somehow based on the events of the game, with the main character being Belmont, of course not any Belmont, the Trevor Belmont.
The show also features one of the most legendary characters in the franchise Dracula’s dhampir son Alucard. The show opens up with the death of Dracula’s wife and after that things go downhill with Dracula who promises the death of all humans and their destruction, which he delivers one year later the incident in so much gruesome and horrifying ways possible.
Alucard, Dracula’s son, and a speaker magician Sypha Belnades, in the leading role, now must have to put an end to this bloody path the evil vampire is on.
- Genre: Thriller, Adventure, Action, Fantasy, Horror
- Original Run: 7 July 2017 – May 13, 2021
- Seasons: 4
- Episodes: 32
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Powerhouse Animation
2. Higurashi When They Cry
The 2006’s anime show Higurashi When They Cry, is filled with cute, young and innocent girls, who at first you think would not hurt a fly, well well, just the saying goes, Don’t judge a book by its cover, the same rule applies to these girls.
This anime show is highly notorious for how messed up and weird it can get. Who can blame these cute characters really, you are stuck in a never-ending time loop where you keep dying over and over and over, again again and again.
Despair, anger, hate all these feelings fill the surface in this anime series and those innocent and cute children you meet are no longer there for you. They will become something else, natural-born killers, that will keep on killing until they are satisfied.
- Genre: Mystery, Dementia, Horror, Psychological, Thriller
- Original Run: 4 April 2006 – December 17, 2007
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 24
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Studio Deen
3. Vampire in the Garden
In this Netflix’s Vampire in the Garden, people grow weary of wars and tired of all the senseless death and bloodshed. In the battle for survival, there can be no winners, this is what Momo and Fine, the vampire queen realized even though everyone other deserted them and is now actually giving them the title of traitors of their own races.
All the duo want in this world is peace and all they are in search of is the Land of Eden, a promised land for those Vampires and Humans who are similar or want similar things, basically peace, and who are weary of all the blood and death. Will these two actually find it does not even exist? Tune in and find out yourself…
- Genre: Dark Fantasy, Thriller, Super Power, Vampire
- Original Run: May 16, 2022
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 5
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: WiT Studio
4. B: The Beginning
If you live for thrill and mystery, the Netflix anime series B: The Beginning is definitely what you are looking for. On the islands of the nation named Cremona, surveillance runs among them, which are being protected by few people but majorly hunted by the others, but now, the evil killer bee takes justice into his own hands, who is armed with a sharp and long blade and with his out of the world abilities.
With the expertise of a middle-aged guy, Keith Kazama Flick from the Royal Investigation Services or the RIS is now being called upon. This killer bee is all about being mysterious. What are his motives, his reasoning for killing these innocent 26 people, what is he after, and what does the “B” stands for? All these questions will be answered throughout the story, one at a time.
- Genre: Psychological, Thriller, Science Fictional, Suspense
- Original Run: March 2, 2018
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 12
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Production I.G
5. Ajin: Demi-Human
After the discovery of supernatural beings that can’t seem to die, humanity went on high alert on the lookout for those newly discovered beings, which they now call “Ajin.” They can be anyone around you, they could even be the one right next to you, the tricky thing about these newly discovered Ajin is that they can t be easily identified.
The only mean of identifying is if someone went through a deadly situation and didn’t die because of it. So much for Kei Nagai, someone in the show, the main character K is hit by the truck and instead of going to a land where he builds his own world, which means, an afterlife, he discovers a dark truth about him being an Ajin all along.
- Genre: Action, Thriller, Horror, Mystery, Super Natural, Seinen
- Original Run: 16 January 2016 to 9 April 2016
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 13
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Polygon Pictures
6. Paranoid Agents (Mousou Dairinin)
Paranoid Agents or Mousou Dairinin is something which is underrated. Not every anime can pull off these perfect twists at the right times and then take the story to a whole new level, not every other anime can use a gripping central mystery to push forward the tension of the show and craft a strong pace narrative, but you already guessed it, these are what Paranoid Agents excels at.
You have got one killer named Shounen Bat (Lil’ Slugger), going around hitting people with a baseball bat and if that is not a good enough mystery for our detectives to solve then what is!!
