Do you like to tickle your nerves with stories about the living dead? Can you imagine how you would behave if a zombie apocalypse happened? Then you will definitely be interested in the animated films and series about zombies from our selection.
“Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress”
Still from the anime “Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress”
- Year of release: 2016.
The anime “Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress” (Kotetsujo no Kabaneri) takes place during the period of industrialization, when industry was actively developing, and mechanisms worked on steam engines. On such locomotives, additionally reinforced with armor, the heroes of the series move between closed stations, surrounded by a high fence, like fortresses. Why? Of course, to protect themselves from the kabane (as the dead are called in this anime).
Virtually invulnerable creatures attack people and bite into their flesh, turning victims into their own kind. The main character, Ikoma, lives on the territory of one of these stations and services arriving locomotives, eliminating various malfunctions. In parallel with this, he crafts a weapon that can pierce the body of a kabane and wound their heart.
Ikoma got the chance to test the device in action much earlier than he expected, when Aragane Station was breached. The anime’s atmosphere and concept are somewhat reminiscent of Attack on Titan, as well as the famous South Korean film Train to Busan. The characters of Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress travel from station to station in armored locomotives, which are attacked from all sides by the dead, and the main characters accidentally gain kabane abilities, turning into kabaneri – people with the body of the undead, but the mind of a human.
“The Princess of the Undead: Red Chronicle”
Still from the anime “Undead Princess: Red Chronicle”
- Year of release: 2008.
Who else can fight the living dead if not Japanese schoolgirls in skirts? In the anime “Undead Princess: Red Chronicle” (Shikabane hime aka), young Makina Hoshimura, after being resurrected, makes a contract with a Buddhist monk who performs exorcisms. Now the heroine must exterminate 108 zombies to find peace and get to heaven. People like her are called Undead Princesses.
Together with the monk and his younger brother Ori Kagami, she rids the world of the rebellious monsters. “Undead Princess: Red Chronicle” is a spectacular and atmospheric action anime about zombies, which pays great attention to the logic of the narrative and the plot. The visuals in the anime look simple, since the series was released in the late 2000s. However, all the monsters and battle scenes look really creepy and frightening.
“One of the Rejected: Outcast”
Still from the anime “One of the Rejected: Outcast”
- Years of release: 2016–2021.
The series “One of the rejected: Outcast” (Hitori No Shita – The Outcast) is an adaptation of the manhua “Outcast”, which tells about people with superpowers who confront the dead. A young student Soran comes to a small village to visit the grave of his grandfather. However, a walk through the cemetery turns into a real nightmare: who could have thought that a dozen ferocious zombies would be waiting for the hero there.
Even more unexpected for Soran was the appearance of a savior in the person of a young girl. The stranger, armed with kitchen knives, deals with the risen dead in a matter of seconds, and then disappears just as quickly. This is their first, but far from the last meeting. Later, Soran discovers the world of everything supernatural and begins to use the ability inherited from his grandfather.
“School Life”
Still from the anime “School Life”
- Year of release: 2015.
Cheerful and active Yuki Takeya loves school so much that she can say she has already settled there. Together with her friends from the “School Life Club”, she has fun all day long within the walls… or rather, in her fantasies… In order not to spoil the impression of the contrasting first episode, the description of the series can end here. After all, the anime “School Life” (Gakko-gurashi!) still made it into the selection of animated stories about zombies, which means…
“Sanka Rea”
Still from the anime “Sanka Rea”
- Year of release: 2012.
Once upon a time, two weirdos met… One dreamed of a zombie girl, the other wanted to die or start a new life as a free zombie. We are talking about the main characters of the unique anime “Sankarea”, which evokes a variety of emotions during viewing: from laughter to disgust. What’s going on there? I’ll tell you now.
A young man named Furuya has loved movies and stories about the living dead since childhood, so much so that zombie girls have become his ideal of female beauty. One day, Furuya’s cat is hit by a truck, and the hero decides to resurrect the animal with the help of a mysterious elixir, the recipe for which he finds in an old notebook. And so, when Furuya once again picks up the necessary ingredients in an abandoned building on the outskirts of the village, he notices an unhappy girl nearby, running away from home in the middle of the night to express her pain by screaming into a well. Reya is tired of her father’s excessive control and plans to end her life, but the outcome of her actions turns out to be somewhat different.
“School of the Dead”
Still from the anime “School of the Dead”
- Year of release: 2010.
“Highschool of the Dead” (Gakuen mokushiroku: Highschool of the Dead) is a popular zombie anime about a group of high school students and a young nurse who are trying to escape from the living dead. The story begins when a mysterious disease suddenly hits Japan, turning people into zombies. The virus is transmitted through a bite, rapidly increasing the number of evil spirits throughout the country. The main characters are ordinary Japanese schoolchildren who encounter an invasion of the dead right during classes.
A motley crew of a daredevil who became the leader of the group, his childhood friend, a know-it-all, an otaku, the president of the kendo club, and a school nurse rush around the city in search of a safe place, shooting back at the zombies that are hot on their heels. “School of the Dead” is a dynamic and spectacular anime in which schoolchildren do not just smash monsters left and right, but actually experience fear, panic, make mistakes, and get lost in such a difficult situation. However, having united into a group and learned to work together, the heroes show their strengths, thanks to which they get a chance to survive during the zombie apocalypse.
“Empire of the Dead”
Still from the anime “Empire of the Dead”
- Year of release: 2015.
The anime film “Empire of the Dead” (Shisha no teikoku) takes place in 19th century Europe, but the development of science in this series refers to the fantasy genre. People have learned to resurrect the dead, but the mind and consciousness of the revived corpses do not return. Obedient zombies began to be used as free labor, they work in production and participate in wars. Fate throws the main character John Watson to Afghanistan. There, the young doctor, in addition to performing his direct duties, tries to figure out all the intricacies of creating zombies, and at the same time learn how to return their minds. John wants to revive his friend, but not as a simple puppet, but to make a real person out of him again. The full-length anime “Empire of the Dead” boasts expressive and pleasant visuals, as well as high-quality animation. The film makes you think about many philosophical questions. However, be prepared for the fact that many moments in the anime will remain unexplained.
“Zombie Apocalypse and the 100 Things I Will Do Before I Die”
Still from the anime “Zombie Apocalypse and the List of 100 Things I Will Do Before I Die”
- Year of release: 2023.
“Zombie Apocalypse and the Bucket List of 100 Things I’ll Do Before I Die” (Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead) is a bright and unusual anime about zombies, which differs from other series by the funny attitude of the main character to everything that happens. Akira Tendo doesn’t seem to care at all about the zombie apocalypse that happened. So what if the dead took over the city, but at least you don’t have to go to work. Beauty! Now you can get a good night’s sleep!
The disaster that happened seemed to give the hero a second wind. Tiring overtime, stress and constantly annoying colleagues are now behind him, Akira is finally left to his own devices, which means he can make his long-postponed dreams and desires come true. And there are quite a few of them – a whole hundred. Akira decides to make a huge list of his “wants” in order to go and realize them all. In the city, he meets a girl named Shizuka Mikazuki, who used to work as an accountant in a prestigious company. She is impressed by Akira’s desire to make his long-standing dreams come true, and she decides to join the main character to have fun together during the zombie apocalypse.
