Very likely this list was inspired by the fact that I’m currently trying to watch Vatican Miracle Examiner, but today I’m looking at my top 5 favourite anime priests. When I say priest, I’m using a broad brush so I’m not overly concerned what sort of priest, or what religion, or even if they are actually ordained. If they dress and kind of act or are treated like a priest, I’m going with that. What put these characters on my top 5? They are a priest and I found them interesting and sometimes even useful to the story they were in. It isn’t an overly deep list this week.
Please Note – Probably a few minor spoilers this week.
It may be unfair to have John Brown at number 5 given of all the priests on the list, he’s actually the one who acts most like a priest. However, he’s held back by two things. The first is he wasn’t the protagonist of his story and was clearly strictly back up. There were almost no occasions where he was actually useful other than one or two minor exorcisms throughout the story. The second being his horrendous Australian accent in the dubbed version of Ghost Hunt. Certainly if you are looking for comedy, that accent is going to hit the mark but otherwise all it will do is make most Australians cringe.
Already I can hear people wondering why this anime priest isn’t higher up the list and the answer is simple: he’s dead after the introduction to the series. Yes, we get flash backs to him being awesome and to be honest, he’s probably the best character in Blue Exorcist, but none of that gets us past the fact that he’s already dead. The doting father and incredibly strong exorcist literally steals every scene he gets to appear in, there just aren’t enough of them.
Though I would love to see a prequel series about his exploits as an anime priest.
This guy’s a priest? You actually do know that about him but sometimes it is very hard to remember given his flamboyant ways as well as his taste in… literature. Yet, he does his job and still manages to look pretty cool while doing it which has earned him a solid third place on my list.
And honestly it isn’t as though most anime priests actually act all that much like real priests so authenticity isn’t exactly a requirement here.
I really like Seishin’s character for a couple of reasons. The main one is that he provides a different perspective on the vampires and their invasion to his friend’s. Whereas the doctor chooses to rally people to fight the vampires, Seishin chooses to seek coexistence even when it clearly becomes impossible. It’s another valuable perspective that the story kind of needed particularly during the gory conclusion.
I wonder what the world has in store for him after the events of Shiki as this anime priest definitely made some questionable decisions along the way and his actions were noted. Still, he was a complex character and one who provided a needed alternative perspective to both the vampires and humans in the story.
Seriously, what is not to like about this awesome character. He and Vash are perfect as a team and Wolfwood very clearly highlights the path Vash might have taken rather than the one he chooses. Wolfwood, you will be missed.
But in the meantime you were my very favourite anime priest and quite the entertaining character before that whole tragic end thing. And, seriously, using the giant cross you lug around as a weapon is just kind of awesome.
Another studio list. So far I’ve done fun titles by Bones and favourite works by P.A Works but today I turn my attention to Studio J.C.Staff mostly because while they aren’t my favourite studio and I find their work a bit hit and miss, they’ve produced a fair number of solid titles in my anime collection at this point. That said, other than sequels I haven’t found a lot of shows I love from them in recent years (though watched a number of them).
I’m ranking these titles purely on the number of times I’ve rewatched them.
What are your favourite anime from studio J.C.Staff?
Please Note: There may be some spoilers for the anime below.
Honourable mentions this week go to Kaichou wa Maid Sama and Golden Time. I love both of these stories but they just haven’t had the same amount of rewatches as some of the other anime on the list.
The story of the two guys who think they are going to become famous mangaka and have an anime is actually really compelling. There are some issues that come up with how females are represented and the like, but mostly this is just a really interesting look at the industry as we follow the two main characters through a fairly gruelling journey.
On paper this story shouldn’t work given how long we spend watching the characters brain storm and work in their studio. It should be boring, and yet it is fascinating and they give the entire thing a very shonen feel without going too far into the crazy and unbelievable. However, more than just being a story of trying to become the best, this is a story about the characters and they really sell the work as you become deeply fixated on whether they succeed or fail and their relationships with the other characters.
