Line #59 DarkerAndEdgier/AnimeAndManga


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7	DarkerAndEdgier in Anime and Manga.
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10	[[index]]
11	* ''DarkerAndEdgier/{{Pokemon}}''
12	[[/index]]
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14
15	!!Examples:
16	* ''AD Police'', the spin-off of ''Anime/BubblegumCrisis'', is darker, more violent and adds some psychological spins to the original series concept. The TV spin-off they produced to this spin-off a decade later surprisingly was [[LighterAndSofter closer in tone]] to the original Bubblegum Crisis.
17	* ''Anime/BangDream'': ''It's [=MyGO=]!!!!!'' and ''Ave Mujica'' add a lot more drama compared to the original anime and even compared to ''[[Music/{{Argonavis}} from ARGONAVIS]]'', as they deal with heavy subject matter such as depression, past trauma, divorce, and even betrayal.
18	* ''Anime/BattleSpiritsShonenGekihaDan'' is significantly darker than the first series, ''Anime/BattleSpiritsShonenToppaBashin''. Including elements such as major character death and BrotherSisterIncest, in a story which is much more serious.
19	** Then it's sequel season ''Brave'' takes things even further, beginning with the revelation that everything the heroes did in the previous series actually screwed up the future, and now the world will be destroyed within months. On top of that, the heroes [[spoiler: have essentially been disowned by their families and the world at large, after being put up on such a pedestal that they just failed to live up to expectations]]. The series has even more character death, ranging from [[spoiler: some characters being used as human sacrifices to create a card, one person being impaled to death, and even the main character himself making a HeroicSacrifice in the finale]]. There's also the main antagonist's backstory, which has been likened to [[spoiler: child prostitution]]. Yes, this was a Sunday morning kids' show.
20	** The sequel web series ''Saga Brave'' as well, which opens with [[spoiler: an assassination attempt on one of the main heroes by a radical hate group.]] To be fair, this season wasn't aimed at kids, instead being aimed at the grown-up original audience.
21	* ''[[Anime/BakutenShootBeyblade Beyblade G-Revolution]]'' first started out light-hearted and tame, but as the show went on, the plots became darker and more complicated that it would feel more like a Shonen anime than a Kodomomuke.
22	* The ''Manga/BirdyTheMighty'' remake manga is a {{Seinen}} series, compared to the original manga, which was a {{Shonen}} one. Season 2 of ''Decode'' likewise reflects this, as both the OVA and the first season (in Creator/{{Funimation}}'s initial, individual release of the seasons of ''Decode'') were marked for 13-14 and older, Season 2 was marked "TV-MA" and dealt with issues like racism, war, terrorism, revenge, and was more violent than the OVA and Season 1.
23	* Osamu Tezuka's ''Manga/BlackJack'' is a rather dark series to begin with, save for some comedic touches usually provided by Pinoko. Osamu Dezaki's video adaptation in the 90's however takes the darkness to new heights and becomes a high-tension, highly stylized tragedy.
24	* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' already had a fair amount of blood and guts by the standards of ''Shounen Jump'', such as a silhouetted photograph of Souken Ishida's mutilated, tortured corpse, and a young child being used by a serial killer to murder innocents. However, the Thousand Year Blood War has cranked the gore and violence up a notch. Key good guys are finally killed off, usually with gaping holes where part of their body used to be; at least one captain is shredded so completely that his chest is ripped open right to the very visible spine and rib cage. Adhering to the classical Shounen [[HonourBeforeReason battle conventions]] gets protagonists killed, and the BigBad commits multiple genocides -- not only against his enemies, but [[BadBoss against his own people]], too.
25	* ''Anime/CardfightVanguard'':
26	** ''Cardfight!! Vanguard'' is known for occasionally venturing into this territory, especially during the Link Joker Arc, where much of the cast is possessed by the Void through the "Reverse" phenomenon, resulting in all-out war between those who are still sane and those who have had their minds and bodies taken over.
27	** ''Cardfight!! Vanguard G'' takes this further up a notch, especially during Stride Gate, where the show practically becomes a Soap Opera. The intro only adds fuel to the fire, where we see a depressing montage of our cast looking rather somber. Some of the scenes become far too intense for its kind of series, with more violence, a slight increase in profanity and constant themes of betrayal and feud between friends and enemies.
28	* ''Anime/CasshernSINS'' is the moodier and ''far'' more depressing upgrade of ''Anime/NeoHumanCasshern'', itself not very kid friendly.
29	* ''Manga/CellsAtWork'' is a fairly light hearted story that shows how the body works through anthropomorphized cells, as well as the issues it might face. ''Manga/CellsAtWorkCodeBlack'' is a {{Seinen}} spin off focused on cells working in the unhealthy body of a man in late middle age who abuses alcohol and cigarettes to deal with his stress and has unprotected sex, the setting is a CrapsackWorld and everyone is miserable and overworked. It incorporates a much higher body count, a bleak, war-themed setting, and the threats are more horror-themed (carbon monoxide inhalation causes a ZombieApocalypse, the [=STDs=] are portrayed as NaughtyTentacles, and autoimmune alopecia is portrayed as a fascist uprising). The maturation of Red Blood Cells is portrayed as organs getting ripped out to make them more efficient oxygen carriers, and cells actually die instead of just switching their clothes, like in the main series.
30	* The anime adaptation of ''Manga/ACertainScientificRailgun'' was originally a very light-hearted and fluffy show about a group of young, superpowered girls serving their part of justice in the city. Then came ''A Certain Scientific Railgun S''. The series had one of the most abrupt turns in anime. What happened to the cutesy, cheery Railgun? We're now introduced to Accelerator, a sadist who takes pride in killing the thousands of "sisters" or clones of Misaka Mikoto, whom Misaka intends on defending with all her wits. It even becomes BloodierAndGorier and more emotional as it progresses. Averted with the original manga, which is consistently nihilistic and depressing.
31	* ''Manga/ChoujinSensen'': Compared to the author's previous series like GambleFish, this definitely takes the cake in terms of violent content.
32	* ''Anime/CuteyHoney'' has had multiple reimaginings over the years, but among the darker versions was ''New Cutey Honey'', taking the originally rather [[LighterAndSofter silly]] premise of Cutey Honey with its sometimes [[CringeComedy squicky humor]] and transported it into a CyberPunk setting, as well as a more dramatic tone.
33	* ''Anime/Danganronpa3TheEndOfHopesPeakHighSchool'' plays this ''viciously'' straight. No more funny antics and BlackComedy, this DeadlyGame is a dead serious TenLittleMurderVictims scenario where people suffer and BloodierAndGorier is the norm (with the iconic BlackBlood gone completely), with the ever quirky [[LaughablyEvil Monokuma]] DemotedToExtra. And, despite initially looking LighterAndSofter, ''Side:Despair'' quickly becomes ''even worse'', with scenes of violence that are legitimately horrific.
34	* The AnimatedAdaptation of ''Anime/DevilSurvivor2'' certainly became this. AnyoneCanDie becomes the law of the land, as opposed to opportunities to ensure EverybodyLives in the original, a lot of the cast's originally quirky behaviours become PlayedForDrama, and the plot's tone shifted to more dramatic.
35	* ''Franchise/{{Digimon}}'':
36	** ''Anime/DigimonTamers'', and how! The ''first episode'' has a Digimon killing ''and eating'' another one, several more deaths of them, including one being stabbed to death while his tamer can do ''nothing but watch'', one character emotionally traumatized by such, some of the most brutal battles in the series, an attempted suicide, two {{Heroic Sacrifice}}s, a good chunk of the Digital World and its residents being deleted, a heart-breaking ending, and a sweet little 10-year-old girl getting ''MindRaped for at least a week''! Some consider it to be the ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' of mons series, which should really tell you something!
37	** ''Anime/DigimonDataSquad'' has less MindRape, but more violence and FanService. However, this ended up being partially lost in the {{Bowdlerized}} English dub which took a series aimed at teenagers and made it TV-Y7.
38	** ''Anime/DigimonFusion'': While the first season of ''Digimon Fusion'' was -- most of the time -- LighterAndSofter than Savers used to be, The Evil Death Generals and the Seven Kingdoms changes this completely. Seven powerful mega Digimon suck negative energy from the resident Digimon by tormenting them: like [[Characters/DigimonFusionSevenDeathGenerals NeoVamdemon]] who [[WouldHurtAChild would hurt the just digivolved Lopmons]] or Gravimon who [[BrainwashedAndCrazy turns Kiriha against his friends by using his dark past.]] Furthermore, Yuu who thinks that the Digimon are nothing than characters in a video game and It's no big deal if they just die. The [[Manga/DigimonXrosWars manga adaptation]] is even darker than its anime counterpart.
