I practically live and breathe anime. For me, in a lot of ways, it’s like cocaine: by the time I’ve finished a series’ binge, I’m ordering sushi (instead of smoking up) to cope with my comedown. I have to be careful because I can spend days in a blanket fort, shirking all responsibilities and devouring series after series. You guys might be detecting a pattern here.
Here’s a binge-worthy list for those who love all that is gloriously gory and animated. These are six of the goriest – and sexiest? – animes I’ve seen, all of which are held to my high standards of quality. Because, you know, I have standards.
Elfen Lied
This is not only the goriest of gory stories, it’s the quintessential series when it comes to anime saturated with violence and blood. With only 13 episodes, you don’t have to feel guilty about your half-day binge. If you haven’t seen it, this is your gateway drug. I consume it annually (at a minimum), and in the 6 years I’ve been watching it, it’s still my favorite.
If you caught our Japanese-themed mixtape, you’ll remember the intro.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAA52ui_Gzg
Bio Hunter
This is not a series, but a 58 minute delve into complete madness and horror. I actually caught this as a kid, maybe when I was like 10. I don’t remember why or when, but when someone showed me this the other day:
the memories came flooding back. I must have buried it somewhere really fucking deep to have suppressed all memories of it for at least a decade.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSnOMF_LD58
Attack on Titan
The side effects of this anime include horrific nightmares. Seriously, you guys. Waking-up-sweating-and-screaming nightmares. I actually forced myself to finish it as quickly as possible so they would stop, because just quitting altogether clearly isn’t an option. The anime itself is obscenely gory and brutally violent, but the story line is consuming enough to soften the sting of the reality of a post-apocalyptic world full of man-eating giants. And I hear they are going to do a live action film, which looks quite promising!
Ninja Scroll
This is a precious treasure, and you are fortunate to partake in the awesomeness that is Ninja Scroll. Directed by the same genius as Bio Hunter, Yuzo Sato, this 94 minute feature is filled with gore and dark, yet sexy overtones. Like Elfen Lied, I watch this anime frequently – it’s among one of my most prized possessions. Cheers to that!
Akira
To be honest, I watched Akira with an ex who leaves a particularly bad taste in my mouth, so I don’t personally care so much for it. That doesn’t change the fact that this movie is absolutely a must-watch. With plenty of explosions, you can’t help but anticipate the body parts a-flyin’. The story, the animation, the characters… everything about this anime is so fucking twisted and dark, you won’t come out the other side unscathed. There’s endless blood and gore to fuel your nightmares – or daydreams – of murderous mayhem.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7G5zQW4TinQ
Ruroni Kenshin/Samurai X
This was the first anime series that got me into binge-watching. I used to go to my best friend’s house after school – waaaaaay back in high school – to watch it. Even though it’s rather romantic and I spent a lot of time wondering if Kenshin was stoned or just a little bit slow, it’s unforgiving in its brutality and gore – as unforgiving as it is addictive.
Bonus:
The anime short in Kill Bill vol. 1 maybe not be a series, but it’s horrific in so many ways we don’t want to count, that it can’t be overlooked. Not to mention Kill Bill vols. 1 & 2 are binge worthy as well.
