Forum - View topicThe List - The Top 5 Goth Anime
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SaharaFrost
 Posts: 95 |
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Def agree that Ergo Proxy and Witch Hunter Robin deserve mentions. I think Tweeny Witches and Another could also qualify as gothic.
Gosick does certainly have the ascetic, but I think it's missing the darker tone found in a lot of gothic stories. (That, of course, doesn't mean it isn't still gothic.) Similiarly, I feel there are quite a few shows that are heavily influenced by the gothic genre, even if they aren't in and of themselves gothic...Boogiepop Phantom and Madoka Magica, for example. |
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awkweird
 Posts: 7 |
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Ergo Proxy is a definite missed opportunity >__< I'm also surprised xxxholic didn't get mentioned either. The artwork & story just screams goth lol
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11363 |
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Agreed on all counts. Who did write this list? There's no byline. I also think Trinity Blood should've been on the list, what with all its overtly goth trappings in the setting, architecture and costuming, and Abel Nightroad's angst underlying everything. The Mystic Archives of Dantalian would also not be out of place here. |
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tojikomori
 Posts: 71 Location: Minnesota |
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Death Note not goth? That’s far too precious. Misa was undeniably going for the goth look and the list is quite clear about her and Ryuk’s kinky getup being the reason for Death Note’s inclusion. (Personally I see a lot of Robert Smith in L’s appearance and posture too, but that’s a smaller thing and probably coincidental…)
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ThatMoonGuy
Posts: 364 |
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You know what's goth AF? Red Garden, Le Portrait de petite Cossete & Tsukihime.
Cossete in special was so heavy in gothic symbolism, imagery and theme that I find the fact that it's missing here to be weird. Black Butler may have the looks but Cossete has the spirit. Oh, and Tsukihime? It's basically a japanese reading of classic gothic themes, from vampires, to the decaying body, the moral corruption, death, madness and the fall and sins of an old bloodline. I can understand the anime not being listed since it wasn't exactly very good, tho. While I do agree that a lot of the picks for the list are good, some of them seem kinda... superficial? Kinda of "Hot Topic" picks, you know? |
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Break Xerxes
 Posts: 222 |
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I’m disappointed D.Gray-Man isn’t on here.
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Just Passing Through
Posts: 277 |
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Agree with many listed in this thread.
My 5 would be Ergo Proxy Gosick xxxHolic, Witch Hunter Robin Shiki with Petite Cossette, Red Garden, Tsukihime. Boogiepop Phantom, Blood-C, Rozen Maiden as honorable mentions. Here's the thing. I don't feel any of the five (six) titles in the article are gothic, unless it's the definition of gothic from the same dictionary that Alanis Morrisette got the definition of ironic from. |
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Spastic Minnow
 Bargain HunterExempt from Grammar Rules  Posts: 4611 Location: Gainesville, FL |
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Don't get me wrong, the feature's list is not bad. It's the type that gets us talking and is made of different types of goth. Good job drawing the ire.
And it does have what I consider the clear #1 in Vampire Hunter D. Hard to argue vehemently against Hellsing either... maybe a bit on the modern horror edge, but if you cosplay Alucard, you're going goth. |
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ANN_Lynzee
ANN Executive Editor
 Posts: 2945 Location: Email for assistance only |
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Nah, like every list I've written in last almost decade for this column, I picked what I thought fit best. Also I don't like Shiki :3 |
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18193 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Geez, yes. Anime doesn't come much more Gothic than VHD, especially Bloodlust. It even has true Gothic architecture! So in addition to the ones Lynzee listed, other strong contenders would include: Ergo Proxy Witch Hunter Robin Vampire Hunter D Le Portrait de Petite Cosette xxxholic Shiki Gosick Maybe Tsukihime and Trinity Blood? (I consider the latter kinda borderline) Mystic Archives and Red Garden strike me as stretches. |
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Zac
ANN Executive Editor
 Posts: 7912 Location: Anime News Network Technodrome |
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And I don't like Ergo Proxy, so it ain't on here, but the point is for y'all to list your own top 5s. We also didn't want to only pick things from the 90s or the early 2000s. It's all subjective. |
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ThatMoonGuy
Posts: 364 |
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I defend Red Garden because it has a lot of themes from classic gothic narratives, from the degeneration of the human body (the gothic body theme) to the ancient conspiracies, tragic love and death. I agree that it's not very gothic from a more modern point of view, specially if we think of post-80s gothic imagery, but it has a lot of thematic DNA and makes many visual choices that are arguably gothic. In that sense, I think it's similar to Ancient Magus Bride which does not have much of the aesthetic but follows the themes. Albeit I'd say its closer to the british fantasy literary fantasy tradition of the XIX and XX century than to the gothic per se.But this is a more theoretical point so I won't really dispute that choice.
Death Note, on the other hand, has a lot of the aesthetics of the gothic style, specially in the Shinigami design and, of course, Misa Amane, but from a more narrative standpoint its structured like a detective story. The same goes for Black Butler which while clearly goth AF in aesthetic doesn't really have much to do with "gothic" as a style of narration, though I guess having a lot of the style points sort of make it gothic? In the end, I think this is a matter of what you consider gothic to begin with, the visual aesthetics or the thematic structure. Both are fair choices, I guess, but they do have some implications. As for Tsukihime, the anime has one of the gothiest openings EVER and while the anime itself loses a lot of the things, the VN (specially in the far side) delves deep in the whole "bloodline sins" and legacy of crime that pervade the style. I'd argue the story is intentionally gothic, in fact, given just how much Nasu's later work references XIX century gothic narratives. BUT since this is about anime and not VNs, I completely agree that it has no place among any top 5. |
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PurpleWarrior13
 Posts: 2025 |
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When I was in high school (2009-2013), the goth/Hot Topic crowd seemed to enjoy Death Note and Soul Eater the most, along with Darker than Black and Vampire Knight. My friend circle had plenty of goths and emos, but I never considered myself one, and this was just my observation.
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Penfold1999
 Posts: 18 Location: New York |
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The Wallflower should on this list. It is older but absolutely hilarious.
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azhanei
Posts: 79 |
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Respect has bern paid to Witch Hunter Robin and Ergo Proxy, but it can't be mentioned enough. I also pay gothy hommage to Trinity Blood. Priests, vamps. Priests who are vamps. Tortured pasts. Lush animation. Buck Tick OP.
If we argue Ancient Magus Bride, then X/1999 may also be a contender. It certainly battles their others for darkest Clamp title, and pulls on the mytical and apocalyptic. |
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