39	** ''Anime/DigimonXEvolution''. When Digimon die, they actually leave their corpses behind, the hero has an attack called "All Delete", and previous heroes are ruthless killers.
40	** Overall, it seems to be a trend amongst the Franchise since ''Tri.'' to undergo an audience shift and make full use of the franchise's potential to be as gritty as it could. The difference between the darkest parts of ''Anime/DigimonAdventure'' and the darkest parts of ''Anime/DigimonGhostGame'' is ''stark''.
41	*** ''Anime/DigimonAdventureTri'' does this to the original ''Anime/DigimonAdventure'' universe as, in the first five minutes, [[spoiler:the kids from ''Anime/DigimonAdventure02'' are brutally beaten down and disappear.]] And then, there's the fact that Digimon cause damage in the real world and ''people notice'', and even some existentialism. This is just the work that kickstarted the franchise's SerialEscalation in terms of darker works and it gets worse from there.
42	*** The other ''Anime/DigimonAdventure'' sequel, ''Anime/DigimonAdventureLastEvolutionKizuna'' features one of the most dangerous human villains in the series which would put even Oikawa (which is an already frightening villain on his own) to shame. ''At least 300'' [=DigiDestined=] had their soul stolen by an insane woman and trapped living happily forever with their partners... so in her deluded beliefs, [[spoiler:they won't end up like her, who lost her Morphomon partner because she was considered to be grown up when she bragged to said Morphomon that she got an academic breakthrough.]] Said villain is also very creepy when she shows her true colors.
43	*** In ''Anime/DigimonGhostGame'', the darker elements are more at the forefront here as the series makes frequent use of HorrorTropes to fit with the occult theme. The very first episode has two teens being [[VampiricDraining rapidly aged to near death]], and throughout the series, the threat of civilians being endangered by the MonsterOfTheWeek's antics is much more apparent - multiple episodes show people being hospitalized or outright ''killed'' as a result of what a Digimon has done to them. After episode 13 the show undergoes CerebusSyndrome after the introduction of KnightOfCerebus Sealsdramon, a Digimon SerialKiller, and things only get worse from there as the body count for both Digimon ''and humans'' ramps up with the series quickly proving itself to be the darkest Digimon anime since ''Tamers''. Ironically, despite this being the most violent series the heroes themselves attempt TalkingTheMonsterToDeath [[SuicidalPacifism by any means necessary]] which usually works -- [=GulusGammamon=] usually pops up to ensure things [[SuperpoweredEvilSide aren't pretty when it doesn't]]... until [[spoiler:he becomes the final boss and comes just that close to giving our Gammamon a horrible death.]]
44	*** The Digimon franchise has never been scared to show the death of someone's family, relatives or loved ones as a part of their character arc or backstory. E.g. Ken and Cody from [[Anime/DigimonAdventure02 02]], Jeri from [[Anime/DigimonTamers Tamers]]. And then there's Lui from ''Anime/DigimonAdventure02TheBeginning'', [[spoiler:who takes the darkness a step further. He lives in a run down building, with an abusive mother and bedridden father. His Digimon partner, while genuinely trying to help, does so by brainwashing those around him into being better people, and unlike other backstories in the past, blood is actually shown amongst the tragedies when the young Lui's eye is damaged while he's breaking his Digivice]].
45	* TheMovie installments of ''Manga/{{Doraemon}}'' can easily feel like this, even if Nobita and friends remain good people. [[Anime/DoraemonNobitasGreatAdventureIntoTheUnderworld One movie]] deals with the horrid effects of BlackMagic (in a magical world), which comes from devils (who are aliens). [[Anime/DoraemonNobitaAndTheKnightsOnDinosaurs Another]] deals with the revenge of the Reptilian people evolved from dinosaurs, who want to alter time so humans never exist. [[Anime/DoraemonNobitaAndTheAnimalPlanet Yet another]] deals with [[WarIsHell the horrors of war]] as terrifying aliens [[spoiler:(who are humans in hazmat suits)]] invade a utopian planet inhabited by cute humanoid animals. Another titled ''Anime/DoraemonNobitaAndTheGalaxySuperExpress'' has the kids in a very dangerous adventure involving the AssimilationPlot of a race of {{Puppeteer Parasite}}s.
46	* ''Franchise/DragonBall'' franchise:
47	** ''Manga/DragonBall'''s second part, named ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' in the anime, featured a major tonal shift from fantasy kung-fu adventures to more serious ScienceFiction adventures. Most notably, more characters were apt to die ([[DeathIsCheap and then return, but still...]]) and more focus was put on intense battles for survival rather than tournaments.
48	** ''Anime/DragonBallZBardockTheFatherOfGoku'' was darker in tone than the rest of the series, with Goku's father [[ParentalNeglect calling him a disappointment to boot]]. Creator/AkiraToriyama ''himself'' said TooBleakStoppedCaring, and [[CanonImmigrant rewrote Bardock]] [[CharacterizationMarchesOn to be kinder]] in ''Dragon Ball Minus'' which was then adapted into ''Anime/DragonBallSuperBroly''.
49	** ''Anime/DragonBallSuper'': ''[[Recap/DragonBallSuperFutureTrunksArc The Future Trunks Arc]]'' is easily the darkest Arc that ''Dragon Ball Super'' has had to date. It starts with Future Trunks watching a villain kill his mom and a close friend right in front of him. Many fans have stated that this Arc is one of the darkest in the entire franchise.
50	** ''[[Recap/DragonBallSuperUniverseSurvivalArc The Tournament of Power/Universe Survival Arc]]'' is by far the darkest TournamentArc in the entire [[Franchise/DragonBall franchise]]. While there have been other tournament arcs where the stakes were high ([[Recap/DragonBallPiccoloJrArc the 23rd World Martial arts tournament]] had the then BigBad, Piccolo Jr. as the main opponent, who wanted [[ItsPersonal to kill Goku]] and the entire [[Recap/DragonBallZAndroidArc cell games]] was just a HopeCrusher event organised by [[UltimateLifeForm Cell]] where the entire world was at stake), but this one takes the cake: The tournament this time is a Battle Royale, with 10 participants from each of all but 4 universes of the multiverse, the rules are such that the fighters are not allowed to use lethal force, flight using [[KiManipulation ki manipulation]] and outside weapons, unless the [[AChildShallLeadThem Omni kings]], [[TopGod Zeno]] and his [[MyFutureSelfAndMe Future counterpart]] think that the move is [[RuleOfCool cool]], and the disqualified universes will get [[EndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt wiped out]] '''[[EndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt of existence]].''' Both the anime and the manga version are dark for two different reaons. [[spoiler: The anime version reveals that the whole tournament was just a SecretTestOfCharacter and the Zenos were banking on the fact that the winner would be virtuous enough to use the wish from the Super Dragon Balls to revive all the erased universes. Had the winner been someone selfish like [[MagicalGirl Ribrianne]] or [[WorldsStrongestMan Jiren]] or even [[IdiotHero Goku]] who [[DidntThinkThisThrough didn't think what he would wish for]] if he wins (although he promised Vegeta that he would let him have his wish of reviving the sixth universe), the Zenos would've deemed the mortals unworthy and destroy the whole multiverse. The manga version omits this aspect making both the versions of Zeno JerkassGods who just wanted to destroy the universes for fun.]]
51	* Some arcs in ''Manga/FairyTail'' stand out for being darker than the usual.
52	** The Tenrou Island arc's BigBad [[spoiler:is TheManBehindTheMan to Ultear, who has been TheChessmaster to several previous big bads. Not only that, but he's the first one in the entire series to ever beat Makarov in a fair fight. Makarov's only other loss was due to a sneak attack.]]
53	*** Most, if not all, of Hades' QuirkyMiniBossSquad are more powerful than previous {{Big Bad}}s. They use lost magic, which is absurdly powerful. One of them is [[spoiler: basically a more powerful version of Natsu. He can eat Natsu's flames, and uses fire that Natsu chokes on]].
54	*** And to top it off, the goal of the whole thing is to [[spoiler:revive the Black Wizard Zeref]]. This is nothing, however, and not because [[spoiler:Zeref was never dead to begin with (and was not as evil as stated early in the series)]], but [[spoiler:at the end of the arc, [[TheDreaded Acnologia]] [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast the Black Dragon of the Apocalypse]] arrives and nukes Fairy Tail and Sirius Island into [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill oblivion]].]]
