Best Horror Anime To Watch For Beginners

Finally, I’ve come up with a beginner’s guide on Horror Anime. I have often seen people lose interest in Horror Anime with time. They do it wrong because they straight off head for hot boiling Horror Anime with complicated plots instead of beginning with lighter ones to let the interest develop in oneself.

I have seen people only watching the popular Horror Anime, and hence they miss out on much spectacular old anime. I will give a little sneak peek at all the handpicked Horror Anime that I think you should watch at least once before actually divulging yourself into the world of grim and gore. I wanted to include Another Anime, but I think you should watch it after these five to enjoy it fully. If you want more recommendations like this, leave your thoughts in the comment section below. If you’re a horror game lover, then don’t forget to read Best Horror games.

Top 5 Horror Anime Recommended for Beginners

• Deadman Wonderland
• Tokyo Ghoul
• Mononoke
• Ghost Hound
• Corpse Party

Where to Watch?

• Netflix
• Crunchyroll
• Gogo Anime
• Hulu
• Anime Planet
• Anime Lab

Deadman Wonderland

Ever imagined a privately-owned prison to showcase acts for entertainment? How does Deadman wonderland sounds? Creeps you outright? This is no wonderland but horrorland. Through this private prison, the owners earn a lot of profit.

A high school boy named Ganta Igarashi goes on a field trip to the Deadman Wonderland and his classmate. Ganta`s life takes a huge toll when a mysterious man with a red cape appears and massacres everyone except Ganta. Ganta gets framed for the incident and is sent to Deadman Wonderland. he meets a weird girl named Shiro, who saves him from a fistfight with other prisoners.

Each prisoner in Deadman Wonderland wears an unbreakable collar that releases poison. Death row prisoners will die from poison if they don`t eat the antidote candies. These candies cost Cast Points. To earn cast points, prisoners have to go through death games to get points.

Deadman Wonderland is an amusement park and a prison in the public’s eyes, but it also has a dark secret, «G Block.» This is where they keep their deadmen (people who can materialize their blood). Ganta is one of these special deadmen. The prison holds private DOA matches between deadman vs. deadman, and the loser gets a forfeit, a loss of an eye, maybe a leg. Who knows. 

Ganta ends up living with the constant fear of death. Ganta struggles to make friends in prison. He`s also forced into participating in death games, and finally, he realizes that Deadman Wonderland isn`t a normal prison.

 I love the transition offered in stories. I think Ganta develops pretty well and doesn’t feel forced. He gets stronger and smarter as the series progresses(He`s still a crybaby, though). Ganta befriends many deadmen that he defeats in the deadman battles. Ganta tries to unravel the mystery of Deadman Wonderland and the Red Man.

The plot had so much potential, but the execution didn’t really go well. Many things weren’t explained properly, but it can be a good horror anime for a beginner.

It’s better to start with anime that is not too much “gross” or horrifying at first because the boiling feeling that develops while you watch a better horror anime from time to time vanishes completely, and in the end, you feel bored. So I must say you give this a watch and I’m sure you will like it, but sadly there’s still no season 2 yet. (Warning: Don’t watch with parents because the girl wears an outfit in which she looks like she’s naked even though she’s not. You can thank me later for the pro tip!) 

Tokyo Ghoul

The story starts with a high school boy named Kaneki; He meets a girl and instantly feels attracted to her but no sooner than he realizes that she’s a binge-eating ghoul who wanted to devour him. They get in an accident, and her organs are transplanted inside him for his Survival, which makes him half-ghoul half-human.

He struggles to survive between humans and also tries to tame his instincts. A ghoul organization named ‘Anteiku’ welcomes him and helps him take control of his inner ghoul self. New characters get introduced who either try to eat or befriend him. As we learn more information on how ghouls survive in society, There’s also a fight between ghoul hunters and ghouls from other Tokyo Wards come into play.

The story of Tokyo Ghoul is not mind-blowing, but it’s engaging enough to make you curious. Most of the characters are unique with special abilities, and the level of violence makes you cringe in many scenes. It’s a mixture of horror/crime and supernatural.

