Mononoke

You should really watch mononoke and pay close attention as it discloses more than what meets the eye at first, the classic horror theme is prominent In the starting episodes, and it very well throws you off the psychological aspects at first. The animation style is gorgeous, it may not be everyone's thing but it only adds to the show, the show very subtly deals with psychological horror and the things human nature is capable of, it has 2-3 stories that each span a few episodes, each different from the rest, a must watch if the unconventional is your taste.

A short 12 episode anime following the nameless Medicine Man, a wandering protagonist who uses his magic sword to slay invading mononoke, or vengeful spirits, back to the spirit realm. Originally a spin-off of the loosely related Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales, episodes are always grouped into 2-parters or 3-parters, each following a different short story of a spirit haunting inhabitants. The animation style is a reason alone to watch this series above all else, it is absolutely stunning, all done in a 2D Japanese ink painting style. Because of its style non of the horror is scary really, in that sense, but the plots and representations are just as chilling. The plot (a wandering healer exorcising spirits across late feudal Japan) is a plot very similar to a personal favourite Mushi-shi, which I would also recommend, but was very different in all other aspects. I had a ton of fun watching this, would highly recommend. And just in time, there's currently speculation around an upcoming 15-year anniversary film to be released in 2023, so here's to looking forward to that.

Here is another horror anime I found awesome! I was looking for more yokai anime to watch, and I came across this brilliantly animated series from Toei Animation.

Now I wasn't sure if this series is a spin-off of an earlier series called "Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales" or simply related because the last story from that series features the lead from this series-a mysterious "medicine seller" who exorcises spirits known as "mononoke." But either way, I really like this series.

My personal opinion on this anime series is that I thought the animation was eerily psychedelic but also visually brilliant. So anyway, as I said, I really like this series, and it's now another favorite from Toei Animation. I'm a huge Toei fan.

This anime had little to no animation in it. What it was composed of, almost entirely, was still graphic overlays. Most of the apparent animation was done by shaking, sliding, or rotating them. The graphics were based on the school of Heinz Edelman circa 1968 as seen in the movie Yellow Submarine. Many elements were lifted almost entirely from there and included the same creative elements such as rooms and scenery that couldn't possibly have fit into a given location or scenario, as well as random visuals floating across the screen. Frankly, it was done better in Yellow Submarine. Still, it was pretty.

The story was pretentious at best and not well written. There was little to no world logic to the storey, and what there was, was mostly inconsistent. Jargon was used to substitute for a script. The same statements were used repeatedly. Each episode kept telling you what it just told you over and over. I don't think I could listen to the line "Ah. I see." One more time. It made the dialog exceedingly tedious. And it was slow... so very slow, relying on the graphics for exposition, which never happened. As a horror, it was underwhelming.

Music? What music? Yes, there was an opening and closing song, neither memorable. During the story there was mostly no musical background except for random notes thrown from the speaker randomly from time to time. The notes seemed to have been randomly sampled from Classical Japanese instruments. No musical themes linked the notes together. They were there to break up the monotony of the dialog. Once every three or so episodes there would actually be a small instrumental interlude lasting a very short period of time, but again, completely unmemorable.

If you are into experimental visuals then this might be for you. As an anime, it's a bust. It definitely is not meant for children. For most people, I would recommend a pass. This series is far to pretentious to be entertaining. A rating of 6 was the best that I could do, and it's very generous.

This show is similar to Mushi-shi in many ways. Like Mushi-shi, it is structured as a collection of short stories, each with its own characters, settings, and ideas. A medicine seller travels the land in search of mononoke to defeat, which are demons born from human hate, regret, and sorrow---the darkest recesses of the human heart. Each storyline, which consists of either two or three episodes per story, play out like a detective story. The demon slayer must figure out three things before he can draw his sword and defeat each mononoke. He must know the Form, the Truth, and the Reason; that is, he must know its appearance, the truth of why it came to exist, and the reason it has a grudge against certain people.

This show delves into the deepest and darkest recesses of the human heart. Each demon is born because of some horrific injustice or evil action committed by people against others. It does not shy away from delving deeply into dark topics; it does not shy away from confronting the evil which resides in every heart. The story's narrative never takes away responsibility from the sinners, who either meet horrible ends or are forced to live on with their guilt (which is so refreshing in this age of blaming others for our own mistakes). I particularly like how sinful actions have consequences not just for the sinner, but for those around them as well, creating a never-ending cycle of perpetrators and victims. There are so many deep and profound messages in this show.

Note on the Style: The style is supposed to resemble kabuki and noh theatre, which often feature gaudy colors, crazy masks, and wild make-up with specific symbolism attached to each. I love the beautiful detail in the show.