55	** [[spoiler:At the end of the Grand Magic Games, after said timeskip, a ManipulativeBastard {{time travel}}er brings an army of dragons from the past and the Kingdom of Fiore begins to be torn apart while the strongest mages can do nothing against them. [[FridgeHorror Good thing]] the city was evacuated beforehand.]]
56	** [[spoiler: And all of the above is nothing compared to the Tartaros arc. While most of the previous arcs' conflicts' scope was limited between Fairy Tail and dark guilds, the Tartaros arc has now involved innocent civilians with well over a hundred deaths and counting.]]
57	** And the arcs tarting with [[spoiler:Chapter 439, Alvarez Empire]] can easily dwarf all of the above combined, due to the startling revelations surrounding one of the BigBadEnsemble and other major characters, as well as the sudden effectiveness of the QuirkyMinibossSquad and the other member of said ensemble.
58	* ''Literature/FateZero'' is a DarkerAndEdgier prequel to ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' -- intentionally so, since the novel's intent is to show just how dark, depressing, and violent the Holy Grail War can be. This was to be expected, because the parts of the backstory already revealed in ''Fate Stay Night'' make all but a tiny handful of the ''Fate Zero'' characters DoomedByCanon.
59	* The ''Anime/{{FLCL}}'' manga is much darker and more bizarre than the anime its rather loosely based on. An example of this would be [[spoiler:Naota killing his dad with a baseball bat]].
60	* ''VideoGame/FrontMission'' is known for being a war drama, but Dog Life and Dog Style takes it up a notch as it incorporates the grittiness of ''Manga/RedEyes'' in a completely uncensored and brutal manner (Which relates the journalist who brings out the uncensored truth). In the first two issues of the manga it starts off showing gruesome death, rape/sex and ultra violence.
61	* ''Anime/FullmetalAlchemist2003'' was, in addition to being 50% GeckoEnding, notably more pessimistic, morally grey and low-key than [[Manga/FullmetalAlchemist the manga]]. Most of the characters' stories ended notably darker, the QuirkyMinibossSquad is far more sadistic, evil, and deadly than in previous iterations, and had a much darker origin [[spoiler:as failed and abandoned human transmutations performed by several different alchemists]], and instead of impressive alchemical fight scenes like in ''Brotherhood'' most battles were brutal, short, and often weighed towards the villains.
62	* If one thought that Creator/YuuWatase's ''Manga/FushigiYuugiGenbuKaiden'' was merely ''Manga/FushigiYuugi'' from two hundred years ago... uh, nope. Not only the heroine Takiko comes from a ''very'' different time in the real world (more exactly, UsefulNotes/ImperialJapan during TheRoaringTwenties, in contrast to Miaka and Yui who come from the Japan of TheNineties), but the Shi Jin Ten Chi Sho that she roams through is ''far'' bloodier and more complicated than the one we viewed during Miaka and Yui's journeys.
63	** It looks like the third FY manga, ''Manga/FushigiYuugiByakkoIbun'', will go the same way. Suzuno comes from the years right before [[UsefulNotes/KatanasOfTheRisingSun the most militarized]] [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII and conflicted]] times for the modern Japan, the lands that [[HeroOfAnotherStory viewpoint characters Nirusha and Neiran]] live in are very harsh and full of just as harsh people, Nirusha [[spoiler: is about to fall victim to a bloody curse]] whereas Neiran [[spoiler: suffers a massive BreakTheCutie process]]...
64	** Similarly, ''Manga/SakuraGari'' is both HotterAndSexier and this. Not only it has HomoeroticSubtext ''by the wazoo'' and explicit sex scenes, but also massive doses of dark themes like incest, rape, physical abuse, psychological abuse, etc.
65	* ''Manga/FuutoPI'' zig-zags this. While it's still as humorous as [[Series/KamenRiderDouble the original live-action series]], it's clearly a {{Seinen}} manga due to [[BloodierAndGorier murders and dead bodies being shown in full detail]] as well as [[HotterAndSexier straight-up nudity]]. Most of the Riders' Dopant opponents here are flat-out bastards too. Compared to ''W'', whose target audience are kids and teenagers, the {{Sequel}} is aimed at older audiences.
66	* ''Anime/GaoGaiGarFINAL'' is much darker than the television show for two main reasons: first, it's an {{OVA}} so they could get away with things that wouldn't fly on broadcast television, like explicitly sexual {{Fanservice}}. And secondly, it was aimed at a {{seinen}} audience rather than at children.
67	** ''FINAL'' is an example of why DarkerAndEdgier does not necessarily equate with Dark and Edgy. The original show was far down the Idealism side of the {{sliding scale\|OfIdealismVersusCynicism}}; the {{OAV}}s were just somewhat less so in comparison, and are still pretty darn light and fluffy, especially in comparison to certain other super robot shows.
68	* ''VideoGame/GateKeepers'', while dark in places, ended upbeatly, with the notion that people can stand against TheHeartless with ThePowerOfLove and [[HotBlooded Burning Spirit]]. Cue ''Gatekeepers 21'', where 20 years later most of the cast is dead and TheHeartless are winning.
69	* ''[[Manga/GeGeGeNoKitaro GeGeGe No Kitaro (2018)]]'': The series is more focused towards the grim side of the scale, in comparison to the series from previous decades. There's a stronger focus on utilizing horror and darker aspects that previous iterations did not use before, such as Kitaro being an AntiHero who shows no mercy towards evil humans and yokai, and he's also willing to send the spirit of a sinful man to Hell. Yokai that appeared in previous adaptations are presented as more threatening and dangerous, with one of them electrocuting a woman to death, and several unleashing an EldritchAbomination that destroys a majority of Tokyo.
70	* ''Anime/{{Gigantor}}'': The ''Tetsujin'' remakes also have a touch of this. While the 1980s version wasn't particularly dark, the look of the series was redesigned to make it less cartoony and whimsical and more like the modern, high-tech SuperRobot shows of the day. This ultimately resulted in a little memorable show and when a sequel series, ''Tetsujin 28-FX'' came out in the 90s, despite the new robots being even more complex, overbuilt and gimmicky, with transformation and combination gimmicks and such, the original Tetsujin was drawn in the classic style, googly eyes and all. The second remake in the 00s, from the people who brought you ''Anime/GiantRobo'', took it in a whole new direction, keeping the cartoonish 1950s visual style and wrapping it around a grim story about war and political intrigue... and a boy detective with a giant cartoony robot.
71	* Among Creator/MayuShinjo's already very {{melodrama}}tic mangas, we have ''Manga/HaouAiren''. While her stories are full of sex scenes (very often with QuestionableConsent [[SexualHarassmentAndRapeTropes at best]]) and FanService, this is the first one that includes graphic violence. And not always with {{Gory Discretion Shot}}s included. Even some of the sex scenes have blood splashed across them.
72	* ''Manga/HappyHappyClover'': While the manga is very [[SliceOfLife lighthearted]], the fifth volume contains [[DramaBomb more serious]] stories with tons of drama from the [[BreakTheCutie main protagonist]], such as [[DramaBombFinale getting her dreams brutally crushed by Rambler to a forest fire]] where Clover decides to [[spoiler: sacrifice her life to save the forest.]] She gets better though. However most of the stories in the final volume start [[ToneShift becoming more serious and ditches the cute and cheerful tone most of the time.]]
73	* ''Franchise/WhenTheyCry'':
74	** ''VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry'' utilizes this about every 5 or 6 episodes. Each arc begins with a few gruesome shots of one of the character's deaths, and then proceeds to be lighter and happier for a while, while steadily approaching the doom shown at the beginning of the arc, getting darker as it goes on.
75	** ''VisualNovel/UminekoWhenTheyCry'' not only follows a similar formula, but also has this trope by actually BEING darker and edgier than ''Higurashi''. At least Higurashi was limited to depicting things that are relatively down to earth. Umineko gives us [[RealityWarper witches]] who do whatever they want, often to downright brutal extents. One even delights in killing her victims in brutally creative ways, only to revive them and do it all over again. And when they're done with the killing they'll start with MindRape that makes Higurashi look like [[{{Bowdlerised}} Casey And Friends]].
76	* There are several reasons why ''Manga/HunterXHunter'' falls under this: It's among the darkest of Creator/{{Yoshihiro Togashi}}'s works, and the manga series, compared to most Shonen manga, has each of its arcs with its fair share of gore. The story is dark from the beginning, but the York New arc is the first time it goes into truly grim territory. And then comes along the darkest arc in the entire story, the Chimera Ant arc, featuring themes of genocide, existentialism, and human morality.
