Highlights
- Parasyte: The Maxim combines body horror, action, and psychological drama for a tense and uncomfortable viewing experience. Themes of identity and survival add to the gripping narrative.
- Berserk is a brutal fantasy series that explores dark themes and features frequent, graphic violence. The relentless struggles of the protagonist against overwhelming odds create a constant tension throughout every episode.
- Neon Genesis Evangelion offers a high-intensity viewing experience with its psychological exploration of apocalyptic themes. The personal nature of the mecha pilots' struggles and the series' philosophical questioning keep viewers on the edge of their seat.
The medium of anime has frequently shown a propensity for taking storytelling to new heights over the years. In worlds of vivid colors and striking esthetics, capturing the fascination of the viewer can be a relatively quick process.
The plots are often rich and encompass an impressively wide variety of themes from personal and emotional struggles to major, often Armageddon-level threats and dilemmas. The darker, more confronting shows out there have often leaned heavily into harder, more mature themes and ideas to put forward suspenseful, often scary, and thought-provoking tales and character arcs. Such shows often mix in complex character development with a strategic array of eyebrow-raising plot twists and intrigue in order to make it next to impossible to guess what might happen next. That unpredictability factor is a key ingredient in creating a consistently intense, gripping viewing experience. The following shows mastered that art, hooking viewers with their fast-paced, imaginative narratives and characterizations.
5 Parasyte: The Maxim Is A Powerful Body Horror Saga
Hitoshi Iwaaki's ferocious sci-fi horror series got the anime series treatment back in 2014. The show boasts a powerful blend of body horror, action, and psychological drama for a tough, restless viewing experience.
Parasyte: The Maxim follows Shinichi Izumi, a teenager who finds himself physically stuck with a parasitic alien. From there, viewers are treated to a tough look at Izumi's determination to maintain his humanity as the parasitic invasion takes hold. Forced to uncomfortably co-exist with the monster living inside of him, Izumi's journey is a tense, uncomfortable nightmare. The anime further heats up as themes of identity, co-existence, and survival bubble up to the surface. With a rapid fire plot, thought-provoking moral and philosophical questions, and suitably violent action sequences, Parasyte pulls no punches in showing the brutality of both human and alien violence. The tense atmosphere and style effectively produce an edge-of-your-seat vibe to this acclaimed series.
4 Berserk Is Visceral Fantasy Epic
The notoriously brutal fantasy series has long held a reputation as one of anime's darkest and most thrilling series. Berserk relentless sifts through a litany of dark themes and frequent, graphic violence, all while following fearsome, murderous characters.
The series focuses on Guts, a high-level mercenary thrown into the midst of demonic activity after a shocking betrayal. The intensity stems from many areas in this series, including Guts' perpetual struggling against overwhelming, often terrifying odds. The gritty, medieval Europe-influenced setting is constantly brimming with brutality and cruelty, pushing the boundaries of taste and style in anime storytelling. With its heavy exploration of human nature in a harsh, bleak world, coupled with grisly battle sequences and visceral horror, ensures Berserk's tension remains a constant fixture throughout every episode.
3 Neon Genesis Evangelion Is A Thematically Heavy, Giant Mecha Series
This iconic anime stands as a high-intensity viewing experience thanks to its thorough psychological exploration of apocalyptic themes. The acclaimed series revolves around teenagers tasked with piloting giant mechas to protect the world from mysterious figures known simply as Angels.
On top of the expected action that this premise promises, the series' real thrills stem from the often deeply personal nature of the show's look at the pilots' psychological states. Constantly faced with potential death and a sense of existential dread, the mecha pilots' hellish cracks at saving the world are unrelentingly heavy to watch. Chock-full of philosophical questioning, cryptic symbolism, and a harsh deconstruction of mecha tropes, the series frequently challenged viewer's expectations whilst keeping them on the edge of their seat. The impressive blend of high-stakes battles, major plot twists, and an atmospheric soundtrack further added to the series' suffocating level of tension.
2 Death Note Is A Macabre Shōnen Series
This much-loved anime boasts a unique premise ripe for high-stakes mind games. The narrative revolves around a powerful notebook that allows him to eliminate anyone whose name he writes into it.
Light Yagami, the increasingly maddened lead character, gradually descends from a regular high schooler to a self-proclaimed god, running roughshod as detectives gradually close in. The already dark, suspenseful series is bolstered on the intensity front by its moral ambiguity, which often manages to push viewers into questioning their own ethical values. Yagami's lengthy cat-and-mouse game with the enigmatic L, a quick-witted investigator tasked with catching him out, cranks up the overall anxiety of the series even further. With its thought-provoking, often nihilistic plot and fearsome character arcs, Death Note set itself apart as a masterclass in building tension in the anime medium during its '06-'07 run.
1 Attack On Titan Is A Post-Apocalyptic Thrill-Ride
The seminal dark fantasy series is set in a world overrun by the monstrous, titular Titans. Over four epic seasons, the series captivated viewers thanks to its suspenseful plot, comfortingly grim themes, and its relentlessly paced action.
Thanks to the Titans, the world depicted in the show sees humanity on the brink of extinction. What little is left of Earth's population now live within massive, towering walls designed to guard them from the fearsome, man-eating giants. The utterly brutal battles between the predatory Titans and outmatched human soldiers, coupled with the general, constant fear and tension of human bases being overrun, creates a palpable sense of intensity throughout the series. Better still, Attack on Titan's commendable array of moral dilemmas, complex characters, and intriguing emphasis on power dynamics adds depth and dramatic potency to the show's already emotionally charged, thrilling viewing experience.