Underplayed Gems

Yamishibai: Japanese Ghost Stories (2013)

Yamishibai: Japanese Ghost Stories poster
Original title
闇芝居
Genre
horror anime and manga
Country
Japan
Length
16 seasons, 208 episodes
Rated
TV-MA
Rating
7.4 of 10 from 62 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this series is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

Each short episode tells a different Japanese urban legend or myth. The animation mimics old-fashioned paper storytelling. The series is a collection of quick ghost stories.

creepyatmosphericbriefunsettlingepisodicstylizedfolklore-basedspooky

What happens

Yamishibai: Japanese Ghost Stories, also known in Japan as Yami Shibai (闇芝居, Yami Shibai; lit. Dark Play) and Theater of Darkness, is a Japanese anime television series. The first season was directed by Tomoya Takashima, with scripts written by Hiromu Kumamoto and produced by ILCA. Each episode was animated to mimic the kamishibai method of story-telling. The series is organized into a collection of shorts with each episode being only a few minutes in length. Each episode features a different tale based on myths and urban legends of Japanese origin. The first season aired on TV Tokyo from July to September 2013, and ran for thirteen episodes, spawning a host of merchandise, a mobile game, while also receiving mixed reactions at the end of its broadcast. A second season aired from July to September 2014, and was directed by both Takashi Shimizu and Noboru Iguchi along with scripts written by Shōichirō Masumoto. The third season aired from January to April 2016. A fourth season aired from January to March 2017. A fifth season aired from July to October of the same year. A sixth season aired from July to September 2018. A seventh season aired from July to September 2019. An eighth season aired from January to April 2021. A ninth season aired from July to October of the same year, with the theme of the episodes being based on the Chinese Zodiac. A tenth season aired from January to April 2022. An eleventh season aired from July to October 2023. A twelfth season premiered in January 2024. A thirteenth season premiered on July 14, 2024 to October 7, 2024. A fourteenth season premiered on January 5, 2025 to April 7, 2025. A fifteenth season premiered on July 13, 2025 to October 6, 2025. A sixteenth season premiered on January 11, 2026. A spin-off titled Ninja Collection aired from July 13 to October 26, 2020. A live-action adaptation later aired. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

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