77	** In regards to anime adaptations, the 1999 TV anime has a much more somber and moody tone than either the original manga or the 2011 remake. It also amplifies the focus on Killua's moodiness and Kurapika's PTSD. The 2011 remake, though, eventually manages to become even darker than the original adaptation with its adaptation of the Chimera Ant arc.
78	* ''[[Anime/TheIdolmaster THE iDOLM@STER]]'': While the first half of the series was very lighthearted, the second half progressively began to take on darker tones, culminating in 765 Pro's rivalry with 961, [[spoiler:Chihaya's dead little brother plot, and the Producer getting into a life threatening accident.]]
79	* For a show about fluffy animals who are {{Inept Mage}}s, ''Toys/{{Jewelpet}}'' likes to pile on the darkness in some seasons:
80	** The ''Anime/JewelpetTwinkle'' second season has one of the most cripplingly shy leads in anime; she does not immediately become healed of her shyness by meeting Ruby, which was done with Rinko in the previous season, and her insecurities nearly cost her her powers one time. Additionally, the villain is a girl passing for a boy, who [[spoiler:is the SeparatedAtBirth twin sister of the boy Akari likes]] and wants to take down God as revenge for [[spoiler:leaving her mother in a coma as she sacrificed herself to stop Dark Magic from flooding the world]]. Few ''Jewelpet'' villains have been as tragic and conflicted as this one. Oh yeah, and she kills one of her own Jewelpets. Onscreen. [[spoiler:(But she gets better. Like 26 episodes later.)]]
81	** The [[Anime/JewelpetSunshine third season]] does a good job of faking you out at first with its GagSeries nature. Then the LoveTriangle kicks in. And then there's the final arc, featuring God becoming corrupted by Dark Magic and [[spoiler:mass-killing everyone she fails to convert to darkness (but they get better), except for seven people who turn out to be {{The Chosen One}}s]].
82	** After the wacky ''Anime/JewelpetKiraDeco'' & very lighthearted ''Anime/JewelpetHappiness'', come the sixth season, Anime/LadyJewelpet, which can be considered as darkest season of all, with mature themes such as betrayal and lies become integral part of the plot. Starting relatively lighthearted where chosen girls study and doing tasks together in an academy, the series goes progressively darker once one of the main character dark secrets were ''hinted on'', eventually culminating in a plot where [[spoiler:resident EldritchAbomination kicks in and hell bent on turning Jewelland InTheirOwnImage (into a place with nothing but suffering and despair)]]. On top of that, this season has more violent scenes (by ''Jewelpet'' standard) than any other seasons, and so far the only one where a plot important character was KilledOffForReal, ''onscreen''. [[spoiler:(the character in question was given chance to BackFromTheDead though, but she refused the offer)]].
83	* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' began as a shounen manga, but eventually switched to a seinen magazine early on during the 7th part. ''[[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureSteelBallRun Steel Ball Run]]'' is the darkest part of the entire franchise (next to ''[[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureGoldenWind Golden Wind]]'') with [[AntiHero the most self-centered, cynical protagonist]] in the entire series' history (Jonathan "Johnny" Joestar), and a more psychological and character-driven storyline with more adult themes such as sexual assault, domestic abuse, and homosexuality. The 8th part, ''[[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureJojolion JoJolion]]'', though not quite as dark, still has many of the same adult themes as ''SBR''.
84	* In an interesting case, we have Creator/AkaAkasaka's main manga franchises, ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'', and ''Manga/OshiNoKo''. Both series focus on the personal lives of the featured characters and have them endure hardships, corruption is present in both, and they even share a few characters in between. However, ''that'' is where the similarities stop, as we have a ''very'' different turn of events throughout the story. ''Kaguya-sama'' takes place in a high-school setting and aside from a few dramatic moments is light-hearted, with positive character development, humor all around, and a happy ending for everyone involved. ''Oshi no Ko'', however, takes place in a more "adult" working environment, and is decidedly '''''NOT''''' the same as its predecessor. ''This'' series features tales of betrayal, seriously-taken suicides, active dangers, and conflicting morals. In fact, compared to ''Kaguya-sama'', ''Oshi no Ko's'' humor output is ''restrictively minimal'', and after a few small bursts the series outright ''stops'' the humor altogether towards the end of its double-digit chapter run. The main characters of ''Oshi no Ko'' are also '''''very much''''' on a downward spiral, with both of the primary protagonists ending up engrossed in ''murderous revenge''. If that doesn't convince you, the minimal amount of deaths in ''Kaguya-sama'' are all due to natural causes and disease, whereas ''Oshi no Ko'' has flat-out '''''murders''''' on a regular basis. Because of this, the similarities between the two series are very much superficial ''at '''best'''''.
85	* ''Manga/KarakuridoujiUltimo'' seems to follow a zig-zag pattern with this trope and LighterAndSofter. The series started fairly light hearted, and comical, up until the chapter where Ultimo, the embodiment of good, beats up an evil doji into a rather nighmarish pulp while ''smiling.'' Then they threw in the main character's best friend turning into a {{Yandere}}, the world blowing up, and the entire good cast being killed quite brutally. Once everyone got better in Part 2 of the series, it went back to its original state, but then implied to have [[spoiler: killed off most of the original Good Doji Masters.]] Then Part 3 [[FromBadToWorse got even worse]], by having the earlier mentioned {{Yandere}} [[spoiler: nearly rape the main character]] in a rather dark manner.
86	* The 1980's remake of ''Manga/KimbaTheWhiteLion'' by Osamu Tezuka. [[spoiler:The final episode has about a good chunk of the cast ''die''.]]
87	* ''Franchise/LupinIII'' experiences a lot of ToneShift, especially when the directors change.
88	** ''Manga/LupinIII'', which we include because a fan is more likely to be familiar with the anime equivalents, rather than any of the comics that came first. It establishes itself as a series with sex, violent death, and occasional {{Gorn}}.
89	** ''Anime/LupinIIIPart1'', while cutting out the {{Gorn}}, keeps the sex and violence, until a {{Retool}} halfway through the series.
90	** The violence in ''[[Anime/LupinIIIIslandOfAssassins Island of Assassins]]'' is mostly PG-13, though still pretty grim given [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism the overall tone of the narrative]] and film's bodycount -- complete with a DownerEnding.
91	** ''[[Anime/LupinIIITheWomanCalledFujikoMine The Woman Called Fujiko Mine]]'' brings back many of the darker elements from the manga back to the screen. The sexual nature of Fujiko, MindRape, and violent deaths are played up in this series.
92	* The {{OVA}} of ''Anime/MagicalPlay'' is a much darker affair than the slapstick comedy of most of the original series -- up to and including characters dying horrible deaths in big puddles of blood.
93	* ''Manga/MagiLabyrinthOfMagic'': '''Oh boy.''' The manga started with a lighthearted, optimistic plot, and despite a bit of drama, it was quite happy. But then arrived The Magnostadt Arc. And everything after it, to be honest. Alma Torran takes the cake, by showing just how much crueler this manga came to be. [[spoiler:David's slaughter, Tess' death and Aladdin's parents, the soldiers Hakuryuu is manipulating...the list goes on.]] To this, you can add [[spoiler:Hakuryuu's FaceHeelTurn]], and the manga's themes became darker, or at least more serious than they used to be. At that point, there are more manipulation, murder, and mayhem than one would have expected when reading the summary.
94	* What ''Tetsujin 28'' did for {{Super Robot}}s, ''Anime/MajokkoMegChan'' did it for MagicalGirl shows:
95	** It included a '''truly''' evil character as an antagonist (Saturn). Prior to this, there was a perception that [[WomenAreDelicate young girls couldn't handle such things]].
96	** The subplots sometimes touched [[RealLife more serious social issues]] like DomesticAbuse, extramarital relationships, [[DrugsAreBad drug abuse]], ParentalAbandonment, etc.. (For this reason, nine of the 72 episodes were cut from the Italian version.)
97	** Meg not only lost fights, but she had to face serious consequences (deaths, injuries, humiliations, etc.) that could '''not'' be undone with magic.
98	* ''Anime/MartianSuccessorNadesico'' has ''Prince of Darkness'' as its DarkerAndEdgier Title, the plot becomes a moodier and much darker plot of the original series as many a dream is destroyed and it was not well received by fans at all.