The whole franchise with A Certain Magical Index seasons 1 and 2 and Railgun 1 and 2, really should hold this place together. I like these stories but they are riddled with problems so I tend to start a season and then get distracted and that stretches the watch time out.
However, once I’m done I always remember the series fondly which is why I’ll rewatch it again in a few months time because I seem to forget about the pacing and character issues. That said, A Certain Scientific Railgun season 1 is my favourite so far and a lot of that comes down to the four main girls who manage to really charm without being overly cute and annoying.
Number 3: Heaven’s Memo Pad
Apparently I’m yet to review this anime so I’ll definitely have to fix that. I love Heaven’s Memo Pad. That isn’t actually saying it is a good anime, but it just hits a certain spot when I’m in the right mood for it. Pretty much you know the feeling you used to get as a teenager where you want to just shut yourself away and right bad poetry for a day or two, that’s the mood you need to be in to truly appreciate Heaven’s Memo Pad.
It is heavy dark melodrama that takes itself very seriously but it manages to bring about some really great character moments and force the audience to confront some fairly heavy issues. It is trying really hard to hit you with feels and when you aren’t in the right mood it just kind of comes off as trying too hard, but when you are in the right frame of mind it is kind of perfect. Be prepared for issues involving suicide, social isolation, betrayal, drug use, gang violence, and so on and so forth as well as an overly cutely designed detective at the centre of the story.
I love Ghost Hunt but I will admit the reason it does get rewatched so often is the episodic nature of the story. Each case only covers a handful of episodes so you can just pick a case to watch without watching the entire anime.
Plus, the English dub works really well for most characters (John the apparent Australian priest is another story) so this is an anime I can watch when I’m really tired and don’t want to deal with subs or trying to pick up the Japanese.
Its your basic introduce a mystery, send in the team and investigate, figure out the cause and solve kind of thing but the cases are quite diverse and they usually manage some genuinely tense moments along the way. I also really like the characters in the story, or at least I like watching them given I think most of them would be really annoying in real life.
This is definitely a newer title for my collection but it is one I very quickly became addicted to Is It Wrong to Try To Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon. As in I watched it through, told my friend they had to watch it, and immediately binged the entire thing again over two or three days. It is a regular title for me to select when I need a pick me up. It is fun, energetic, has some awesome fight sequences, and it is really hard to feel bad about things when watching Bell run about so determined to reach his dreams.
I absolutely love this silly little adventure story and will happily watch it over and over again, and with season two and three out now there’s even more to love. I’m also not even going to touch why the spin-off was an incredible waste of time.
Anyway, that’s my list this week. Feel free to tell me your favourite titles from Studio J.C.Staff in the comments below.
For those who aren’t familiar with it, Ghost Hunt is an anime series from 2006 that essentially goes through a number of story arcs about a team of paranormal researchers. While some stories are better than others, the whole series is actually pretty entertaining. What follows are my thoughts on each story arc after rewatching the series.
Evil Spirits All Over
Here is the crack squad of would be ghost hunters minus the boss.
This arc nicely introduces Mai to Kazuya Shibuya, a 17 year old who dresses in black and runs the Shibuya Psychic Research company. She also meets his assistant Lin and a range of other spiritualists including a monk, a shrine maiden (kind of), a clairvoyant, and a priest (from Australia and I must say that accent is truly dreadful though that’s only a problem if you watch the English dub as the Japanese version has a different location and accent).
The case in this arc of Ghost Hunt involves an old school building at Mai’s school. A number of accidents have occurred and the Principal wants the building cleansed so it can be demolished. While the mystery in this arc isn’t particularly compelling, it is a nice backdrop to introducing the characters and Mai’s entry into the world of ghost hunting.
Without spoiling the conclusion of this arc, it is difficult to say anything more about what happens. We learn a range of facts about ghosts and poltergeists and are introduced to each of the characters specialties when it comes to dealing with spirits. We also see that they don’t always get it right.