This series is top-rated Horror Anime among teens, and you should absolutely try this to get more adapted to the artworks and themes of anime. Many people absolutely fell in love with this anime, and if you do, too, let me know through the comments section below!!

Mononoke

 Mononoke story starts with the theme of an endless journey of a mysterious man versed in the occult known only as Kusuriuri, which translates to ‘medicine seller.’ He travels through various towns and forests in Japan, slaying supernatural beings called Mononoke with his special exorcism sword.

But it’s not that easy; before he can slay a Mononoke, Kusuriuri needs to unravel the creature’s truth (origin), form (physical appearance), and reason (motive). Without discovering this crucial information, he cannot use his sword.

Mononoke is supernatural beings born out of intense human emotions, just like “spirits” in Jujutsu Kaisen; they are usually tied to past trauma, unresolved issues, a horrendous act, or unnatural death.

Each Mononoke is powered by a different set of emotions, whether vengeance, rage, or sadness, but there is only one thing in common: they cannot pass on. This results in them haunting and creating supernatural phenomena, causing many humans’ deaths that get caught in their path (unintentionally/intentionally).

Kusuriuri seeks out the Mononoke to slay them and bring peace upon them. He questions the people who experience such hauntings in hopes of finding out the Mononoke’s truth, form, and reason, and through this, the story develops beautifully.

I mean, this Horror Anime should absolutely be on your watchlist even if it’s not as popular as it should be, but I’m sure that you will really like it, and it’s way different than all the other horror anime that you’ve seen before.

Mononoke is a true hidden gem in the Horror Anime world. Whether it’s breathtaking visuals, complex plot, or characters, they all sum up to be the masterpiece. However, its cheerful visuals do not get deceived- it is not an anime for the weak-hearted.

Mononoke managed to reinvent the horror genre, merging bright, colorful artwork with serious adult themes such as abortion, incest, rape, and murder. The Horror Anime’s core is Japanese mythology; whether it’s the story, music, art, or characters, everything revolves around its rich culture. On the surface, it sounds ordinary, but it has a lot to offer.

Ghost Hound/Shinraigiri

In an isolated region of Kyushu in Japan lies an almost deserted town-Suiten. Taro, Makoto, and Masayuki, three boys who have traumatic pasts, learned to free their souls to cross between two parallel worlds, the unseen world (a world populated by ‘ghosts’) and the real apparent world. Soon they realize that the lines between the real and the spirit world start to blur.

I have seen much Horror Anime that strive for a horror element and end up totally gore. At the same time, some try the psychological approach and get lost in the relationships. This particular anime, however, is a shining star among them all.

Ghost Hound breaks the shackles of all the gore and heads straight for the downright creepy. The animation style is soft and fairly unassuming, which only enhances the overall creepy factor when the ball starts rolling. Each episode title is taken straight from psychology textbooks and successfully expresses the given theme with finesse and underhanded tact.

Absolutely try this Horror Anime if you are new and want to start with something light.

Corpse Party

A group of nine students gathers together after their school festival is over. They all gather in one of the classrooms to bid farewell to one of their friends as it will be her last day before she moves away. They decide to perform a ritual by which they will bind themselves together as friends forever using a paper doll.

After the ritual is performed, the students get dragged into Heavenly Host Elementary school’s worst hellish place, where many murders and other heinous crimes occur. Many ghosts haunt the school, and the nine students will have to escape the haunted halls of Heavenly Host before it’s too late.

One of the problems with the Corpse Party anime is that it has 4 OVA. There is a lot of stories, but the development didn’t go as planned. The pace was too fast, and the true nature of the characters was revealed too soon. Overall, Corpse Party is a good series to watch before actually divulging yourself in the gore themes. The story is great, and the horror never fails to get under my skin. 

Don’t worry; the list of Horror Anime doesn’t end here. I will come up with more amazing Horror Anime, which you can watch next, but for that, you must keep checking for updates and follow Hablr!

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