99	* ''Anime/MazingerZ'', TropeCodifier of the SuperRobotGenre was considerably darker than former HumongousMecha shows. TheProfessor was actually a mix of this and MadScientist. TheHero was a {{Jerkass}} IdiotHero teenager -- as opposed to the good-natured child that starred ''Anime/{{Gigantor}}'' -- that destroyed half city accidentally the first time that activated his robot, nearly got killed in his second fight because his mecha's cockpit offered very little protection (he started to wear a protective suit and helmet to prevent that). His enemies often attacked him when he was away of his robot, and in a storyline they invaded a village and started to kill all people that they deemed useless in a way Nazi-like manner.
100	** ''Anime/GreatMazinger'': Its sequel was darker. The show dealt with themes such like racism and parental abandonment, the main character was a Deconstruction of the archetype that Kouji introduced, the {{Tsundere}} had mood shifts due to emotional issues that had little to do with Tetsuya, TheProfessor was a very questionable father figure and mentor...
101	* ''Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam'' was much darker than the original ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'' and earned the director the name 'Kill Em All [[Creator/YoshiyukiTomino Tomino]]'.
102	** ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamSeed Gundam SEED]]'', to put it frankly, is extremely dark for an AlternateUniverse ''Gundam'' series. There are brutal atrocities committed by both sides which becomes a GuiltFreeExterminationWar with very little in the way of clear comic relief. There is no mercy, no honor, no salvation for anyone. Civilians and soldiers are equally expendable, and not even one's own allies can be trusted. Victory for either side means virtual destruction of an entire subtype of the human race [[spoiler: and by the end, all of it.]]
103	*** Oh, and the explicit horror isn't where it ends. You know all that genetic manipulation that forms the backbone of the series? [[spoiler: Yea, turns out that the entire thing was taken to the logical extreme by essentially using live humans and clones as disposable test subjects. Not only did this fail to produce an implementable solution to the coordinator issue, it spawned a living representation of all of mankind's sins against itself, [[DarkMessiah the last clone Rau Le Creuset]], who is determined to enact a sick, yet horrifyingly justified restitution upon the human race.]]
104	** ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundam00 Gundam 00]]'' took this closer to home by placing the series in the Anno Domini timeline where most of the world's current problems aren't just still around, they're exacerbated, and it's going to take a lot of blood to get any work done on them at all. This also makes it one of the darkest alternate universe ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'', up next to ''SEED''.
105	*** [[spoiler:Until the movie suddenly snapped everything into hope and rainbows, giving us one of the few unequivocally happy endings in Franchise/{{Gundam}}. It even has world peace.]]
106	** ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamAge Gundam AGE]]'' unveiled its true colors from episode 14 onwards. Similar to [[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica Madoka]], [[ArtStyleDissonance don't let the series' kiddy art designs fool you.]] While initially masquerading as a children's ''Gundam'' series for the first 13 episodes, [[spoiler:the LoveInterest gets brutally killed in episode 14 and TheHero consequentially takes the dark descent into becoming a genocidal KnightTemplar [[HeWhoFightsMonsters Who Fights Monsters]]. Oh, and the UE are HumanAllAlong. And those hoping for a bloodless final episode was hopelessly crushed at it ends up in a Tomino Kill'em all for BOTH sides.]] Add the almost-complete absence of comic relief and the series being set in a CrapsackWorld that would feel right at home in the Universal Century or Cosmic Era, and you got a series that somehow manages to get up there with ''SEED'' and first part of ''00'' as the darkest AU series yet.
107	** ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamIronBloodedOrphans Gundam IBO]]'' takes an even darker turn than AGE did, in a world with no beamspam for mobile suits which results in brutal melee attacks being the main method of killing the enemy (And with bloody results). It takes place in a world where much of the technology of the past is lost and buried as it follows the rise and fall of Tekkadan surviving in a harsh cruel world where they are economically and socially disadvantaged compared to others and resorts to brutal underhanded methods to survive. The emphasis of the fall is felt in the second season as Tekkadan makes more rash decisions which results in the protagonist Mika losing his humanity and ability to live a normal life and Orga becoming more and more reckless. [[spoiler: It ends as almost tragically as one would expect, with most of the protagonists killed off and for the first time in a mainsteam Gundam series (If we do not take ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam0083StardustMemory'' into account), the first definitive victory by the antagonists and the deaths of the protagonists in a tv series]]
108	** ''Anime/GundamBuildDiversReRise'' proves that not even the otherwise LighterAndSofter Build spinoffs are safe from this, especially by the end of its first cour. In sharp contrast to other Build protagonists, Hiroto is [[TheStoic a stoic]] BrokenAce who struggles to forgive himself for traumatic events in the past. His RagtagBandOfMisfits also gets hit with realistic outcomes, as his team's lack of coordination and unity in skill level leads to dire consequences. [[spoiler:Moreover, unlike other Build series which had limited stakes due to characters staying within either a tournament or a multiplayer game, Re:RISE reveals in Episode 12 that the Eldora is RealAfterAll. This means their locals are actually living beings whose pain and suffering are real, as depressingly shown in Episode 12 when the Resistances' base gets erased off the face of Eldora by a KillSat leading to the death of countless inhabitants there]].
109	** Where the ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' series is concerned, it's sometimes darker and edgier in their side stories, regardless of the calendar. Comic relief aside, the overall progression of arcs, foreknowledge, the ending and themes show that the likes of ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam0080WarInThePocket'' and ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEEDCE73Stargazer'' to be less sunshiny than their respective calendars' main series.
110	** To a point ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' franchise in general was darker and edgier in comparison to the other mecha anime around, with the themes, the (generally) GreyAndGrayMorality, the various War tropes present and the franchise was started by a man known as "Kill Em All".
111	* While ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'' had it's fair share of dark moments even at the beginning of its series, it still had plenty of sweet and heartwarming moments to balance it out. [[spoiler: Then the [[WarArc Paranormal Liberation War Arc]] took place and things only went [[FromBadToWorse down hill from there]].]]
112	** [[spoiler: The arc featured plenty of dark and scary moments from Shigaraki's rise to power, Gigantomachia's rampage leading to the destruction of multiple cities which led to the death of multiple heroes and civilians, and Dabi revealing himself as the once thought dead son of Endeavor and with the help of Skeptic had all of his father's dirty laundry posted online for everyone to see. All of which lead to the almost utter destruction of hero society with almost everyone no longer trusting heroes and taking matters into their own hands.]]
113	* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'', over the course of Part II/''Shippuden'', became increasingly darker and much more serious than Part I/the original anime series, even though the Land of Waves arc already started it, continuing forth in the Chunin Exam, Konoha Invasion, Search for Tsunade, and Sasuke's Retrieval arcs regarding the gore, child soldier, Freudian and Jungian psychology, existentialism, nudity, and death count. The main character, Naruto, [[spoiler:loses the closest thing he has to a father, Jiraiya, his village is nuked, his mother figure Tsunade is knocked into a coma,]] he is put into a BreakingSpeech by Pain which he couldn't retort to... [[spoiler:even though he managed to get Pain to bring everyone back to life that he killed that day, the Village is still a [[DoomedHomeTown crater]], Tsunade is still in a coma, and [[NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist Danzo]] nearly becomes Hokage.]] THEN we get to Sasuke, his former rival and best friend who had [[spoiler:joined Akatsuki and attacked Killer B and then attacked the Kage Summit.]] Learning how far his best friend had fallen caused him to have a HeroicBSOD and fall into an AngstComa. Part II has more death, destruction, horrors, and Orochimaru -and later [[spoiler:[[BigBad Obito]]]]-induced creepiness to show it's much darker and edgier than Part I.
114	* ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi'' did this intentionally as part of a GenreShift from a HaremSeries to a FightingSeries. The two most obvious indicators of it are the characters' [[DarkAndTroubledPast pasts being revealed]], and BloodlessCarnage getting thrown out the window. The series still maintains its {{fanservice}} and humor, but breaks them up with increasingly-longer stretches of action and drama. [[spoiler:And ''death''.]]
115	* ''Anime/TheNoozles'' took a grimdark turn about halfway though, with the introduction of Koalawallaland, its human-hating Nazi Koala inhabitants, and the threat of a RealityBreakingParadox due to the separation of the two universes being accelerated by seismic testing.
116	* ''Manga/OnePiece'':
117	** In the 6th movie, ''Anime/BaronOmatsuriAndTheSecretIsland'', the Straw Hats start to separate from each other, due to conflicts the antagonist is creating. The plot also contains some of the biggest horrors, as Luffy's comrades are [[spoiler: ''eaten by a ManEatingPlant'' called "Lily"]], the BigBad's backstory is also different, showing [[spoiler: that his crew died, and he found Lily, allowing him to create ReplacementGoldfish, so long as he feeds Lily]], the movie's plot is also slightly more complex.
