Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
Coolzweg2
Interesting collection of stories. Liked the Edo period horror vibe and atmosphere.
The first story is full of drama and classic samurai vengence. It's fine but I feel like a lot was cut from the original play to give more room for the story to breathe.
The second one has substantially worst animation. It has some naturalistic themes I'd say, if you look under subtext.
The third one is the main attraction, since it ties in with mononoke, and is undoubtly the most visually and atmosphere-interesting one.
In general, I notice a lot of focus on the struggle of lovers and on the oppression of women and lower classes. Maybe it just comes about as a natural manifestation of edo practices but it seems that love and oppresion are the main focus of the anthology. I guess that they some of the m…
Read at the sourceknivessorrows
the only reason why it’s given a 6/10 is because it took me a lil bit to get hooked! it wasn’t until the second half of the second story is where it started to get good. when you finish the series, you realize the art style for all of them is different which i liked. also cool how they were showing real footage of the shrines for the second story that was told. the last three episodes is doing all the carrying for this series and understandable why it has its own show: did some heavy lifting for the rating as well.
will it be rewatched? no
will i remember some japanese classic horror stories? yes! definitely did some researching about the stories that were told~
Read at the sourcenonaloth
Watched on AnimeFire
Ayakashi: Japanese Classic Horror was one of the biggest surprises I've found in recent years.
I actually watched its spin-off, Mononoke, first on Netflix, then came back to the original series to understand where everything started. Looking back, that turned out to be the right decision, as it made me appreciate how experimental this project really was.
The original series consists of three independent stories, each lasting only a few episodes. This format works remarkably well. Every arc has a clear beginning, development, climax, and conclusion. There are no endless plot threads, artificial cliffhangers, unnecessary power escalation, or constant fake-out deaths. Each story knows exactly what it wants to tell and ends when it has finished saying it.
Some mysterie…
Read at the source555february
It was absolutely incredible. I finished the episodes before I even realized how much time had passed. The Japanese have a remarkable talent for creating stories about curses and horror, and what's even more impressive is that you can still take away lessons that feel relevant to modern life.
On top of that, the art style, episode length, and pacing were all excellent. This is actually the first series I've given a 10/10 in the past ten years.
Every story had a psychological, sociological, or philosophical layer to it. I also loved how much it taught me about Japanese culture. Since I've already been interested in these topics for a long time, seeing them explored in an anime was especially rewarding.
I'll definitely continue with this series. Another thing I appreciated was how each st…
Read at the sourceXerox96
*Ayakashi* is an interesting work. Its anthology format means it can either hit the mark or miss it from one episode to the next, but all of its ideas feel original. The second story was the weakest in my opinion, while the last one easily takes first place. The style of the first story alone is better than that of many complete anime series, and its direction and energy are incredibly infectious, which is precisely why it received its own spin-off series—the very reason I decided to watch this anime in the first place.
In short, it's an anime built around classic horror tales. It's good, though not particularly outstanding, but it gave birth to a work that, as we'll see, has much more to say.
Read at the sourceOtaku_Senpai
The show tells three different stories. The first story is 'Yotsuya Kaidan' (episode 1-4) which is a story of murder, betrayal and vengeance. The second story is 'Tenshu Monogatari'(episode 5-8) is about forbidden romance between a mortal and a goddess. The third story 'Bakeneko' (episodes 9-11) is a story about a medicine seller, that was so good that later became had spinoff shows and movies in the Mononoke series.
While the last story was the standout among the three, as it had a different director and writer than the other two stories, I liked all of them. I am a bit sad they stopped making this series, telling different stories by different writers, except only for the Mononoke series, which is also written by the writer of 'Bakeneko' story.
I do appreciate the old school art style…
Read at the sourceWoodenBullet343
It's always nice to find horror stories that revolve around timeless concepts. Even as time moves on and culture changes, there are emotions that people will always have to reckon with. There will always be circumstances to encounter uncomfortable feelings, be it the gnawing guilt of our own actions, the fear of facing something you cannot understand or even just realizing the consequences of our own selfishness. All of these stories capture emotions like these. Interesting as these feelings may be however, the narratives themselves were often difficult to follow. This isn't because the lore was explained poorly, but rather because the protagonists often took roles that were difficult to connect with, and therefore difficult to understand.
The first story was a great example of this proble…
Read at the sourcedextr__
Art — 6/10
The visuals suit the material: restrained, period‑appropriate designs that feel like watching a classic folk tale more than flashy modern anime. Not spectacular, but it fits the mood.