Paranoid Agents is one of Satoshi Kon’s masterpiece works, Satoshi Kon is the genius behind the mind-bending psychological and horror, Perfect Blue, and this show is no different from it. Kon has created these shows on purpose to play with the brain of the audience for sure. The catalyst of this show is Tsukiko Sagi, who one day is attacked by Shounen Bat, an enigmatic persona with golden glider skates and a broken golden bat.
First, the police and the detectives in the case think it was a made-up lie by her until everyone else around the city began to be attacked by that same person. Who is he? Is he even real? How come they are never able to see his face?
- Genre: Mystery, Dementia, Detective, Psychological
- Original Run: 3 February 2004 to 18 May 2004
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 13
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Madhouse
7. Another
Don’t you love those horror stories about dead girls and high schools? That is where Another comes in. A girl’s death leads to students and their relatives dying in strange accidents in very and we mean very gruesome ways. The male protagonist Sakakibara Kouichi gets together with another girl named Misaki Mei, in finding out the truth about these murders, revealing some very dangerous secrets that are buried in the history of their high school.
Mysterious school corridors, a mystery that slowly develops through each episode, accidents that make you feel afraid of using an umbrella, well, Another has it all.
- Genre: Horror, Mystery, Supernatural, Suspense
- Original Run: 10 January 2012 – 27 March 2012
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 12
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: P.A. Works
8. Claymore
Even though the anime show Claymore, is more of a gore type than it horror, it still has a lot of horror aspects to it which gave it its place on this list. The show is a story of betrayal, despair, and revenge. The protagonist, Clare revenges her sister and mentor, after being betrayed and killed by yet one of her own, this show is all about the hack and slash with lots of terrifying monsters and powerful beings standing in the way of Clare.
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
- Original Run: 4 April 2007 – 26 September 2007
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 26
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Madhouse
9. Shadows House
Shadows House is very much not what it looks like. The show has cute and adorable children but these children are inflicted with a disease that causes them to have their bodies covered in black and appear to have no faces, that is the reason why these shadow children are granted a doll that looks like them.
If they didn’t have the shadow condition that is what they would look like. Their job is to learn how to communicate with their shadows before the Debut Event, which is a grand event where shadows finally debuted into society with their dolls. As per the dolls, their job is to clean the rooms from the suit their shadow masters emit before it turns into something else.
There are a lot of questions and mysteries to discover in the show and it’s worth the watch.
- Genre: Action, Mystery, Supernatural
- Original Run: 11 April 2021 – 04 July 2021
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 13
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Clover Works
10. The Promised Neverland
The Promised Neverland, you must have at least heard of the plot. You can call this a KFC anime, but it’s the children being the big chicken meals for the demons. The plot twist comes and hits poor Emma in the face and her life has been a living hell ever since then. From the moment you check the show poster, you can immediately realize that something weird is going on here.
The examples and red flags keep going on and on and the further you go into the series the more you know about what is going on in the show. The Promised Neverland is a horror thriller story of food trying to run for their lives
The First Season of The Promised Neverland, was the absolute banger, for the second season, well, your best choice would be to stop watching the anime after that First Season and go read the manga. But don’t worry about the first season, because it gives you enough chills and thrills to scare you in your dreams. Trust us, you will never look at orphanages in the same way again, after watching The Promised Neverland.
- Genre: Mystery, Science Fictional, Suspense, Dark Fantasy
- Original Run: 10 January 2019 – 29 March 2019
- Seasons: 2
- Episodes: 23
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Clover Works
11. Shiki
Shiki gives off a different vibe compared to other thriller shows. Vampires with tons of horror are something everyone can’t just do. It happens in a rather rural Japanese village called Sotoba, where vampiric creatures plague the village bringing unfortunate and brutal deaths to its inhabitants.
We follow the story of Yuuki Natsuno, who soon gets dragged into one of these mysteries and is haunted by these vampires. Shiki has a really good way of mixing in the horror with its plot by making sure the hair on your skin stands up in the least expected moments. Don’t know how 2D animations can scare the living hell out of you?, well why don’t you watch Shiki and find out!!