118	** In the series proper, we had the Water 7 arc, easily the darkest arc in the series. [[spoiler:The ''Going Merry'' is deemed unfixable and can't sail any further, Usopp leaves the crew when the news is broken to him leading to a fight with Luffy, Robin disappears and later aids in framing the Straw Hats (though not without good reason) and the crew is nearly killed upon meeting the [=CP9=]. Oh, and of course [[DarkAndTroubledPast Robin's flashback]] the following arc]].
119	** Likewise, the last bits of the first half have been leaning toward this, such as Ace finally finding Blackbeard [[spoiler:and losing]], the introduction of the [[AristocratsAreEvil World Nobles]], [[spoiler:the crew getting beaten by an Admiral and getting separated from each other. Luffy finding out about Ace's execution and breaking into Impel Down to rescue him, not only failing but nearly dying in the process. Then, of course, the whole war that followed to rescue Ace that ultimately ended with Ace ''dying'', Whitebeard, one of the most powerful BigGood pirates on the planet being killed by Blackbeard and having his earthquake power stolen, and Luffy actually doubting his dreams and a flashback that showed the ([[NeverFoundTheBody supposed]]) death of a close friend of theirs.]] Granted, Luffy recovers and the crew reunite, but even then dark times are on the horizon as [[spoiler:Akainu, the Admiral who killed Ace, is now head of the Marines.]] So... yeah.
120	* ''Anime/OsomatsuSan'' is an adult-aimed sequel to the family friendly ''Manga/OsomatsuKun''. The Matsuno brothers have grown into jaded {{NEET}}s since the original series, BreakoutCharacter Iyami is a homeless washout (the former part due to things those same brothers have done), and their crush Totoko has become as much of a bratty {{Womanchild}} as they are {{Manchild}}ren, just to name a few changes. ''Osomatsu-san'' contains a lot of adult themes and situations, though it's mostly played for laughs with the occasional drama arc.
121	** The skit ''Sanematsu-san'' takes it further, with its parody of the premise featruring a salaryman that's even more pathetic than the brothers are -- not even comically pathetic, just [[TheWoobie sad]]. [[spoiler:Sad enough to hallucinate having a happy life with imaginary siblings to fill the void in his life.]]
122	* Played with in episode 6 of ''Otona no Bouguya-san'', where unlike in the matching manga chapter, Frealica's first appearance has her covered in blood from monsters she defeated during a quest.
123	* In-universe example in ''Manga/OuranHighSchoolHostClub'': Renge's first appearance has her making a video where the normally-cheery members of the club become darker personae, e.g. the {{Keet}} becoming a callous bully.
124	* ''Manga/PandoraHearts'' is one of many ''Literature/AlicesAdventuresInWonderland''-based manga. However, the former takes all of the vaguely off-putting aspects of the latter to the extreme. Not only is it incredibly bloody and gory, but it's also incredibly psychologically complex. This manga is a MindScrew with a DysfunctionJunction / CastFullOfCrazy. If you want something to base this off of, you can start with how Alice is now an incredibly depressed fifteen-year-old boy who has extreme self-loathing problems due to emotional abuse...
125	** Actually, ''Manga/PandoraHearts'' even does this to ''itself.'' It starts out as a compelling dark fantasy story with a lot of comedy, but slowly begins developing into a full-fledged PsychologicalThriller with nothing to laugh about. Once the manga's infamously brutal plot twists come into play [[spoiler:which starts to happen a little past halfway through]], readers end up crying every volume.
126	* ''Anime/{{Penguindrum}}'' starts off like a comedy where three siblings have to deal with invisible penguins and get a girl's diary, but [[spoiler: Ringo eventually tries to rape Tabuki and is harshly called out on it, Kanba becomes a terrorist to save Himari, Yuri tries to rape Ringo, Shouma can't cope with how his and Kanba's parents seemingly caused the death of Ringo's sister, etc..]]
127	* Urasawa's ''Manga/{{Pluto}}'' does this to Tezuka's ''Manga/AstroBoy'', showing the grittier side of life in the twenty-first century. This being Urasawa, it works tremendously well as the writing and themes are thoughtful and touching as well as dark and edgy.
128	* Zigzagged in the ''Anime/PrettyCure'' franchise. Some installments are rather serious, but most are light. The "dark" ones usually have one or more of the eponymous magical girl having to deal with personal failure that would cost them dearly. One of the most notably serious and mature of those is ''Anime/HeartCatchPrettyCure'', with Cure Moonlight having to deal with [[spoiler:her FairyCompanion dying in front of her, her father being TheDragon, her father killed by the actual BigBad in front of her, her EvilCounterpart is actually kinda-sorta her little sister, said little sister dies in front of her by ''her own hands'', and then figuring out that even saving the world won't bring them back]].
129	** ''Anime/DokiDokiPrecure'' seems intent on One Upping the above, by not only having an expy of Yuri, but by also showing, onscreen, an entire kingdom being devastated by the BigBad (previous seasons merely gave a small glimpse of how the big bad operated and the devastation in his wake), as well as being the only series in the franchise to date to [[spoiler:subvert one of the then standard formula practices in the series, in that a DarkMagicalGirl, when redeemed, automatically stays on the side of good as a Precure in Regina, only for her to almost immediately be forced back onto the side of evil by the BigBad, who's one of the most evil {{Big Bad}}s since Gooyan... and he's not even the BigBad that appears for most of the series and is in fact ''controlling'' him.]] Damn.
130	* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' is very much a DarkerAndEdgier spin on the MagicalGirl genre, but is a {{Reconstruction}} if anything, after Creator/KunihikoIkuhara, Chiho Saito and their companions from Studio [=BePapas=] did weird things with the genre [[Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena back in the 90s]]. They even managed to deconstruct the tropes without being all too much DarkerAndEdgier, but with loads of heavy MindScrew instead.
131	* ''Anime/RayearthOVA'' is a lot more grim than ''Manga/MagicKnightRayearth'', with several characters dying, AdaptationalVillainy, FamilyUnfriendlyViolence, and a BittersweetEnding.
132	** Even with the OVA out of the equation, Magic Knight Rayearth still manages to find ways of fitting into this trope. First, the second manga series has has Cephiro on the brink of destruction, and all the invading forces invading Cephiro are sypathetic Anti-Villains whose homeworlds are also facing strife, especially Autozam, which is also on the verge of death due to rampant air pollution.
133	** The anime adaptation of the second manga manages to be darker than ''that'' due to the inclusions of Lady Debonair, a power-hungry nihilist who literally draws power from the fear and terror of the people of Cephiro, and Nova, an AxCrazy {{Yandere}} PsychoLesbian who obsesses over Hikaru and seeks to kill her and her loved ones. It also features scenes with innocent civilians in danger, including ''small children!''
134	* Every adaptation of ''Anime/ReadOrDie'' seems to do this. The manga is fairly light-hearted (and the ''Read or Dream'' manga entirely so). The OVA has a bit of camp to it, but gets fairly dark, with a BittersweetEnding. The TV series, ''R.O.D the TV'', manages to get more depressing nearly every episode, but eventually rewards its long-suffering cast [[EarnYourHappyEnding with a happy ending]]. Strangely, they keep improving. A new AlternateUniverse manga / ContinuityReboot called ''[[http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2012-02-23/new-read-or-die-manga-darker-side-story-outlined Read Or Die Rehabilitation]]'' has been announced, complete with a [[{{Stripperiffic}} rather]] [[AntiHeroSubstitute drastic]] redesign of our BadassAdorable heroine, [[{{Meganekko}} Yomiko]]. Reactions have been mixed, to say the least.
135	* ''Manga/TheRoseOfVersailles'': The original manga has many moments of slapstick humor, often with typical comedic manga expressions and symbols, and tends to use chibi drawings and starry eyes in some dramatic moments for added effect. Even late in the story, as the French Revolution is brewing into more and more violence, the characters will still break into comical expressions. The anime removes many of the manga's light-hearted, cartoony moments for a bleaker, yet more consistently serious tone, which is reflected with the anime's more realistic art direction.
136	* ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'' has a habit of getting darker as the seasons progress:
137	** ''Manga/MagicalRecordLyricalNanohaForce'' is said to be DarkerAndEdgier by the writer. And he wasn't kidding. In the 3rd Chapter, we were introduced to CardCarryingVillain Veyron who introduces himself by killing everyone in a chapel that Touma had visited earlier. We won't see Nanoha fall to the dark side but definitely we will see more people being offed by Belkan weaponry then usual and maybe a few kills with Mid-childan weapons. Then, a few chapters later, there's a brutal fight between LadyOfWar Signum and the DarkActionGirl Cypha, which involves the latter being partly dismembered and the former, landing in a pool of her own blood with a sword in her gut.