Story — 7/10
This anthology collects three distinct pieces of Japanese folklore-inspired horror. Tenshu Monogatari is a bittersweet forbidden‑love tale between human and deity; Yotsuya Kaidan is a grim kabuki revenge tragedy about betrayal and its aftermath; Bakeneko is a tighter, morally sharp ghost story about family cruelty and the vengeance it breeds. Each segment leans into atmosphere and tragedy rather than jump scares; the pacing and tone vary between arcs, and Bakeneko in particular stands out if you prefer investigative, character‑driven supernatural stories.
Music — 6/10
Serviceable and…
Read at the sourceSkyBlue1012
Ayakashi: Japanese Classic Horror
From the title, I expected a truly scary and frightening experience, something with jump scares that would make your heart leap a little.
But it's different from my expectations. Perhaps it’s called “horror” simply because ghosts or spirits are involved.
This anime is divided into three separate stories, each with no connection to the others.
So, I’ll rate each one individually:
1. Yotsuya Kaidan (Yotsuya Ghost) – 6/10
This was the weakest of the three. I was tempted to drop the anime entirely because of how mediocre this first story was.
The premise and concept aren't unique, a non-human entity whose weakness is falling in love with a human has been done many times, especially in romance genres.
The art style was average as well and didn’t stand out.…
Read at the sourceArsath_knows137
Ayakashi is an anthology of three standalone horror stories, each adapted from classic Japanese literature or folklore. While the concept is intriguing, the execution is uneven across the stories.
The first story, "Yotsuya Kaidan," is by far the weakest of the three. Its pacing is sluggish, making it difficult to stay engaged, and despite being one of the most well-known Japanese ghost stories, this adaptation feels dull. The characters are largely unlikable, especially the male lead, and the storytelling lacks the tension that horror requires.
The second story, "Goddess of the Dark Tower" (Tenshu Monogatari), fares much better. Narrated by a stage writer, it brings a more theatrical tone to the narrative, which helps it stand out. However, it still struggles with pacing issues and featu…
Read at the sourceEmiPyon
Okay, let me be very honest with all the review readers here.
I wasn't prepared for watching 3 differents stories because I watch mononoke first and I saw some recommendations from others by saying this series is the prequel that's why I drop by this series as well, if U ask me about the other first and second story I would say, it's definitely a good story but I am not really fancy over the arts and how they execute the story pace.
But when it comes to the last story in between ep9-11 which what I was waiting for I will tell you all it's da best!! I was first quite bias cuz the anime has been produced long time ago, but still the best execute in animation, storyline, paced and of course the ost and voice acting.
I didn't disappointed at all in fact it's a masterpiece even after so many…
Read at the sourceJastereich
The show is broken into three acts. Oiwa is a youthful woman. She was betrayed by the person she loved and so hed become an Onryō – a vengeful spirit. Some scenes are disturbing, but the story is engaging because of its characters. It has the “feel” of a drama, it is almost like theatre play.it resembles some Greek tragedy as well . The second part of the anime is based on Tenshu monogatari . It is the tale of two star-crossed lovers. A princess from a castle of forgotten gods falls in love with an ordinary man. The story morphs into a Shakespearean tragedy. This is the least powerful of all three parts because it does not supply anything that could be interpreted as horror. It is the least original, even by Edo -period standards. However, it’s interesting in what ways. The feel of a theat…
Read at the sourceBadGuyBoog
America, while predominant globally, is still a very young country. We don’t have a rich history or a deeply embedded culture. We don’t have folklore, other than bigfoot. Any stories we hear originate from other cultures and countries, or are otherwise books like Frankenstein. And so I find the cultures of other countries very interesting, and mostly because of Ghibli, Japanese culture has especially captured my attention. My favorite movie of all time, The Tale of The Princess Kaguya, is an adaptation of an ancient Japanese folktale. And so while the first 2 stories of this anthology show adapting Japanese horror tales could be considered just mediocre, I found them to be very enticing. This show may very well deserve to be lower but just because of the folktale vibes it gave off, I highl…
Read at the sourcePanda_Roll
Aired in 2006 this show is made up of three separate tales each with it's own unique art style.