- Genre: Supernatural, Vampire, Suspense, Gore, Horror, Mystery, Psychological,
- Original Run: 9 July 2010 – 31 December 2010
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 22
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Daume
12. Monster
Sometimes thriller anime is not about that ghost hiding under your bed, it’s about that one guy who goes around wreaking havoc that makes you question that dark side of humanity. The anime show Monster is sort of like Paranoid Agents, but more serious this time. It is anime about one surgeon who is forced t choose between a life of a child and a politician. He chooses the life of a child but it turns out that this child is a killer!!
Not the best news the surgeon wants to hear, right? Monster loves to play that thrill factor and creates an antagonist that can send shivers down your spinal cord. After watching this show you are gonna think that Liebert, is one of the darkest anime characters ever created.
- Genre: Drama, Mystery, Suspense, Psychological
- Original Run: 7 April 2004 – 28 September 2005
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 74
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Madhouse
13. Mieruko-Chan
Just imagine that you have the ability to see ghosts, all day long, especially the scary ones. It’s one hell of a frustrating life for this young and beautiful girl named Yotsuya Miko, especially when it comes to the fact that she must always remain stoic and unflinching whenever she sees those spirits not raise their attention to the fact that she can see them.
They definitely have the tendency to harm her if they do and that is exactly why she remains uncaring all the time and cold. Because no one knows what could go wrong if they knew about her powers. The jump scares in the show are more directed towards the audience that is towards us rather than directed towards Miko as a person.
For her sake and the safety of everyone around her, she will need to keep up her act as long as ghosts are in the vicinity. It can be funny at times, but overall it is quite horrifying to watch all day by such a being.
- Genre: Comedy, Horror, Supernatural, School, Thriller
- Original Run: 3 October 2021 – 19 December 2021
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 12
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Passione
14. Death Parade
Do you know who you should be most scared about in hell? The bombing waits to greet you during your afterlife. The story of Death Parade is about a lonely bartender named Decim, who begins to think twice about his judgements when he meets a blackhead woman who committed suicide and realizes that she is dead.
Death Parade brings on the concept of death and blends it into a format similar to a game. Giving birth to a unique and original show, that can keep you hooked. Death Parade shows the most creative ways to kill a sinner. Decim is no satan and he may look like an adult version of Kaneki, but don’t go messing around with him.
- Genre: Drama, Supernatural, Suspense, Psychological
- Original Run: 10 January 2015 – 28 March 2015
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 12
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Madhouse
15. Steins Gate
You will never believe how a time travelling story with a mad scientist would turn into one of the greatest thrillers anime ever made, okay, it is also the greatest science fiction anime show to ever exist. But we are here for some good thrillers, right? Steins Gate features time travel gone wrong but the show doesn’t simply survive on that plot thread alone.
Soon you have got evil organizations, girls from the future as well as a red-headed scientist joining the team of a mad scientist to take the show in a new direction. If you love a good thriller about time travel then we can definitely recommend Steins Gate to you.
- Genre: Drama, Suspense, Psychological, Time Travel
- Original Run: 6 April 2011 – 14 September 2011
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 25
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: White Fox
16. Higurashi
What will you do if we told you that there is a virus to make the recent Covid pandemic look lame, if you don’t believe then you have got to watch this anime, under the name, Higurashi, it happens when our protagonist Keiichi, travels to the village named Hinamizawa which is completely fictional and befriends girls with a rather mysterious background.
Keiichi soon finds out about a mystery in the village which was that people are being killed or disappearing after the Watanagashi Festival, Soon in the story, he realizes that these murders and disappearances are somehow linked to the lives of his own four childhood friends. Higurashi knows how to craft a horror that leaves a disturbing feeling in your stomach.
As for the thriller factor, why not ask some fans of the show, why they are scratching their necks so often!!
- Genre: Horror, Mystery, Supernatural, Suspense, Gore, Psychological
- Original Run: 1 October 2020 – 19 March 2021
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 24
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Passione
17. Serial Experiments Lain
In the anime show Serial Experiments Lain, there are a lot of moments that really “really” creep you out. In the show, we are focused on a young girl named Lain, we don’t really know much about her, but we see her basically on her way to school in the very first episode, and she seems like a normal girl, for the most part, kind of quiet, kinda shy.
