20 Best Anime Like Tokyo Ghoul You Need to Watch
Tokyo Ghoul is a seinen manga by Sui Ishida. An anime adaptation produced by Pierrot studio aired between July and September 2014 on Tokyo MX. A second season titled Tokyo Ghoul √A aired between January and March 2015. The first part of the Tokyo Ghoul:re adaptation aired in Japan between April 3 and June 19, 2018. The second was broadcast between October 9 and December 25, 2018.
Tokyo Ghoul became a massive hit around the world and to honor its legacy, here is a list of the best anime series like Tokyo Ghoul that every fan needs to see. The list is going to include a total of 20 different titles which resemble the Tokyo Ghoul anime in one way or the other.
1. Darker Than Black
Original Release: April 6, 2007 – September 29, 2007
Number of Episodes: 25
Ten years ago, a mysterious area known as Hell’s Gate appeared in Tokyo, devastating the landscape and altering the sky. The celestial bodies disappeared, replaced by false stars. Shortly after, we discover the existence of human beings endowed with supernatural powers called “pactisants”.
Today, a vast wall has been built to prevent anyone from approaching Hell’s Gate. Each false star corresponds to a contracting party, vibrates when it uses its power, and disappears if it dies. Pactisants are therefore generally designated using an identifier from an astronomical catalog. Many nations use pactisants as secret agents or assassins.
2. DEATH NOTE
Original Run: October 3, 2006 – June 26, 2007
Number of Episodes: 37
Light Yagami is a model student, bored with his lifestyle and tired of being surrounded by a society filled with crime and corruption. His life takes a decisive turn when one day he finds on the ground a mysterious black notebook, entitled “Death Note”, which bears the following instruction: “The human whose name will be written in this notebook will die”.
Initially skeptical of his authenticity, Light changes his mind when he successfully tests the notebook on two criminals and meets the real owner of the Death Note, a shinigami named Ryuk; he then decides to use this new power to kill all criminals, eradicate evil and become the “God of the new world”.
3. Demon Slayer
Original Run: April 6, 2019 – present
Number of Episodes: 44
In Taishō-era Japan, Tanjirō Kamado is the first child of a family of coal merchants whose father has died: to support the family, he sells charcoal in the village below the Mountain. Despite the difficulties of life, they manage to find little happiness in their daily lives. One day, due to rumors circulating about a man-eating demon hanging around after dark, he is forced to spend the night with a Good Samaritan in the village.
Only, everything changes on his return when he detects, thanks to his keen sense of smell, a strong smell of blood: he rushes home and finds his family massacred.
Nezuko, one of his little sisters, is the only survivor although unconscious, and Tanjirō, therefore, takes her with him, to try to bring her to a doctor who could perhaps save her: she however regains consciousness on the way and, having become a demon herself, attacks her brother but still ends up showing signs of human emotions and thoughts.
This is when a Demon Slayer by the name of Giyū Tomioka comes in, tasked with eliminating the demon rampant in the region. As he tries to kill Nezuko, Giyū realizes the singular behavior of the latter who, instead of trying to devour his brother, tries to intervene to prevent the Slayer from attacking Tanjirō.
4. Elfen Lied
Original Run: July 25, 2004 – October 17, 2004
Number of Episodes: 13 (+ OVA)
The story is set in Kamakura, Japan, and revolves around the Diclonius, mutant beings very similar to humans but with two strange horns on their heads and endowed with very strong invisible limbs called “vectors”. Believed to be dangerous to the normal human race, Diclonius babies are killed at birth or locked up in research laboratories, subjected to terrible torture and extremely violent experiments.
One of them, Lucy, however, manages to escape to the sea, massacring anyone who comes in front of her. She is found on the beach by two boys in a complete state of amnesia and double personality, caused by a shooter shot in the head while escaping.
The young Diclonius finds herself with a completely different personality and the two boys decide to call her with the only word she can pronounce, namely “Nyu”. Unable to leave her alone in those conditions, they take her home waiting to find out about her past. But the military does not give up and remains on the trail of her. What’s more, every time the girl hits her head she goes back to being Lucy.