This is a very satisfying introduction to the series.
Positives:
The voice actress for Mai is a fantastic screamer. Very few screams in television are as satisfying as some of Mai’s.
The show isn’t going for flash or gimmicky. It’s keeping a steady pace and measured tone but uses the characters and the atmosphere to keep you interested. It’s refreshing for a show to not feel the need to dress itself up and go over the top.
Negatives:
Already mentioned it, but John’s Australian accent is horrendous. To the point where I was showing Ghost Hunt to a friend of mine and she actually asked if his character was going to die soon so that we wouldn’t have to listen to it any longer.
A lot of narrative convenience, like most mysteries. If you pay attention, you’ll probably solve this case before the characters do because it isn’t that mysterious.
Anyway, you should definitely check out Ghost Hunt at some point. The opening theme is also kind of interesting because it has no lyrics and doesn’t use character images. Instead you just get a simple orchestral piece and a range of visual effects that set a nice, spooky tone. While the opening gets old after a few episodes, it is definitely different from the usual anime fare.
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The Doll House
Creepy doll.
The SPR team are hired to investigate a haunted house where a woman lives with her sister-in-law and niece in this arc of Ghost Hunt. The rest of our psychics, spiritualists and mediums show up to help out on the case.
This arc is a great creepy, haunted house story. You’ve got the creepy kid with the seriously creepy doll and a step-mum who seems mysteriously cold. Add in some thumps, bangs, furniture rearrangement and messages being written on walls and you have everything you need for an entertaining ghost story.
This arc does use a lot of the same techniques as the first, but it feels more like they are trying to establish a pattern before they get a bit more experimental in their ghost hunting.
Positives:
Mai demonstrates some psychic ability of her own even while she continues to learn about the business.
Ayami is adorable as the creepy kid.
Minnie (the doll) is possibly able to hold up the horror end of a ghost story all on her own.
Negatives:
Why doesn’t Kazuya just tell the others what he is going to do? I know this becomes an established pattern, but it makes no sense and adds needless conflict.
The step-mum leaves and no one ever mentions her again. Hello, she just ditched her step-daughter and left and no-one thinks this is worth commenting on?
While the doll house isn’t one of my favourite arcs from Ghost Hunt, it certainly has impact and is effective as a ghost story.
Mai really nails the damsel in distress role at times, though isn’t always needing rescuing (just a lot).
We’re back in school again, although this time SPR were called in to deal with a string of incidents including a haunted desk and a cursed club. Turns out a girl named Kasai demonstrated psychic talent and was then harassed by certain members of the student body and staff and declared she would ‘curse them to death’. However, Mai insists that Kasai isn’t the culprit.
This arc of Ghost Hunt really brings out the investigative skills of SPR and friends as they are faced with what looks like a haunting and events that must be supernatural, but there are no spirits to be found. Thanks to Mai being clueless, many of the characters offer explanations of various phenomenon for the audience to get up to speed in a way that doesn’t feel overly forced, and the resolution is quite satisfying.
Also, while there is the investigation into the phenomenon, there’s a lot of discussion around how psychics and strange phenomenon are viewed by the public at large and how they are represented within the media. While this discussion doesn’t really come to any kind of conclusion, it certainly gets the audience thinking about their own views and how people are accepted or not within society.
Positives:
Mai continues to demonstrate growth in her abilities, even if she has no control whatsoever.
Kazuya is at his absolute sweetest in this arc and the way he comforts Mai is the most human you will see him in the entire series.
Negatives:
Takigawa and Ayako are at their most pig-headed in this episode. While they’ve butted heads with Kazuya in the previous arcs, there they seemed to have a point. Here, they seem to be objecting for the sake of keeping some tension in the group.
The case may be solved but a lot of the emotional damage from the events in the story will remain. No clue is given as to how any of that is going to be resolved.
