Ayakashi: Japanese Classic Horror

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 highly appreciated this show.
Yotsuya Kaidan (Episodes 1-4) (6/10): Woman gets betrayed by her shit husband, becomes a vengeful spirit. This tale is very cliche and kind of cheesy. It’s hard to be scary with this low budget animation. It’s an intriguing tale but it really is just kind of average. In the latter half of the last episode for this part, they were explaining the history of the tale and its meanings and it was the most interesting part of the arc. Still it wasn’t bad and as I stated before, even though it was mediocre I was enticed. I have a certain appreciation for generational verbal stories like fairy tales so it’s cool that they get to be animated.
Tenshu Monogatari (Episodes 5-8) (7/10): This story was less ‘scary’ but more gripping. It’s a sort of romance between a forgotten goddess which eats humans and a human who brings her out of loneliness. The themes are a lot more gripping and interesting then the first tale, having to do with humanity and immortality and the likes. It’s bittersweet and the finale was incredible. Still a bit cheesy and cliche but this is so fairytale-like that it’s enthralling.
Bakeneko (Episodes 9-11) (9/10): Easily the most creative and captivating tale. The animation style is so intriguing, it makes sense that they made a spinoff for this arc in particular (Mononoke). The medicine peddler is such an interesting character and the story is gripping and just so fucking mystical and cool. Looking forward to Mononoke.

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, the added supernatural element all work to produce something haunting.
It's one failing is attempting to gild the lily in a few scenes. The hair combing one in the play is quiet giving it a haunting feel and far more effective than her screeching through out.
To me this was the best one regardless. A complex plot, beautiful art and fluid animation.

Story two “Goddess of the Dark Tower” 7/10
Adapted from a the Kyooka Izumi play called Tenshu Monogatari (the tale of the keep or castle) is a love story between a god and a human. While Izumi's writing often hide social commentary under a thin vail of the supernatural this one was more direct. There are quite a few fable staples like humans/spirits turning into other creatures because it emotionally fits the moment.
However there is something lost in translation with this one as the emotions of the play didn't carry over. Perhaps it was the timing as the pace was hurried to fit into three short episodes.
Over all this one was just ok plot wise, the animation though was rather unusual giving the spirits an unworldly feel in a few scenes.

Story three "Ghost cat" 5/10
Unlike the other two this one is an original tale created for the anime. An exorcist under the guise of a medicine seller visits a house that's haunted by -read the title of the story-.
Plotwise this is the weakest of the lot, stylistically though the art and animation is the best. I like that there can be more than just one truth. The truth that really is, and the one we tell ourselves.
Most hype up this one as the medicine seller (Kusuriuri) is very popular. While I do like the character this one was style over substance.

Overall it's a 7.5/10. A solid show, whatever your taste is one of the three stories is sure to suit it.

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 theatre play is still present, but the characters are weaker than in the first part. The third segment is the first story by Nakamura Kenji and Yokote Michiko. It relates the story about an evil cat-demon who is haunting and killing a family for no known reason. A “medicine seller” tries to help them by learning the story of their spirit in order to get rid of it. This is arguably the best part of the series. It has elements that are disturbing and at the same time a “detective story” feel, lots of great action scenes to enjoy as well there is a compelling backstory of how bakeneko originated.

In all three stories, there is a common theme the real evil always comes from human heart. There are tragedies acting in each story which arise from the greed, jealousy and conceit of people. Oiwa’s spirit kills people, but it ultimately belongs to those who wronged her. Also in Tenshu monogatari , there is an element of tragedy caused by jealousy and pride; the woman’s envy had led to actions taken against a daimyo . to see how cruel humans can be is the scariest part of the mononoke’s origin in Bakeneko Story. There are flawed or outright evil characters in the stories like greedy samurai, selfish brat, lustful man , falconer who abandons his wife etc.There is also a princess whose behavior changed with time and she exploited her womanhood for personal motives hence an inconsistent personality. Although the characters lack depth, this character mix is balanced and well played giving an old-school tragedy that works.

The art style in the first two arcs of this series is good, but not great. The action sequences are a little stiffer and clumsy. But the art style in third arc is peculiar and unique. It has a constant “filter” on the picture and smooth CGI in some shots. The character design is more cartoon like, though overscale yet good enough. The action is good and the interior of the samurai family’s house is luxurious. However, the style may not be to everyone’s liking. For instance, the secondary characters design may appear to be too “parodic”.

The series also features a decent-but unsatisfying soundtrack. It is not bad and I like the fact that it sometimes uses instruments for Kabuki theatre in Japan. It punctuates the action scenes effectively during its third arc. But it doesn’t operate as smoothly during the other two arcs. For instance, it doesn’t make the most disturbing scenes a step from “horrifying” up. I would be fine if they used Kabuki orchestra for all music in first two arcs of this series and even more – an opening credits song has shamisen melody start out only to turn into samurai rap.

Ayakashi is about a collection of three stories that do not seem to be very frightening or impressive still are good enough to have some fun. The voice acting is terrific, and the third story has an interesting art design. It also makes you wonder about what is really scary. If you love reading about Japanese literature and theatre, then this is a must-try because it feels like being in the theater. Although you may not be a horror enthusiast if anything, I would still recommend this movie to watch because it will definitely spook the living day lights out of you. It’s just good and mediocre but at the same time it is not bad to watch, there will not be any strong impressions left.