Recommended Movies for Enjoying the Season No.5] Cool off on a tropical night. Horror anime based on novels for your enjoyment.

Every season has its own anime that can be enjoyed at this time of year!　Here, anime writers introduce some good old and new works related to the topics of the season.

In the stifling heat of summer, we think about the past and our ancestors, and the boundary between life and death becomes a little blurred. In such a season, even those who usually dislike scary stories may want something different and stimulating, don't you?

For those people, we have gathered a list of cool and chilling anime based on novels. The stories are well written and scary. Here are some points that are twice as good in the anime as in the original work.

Another" (aired in 2012)

When Koichi Sakakibara transfers to Yomiyama Kita Junior High School, there is a strange atmosphere of fear. Koichi is attracted to Misaki Mei, a classmate with a mysterious atmosphere, but the closer he gets to her, the more uncomfortable he feels with his surroundings. Eventually, an unfortunate accident results in the death of a classmate, and the tragedy begins to escalate. Is there really any way to stop the cursed chain of death?

This is an anime adaptation of a novel by Yukito Ayatsuji, 12 episodes in total. The story begins with Koichi's search for the secrets of his class and of Naru, whom no one wants to get involved with. As the deaths occur, the anxiety becomes a real fear and accelerates, eventually leading to the tragedy at the end of the story.

The way in which the narrative trick, which could only be accomplished in a novel, has been successfully incorporated into the anime and presented in a proper manner is brilliant. If you are going to watch the anime, please enjoy the mystery without being exposed to half-spoilers.

While the main character, Koichi, deals with everything without hesitation, and Naru shows no emotion, it is Izumi Akazawa, the headstrong classmate who really comes alive in the anime, who is attractively fleshed out in the anime. When all is said and done, including the fate of Koichi's feelings, one is left with a sense of sadness rather than fear. The gentle, calm, and sad ending theme lingers in the final episode.

Spherical articulated dolls appear throughout the film as props, so those who like such things as well as those who find them scary will enjoy the horrifying experience.

Corpse" (broadcast in 2010)

In Sotoba Village, a small village with a population of 1,300 that is isolated from the surrounding area, a series of suspicious deaths have been reported. At first, an epidemic was suspected, but without knowing the cause, the number of the sick and the dead keeps increasing. Who are the mysterious families who have moved into the Western-style house on the hill?　Soon a terrible truth is revealed. The village is about to be taken over by the "Shiki," or "Corpse Demons" who have risen from the graves of the dead.

The anime adaptation is based on the novel by Ono Fuyumi and the comic adaptation by Fujisaki Ryu. 22 episodes in total. Total of 22 episodes. The beginning depicts the horror of the situation progressing under siege by a mysterious threat, while the middle depicts the terror of humans being hunted down by the corpses. Then, in the final stages, the human side strikes back, the barriers between right and wrong are broken down, and all is swallowed up in a scourge of chaos.

There are three protagonists who face the monster. Natsuno Yuki, a high school student who wants to get out of the village. Toshio Ozaki, the only doctor in the village. Shizunobu Muroi, a novelist and son of a temple. At first it is tempting to hope that one of them will be able to defeat the corpses, but the reality is cruel. Humans and corpses share the same desire not to die. Violence, blood, and egoism block out all emotions.

The story is so bloody and deadly that it is exhausting to watch. It is also scary that the description is so plain in spite of this. This is a reproduction of the flavor of the original novel. It is also frightening that even the viewer becomes accustomed to the blood. After watching it, you may just be stunned by the shock of the disaster that has finally ended.

The original novel is overwhelmingly informative, and the emotions and circumstances of each character are even more relentlessly and poignantly understandable, and therefore terrifying, so please read it. You may also want to read and compare the comics, mainly the second half, as they are slightly different from the anime. You can also read Stephen King's "Cursed City" and Bram Stoker's "Dracula" to trace the lineage of vampire novels.

Ghost Hunt" (broadcast in 2006)

Mai Taniyama, a very ordinary high school student, gets a part-time job as a clerk and investigator at "Shibuya Psychic Research (SPR)," headed by a narcissistic and beautiful boy, Kazuya Shibuya, a.k.a. Naru, after a certain incident. With the help of Takigawa Hosei (a.k.a. Bo-San), a priest of Koyasan, Matsuzaki Ayako, a shrine maiden, Hara Masako, a medium girl, and John Brown, a priest and exorcist with a Kyoto dialect, Mai and Naru confront mysterious incidents involving evil spirits.

This is also an anime adaptation of a novel by Ono Fuyumi. It is based on a comic book adaptation by Shiho Inada. Since the original work was originally written as a novel for girls, the unique characters have a somewhat shoujo manga taste. However, the story is well-constructed, and if you underestimate it, it will slowly become scary.

There are 25 episodes in total, and seven episodes are developed. Basically, each episode is 3-4 episodes long. The mystery flavor of this work is to "solve" the cases caused by evil spirits by "deducing", solving the mysteries, and taking countermeasures.

