Since trailblazers like Sailor Moon took the Western world by storm, many anime series have risen and fallen over the past few decades. Some have been incredibly successful, while others have fallen short of viewers’ expectations for various reasons. Others end up being banned.
It’s not often, though, that a country will ban anime titles. In some cases, the country would ask to have the offensive material edited or removed from the series. However, over the course of the years, China has banned certain anime series from being viewed and many manga series from being read within their borders for various reasons.
Updated on April 24th, 2023 by Casey Coates: This list has been updated to reflect CBR’s current publishing style.
15 My Hero Academia
One of the most shocking bans by the Chinese government was that of My Hero Academia. It’s unexpected because the series is generally PG-13, especially since the anime censors most of the gore found in the manga. However, My Hero Academia still got banned in China because a character was named after a horrific war crime.
Of course, this wasn’t just controversial in China — it sparked widespread outrage in the fandom. Dr. Daruma Ujiko’s real name is Maruta Shiga. His real name sparked controversy because “maruta” is the Japanese word for the primarily Chinese and Korean victims of human experimentation during World War II. Even worse, the character is a scientist who experiments on others. Kohei Horikoshi has since apologized for this controversy.
14 High School DxD
High School DxD follows Issei Hyoudou, a high school student who got reincarnated into a Devil after being slaughtered on a date. His goal is to become the “Harem King.” Unfortunately, this anime was banned in China for its highly sexual and lewd visuals.
Especially considering that this anime surrounds high school students, it was deemed as far too inappropriate for the Chinese general public to watch. China is not the only country to ban High School DxD, since New Zealand did as well.
13 Devil May Cry
Devil May Cry tells the tale of a demon hunter named Dante who is half demon and half human. He wields a sword named Rebellion along with two guns named Ebony and Ivory. His business, aptly called “Devil May Cry,” provides hunting and demon killing solutions.
Unfortunately, Devil May Cry was deemed inappropriate by the Chinese government because of its immense violence. Even adults may find the gore in this anime disturbing. Additionally, some believe that its visual depictions of demons pushed the envelope just a bit too far.
12 Aesthetica Of A Rogue Hero
Aesthetica Of A Rogue Hero was banned before Chinese audiences could even give the anime a chance. The anime tells the story of Akatsuki Ousawa, the “Rogue Hero,” who leaves his former life behind to fight against a dystopian, oppressive government.
Akatsuki Ousawa forms a team of people to help him out with this, and they all have special abilities. Considering the nature of the Chinese government, it’s not surprising why they never wanted it to see the light of day in any of their territories.
11 High School Of The Dead
High School Of The Dead is a dystopian anime that tells the story of a pandemic that transforms humans into zombies. The main cast consists of ordinary high school students and their school nurse as they search for a curse to this outbreak. There are several things revealed about society as it starts to collapse because of this pandemic, such as corruption, questions of morality, and what life truly means to each character.
Unfortunately, the Chinese Ministry of Culture banned this anime because of its overly sexual content. The Ministry describes the content of the anime as “borderline pornographic” in the reasoning for banning High School Of The Dead and 37 other titles.
10 Attack On Titan
Attack on Titan follows the story of Eren Jaeger and his journey to eradicate the Titans. Titans are a race of humanoid giants that terrorize, destroy, kill, and devour humans to the point that they’re almost extinct.
Because of the themes in this anime series, it has been rated R, which is understandable considering the amount of gore and extreme violence that is incorporated into almost all of its episodes. For that reason, the dark seinen anime was banned in China and was deemed unsuitable for public consumption.
9 Corpse Party
Corpse Party is a horror and mystery series. It’s also a gore-filled and violent supernatural anime that’s rated R. In this series, students gather in their high school to say goodbye to their friend who is moving away.