As a stand alone story I find The Afterschool Hexer one of the most satisfying cases Ghost Hunt has to offer. It isn’t as dark as some of the cases later on, but it develops nicely and the couple of twists feel natural and planned. Well worth a watch even if you don’t watch the rest of Ghost Hunt.
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Ghost Story in the Park
A brief moment of excitement.
This stand alone episode is a refreshing change. We’re outdoors, in the park, and getting soaked by a petty and vindictive spirit who dislikes seeing couples in love. Honestly, it’s a filler episode at best but it does show Mai’s jealousy as Masako uses the opportunity to get closer to Kazuya. There’s not a lot more to say about this one but you can just watch it on its own.
A Silent Christmas
Don’t turn into a ghost and possess everyone now.
While it only goes over 2 episodes, this arc hits a fair emotional punch. We’re dealing with orphan children at Christmas time and a possession by a child’s spirit. When the spirit possesses Mai things get even more distressing.
Positives:
Lin actually speaks in whole sentences during these episodes.
Because the cases are smaller there is more focus on the characters in these episodes.
Negatives:
The storyline is pretty uncompelling as there is little mystery in what is going on.
Kazuya seems to take a back seat to some of the other characters during this story.
I must admit, I regularly skip right past this story when I’m rewatching Ghost Hunt. It doesn’t add a great deal to the series and doesn’t quite match the tone of some of the other story arcs. That said, if you’re watching the series for the first time, there is some good character development to be found.
And for a third time Ghost Hunt returns to a school setting, but this time it returns for my favourite story of the series. Strange occurrences are happening on a daily basis all over the school and the students are panicked. Several aren’t coming to school anymore at all. However, the strict staff at the school think it’s all in their heads or that they are playing some silly game and won’t deal with any of the issues. When the SPR and friends arrive on the scene it is already chaos and within minutes of setting up a base a phantom dog attacks a girl in a classroom.
There are several reason why this is my favourite story but the first would have to be the introduction of a new character, Yasu. He’s a student who contacted SPR to try to get the situation resolved and he hangs around helping out with odd jobs and providing valuable insight to the location. He also stays on in a support role in the remaining narrative arcs.
The second reason I like this story is there definitely seems to be more menace in this story. We’ve encountered ghosts and curses and all sorts of other things previously, but there’s been very little sense of ongoing danger. The Forbidden Pastime turns that on its head and at time you genuinely wonder how things are going to be all right at the end.
Positives:
Mai learns some magic. Not well and she doesn’t use it particularly well here but it is about time she learned something about how to defend herself from spirits given her current occupation.
Yasu is a fantastic addition to the cast and adds some genuine levity into scenes that are very heavily weighed down by the dark atmosphere of this story.
Lin finally gets to show off some of his expertise.
Negatives:
Kazuya continues to not tell people things for the sake of being Kazuya. Seriously, would a ten second explanation kill him?
A lack of any teaching staff at the school that express anything other than contempt for the ghost hunters. If phantom dogs, weird smells, fires and other strange events are occurring that often, how can all of the staff assume the students are lying?
There are some tense moments in this story. It isn’t exactly horrific but it will make you sit up and take notice and it definitely preps you for the arcs coming as Ghost Hunt takes a turn for the more creepy. Well worth a watch.
Okay, I’m not overly squeamish, but I found some parts of this story hard to watch. Probably because the story is being told from Mai’s perspective and she goes through some genuine trauma during this arc of Ghost Hunt. While the theme is still more mystery than horror, if you don’t like blood or dismemberment, you should probably give this arc a miss.
Kazuya and team are hired to investigate a mansion that has a very weird design and is known to be haunted. A teenager went missing while inside with friends and then a fireman who was part of the search team looking for him disappeared. However, Kazuya is not the only one hired for the job and so he asks Yasu to stand in as the company boss so he can get to work and not deal with the other teams. It’s pretty cold and pretty typical of Kazuya this far into the series.