She has a small friend group that she talks with even though her only really true friend from it is, Arisu. The series opens up with one of the students of Lain’s school killing herself. The friends start talking about this email that they are receiving from their deceased classmate. The whole series just basically revolves around Lain and this thing called “Wired.”
- Genre: Avant-Garde, Award Winning, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Supernatural, Psychological
- Original Run: 6 July 1998 – 28 September 1998
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 13
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Triangle Staff
18. Mirai Nikki (The Future Diary)
Mirai Nikki or The Future Diary is another unique anime that most of the fans found out about after they binge-watched the entire Death Note in one night and searched for a similar anime. Death Note is obviously in a league of its own of course, Mirai Nikki definitely did not disappoint and it actually had some similar aspects to Death Note though it’s not the same premise.
In The Future Diary, the main character is a guy name, Yukitero Amano, who’s kind of similar to Shinji from Neon Genesis Evangelion in both the way he looks and acts. Yuki, also constantly uses his phone as a journal writing down, pretty much everything he sees on a day-to-day basis.
One day, this thing named Deus who is also apparently a God, made Yuki’s phone, which tells him about the future. Yes, that’s why it’s called Future Diary. Now you may be asking, why did this God just give this random guy his phone? Well, Deus is actually reaching the end of his life, despite him being a god and he needs to pass out his powers to a successor.
So, he has a better royal with 12 people and each of the 12 contestants has similar future diaries each with their own unique actions outside of telling the future. And by that, we mean, the contestant’s phones, tell them about the future differently and it’s accustomed to how they acted on their phone beforehand. The 12 people have to kill the other 11 and the winner literally becomes the God!!
- Genre: Action, Supernatural, Suspense, Gore, High Stakes Game, Psychological, Survival
- Original Run: 9 October 2011 – 15 April 2012
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 26
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: asread.
19. Shigofumi (Shigufumi: Letters From the Departed)
If you could someone a letter after you die, what would you right and who would you send it to? Shigofumi is very interesting and something a bit different from the normal thriller shows. It is a little bit of a darker tone, especially in the beginning.
The story starts off in a very interesting light, it is a lot of mystery around it, why is this girl coming down with letters and messages? While watching the show, you might feel that the first two episodes were one story and then the next two or three episodes were another story and sometimes you would get a story that is just one episode, a lot of these stories were just one-shots and they weren’t really related to each other, but they actually are.
Aside from the stories being connected to each other, there is one deeper story that lies among all of them. While watching Sgigafumi, we see that the messenger the one who delivers these letters is a very emotionless character. Shigofumi covers a wide range of emotions and they all cover a different topic and some of them can be pretty mature.
- Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Supernatural, Suspense, Psychological
- Original Run: 6 January 2008 – 23 March 2008
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 12
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: J.C.Staff
20. Imawa no Kuni no Alice (Alice in Borderlands)
The story of Imawa no Kuni no Alice or Alice in Borderlands, follows a young high school guy named Arisu, who along with some other young high schoolers transported to another world. They have completely trapped her in the new world and are forced to play a deadly game, the one who will survive till the end will be the winner of the game.
Imawa no Kuni no Alice is a psychological thriller anime series in which the different ways people transform from normal human beings when the unexpected push them to their limit.
Imawa no Kuni no Alice shows us how unexpected and frighting situations can take out the dark and selfish side of a human being.
- Genre: Action, Supernatural, Suspense, Game, Psychological, Survival, Shounen
- Original Run: 17 October 2014 – 18 February 2015
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 3
- Dub: No
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Silver Link, Connect
21. Electromagnetic Girlfriend (Denpa-Teki na Kanojo)
Our protagonist Juu Juuzawa is a young middle school guy, who loves to be alone and is not much friendly with his other classmates. That is why, when his classmate Ame Ochibana, claims that Juu and her are linked together somehow from their past lives, he becomes highly doubtful towards her and even doesn’t want anything to do with what she claimed. And what is more strange, is that Ame’s fondness is to be the servant of Juu. Thinking that Ame must have a false impression, he always tries to distance himself from her.
When Juu’s classmate is murdered instead of deciding to close the case, believes the strange girl, Ame, to be the culprit. However, the intelligence and thinking skills she demonstrated during the murder case solving begin to prove invaluable.