5. From the New World
Original Run: October 3, 2012 – March 27, 2013
Number of Episodes: 25
Set in a thousand-year-old Japan, Shinsekai yori tells the story of Saki, a girl from the 66th district of Kamisu. In this age all humans possess powerful telekinesis abilities and idyllically live in agrarian villages. Despite her parents’ fear that she could not awaken the power within her, Saki gains her powers at the age of twelve and joins her friends Satoru, Maria, Mamoru, Shun and Reiko at the academy to develop her powers. But the kids are unaware that the city council monitors and influences the kids through teaching.
According to some evaluation criteria, some students are removed from society, such as those who cannot master the powers, such as Reiko, or those who violate the rules. The removed students are soon forgotten by all the other children; Saki and her friends have no recollection of Reiko. Later, during a camp unsupervised by the professors, Saki and her friends come across a False White Nudibook, a legendary creature that turns out to be an ancient device containing a library. The False Nudibianco reveals to the boys the heinous crimes of their ancestors and what lies behind their powers.
6. Blue Exorcist
Original Run: April 17, 2011 – March 25, 2017
Number of Episodes: 37 (+ 2 OVA)
The world of Blue Exorcist is made up of two dimensions that oppose each other like two faces of mirrors. The first is the world in which human beings live, Assiah. The other is the world of demons, Gehenna. Normally, travel and even any form of contact between the two is impossible. However, demons can pass into this world possessing everything that exists within it.
Satan is the god of demons, but there is one thing he does not have: a vessel in the human world powerful enough to contain him. To this end, he fathered Okumura Rin and Okumura Yukio (but only Rin inherited Satan’s powers, Yukio being too weak), his sons, from a human woman, but are the latter in line with his plans, or should they become something else?
After killing the guardian father Fujimoto, in an attempt that should have allowed Rin to return to the demon world, he gives him a dream: to become an exorcist to defeat the god of demons.
7. Psycho-Pass
Original Run: October 12, 2012 – December 12, 2019
Number of Episodes: 41
In 2112, in Japan, Sibyl, a computer system, transformed society into a “perfect world”, thanks to the ubiquitous cameras, drones and scanners, Sibyl is able to analyze and quantify the criminal intentions of a person (named “Psycho-Pass”) and determines who is likely to commit a crime.
When a citizen exceeds the norm, the inspectors of the Bureau of Public Security accompanied by their executors (person having an abnormally high “Psycho-Pass”), pursue and apprehend these people to make them undergo therapy, lock them up or shoot them down. square.
This is the world that embarks Akane Tsunemori, a new inspector who has just joined Division 1 of the Public Security Bureau. She wishes to uphold justice truly and loyally, however she learns that Sibyl’s judgments are not as perfect as her colleagues think.
8. Guilty Crown
Original Run: October 13, 2011 – March 22, 2012
Number of Episodes: 22
Tokyo, 2039. Having suffered deeply from the epidemic of the Apocalypse virus which occurred on the day of Lost Christmas, which weakened the bases of its power ten years earlier, Japan is now only holding on through the external support of several countries, maintained by the GHQ military regime where the value of every life has become insignificant.
It is in this context that Ouma Shū, a young student who feels bad about himself, finds Inori, singer of the group EGOIST, in his lair: the young girl, injured, has just stolen from Sephirah Genomics a precious cylinder intended for Gai, leader of the terrorist group. Undertaker. Flushed by the Anti-Bodies, an intervention group under the direction of the GHQ, Inori is kidnapped and Shū, helpless, nevertheless decides to complete her mission.
9. Jujutsu Kaisen
Original Run: October 3, 2020 – March 27, 2021
Number of Episodes: 24
The plot of Jujutsu Kaisen takes place in a world where plagues are created from the negative emotions of Humans. Thus, to protect places with a high concentration of these emotions such as schools or hospitals, these infrastructures have a relic, receptacle of a plague, because we can only fight against plagues with a more powerful plague.