However, their ritual was linked to the Heavenly Host Academy, a school that was torn down and abandoned after a series of horrific murders. The remains of the Academy happened to lie underneath their current school. Transported to another dimension, they have to survive the supernatural beings or risk staying there forever. Due to the horrifying content, the Chinese government banned this anime for being too violent.
8 Sword Art Online II
Sword Art Online II involves Kirito as he plays the new games known as Gun Gale Online (GGO) so that he can enter a tournament to investigate a player who can apparently kill players in real life by killing their GGO avatar.
Even though this anime has a PG-13 rating, it has been banned in China. It’s still unclear as to why it has been banned, as it isn’t as violent as some of the other anime that have been banned. However, many speculate that this ban is due to the use of guns and offensive materials.
7 Parasyte
Parasyte is an anime revolving around parasitic aliens that have come to Earth and burrow into easily influenced and unsuspecting humans. They are then able to take control of their host and feed on whatever they deem to be prey. This psychological horror and supernatural anime is rated R, and for a good reason.
It’s incredibly violent and gory, contains graphic and vicious killings, and many of these scenes are highly detailed and realistic in appearance. Because of the level of violence and gore, it was banned from being viewed in China.
6 Death Note
Based on the dark manga series, Death Note became another anime that got banned in China. This psychological thriller and supernatural anime series was rated R for its level of violence and profanity and was banned by the Chinese government for being too extreme for viewing. But that wasn’t the only reason why this anime was banned.
Many children around the world who’d seen Death Note were creating their own Death Notes—books filled with the names of people who they didn’t like. Authorities were afraid that the owners of these real-world Death Notes would become killers.
5 Deadman Wonderland
Deadman Wonderland is another anime that was given the R rating and banned in China. This series follows the story of Ganta Igarashi and his classmates as they go to a prison amusement park where the convicts perform dangerous acts for the onlooker’s amusement. But when his entire class is slaughtered and he’s framed for their murders, Ganta ends up at that very same prison.
The anime is well known for its gore and violence, but it’s the manga that is notorious for being graphic and gruesome. However, they are both filled with disturbing and alarmingly graphic content.
4 Psycho-Pass
Psycho-Pass is an anime that involves the enforcement of justice. The computerized system in this anime determines the threat of each civilian and their level of criminal intent based on a number of factors. Enforcers of this system are to subjugate and exterminate anyone who has any ill intent towards them or the system.
However, this system is filled with flaws and corruption. Not only does this psychological thriller glorify violence, but it also encourages juvenile delinquency and rebellion. This is why it’s banned in China.
3 Tokyo Ghoul
In Tokyo Ghoul, citizens of Tokyo are afraid of bloodthirsty and flesh-hungry scavengers known as ghouls. Ghouls are beings who live alongside humans and can blend in perfectly with society. Not only is this psychological thriller and horror anime rated R for its extreme violence and gore, but it was also blamed for a disturbing trend occurring in China: skin embroidery.
Skin embroidery involves stitching symbols and patterns into the skin, which were then uploaded onto a website for public viewing. China banned this anime because of its graphic content and crimes against public morality.
2 Elfen Lied
Elfen Lied is an anime about those who were scientific experiments for the human government. These inhuman experiments were tortured and confined. So, when one of them chose to escape, it was through violence and bloodshed.
Similar to the other anime that were banned, Elfen Lied is a psychological horror and supernatural anime that contains extreme violence and other gruesome and graphic content. It also has elements of inspiring rebellion and delinquency. All of which are reasons as to why this anime is banned in China.
1 Black Butler
Black Butler is another anime that was banned in China for several reasons. This story involves Ciel Phantomhive and the unseemly events that occur in England and the rebellions against the Queen. It also contains supernatural elements, such as contracts with demons.
With a rating of R for its dark themes, violence, gore, and the encouragement of delinquency, Black Butler isn’t for the faint of heart. In addition, the manga is incredibly dark and contains disturbing and graphic content, all of which are reasons why both the anime and manga have been deemed inappropriate by the Chinese government.
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