- Genre: School, Mystery, Suspense
- Original Run: 4 February 2009 – 4 December 2009
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 2
- Dub: No
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Brain’s Base
22. Paprika
Another anime on the list from Satoshi Kon is Paprika. Kon’s work is often experimental and drew an indefinite line between the world of Reality and between a world of Dreams. These elements of Kon’s work leant heavily avant-garde movement of surrealism, founded in the 20th century. His final film Paprika however follows concepts behind surrealism more so than any of his other films.
Paprika initially explores surrealism through the creation of the device in the world of the film. This device is called the DC Mini and it allows the dreams of the wearer of the device to be seen by those around them. However, a technical oversight enables DC mini to be able to enter the dreams of anybody in the real world, causing the people whose dreams are invaded to lose their sanity.
- Genre: Mystery, Avant-Garde, Suspense, Horror, Science Fictional, Fantasy
- Original Run: 25 November 2006
- Seasons: Movie
- Episodes: 1
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Madhouse
23. Eden of the East
A young Japanese girl named Morimi Saki is on a graduation trip to Washington, where she gets into a bit of trouble for trying to throw a penny into the fountain that is located right in front of the White House. Why she already does such a thing remains a mystery. A completely mysterious naked guy, who called himself Takizawa Akira, saves her from the guards. But wait of course this guy is not an ordinary guy. The phone that he holds in his hands has a total of 8,200,000,000 Yen as digital money.
Three months before that, on 22 November 2010, ten missiles strikes Japan. This unpredictable terrorist attack has later given the name “Careless Monday.” Because of very less victims, the incident was soon forgotten.
- Genre: Mystery, Romance, Sci-Fi, Suspense
- Original Run: 10 April 2009 – 19 June 2009
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 11
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Production I.G
24. Akagi
Akagi is an amazing anime. It takes place in 1960s Japan, shortly after the war during the Great Economic Depression. The show opens up with the Yakuza mafia members, gambling with some guy who was trying to make enough money to survive. A man started losing all of his money when suddenly this dripping white kid comes out of nowhere.
This kid somehow knows exactly what to do because he tells us that guy, how he can win against the Yakuza group. Eventually, the kid starts gambling with the Yakuza members himself about as surprised as you possibly be.
The anime is pretty much about this kid, being the most fearless human being in existence, betting his life on multiple occasions. Since anime is just a giant rollercoaster ride of this little kid getting himself into the most intense situations on the planet.
- Genre: Adult Cast, High Stakes Games, Organized Crime, Psychological, Strategy Games
- Original Run: 5 October 2005 – 29 March 2006
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 26
- Dub: No
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Madhouse
25. Death Note
A list of thriller anime shows without recommending the legendary Death Note? Impossible! Anyone who is following the anime community, knows about this crime mystery show Death Note, for sure, except if some just got out of the cave.
Just for his own fun, a sadistic God of death, Ryuk, drops his “Death Note” into the human world. A young high school guy named Light Yagami picks up that notebook and puts it into his bag. When the story progresses further, he finds out that the notebook he picked up from the backyard of the school is not an ordinary notebook, it is because when someone writes a name in that book, he is going to be dead in a couple of moments.
- Genre: Supernatural, Suspense, Psychological
- Original Run: 4 October 2006 – 27 June 2007
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 37
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Madhouse
26. Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo
Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo is an anime adaptation of the classic story by Alexandre Dumas’s “The Count of Monte Cristo.” The original story was written and set in the 1800s which might be a bit confusing considering this adaptation is set in 5053s Space France, but aside from the odd things like people still using paper letters and not communicating by phones, it actually works at its core.
It is a story that can be appreciated in any time period, this is a tale of revenge one that blends in corruption, deception, love, aristocracy, naivety, trust and more.
- Genre: Science Fictional, Supernatural, Suspense, Drama, Mystery
- Original Run: 6 October 2004 – 30 March 2005
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 24
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Gonzo
27. Zankyou no Terror (Terror In Resonance)
Directed and created by fan favourite Shinichiro Watanabe and animated by production studio MAPPA, Zankyou no Terror or if you prefer, Terror In Resonance. The city of Japan, Tokyo, becomes the victim of a terrorist attack. An attack that shuts down power to the city temporarily and destroys the top of one of the city’s more predominant skyscrapers.