There’s a couple of twists and turns in the dealings with the other teams that I won’t get into to avoid spoilers. The main mystery is solved but there’s definitely a sense that this wasn’t a victory this time around and Ghost Hunt shows us once again that dealing with spirits is tricky. This story is dark and highly affective.
Positives:
Yasu is back and has some great lines early on when little else is happening. Without him, there’s a good chance the first episode in particular would have been snore worthy.
Mai continues to grow as a person and psychic.
Kazuya get’s put in his place a couple of times by a former mentor.
Negatives:
John’s presence in this entire story is almost completely pointless. So much so that at times you forget he is actually with the team.
Why are the other psychic researchers so useless? Surely even they can do some basic background checking on the house?
Once again, if you don’t like too much blood then maybe don’t touch this particular story. It isn’t horrific but it isn’t exactly nice either.
It’s going to be hard to really review this without spoilers so I’ll keep it simple. A family who own a certain property have been cursed and they hire SPR to look into it. Unfortunately several members of the family are already possessed which leads to some very violent encounters. You can tell we’re at the final as the body count in this story stacks up and the number of spirits encountered is quite extraordinary.
One key event that I am going to mention is that Kazuya is possessed in this story arc and then knocked out and kept unconscious by Lin until he can be exorcised. While we’ve kind of had indications before that Kazuya must have been dangerous, this is the first time we are overtly told that he has power.
Needless to say, he’s in a bad mood when he does wake up.
I’m going to leave it there because anything else is going to spoil this final story of Ghost Hunt for you.
Positives:
All of the characters get a moment to shine in this final story, including Ayako who has previously had very little chance to show off what she can do.
It suitably ups the tension to leave us with a very satisfying conclusion to the series.
Negatives:
Talk about leaving you wanting more. It feels like these characters are just touching the edge of their potential and we could learn so much more about them.
Overall, Ghost Hunt is a great mystery anime with a focus on the supernatural. Its episodic nature works in its favour when you only want to watch a couple of episodes and this allows you to see a whole story quickly. However, I’d love to see more stories with these characters and watch them grow even more and encounter other supernatural events. It was just great fun watching them.
Images used from: Ghost Hunt. Dir. A Mano. J. C. Staff. 2006
Today I am turning my attention to the narcissistic characters of the anime world. I’m going to clarify, this is not just a list of narcissists though. It’s pretty easy to make a character narcissistic. What is difficult is to make the audience actually like the self-loving individual.
So who would you have put on a list of narcissistic characters from anime?
Please Note – There are spoilers below. You have been warned.
Honourable mentions this week go to Claire Stanfield from Baccano and Kurama from Kamisama Kiss. Kurama kind of failed to make the list because even though he seems self-absorbed he just doesn’t have the confidence of a true narcissist. Not like those who made the list below.
A more recent honourable mention goes to Takato from Dakaichi. He’s the best kind of narcissist. One with an inferiority complex.
The guy is nick-named Naru the Narcissist within a day of Mai meeting him. He is completely convinced he is brilliant (not helped by the fact that compared to the company he keeps, he is). Kazuya is 17 years old and running his own company. He hunts ghosts for a living. Not to mention, while the other spiritualists may not approve of his methods they have to approve of his results and track record.
However, just when you start really hating they guy, you get some more insight into his life and his personality. Honestly, the show just wants you to like him (given it is mostly narrated by Mai and she clearly does like him) and it does a good job of helping you see past his narcissistic exterior. At times.
Number 4: Loki from Fairy Tail
I know that there’s a whole other side to this character, but focussing on how he is when Lucy first meets him, he is a womanizing narcissist. The later character arcs for Loki do a lot to make you empathise with him and understand him, and he also just develops beyond the shallow existence he was living, but he is still definitely a narcissist.