138	*** And how Touma's device is relies on TheCorruption to work, and Lily is a source of death and ruin as she accidentally causes people to degrade to BodyHorror like meat blobs
139	** Meanwhile, ''Manga/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaVivid'' defies the trend, going LighterAndSofter than even the original series was.
140	** Then ''Anime/VividStrike'' goes right back and makes it darker again. While nowhere near as dark as ''Force'', it's definitely darker than ''[=ViVid=]'' (the first two scenes feature bullying and gang violence). [[spoiler: Episode 4 revolves around a realistic depiction of bullying and ends with Rinne Berlinetta going on a rampage against her bullies, leaving them unconscious and seriously bleeding out with blood splatters on the lockers and wall.]]
141	* In the same vein as ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi'', ''Manga/RosarioPlusVampire'' starts off as a typical HaremSeries, with a {{monster of the week}} spin. Then CerebusSyndrome sets in, the characters' troubling backstories are explored, and by Season 2, it's much more action-oriented, with some {{deconstruction}} thrown in for good measure.
142	* Common in the first ''Anime/SailorMoon''anime:
143	** The ''S'' Season, which is overall darker than its predecessor. While overall pretty light-hearted, featuring some progressively sillier monsters (as well as Eugeal's car appearing in progressively sillier locations.), once Mimete's removed from the picture, the season takes a dark turn. You know a season's about to get real when the final group of villains don't even ''bother'' to summon the silly monsters of the week their predecessors summoned.
144	** The villain Queen Nehelenia appeared in two seasons, and the contrast between which is huge. Season 4 was mostly rather light-hearted: there was a pegasus, the villains were campy circus people who were commanded around by a weird old lady, and it focused mostly on Chibiusa; only at the very end there was a real difference. The first part of Season 5, however, was entirely different, even breaking with the usual format. There were no monsters of the week, only Nehelenia's nearly indestructible [[MirrorScare mirror minions]]. In the course of the arc, Mamoru was brain-washed once again, resulting in Chibiusa almost fading, and ''all'' the Inner senshi were taken out one by one, sometimes in ''very'' painful manners (like Makoto being electrified almost to death by Nehelenia herself). This arc also brought back the outer senshi, who have a much more cynical approach to these matters... and they also get taken out. Usagi barely manages to win, but before that she has to go through a full-blown BreakTheCutie process that almost throws her to the DespairEventHorizon. (And ''how'' does she win? [[spoiler: Via ''offering herself to be tortured and killed by Nehelenia'', who also shows heartbreaking HiddenDepths as we learn about the process that made her... well, the way she was. Only ''then'' things start going back to LighterAndSofter.]])
145	** Even more so, the last part of ''Stars''. [[spoiler:Here, after a long search, the Sailor Starlights are reunited with their Princess... only for her to be killed. Then the Inner Senshi get killed. And we find out [[BusCrash Mamoru has been]] DeadAllAlong for a while already. AND Haruka and Michiru kill Setsuna and Hotaru as a part of a FakeDefector plan, but fail and die at Galaxia's hands. And we're not done...]]
146	** The ''Manga/SailorMoon'' manga is a lot darker than its first anime adaptation.
147	* ''VideoGame/SenranKagura,'' despite its reputation for {{fanservice}}, is also a pretty dark franchise that explores the effects of essentially becoming a ChildSoldier in a world where death is a real possibility at all times. ''Guren no Hebi'', the third manga adaptation, is a prime example. Despite managing to have some of the franchise's lightest moments, it's also a grim and very bleak look into the lives the girls lead and averts the series' usual BloodlessCarnage, making the fights downright disturbing to read at times.
148	* If you only know Yoshitomi Akihito for his kawaii Yuri short stories, then ''Manga/SchoolMermaid'', a horror manga, will take you by surprise.
149	* ''Manga/SgtFrog'': Subverted. In the seventh season, when half of the series moved to a late night timeslot, called Keroro Gunsou Otsu, there was an entire story about Keroro becoming "Keroro of the Night", and so, "Adult, Dark and Dangerous". However, as it turns out, he was no different from before and he's defeated as usual.
150	* Some scenes in ''Anime/SonicX'' are darker than their original versions from the games. For example, [[spoiler:Gerald Robotnik's execution]] in ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'' is cut away from before anything happens. In ''X'', you hear GUN soldiers cock and shoot their guns ([[HarmfulToMinors right in front of Chris, Amy, and Tails]]). The English dub, of course, censored it. Then we have season 3, which is by far darker than the previous two seasons in both dubs, but as expected, the English version censors a lot of the original Japanese version.
151	* The DarkerAndEdgier spin for MagicalGirl series (with one of the most notables being ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' above) is actually OlderThanTheyThink. In TheNineties, ''Anime/ShamanicPrincess'' took the {{Cute Witch}}es Tiara and Lena, send them off in MagicalGirlWarrior-type missions... and then headed directly into PsychologicalHorror, FanService and MindScrew territories, never looking back.
152	* The manga adaptation of ''[[VideoGame/StarOceanTillTheEndOfTime Star Ocean: Till the End of Time]]'' is a stark contrast to the game itself, having greater violence and strong sexual content:
153	** Whereas the game is [[BloodlessCarnage devoid of any blood]], the manga shows enemies' throats being slit; complete [[http://mangapark.me/manga/star-ocean-till-the-end-of-time/s1/v4/c15/4 with arterial bloodspray.]] And Tynave and Farleen are shown to have been [[http://mangapark.me/manga/star-ocean-till-the-end-of-time/s1/v4/c15/15 tortured and beaten]], while being held hostage.
154	** Nel was also [[AttemptedRape nearly raped twice]], while attempting to rescue her two subordinates, Tynave and Farleen, from the Kirlsa Training Facility. She escapes [[http://mangapark.me/manga/star-ocean-till-the-end-of-time/s1/v4/c14/34 the first one]] [[http://mangapark.me/manga/star-ocean-till-the-end-of-time/s1/v4/c14/35 on her own]], by slitting her would-be assailant's throat, but got cornered again moments later and [[http://mangapark.me/manga/star-ocean-till-the-end-of-time/s1/v4/c15/9 would've been gangraped]] had Fayt and Cliff ''[[http://mangapark.me/manga/star-ocean-till-the-end-of-time/s1/v4/c15/13 not been there.]]''
155	* ''Manga/TheSummerYouWereThere'' is this in comparison to Yuama's previous work, ''Manga/TheGirlIWantIsSoHandsome'', as Yuama points out in the afterword of the former. The latter series begins with the protagonist, Hina, having a CrashIntoHello with Shiki, her crush on the basketball team, getting teased by her friends and, after accidentally getting hit by a ball during practice(which is portrayed as slapstick comedy), joining the team as a manager. The former, however, begins with Shizuku, the protagonist, rejecting an offer from her classmate Kaori to eat lunch with her, then going home, finishing a story she was working on, deleting said story from where it was posted online, then ''resolving to kill herself'' once she is done throwing the manuscript away. While ''The Girl I Want Is So Handsome'' has an unambiguously happy ending, ''The Summer You Were There'' [[spoiler:has Kaori die of her illness at the end of the penultimate chapter]], resulting in a BittersweetEnding.
156	* ''Anime/TekkamanBlade'' is a Darker and Edgier version of an earlier series called ''Tekkaman the Space Knight,'' being far more cynical.
157	* ''Manga/TsubasaReservoirChronicle'' anyone? Read the first 13 volumes. Then read the next two, and all afterwards. 'Nuff said.
158	* Compared with the more idealistic ''[[Anime/CombattlerV show]]'' from the ''Anime/RobotRomanceTrilogy'' that preceeded it, ''Anime/VoltesV'' fleshed out its characters more and slipped in serious themes like racism, classism, totalitarian government and ParentalAbandonment into the story. Considering that [[Creator/YoshiyukiTomino Yoshiyuki "Kill'em All" Tomino]] was in the staff, it's absolutely no wonder.