There are two things quite interesting about the attack, first what you would expect is there are no fatalities caused by it as the building’s fire alarm is conveniently activated before the bombs, allowing anyone inside time to evacuate. Second is that we the viewers witnessed the attack from the perspective of the two boys responsible for it.
- Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Psychological
- Original Run: 11 July 2014 – 26 September 2014
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 11
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: MAPPA
28. Re: Zero
Eternal depression check, waifus that get killed in the most brutal ways possible check, as well a show that will make you binge-watch a whole season in one night check. Ladies and Gentlemen, we introduce to you Re: Zero, here we meet Natsuki Subaru, who is transported to a fantasy world while coming out of a grocery store.
Subaru’s time in the fantasy world isn’t surrounded by adventures and cute girls. Subaru soon learns that he does not die when he is killed and no, that is not a Fate reference, he literally has the ability to reincarnate at a specific time as soon as he dies. The anime follows his story as he struggles to find who brought him to this fantasy world and his purpose in it.
- Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Suspense, Psychological
- Original Run: 8 November 2019
- Seasons: 2
- Episodes: 25
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: White Fox
29. Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu (Parasyte The Maxim)
A high school student by the name of Izumi Shinichi is living with his mother a father in a small peaceful neighbourhood until one day these parasitic alien creatures called “Parasites”, start to invade the earth.
These tiny little parasites dig into a human’s brain and take over to assume total control. In order to survive on planet earth they feed on the flesh of human beings . One particular parasite, just happens to invade Shinichi’s room, while he is asleep and proceeds to crawl into his arm. However, Shinichi wakes up to realise this parasite crawling up his arm like some kind of terrible nightmare and somehow manages to stop the little parasite from crawling up to his brain and maintain it in his right arm. Where eventually the parasite instead of taking over his brain, takes control of his right arm.
- Genre: Action, Horror, Science Fictional, Gore, Psychological
- Original Run: 9 October 2014 – 26 March 2015
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 24
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Madhouse
30. Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch (Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion)
If you are a fan of the Mecha genre but want to experience thriller too, Code Geass is for you. Code Geass is an alternate reality world in which the British Empire, sorry, the Empire of Britannia, because nobody saw, what they did there, have gained control of about one-third of the world and they have also recently gained control of Japan, changing its name to Area 11.
Lelouch is a young Britannia, who vows to destroy the Empire Britannia, to make a better world for his sister Nannaly and also to find out who really murdered his mother.
The show is set seven years later and follows the story of the Lelouch as he leads a rebellion against the Empire of Britannia. It’s basically Japan versus the Empire of Britannia with giant robots. Thrown in the twist in the show is that Lelouch has a power in his eye, called Geass, a power which makes anyone who makes eye contact with him, obey his every order and he uses this to his advantage in many ways throughout the series, from ordering people to kill themselves to use it or interrogation to find out the absolute truth about his mother’s death.
- Genre: Action, Drama, Science Fictional, Mecha, Military, School, Super Power
- Original Run: 6 October 2006 – 29 July 2007
- Seasons: 2
- Episodes: 50
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Sunrise
31. Erased
A twelve-episode long anime, directed by Itou Tomohiko, who is one of the primary directors behind Sword Art Online and better yet Death Note. The story of Erased follows a guy named Saturo Fujinuma, who has Revival. something he refers to as Revival.
He will be walking around in everyday life and suddenly get a flash forward of something that is going to happen. However, he doesn’t quite see, what is bad but he knows that something is off and when he gets this flash forward he has to look around and find a pinpoint of what might be off so that when he reverts back to normal time, which is usually a few minutes behind he can then find whatever is about to happen and stop it.
- Genre: Mystery, Supernatural, Psychological, Time Travel
- Original Run: 8 January 2016 – 25 March 2016
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 12
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: A-1 Pictures
32. Psycho-Pass
If Ghost in The Shell is one of your all-time favourite anime franchises, you might have a really hard time finding an anime show that creates such an immersive and accurate science fictional world as Ghost in The Shell, this movie pretty much gave birth to a genre you can find the traces of it in pretty much every portion 1995 sci-fi anime.