This one is too easy. The guy loves himself. A grown up child star who completely believes he is amazing. I really wouldn’t want to meet him after the events in the series because I am certain that while he has grown emotionally in some ways, his success will just make him more of an unbearable narcissist. But that is why he is on my list. Because he does grow and develop throughout the series so even though you still don’t much like him, you want him to succeed. I found that was some very affective writing that made me actually want him to win.
Number 2: Yumichika Ayasegawa from Bleach
We could just look at his picture and realise, yep, this guy is definitely a narcissist. Even his seat number (fifth seat) was chosen because he didn’t want to take the third seat from his friend and he liked the number 5 more than 4. Really? And this guy won’t even fight against ugly people unless they really annoy him. He is so incredibly vain. You have to laugh when his hair, outfit or face get messed up. It’s just too perfect.
I couldn’t resist this one. Yes, there are greater narcissists in the world, but none of them as lovable. And that is why Alex Louis Armstrong tops out my list. True, it is only his physical appearance and alchemy that he is self-absorbed with and he is well aware of his limitations in other areas (hard not to be with so many people willing to point that out).
There’s just something completely charming about him even as he is completely crazy. While I think more of him in the series would have been a bit hard to swallow, his appearances were regularly marked by humour or sweet and touching moments that made his character all the more memorable.
So, who did I miss? Share your thoughts on the narcissists of the anime world below.
This week I want to look at characters who are just completely inappropriate occupations. I’m going to be honest, keeping the list to 5 was challenging given how many anime characters are just ill suited for their job, so I really look forward to seeing who you guys would have added to the list.
Please Note – There are spoilers below. You have been warned.
Honourable mentions this week go to Kuroko Shirai as a Judgement Officer in A Certain Magical Index, Naoya Touhara as a Toy is Astarotte No Omocha and Mephisto as a Principal in Ao No Exorcist. But as I said before, I had a really long list to start with, so there are plenty of other characters that probably should have been mentioned.
Which characters did I think have completely inappropriate occupations?
How did I make my selection? I really thought about which character’s job bugged me the whole time I watched their show. If it was intruding into my thoughts regularly and I was questioning why they were doing what they were doing, they probably ended up on my final list.
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Number 5: Ayako Matsuzaki as a Shrine Maiden in Ghost Hunt
Even the other characters in Ghost Hunt laugh when Ayako introduces herself as a Shrine Maiden and it becomes obvious throughout the series that even though she knows a lot about being a Shrine Maiden she isn’t one.
Even the monk (the rock band member monk who also should be mentioned in this list for inappropriate occupations) explains to Mai (and the audience) that Ayako just doesn’t operate the way Shrine Maiden’s should. That and her attitude toward anything that seems like work earned her a place on the list as she seems to be in a completely inappropriate occupation.
Number 4: Kisuke Urahara as a Shopkeeper in Bleach
This one is more just because it seems like there is no reason why Urahara’s shop in Bleach hasn’t just gone bankrupt. He is a lousy shop keeper and his pretense that that is all he is is blatantly ridiculous, particularly when you see what is underneath the shop. Now, admittedly, he is kind of in retirement after a fairly eventful life so he can do whatever he wants, but if he wanted to run a shop surely he should show just a little more interest in doing it well.
I’ll admit that this was probably a cheap shot but if you can’t bake, don’t be a baker. That kind of makes sense to the rest of us but Sanae Furukawa is persistent if nothing else. As much as there are moments in Clannad I really enjoyed, seeing Sanae’s reactions to honest responses to her bread was not one of them. What bugs me is that she still bursts into tears at the slightest criticism when you would think she would either get over it or learn to bake. And how does she manage to not get any better if she is doing it every single day?