These are invisible to human eyes except for a handful of people, for example, exorcists. The exorcist’s job is to eliminate the plagues and thus protect the people from them, but this is not without risks, because these plagues can be more or less powerful.
10. Claymore
Original Run: April 4, 2007 – September 26, 2007
Number of Episodes: 26
Claymores are half-human, half-demon warriors called upon by villagers to protect themselves from monsters such as demons. Feared and dreaded, they are distinguished by their silver eyes and the gigantic sword they carry on their backs, hence their names by humans of “silver-eyed witches” or “Claymore” (the name of the type of sword they use). Claire is one of them.
Called to a village to eliminate the demons that attack and devour the population, she kills the penultimate member, who has become a monster, of an already decimated family. The last survivor, Raki, finding himself alone, then decides to follow her in her bloodthirsty adventures, as a cook. He will gradually discover the secrets and the tragic destiny of these singular women.
11. Beyond the Boundary
Original Run: October 2, 2013 – December 18, 2013
Number of Episodes: 12 (+ OVA)
Akihito Kanbara is a teenager, the result of a union between a human and a Yomu. One day, he sees a person on the roof of the school, who seems to want to end his life. She will admit to being Mirai Kuriyama, the last heiress of a power feared by the Yomu, that of being able to manipulate blood in order to make weapons capable of destroying absolutely everything. However, she is unable to destroy the Yomus due to an incident in the past. As a result, Akihito then decided to provide support to Mirai so that she overcomes her trauma.
12. Pupa
Original Run: January 9, 2014 – March 28, 2014
Number of Episodes: 12
It’s the story of two teenagers, Utsutsu and his little sister Yume. During their childhood, their father Shirō beat them. When their mother Sachiko divorces, she leaves with another man, leaving her children alone. Utsutsu then promises to protect his sister no matter what.
One day, when they come home from college together, they come face to face with a strange scientist with a mutilated face, Maria, who tells them to be careful of the red butterflies. Right after they meet, gigantic red butterflies appear and Yume transforms into a monster. Her brother, unable to bring her to her senses, is forced to seek help from Maria, who reveals to them that they are infected with a virus called pupa.
13. Shiki
Original Run: July 8, 2010 – December 30, 2010
Number of Episodes: 22 + 2
The story takes place in the remote mountain village of Sotoba where ancient traditions still survive, such as the burial of the dead. At the end of a scorching summer, the Kirishiki family suddenly moves into the western-style castle that dominates the village from the top of a hill.
At the same time, a series of sudden deaths begins to decimate the inhabitants; Chief physician as well as owner of the only clinic, Toshio Ozaki, initially suspects a mysterious epidemic but, with the help of his childhood friend, Seishin Muroi, now a local temple bonze and author of successful novels, will instead discover a horrifying truth: the dead come back to life as vampires who are forced to suck the blood of other people to feed themselves, it all started with the arrival of the Kirishiki family.
14. Hell Girl
Original Run: October 4, 2005 – September 29, 2017
Number of Episodes: 90
When a person feels a grudge, Jigoku Shōjo (Hell Girl) appears and sends the person causing that hatred to Hell. However, the user must seal a contract with her before executing the revenge, and the price to pay is always that the person who accepts the contract must also go to Hell when he dies.
The series is basically a collection of independent stories, each of which tells the story of the suffering of a different person at the hands of one or more subjects, the contract with Enma Ai and the punishment to which the aggressor is subjected by her.
15. Deadman Wonderland
Original Run: April 17, 2011 – July 3, 2011
Number of Episodes: 12 (+ OVA)
A powerful earthquake ravaged mainland Japan and largely destroyed Tokyo, submerging three-quarters of the city in the ocean. Ten years later, the story centers on Ganta Igarashi, a seemingly ordinary student who attends Nagano Prefecture College.
Although a survivor of the earthquake, Ganta has no memory of the tragedy and has lived an ordinary life. All of this changes when a strange man covered in blood and wearing purple armor floats outside the classroom windows. Smiling like a madman, the Man in Red slaughters Ganta’s entire class and, rather than killing him, embeds a shard of red crystal in his chest.