We now have Psycho-Pass, a series that has an almost identical premise to Ghost in the Shell. It’s set in a not-too-far-away future, where AI and Cyber body parts play a big role in society. We follow a division of the police forces, they tackle the many problems that stem from our new artificially intelligent friends.
- Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Suspense, Adult Cast, Detective, Psychological
- Original Run: 12 October 2012 – 22 March 2013
- Seasons: 3
- Episodes: 41
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Production I.G
33. Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day
Every once in a while, every otaku finds that after watching various different anime, they feel a need for emotional pick me up, something that is very emotionally moving that differs from what they generally end up watching. Lots of shows have various different types of genres like to have emotional bits sprinkled in here and there. That is kind of par for the course and it does make for a very good show as those are usually the moments that you remember the most, out of all moments from any given show. But occasionally you run across some shows, whose sole purpose is to create a plot that has this nice gradual build-up until a satisfying and emotional conclusion.
Romance is not necessarily the be-all and end-all for these moments. Ladies and gentlemen presenting to you Anohana – The Flower We Saw That Day. The story revolves around a young man named Jinta and his small group of friends. Several years prior as children they all used to be friendly but after the unfortunate death of one of their best friends, a young named Menma, they all grew apart and went their separate ways.
- Genre: Drama, Slice of Life, Supernatural
- Original Run: 15 April 2011 – 24 June 2011
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 11
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: A-1 Pictures
34. Zetsuen no Tempest
Zetsuen no Tempest or Blast of Tempest if you prefer, is a story of revenge a tragedy that referenced Shakespeare’s Hamlet in the Tempest, both stories of revenge the different endings of happiness and tragedy. Zetsuen no Tempest takes elements from both works and creates an astounding story of vengeance written with great detail.
Zetsuen no Tempest tell the story of magic and mythology while at the same time giving the possibility that what appears to be magic could just merely be science above our level of comprehension. The series follows the aftermath and bobbing the lives of two best friends after the events of a tragic past. To uncover the mysteries of this tragic past they seek the help of a powerful magician, whose help may help them find the answer they are searching for.
- Genre: Action, Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Psychological
- Original Run: 5 October 2012 – 29 March 2013
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 24
- Dub: No
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Bones
35. Durarara!!
The world for our characters seems much larger like there is always more going on. One small throwaway scene for one story, could itself be a linchpin or even a climax for another story. It’s a fascinating thought to be able to watch something that is a lot closer to the real world than most. Because you look out into the real world, where hundreds of people, and while we are the main character of our stories, they are the main characters of theirs.
A 2010’s anime series directed by Oomori Takahiro and based on the original work by Ryohgo Narita. The problem when trying to talk about this kind of story is that it’s hard to know where to begin. This is because the show doesn’t seem to have a main character.
They’re a trio of characters that almost every story involves in some way, so perhaps they Share the title of the main character. But then there is a mysterious character with a motorbike and black outfit. She has a good amount of time dedicated to her mysticism and she is a constant force in the following storyline.
- Genre: Action, Mystery, Supernatural
- Original Run: 8 January 2010 – 25 June 2010
- Seasons: 2
- Episodes: 37
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Brain’s Base
36. Baccano!
The show Baccano!, constantly flip-flops between its storyline and while it usually does give you a warning, about what year it’s about to go into if you are not paying attention, you are gonna miss quite a bit. Back in always bursting at the seams with characters at every turn but not one of them can be considered a lead. The only characters to transcend the story arc boundary of the thieves named Isaac and Miria, but in each plot arc, individually they cannot be considered two leads just supporting characters.
- Genre: Action, Comedy, Mystery, Supernatural, Historical, Organized Crime
- Original Run: 27 July 2007 – 2 November 2007
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 13
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Brain’s Base
37. NHK ni Youkoso! (Welcome to the N.H.K.)
Most anime, manga, light novels you name it, normalize or even idolized Otaku behaviour, not the kind where you enjoy some nerdy past time, but the ones when the people say, “Screw the real world and get lost in fiction,” thinking 2D is all they need, scared of real-life interactions and what is actually a severe depression is romanticized in a pretty horrible way, especially when the market is aim towards will then think they can stay as they are and succeed in life, such as their shut-in heroes on screen.