Story one "Yotsuya Kaidan" 10/10
One of the most famous ghost stories in japan. Written in 1825 as a Kabuki play by Tsuruya Nanboku IV it tells the story of Oiwa and Tamiya. The dutiful wife who was betrayed and her piece of cow dung samurai husband. The way this is presented is a little unusual as we get the author himself narrating the tale and laminating both the events in the play and out of it.
Yotsuya Kaidan has gone on to gain a reputation not unlike that of Macbeth in the west. It the cursed play, don't speak it's name and make sure to visit Oiwa's shrine before you have anything to do with it.
Overall this one is the stand out. The drama between the characters, the twists and turns,…
Read at the sourceGsarthotegga
This is an anthology of three stories. The first two, Yotsuya Kaidan and Tenshi Monogatari, each consisting of 4 episodes, are both adaptations, though I can't vouch for whether or not they are faithful. The final segment, Bakeneko, at only three episodes, appears to be an original story, though just as with the other two, it's influenced by Japanese folklore and pre-20th century Japanese art periods.
Although there might be some important distinctions between the terms, Ayakashi is similar to the word Yokai, which is a type of demon or spirit. Like most anime listed as horror, these are probably not stories a person into western, or even eastern, horror would seek out. Yes, they have demons, ghosts, violence and gore, and are rather grotesque, but they're really more discernible as super…
Read at the sourcehalimede
This was enjoyable to watch if you're into old-style (like, Edo-period) anime. The music was gorgeous and I really love the clothing and hairstyles. But due to that, it's not everyone's cup of tea. I didn't find it hard to follow but I've read some of these stories when I was younger so maybe I'm used to it? I expected it to be more horror, but it might just be too old (in comparison to today's jump scares and gore), so I appreciated the more subtle classic horror of it.
It's pretty quick so definitely worth a watch if you're into historical Japanese plays and stories.
Read at the sourceGodslayer27
Well this series its pretty interesting ,being an collection of three differents stories in a series of 11 episodes has been adapted to be around three or four episodes each story depending of which one are we talking, i think that for most of the people who have watched the series are gonna agree with the fact the the firts and last story were the most outanding in all aspect leaving the second one pretty dull, less interesting and lacking of the same quality in many aspect beside the animation or story that had "Yotsuya Kaidan" or "Bakeneko" and this last one after becoming in an series by itselft apart of around 12 ( if om not mistaking) of our dear medicine seller (althought i dont gonna go in depth of that one becuase i have an review for that one ).
I dont gonna make you waste your…
Read at the sourcegi_otto
I'm gonna be real with you here and say that the only reason I watched this was because I wanted to watch Mononoke and the completionist in me would not let me even gaze upon its first episode without watching this first. And technically I could have just watched the last three episodes but as I said: a completionist.
Sadly the pdf that was supposed to accompany the episodes wasn't on the website I was using so I had to rely on my own limited knowledge of Japanese culture and of course strategic google searches.
I honestly went into it with an open mind, pretty excited too since an anthology of traditional horror stories is music to my inner sophisticated wannabe goblin's ears. It is definitely a mixed bag. While the last story is the best one, the first two aren't bad per se but they ar…
Read at the sourceelroses
TLDR: Just watch the last part of the story, "Bakeneko" (Ep. 9 - Ep. 11)
Before I started watching this anime, I was expecting horror anime with scary ghost and jump scare. I pretty much disappointed because apparently the meaning of horror from this anime is different with mine. I stopped watching after the first act of ''Tenshu Monogatari". I picked it up again months later as an 'anime to watch while I'm in lobby queue,'. Then come "Yotsuya Kaidan" which is also mediocre. At this point, I pretty much want to drop this anime but I tried to finish the last story, which only includes three episodes. Lo and behold, I glad that I decided to watch "Bakeneko". Although it does not really fit the description of horror in my dictionary, it's still damn good. The characters, the storyline and th…
Read at the sourceholmeskudo
Story 1: Wonderful narration! I hope I don't get cursed and nor do the producers(just kidding!) I really like the way it shows ancient Japanese folklore and culture, it's superbly portrayed and scripted with additional trivia.
Story 2: Inevitable plot from the beginning. Slightly boring, could have been condensed into fewer episodes. Didn't really like the story, hence I'm giving it a lower overall rating .
Story 3: Amazing! the theme is about how humans can be more cruel than demons and things like morality are shown in a very creative yet smooth way.
Overall: It's a nice series of stories, really like the art and sound, it's pleasing and has a grace to it all which is difficult to put into words. A good traditional horror in short!
Read at the source