If you like the anime, I recommend reading the last episode of the original book, "Even Evil Spirits Are Heikis! or "Open the Door". This is the last episode of the series that has not been made into an anime, and it contains the recovery of all the foreshadowing up to this point, including the secret and true identity of Naru, who is only kind to people in her dreams. I wish the anime had gone this far!

The sequel to the original, "The House Where Nightmares Dwell," is recommended for adult viewers who want to feel more fear, as it has dropped the shoujo shosetsu taste and become really scary.

From the New World" (aired in 2012)

In a world 1,000 years from now, humans have evolved into beings with telekinetic powers called "juryoku. Saki Watanabe, who lives in a village rich in nature, and her friends attend a summer camp, where they encounter a prehistoric relic, the Minoshiro-modoki, and learn about its hidden history. Having acquired the ability to kill people with a simple thought, humans have created a ruthless and distorted society in order to maintain order.

This anime adaptation of Yusuke Kishi's novel, which won the Japan Science Fiction Grand Prize. Over the course of 25 episodes, the main character, Saki, grows from the age of 12 to 26 as the story progresses. 12-year-old Saki and his friends experience a survival adventure that puts them in mortal danger. From there, the story includes various elements that cannot be described in a few words, such as adolescent love and conflicts, conflicts with suffocating society and adults, and finally panic and fierce battles in a catastrophic incident that finally arrives .......

What is the significance of the "evil demons" and "karma demons" myths that are repeatedly told to the children?　What is the mysterious ecology of the intelligent animal called "Bake-rat," which is used by humans?　And how did they come into being throughout history?　You can also enjoy the science fiction-like riddles and settings.

Regrettably, technical terms such as "愧死機構" (愧死機構) seem difficult to understand only in the animation. Many technical terms whose meanings can be easily understood by looking at the kanji notation may be difficult to understand at first just by hearing them in the dialogue of the anime. The official website of the anime has a "Shinsekai Kotoba Jiten" (New World Language Dictionary) and other resources, which you can refer to while watching the anime.

In the final episode, when everything is revealed, you will feel the "horror of human beings," which is different from the bloody battles that had been fought up to that point. You may be shaken to the core of your common sense and sense of values in the real world. That, too, is the true appeal of science fiction.

The Deceptive Spirits of the Môryô (2008)

Kanako, the younger sister of Kinuko Minami, a former movie actress, was pushed off a train platform in the middle of the night, and was mortally wounded. Detective Shutaro Kiba, who happened to be at the scene, is assigned to pursue the case. However, Kanako, who is seriously injured, is kidnapped from the laboratory where she was taken, and a ransom is demanded. Around the same time, a serial dismemberment case occurs in Hachioji, and novelist Tatsumi Sekiguchi and editor Morihiko Toriguchi investigate the connection between the case and a new religion that worships "Gobako-sama". Private detective Reijiro Enokizu is also asked to search for the missing Kanako. The team gathers at Kyogoku-do, a haunted house.

An animated adaptation of Kyogoku Natsuhiko's classic Hyakki Yagyo (Night Parade of One Hundred Demons) series. The characters, originally conceived by CLAMP, are beautifully drawn and color the bizarre events.

Although the cases are complex and intertwined, they are easy to understand because of the excellent structure, and you will be pulled into the mystery as it progresses.

One of the highlights of this work is the beautiful voices of the talented voice actors. Starting with Hiroaki Hirata, who plays Kyogoku-do, the voice actors have really good voices and deliver long, long lines as if they were singing. The content of what they say is sometimes difficult to understand, but the voices sound so good that the audience naturally listens to them. It is a strange sensation to be able to continue watching comfortably even when the details of the story are no longer in one's head. In a sense, this is just like the original story, which is tossed about in a sea of words.

It is also interesting to note that Natsuhiko Kyogoku, the author of the original novel, plays the voice of the "Man in Black" in Sekiguchi's novel. His voice is also surprisingly good.

In the final episode, when all the mysteries are revealed, the threads of affection that transcend common sense become entangled, and you may find yourself lost in a labyrinth of images of a box nestled in a box, and your head spinning.

I think this is one of the ideal forms of the difficult task of adapting a novel into an animation. This anime was the first time for me to get my hands on the thick original book of the "Night Parade of One Hundred Demons" series. If you like the original novels, it is also worth a look.

These are five horror anime based on novels that are scary to watch and still scary after watching them.

You can either read the novel after watching the anime, or you can read the anime before watching it. If you complete both, you will be able to enjoy the differences. The works introduced in this article are highly composed of the original novels, and the animated versions have been given a twist or two in addition. The characters are beautiful and cute, but the cruelty is increased, and the background music accentuates the horror and sadness of the story. Why don't you enjoy each and every one of these animation techniques?

(Text by YAMAYU)