NHK ni Youkoso! is all about exposing the conspiracies with an intense wake-up call. It is a story that each version, be it the novel manga or anime will all give you a more depressingly intense experience than the last. Each with its own variations for the characters and plot points but each is a fantastic ride that will leave you speechless and so depressed.
- Genre: Romance, Comedy, Thriller
- Original Run: 10 July 2006 – 18 December 2006
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 24
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Gonzo
38. Nijiiro Days (Rainbow Days)
Nijiiro Days is a romantic comedy anime series based on the high school life of four best friends. Natsuki Hashiba; is a dreamer with a misconception of love, Tomoya Matsunaga; is a playboy type of guy with many girlfriends, Keiichi Katakura; is the saddest person in the group, and Tsuyoshi Naoe; is fond of anime and manga and who also has a girlfriend with good skills in cosplay.
- Genre: Romance, Comedy, Thriller
- Original Run: 10 January 2016 – 26 June 2016
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 24
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Production Reed
39. Planetes
Planetes is a type of anime that truly engrosses its viewer, it is the one that could reel you in with its intensity and refuse to let go until it was over. It is a well-ranked but forgotten anime series, one that was surprisingly originally written by the critically acclaimed Yukimura Makoto in the years leading up to his hit series, which we are sure you recognize as Vinland Saga.
At first, Planets feels like a thrilling space tale, but as the story unfolds it will soon unravel into one of the most philosophical and existential stories, you might ever have witnessed.
- Genre: Science Fictional, Romance, Drama
- Original Run: 4 October 2003 – 17 April 2004
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 26
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Sunrise
40. Mononoke
Mononoke, no we don’t mean of the princess varieties, is a 2007 mystery anime series about the dangerous spirit that haunts troubled individuals and the wandering elusive man known as the Medicine Seller, who dispatches them. It is a lot like Mushishi if he replaced the wonder and optimism with abortions, and abortions and abortions.
It’s hard to deny the art in class that bleed from the collection of grim tales but is Mononoke style over substance or is it a true piece of realized art, both inside and out? Mononoke is a collection of five 2-3 episode stories about the vengeful spirits known as Mononoke and the troubled and corrupted humans that they latch onto.
The mysterious no named seller always appears in the right place at the right time, with his pack of goods ranging from talismans to keep the spirits at bay scale to determine their locations and last but not least his exorcism blade which can only be drawn from its hilt when the Mononoke’s truth regret and form a known.
- Genre: Fantasy, Thriller, Horror, Supernatural, Mystery
- Original Run: 13 July 2007 – 28 September 2007
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 12
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Toei Animation
41. Perfect Blue
For many young girls, becoming a Pop Idol is a dream, one that some are lucky enough to see fulfilled. It’s a dream of inspiring hundreds or thousands of others through their performances to briefly escape their dreary lives and live in the moment. To create a passionate following of fans excited to see them, even if their lives off-stage are less glamorous than they would have hoped.
Perfect Blue is about one such young woman. However, this is not a story about a dream, but instead a nightmare.
- Genre: Drama, Thriller, Horror, Psychological
- Original Run: 28 February 1998
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: Movie
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Madhouse
42. Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade
In 1945, the United States detonated two atomic bombs over Japan, killing at least a hundred thousand people. The destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki would result in Japan surrounding the allies, which would effectively end World War II in Asia, this would leave Japan in economic ruin, struggling to find its place back into the world, following its defeat the United States would send a nearly a million allied soldiers to occupy it, helping to rebuild the ravaged country, stabilizing its economy and preventing it from being re-militarized. No, we are not in a history class…
Jin-Roh is a movie, which is released almost fifty years after the bombings which reimagine the time, following the surrender of Japan. In this story, Japan sides with the allies during the war. This time, however, it’s actually Germany who occupies it, pursuing aggressive economic growth as their way of recovering Japan.
While effective this would lead to many unemployed and cities crowded turning them into slums. People were not happy and violent crime was at an all-time high. There would also be the formation of armed anti-government groups fighting for Change, which were so powerful that they overwhelmed the entire local police force.
- Genre: Drama, Thriller, Romance, Military
- Original Run: 3 June 2000
- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: Movie
- Dub: Yes
- Status: Completed
- Studio: Production I.G
