The anime Soul Eater is already 16 years old, but to this day, it remains one of the best animes of all time for MeinMMO editor Jasmin Beverungen. For her, it is always worth rewatching this series, especially during Halloween.
Although Halloween is one of the most exciting celebrations of the year for me, I hate horror and creepy movies. I loathe jump scares because they provide no real value to me, and I jump out of my skin every time I’m startled.
Unfortunately, many movies and series these days utilize such elements to scare people, even though they really don’t need to. Therefore, I am even more delighted when I discover a series or a movie that leans towards horror and Halloween but isn’t spooky at all.
The anime Soul Eater is one such anime that conveys a dark atmosphere without incorporating any jump scares. I will explain why the series is still one of the best animes for me today and why it is particularly worth a rewatch during Halloween.
You can find the trailer for Soul Eater here:
The anime Soul Eater is perfect for Halloween
Soul Eater was one of the first animes I watched after my RTL2 anime phase. It stood out from the previous series like Pokémon or Sailor Moon, which I watched during the afternoon programming of the channel.
In terms of content, Soul Eater is about life at Shibusen, an academy in Death City, where the death god Shinigami trains his students to become weapon masters.
- Each student possesses a weapon that can switch between a human form and a weapon form.
- Together, they form a duo that must capture 99 souls of evil people and the soul of a witch. This increases the power of their weapon.
- The focus is on the girl Maka Albarn and her partner Soul Eater, who can transform into a scythe. Along with a ninja and the son of Shinigami, they experience numerous battles.
Throughout their adventures, characters appear that I associate with Halloween. For example, a teacher at Shibusen is named Franken Stein and visually resembles the monster. Zombies, spiders, and demons are also creatures that appear in the anime.
In line with the many creatures that create a Halloween atmosphere, there is a dark and menacing atmosphere that the anime builds throughout. It never relies on the jump scares that I despise but rather on dark themes and a suffocating mood.
Over everything hovers the demon god as a great threat. There are several factions trying to free him. Since the safety of the entire world hangs by a thread, a constant tension is present in the anime.
One of the characters that has stuck with me the most and contributed to the oppressive mood is Chrona. The character seems weak, pale, and anything but evil. Nevertheless, he stands up to the group as one of the first antagonists and doesn’t act as one would expect.
However, it later comes out that Chrona was used by his own mother for evil experiments. Therefore, Chrona constantly struggles with self-doubt. The character regrets being born and repeatedly shows depressive and dark thoughts. Without giving away too much: The transformation that this character undergoes throughout the anime is one of the most emotional I have ever seen in animes.
Besides the atmosphere and dark mood, the relationship between Maka and Soul Eater is another highlight of the anime. Their bond is constantly a central theme, but the anime manages to keep it from drifting into romantic territory.
Although Maka and her weapon partner are not a couple, one often feels how close they are and how blindly they trust each other. The fact that the mangaka could establish such a connection on a friendly level impresses me to this day. That is why the anime doesn’t drift too much into the romance direction but remains a great anime that fits Halloween.
If you prefer real horror, Uzumaki might be something for you:
So if you are looking for a dark anime around Halloween that isn’t too scary, I can only recommend Soul Eater. The anime has many aspects that make a rewatch (or a first-time viewing) worthwhile.
By the way: There is a spin-off to the anime called Soul Eater Not! However, I can only advise against watching the anime if you like the Halloween elements from Soul Eater. The spin-off is more of a cute girly anime revolving around a cringy love triangle between schoolgirls.
If you are looking for something scary on Halloween that will chill your blood, we have something for you. MeinMMO demon Cortyn has chosen several horror animes that would be a scarier alternative to Soul Eater: The best horror animes if you want to be thoroughly frightened
