Death Parade (2015)

Death Parade is a tense, thought-provoking anime that unfolds in the strange, moody bar QuinDecim, where the white-haired bartender Decim serves as an arbiter for souls who died at the same moment. Instead of a simple afterlife, those souls are forced to play high-stakes games that coax out their true personalities—only by watching how they act under pressure can Decim decide whether a soul is reincarnated or sent into the void. What begins as clinical judgment soon becomes morally messy when a human woman with no memories of her death is assigned to help him, forcing both to confront what it really means to judge another person. Watching Death Parade is an emotionally charged experience: expect moments of nail-biting suspense during the games, quiet, melancholic character work, and occasionally unsettling or violent scenes that underline the series’ darker themes. The show blends psychological drama and existential horror with stylish animation and a memorable score, inviting viewers to wrestle with questions of empathy, guilt, and the ambiguity of human nature. It’s gripping, often heartbreaking, and leaves you thinking long after the credits roll. Content note: contains mature themes and scenes of violence.

Actors: Jamie Marchi, Tomoaki Maeno, Anastasia Munoz

Genres: Animation, Drama, Horror

7.8 /10 7.8 /10