Number 2: Teletha Testarossa as a Captain in Full Metal Panic
While there is nothing wrong with Tessa’s intelligence and her dedication to her crew, temperamentally she is not suited to command and there are a myriad of other characters in Full Metal Panic who could. This comes across so often in the series. She struggles making the tough calls when her crew are in danger, she is a teenage girl and at times feels the need to act that way, and she is also unreasonably stubborn on certain issues. None of these would make her a very effective captain and assuming that an entire crew would just loyally fall behind her because she’s cute is just a little insane.
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Number 1: Sadao Maou as a MgRonalds Employee in The Devil is a Part Timer
Kind of an obvious choice given the occupation is the entire joke but The Devil is a Part-Timer was made for this list. It isn’t right that Satan would be flipping hamburgers in a fast food shop and yet here he is, planning his world conquest as he works his way up the managerial ranks. I love that he’s ambitious and hard working but it is still a totally inappropriate profession for his character (even if he is apparently amazing at it).
What are your thoughts? Which other characters are completing jobs they probably shouldn’t be?
Here we are and it is October and this year I’m going to be running Halloween themed top 5’s all month long (not that Halloween is actually a thing where I live but any excuse to dust off some of my favourite anime and characters). Starting out with this list of anime characters that creep me out. Or that I just find disturbing or unsettling for whatever reason.
I will admit, it was a tough list to narrow down but I’m pretty happy with the final list. But as always I would love my readers to join in the fun and share their top 5 creepy character lists in the comments below. Hopefully you like my list.
Who made the list of anime characters that creep me out?
Look, the guy has a permanent smile that is almost bigger than his head and the deals he offers people are worse than any deal you could make with the devil. He’s responsible for so much misery and pain and he does it all with that ridiculous grin and a laugh. This is a character that was inevitably going to creep me out.
So many characters claim they are going to destroy the world but I actually came to believe the Millennium Earl would eventually succeed in D Gray Man and given the story isn’t finished let’s just say he’s currently winning.
Number 4: Hisoka (Hunter x Hunter)
I probably don’t need to explain why I consider Hisoka a creepy customer but right from the first time he graced the screen in Hunter x Hunter he left me unsettled. He’s a little bit violent, a little bit sadistic, gets way too in to his pursuits, and seems to be entirely indifferent to any kind of moral code outside of his own.
That and his fixation with Gon at times is very creepy. Still, I’m thinking if I ever end up in an anime world and see someone who even looks vaguely like Hisoka coming I’m running for it (not that it will do me much good mind you, but it might make me feel better).
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Number 3: Urado (Ghost Hunt)
Probably not a well known character given Ghost Hunt isn’t the most popular anime out there, but while most of the ghost stories the characters encounter in the various arcs are more interesting than scary Urado is one character who could definitely leave you with nightmares. And he undeniably is an anime character that creeps me out.
That’s probably because unlike so many of the other stories, Urado seems to be based off of tales of real life figures like Elizabeth Bathory and the like so with a more familiar context, and a lot of blood, Urado managed to really get under my skin for the brief time he was in the story.
Number 2: Megumi (Shiki)
No surprise Megumi from Shiki made the list. When we’re talking about anime characters that creep me out Megumi is definitely right up there.
It isn’t that I’m actually scared by Megumi, but there’s that scene where she slides out from under the bed and no matter how many times you watch it, it is still unbelievably creepy. That and Megumi is just so incredibly malicious in the way she attacks people as a vampire. She well and truly earned her number two spot.
Right, so future revelations in the story may have reduced the impact, but The Colossal Titan appearing behind the wall was one of those moments where you just kind of stared at your screen and froze. Such a perfect opening act for Attack on Titan really.
They really just nailed the perfect combination of factors to make this character someone who would lodge in your memory and haunt your dreams well and truly after watching the episode. For me, no other titan since has had as much impact, not even that insanely creepy smiling one.
So yes, The Colossal Titan in their first appearance tops my list of anime characters that creep me out.
Ghost Hunt follows Mai as she takes on a part time job working for Shibuya Psychic Research under a guy she ends up nicknaming Naru the Narcissist for obvious reasons. With the help of other psychics/spiritualists/etc they take on a number of cases involving ghosts and spirits and work to bring them to a resolution.