159	* Once in TheSeventies, there was a short shonen manga by Kazumasa Hirai and Hisashi Sakaguchi. Its name was ''Wolf Guy'', and it was about the adventures of young werewolf Akira Inugami and his HotTeacher Akiko Aoshika. Decades later, Yoshiaki Tabata and Yugo Yuuki (the authors of ''Manga/{{Akumetsu}}'') took the basic concept of this manga and re-made it into a seinen story named ''Manga/WolfGuyWolfenCrest'' -- which is full of Gorn, FanDisservice, etc. Inugami gets almost killed several times, Aoshika-sensei is almost completely broken in all senses, and BigBad Haguro Dou goes from a mere Yakuza heir to one of the most despicable villains in manga.
160	* ''Manga/TheWorldGodOnlyKnows'', A light-hearted manga-series about a {{Otaku}} playing video-games and using that video-game knowledge to help women in real-life get over their problems which in the process leads to the creation of an UnwantedHarem. Read the early chapters that highlights the before description, and then skip directly to chapter 214. You'll be amazed at how dark the manga becomes. To elaborate, what starts off as a comedy/romance manga series, slowly begins to showcase {{Shounen}}-style action during the later portion of the ''Goddess arc'', and then delves further to even showcasing blood-and-gore once it reaches the ''Past arc''.
161	* ''Anime/YattermanNight'' serves as one for the [[Anime/{{Yatterman}} original series.]] For starters: Dokurobei manages to destroy ''all of Dekkaido'' in the first few minutes of the show alone. The Doronbo have been exiled, and their descendants have to [[SinsOfOurFathers deal with the repercussions.]] The Yattermen turn what's left of Dekkaido into a walled kingdom with thousands of robotic copies on guard, and ''their'' descendants live in the poverty-stricken outskirts of said kingdom after having their parents worked to death. What used to be a silly show about a couple of preteen toymakers fighting crime has turned into a rather serious drama. Lord Yatterman, the BigBad, is a much more serious villain than Dokurobei was in the original series, being a mysterious and despotic tyrant, [[spoiler:and considering it’s [[HijackedByGanon Dokurobei himself]], [[NotSoHarmlessVillain that is saying something]]]].
162	* The ''Anime/YokaiWatch'' anime got in these grounds starting with ''Anime/YokaiWatchShadowsideTheReturnOfTheOniKing'', while still keeping its signature humour. In the film, Yo-kai now have two less cartoony-looking forms, one being the new regular form (Lightside) and the other, more monstrous and suited for combat (Shadowside). It is also more serious in tone compared to the previous films and the anime, as the plot is set after a 30-year timeskip (featuring Nate's Daughter as one of the main characters, who is a teenager unlike Nate), and [[spoiler:the threat this time is a virus that infects humans with malice and turns them into Oni-esque beings.]]. The sequel anime series (''Anime/YokaiWatchShadowside''), though LighterAndSofter than the film (and still having some zaniness true to the franchise), retains some seriousness (and has scarier Yokai and real antagonists since the first episode) and is more plot driven and features full-length episodes, unlike the first anime (which was more episodical and with two-to-four segments per episode). The difference between the ''Shadowside'' world and the rest of the franchise is best observed through ''Yo-kai Watch 4'', where the characters of each world (original, ''Shadowside'', and ''Forever Friends'') travel between their respective worlds.
163	* ''Franchise/YuGiOh'':
164	** The [[Manga/YuGiOh original manga]] when compared to its two [[Anime/YuGiOhFirstAnimeSeries anime]] [[Anime/YuGiOh adaptations]], which tone certain things down, including the atmosphere and the kill count. Most of Dark Yugi's Penalty Games in Toei's anime are turned into illusions, while they are turned into Mind Crushes in the Duel Monsters anime. More characters are also KilledOffForReal in the manga. [[spoiler:Particularly, Pegasus and Bandit Keith (if you don't count R as canon)]].
165	*** In turn, the Japanese anime is darker when compared to its English dub, which censored some of the violence and the darker themes.
166	*** Ryuji Otogi's background story is completely different than in the anime, which no longer involves butthurt and Pegasus, but involves domestic abuse and a father who aged rapidly due to losing a rather satanic Shadow Game with Yugi's grandpa.
167	*** In the Toei anime, as previously stated, much of the death-related Penalty Games being turned into illusions, but then there were also chapters being either skipped or altered because the content in them was too violent/disturbing (the knife game with Ushio was changed to a game of drawing playing cards). The most notable altered storyline being Death-T, which replaces the chainsaw-wielding Chopman with the more kid-friendly "Game Masters." Kaiba's butler dying from electrocution is also removed. The Duelist Kingdom arc was treated similarly in the second series anime.
168	*** And the original run overall is darker than the following sequels/spinoffs.
169	** On the flip side, ''Anime/YuGiOh5Ds'' went the way of ''Manga/{{Akira}}'' in order to achieve Darker And Edgier. In fact, popular consensus among the show's fans is that the sheer spike in Darker And Edgier material in it was a deliberate act to keep Creator/FourKidsEntertainment from {{Macekre}}ing it... not like it hasn't stopped them from trying.
170	** ''Anime/YuGiOhGX'' achieved this via CerebusSyndrome. It started pretty silly, with dueling monkeys and whatnot, with elements of a darker plot going in the background. After that, it went from the brainwashing cult of Season 2 to the way darker tone of Season 3. It started out with new main characters as usual and a seemingly tame (at least compared to Season 2) [[{{Disc One Final Boss}} villain]] until he gets defeated relatively quickly and then the series gets much darker including the characters [[spoiler:dying when they lose a duel, at least that's what they are told]], the main character getting tricked into releasing his SuperpoweredEvilSide and [[spoiler:killing some of his remaining friends]], and the TheManBehindtheMan / StalkerWithACrush / HiddenAgendaVillain possessing people and making everyone suffer even more because they're a {{Yandere}} of epic proportions. The fourth season features an AssimilationPlot orchestrated by the embodiment of darkness and despair.
171	** ''Anime/YuGiOhArcV'' gained a lot of infamy for being DarkerAndEdgier than the first four entries when the main plot was revealed to be an [[spoiler:interdimensional war where a genocide occurred by being turning victims into cards carried out by child soldiers.]] Each season has gotten darker and darker with the main character Yuya going through a legendary TraumaCongaLine that started from before the series began and ended right before the show ended. In addition, the show manages to make darker and edgier versions of the ''previous'' series, by twisting and [[DeconstructedTrope deconstructing]] their main plot lines.
172	*** In DM, while [=KaibaCorp=] pretty much has control over most of dueling culture -- like starting tournaments or changing the rules -- it's mostly for the sake of dueling, and Kaiba doesn't try to take out competition that isn't a personal threat to his company. In Arc-V LDS is aggressively assimilating every duel school they can get their hands on and strictly control every aspect of the game -- most prominently the Extra deck summoning methods -- to prepare for [[spoiler:an interdimensional war]].
173	*** GX takes place in a secluded boarding school, and Season 3 was Yubel manipulating a whole lot of people to fuse the twelve dimensions together, and dragging said school in the process. In Arc-V, the same school [[spoiler:is training {{Child Soldier}}s to do the exact same thing by initiating a genocide]].
174	*** [=5D=]'s first season featured the schism between Satellite -- a poor and wrecked island which is kept separate to keep an ancient evil in check -- and New Domino City, which is a pretty normal place. In Arc-V, neither of those reasons apply; the schism is caused by an extreme BreadAndCircuses capitalist system where MightMakesRight and has even [[spoiler:legalized slavery]].
175	*** The finale of ZEXAL featured a war between the Barian and Astral worlds, two different dimensions, and some duelists from Heartland just so happened to be connected to those worlds. In Arc-V, [[spoiler:Heartland gets turned into a wasteland and its people the victims of a genocide because they were the targets of the war]].
176	** ''Anime/YuGiOhVRAINS'' is just as dark, or even darker than ''ARC-V'', as it takes on [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism a bleaker and more cynical approach]], with cyber terrorism being the series' overall premise. It also doesn't pull any punches as early as the first episode, since the villains are more competent and dangerous to the point of PlayerKilling, several characters have reasons for {{Escapism}} or committing horrible crimes, [[spoiler:Duelists would up being at risk of dying after losing in a Duel at Link VRAINS]], and the negative effects of online gaming is further explored. Yusaku is also different than the previous main characters, since he's not a HotBlooded IdiotHero or an AllLovingHero, but a {{Jerkass}} CyberPunk AntiHero who wants to get {{Revenge}} on those who ruined his childhood.
177	* ''Anime/YukiYunaIsAHero'' is a darker take on {{Magical Girl}}s than most anime. Much like [[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagicaTheMovieRebellion Madoka]], while there is no blood in the original anime, the series is full of emotional despair and has very dark lore.
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Context DarkerAndEdgier / AnimeAndManga