16. Attack on Titan
Original Run: April 7, 2013 – ongoing
Number of Episodes: 70 (+8 OVA episodes and several movies)
The plot of Attack on Titan revolves around the young Eren Jäger, his adoptive sister Mikasa Ackermann and his best friend Armin Arlert, who live together with the rest of humanity in cities that are protected by huge walls from the attacks of the so-called Titans, gigantic humanoid beings who devour people for no apparent reason.
The walls that promised peace have existed for 107 years. But one day the Titans break through the outermost Wall Maria and the people are pushed back further. Eren’s mother dies and he and many other people flee behind the second wall, Wall Rose. Eren swears when his mother dies that he will wipe out the Titans.
17. Another
Original Run: January 10, 2012 – March 27, 2012
Number of Episodes: 12 (+ OVA)
In 1972, a popular and charismatic student named Misaki Yomiyama from Class 3-3 of North Yomiyama School suddenly died in the middle of the school year. Devastated by the loss, his classmates and teacher acted as if Misaki was still alive and even reserved a spot for him at the graduation ceremony.
What was even more suspicious was that Misaki appeared in the graduation photograph. In the spring of 1998, ninth-year student Kōichi Sakakibara moves from Tokyo to Yomiyama, the hometown of his late mother, because his father has gone to work on research in India. His transfer was to North Yomiyama School, to class 3-3.
18. 🢒M⊙NS†ER🢐
Original Run: April 7, 2004 – September 28, 2005
Number of Episodes: 74
The story begins in Germany in 1986, at the Eisler Memorial Hospital in Düsseldorf. Kenzô Tenma, the main character, is a young Japanese neurosurgeon with exceptional skills. He is engaged to Eva Heineman, the daughter of the director of the hospital, and is destined for a brilliant career.
However, one day, he refuses to give priority to his care to the mayor of the city and prefers to operate on a boy injured by a bullet in the head, who arrived at the hospital before the mayor. The boy’s twin sister, very shocked, is also hospitalized; their adoptive parents have just been brutally murdered in their home.
The boy gets out of it, but the mayor, entrusted to another surgeon, dies. Dr. Tenma is then demoted by the director of the hospital, and his fiancée leaves him. Shortly after, the boy and his sister disappear, following the mysterious murders of three senior officials of the establishment, including the director. Nine years later, Tenma discovers the perpetrator of the murders: Johann, this 10-year-old boy he had saved seems to have become a monster spreading terror around him.
19. Hellsing Ultimate
Original Run: October 10, 2001 – January 16, 2002
Number of Episodes: 13 (+10 OVA episodes)
The Royal Knights of Protestant Order are a noble house of London led by Abraham Van Helsing. For generations, he has been fighting against creatures that most ordinary people are unaware of like vampires, ghouls, and any non-human entity that is generally referred to as a “monster”.
The Order operates in great secrecy and has long been a paramilitary organization in the service of her Majesty. Leading the organization is Sir Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing, a direct descendant of the first Lord Hellsing. Still a teenager, she is forced to take control of the Order.
Her father Arthur, sick and close to his death, orders his daughter, should she feel threatened, to go down to the basement of the mansion, where there is something able to protect her.
20. Parasyte
Original Run: October 9, 2014 – March 26, 2015
Episodes: 24
One night, tennis ball-sized spheres containing snake-like creatures fell in numbers unknown all over the world. They are programmed to take the place of human brains. One of these attacks a young man, Shinichi, during his sleep, trying to enter through his ear but cannot reach him.
Awakened with a shock as the parasite tries to enter through his nose, he tries to defend himself but ends up having his right hand punctured. The high school student then takes his headphones and wraps them around his arm, preventing the parasite from climbing to the brain.
Unable to leave his arm, the latter finally merges with his right hand. Meanwhile, other parasites, having managed to take possession of their host’s brain, begin to feed on humans, while the creature and Shinichi are forced to cohabitate.