Review:
It occurred to me recently that despite having reviewed the individual stories within Ghost Hunt I never reviewed the show as a whole show (though I can’t imagine why not). So if you want to know my thoughts on the individual cases, click here. Admittedly, you can watch an individual case from the show and have it make perfect sense, but the series manages to bring about some nice character progression for most of the characters so watching it in sequence gives the better viewing experience.
I really love Ghost Hunt. It is one of those anime I genuinely enjoy revisiting every so often because it knows exactly what it wants to be and it doesn’t attempt to be anything else. It is a mystery. Each episode starts with the date coming up and Mai giving us an introduction into the current case they are working on and then we see how the case unfolds. Along the way the characters meet set backs, have interesting asides, occasionally some banter and insults with a low key possible romantic tone between Mai and Naru, and very short bursts of actual supernatural activity or action sequences.
Right from the opening theme you know this story is pretty laid back and heavily focussed on the mystery aspect. It isn’t really a mystery that is asking for audience participation though, it is more the mystery of ‘isn’t this mysterious’. We end up with haunted schools, ghost children, dolls that change location, creepy messages appearing on walls, and all the usual staples of ghost stories will appear throughout the series. There are some moments that go more for horror and the final two cases both really escalate the amount of blood and the unsettled feeling you get while watching, but for the most part this show isn’t about shock and gore. The show is very much about feeling unnerved. And it manages that feeling spectacularly. While it isn’t making you cringe or hide under the chair, it certainly will have you looking at dolls a bit differently and that old house that you thought was empty…
The characters are all pretty fantastic in their roles as well. You have Mai, the ‘normal’ high schooler taking on the part-time job who acts as the audience’s guide to the world of spiritualists as she asks the questions needed to get explanations that the other characters would have no reason to give one another. Mai also turns out to have some not so normal aspects as you would imagine as the show continues and it is a shame the show doesn’t have a second season because developing this would be fantastic.
Naru is pretty standard for overly confident and young boss type, but he works really well due to the cast surrounding him. Plus his chemistry with Mai works really well and the two of them together (even when they are involved in a silly argument) is just great fun to watch. Of course, dream Naru who helps out unconscious Mai is always more fun and again it would be nice to see further development of Naru in another season but he’s great nonetheless.
The Priest, Shrine Maiden, Exorcist, and Medium all make for a great supporting cast with each one serving their role in the team as well as bringing their own personality quirk to the table. Ayako as the self-styled Shrine Maiden is probably the most annoying of the group, but even she has some truly great moments particularly during the final case. Honestly, John as the Exorcist is probably the one who annoys me the most and that’s only because of the accent in the English dub. Wow, that is bad. I will point out though, I’ve only ever heard the English dub of this anime, it is one of the very few I’ve never watched subbed or heard the original Japanese. For the most part the dub is fantastic and really great to listen to, but John has the kind of Australian accent that people who have learned Australian accents by watching TV think Australian’s have. It hurts just listening to it.
There’s definitely some down sides to this story though. The animation and art are definitely looking dated and it isn’t that old of an anime. While this isn’t really a problem because the story works regardless, it isn’t exactly visually appealing and the overuse of purple to make things look creepy seems to scream Sailor Moon villain from the 90’s.
The story is also decidedly slow paced. The characters take their time setting up base each case and while a case might go for multiple episodes, by the end of the series you have to wonder just how many times you watched the characters setting up a camera or running a cable. Regardless of how quick a response the characters claim they are getting from the ghosts, there is still a lot of sitting around and talking, interviewing people, musing about the possibilities, and just a lot of nothing really happening moments.
Still, if you like a good ghost story, and you don’t mind some blood and gore, Ghost Hunt may be just the thing for you.
If you’ve seen it I’d love to know your thoughts.
Thanks for reading.
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