Sankarea (Sankarea: Undying Love)

Ever since he was a child, zombie-obsessed Chihiro Furuya has wanted an undead girlfriend. Soon enough, his love for all things zombie comes in handy when his cat Baabu gets run over, prompting Chihiro to try to make a resurrection potion and bring him back to life. During his endeavor, he sees a rich girl named Rea Sanka yelling into an old well every day about her oppressive life. After meeting and bonding with her, Chihiro is convinced by Rea to persevere in saving Baabu. Eventually, he succeeds with the help of the poisonous hydrangea flowers from Rea's family garden.

Unaware of the potion's success and seeking to escape the burdens of her life, Rea drinks the resurrection potion, mistakenly thinking she will die. Though it doesn't kill her, the effects still linger and her death from a fatal accident causes her to be reborn as a zombie. With help from Chihiro, Rea strives to adjust to her new—albeit undead—life.

For a boy wanting a zombie girlfriend, this situation would seem like a dream come true. But in Sankarea, Chihiro's life becomes stranger than usual as he deals with Rea's odd new cravings and the unforeseen consequences of her transformation.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

The initial English DVD and Blu-Ray releases were edited for content, but customers were allowed to exchange it for an uncensored version later on.

Episode Videos

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Related Anime

Adaptation:	Sankarea
Side story:	Sankarea OVA
Sequel:	Sankarea: Wagahai mo... Zombie de Aru...

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Sanka, Rea

Main

Uchida, Maaya
Japanese

Furuya, Chihiro

Main

Kimura, Ryouhei
Japanese

Baabu

Supporting

Fukuen, Misato
Japanese

Furuya, Mero

Supporting

Iguchi, Yuka
Japanese

Saouji, Ranko

Supporting

Yahagi, Sayuri
Japanese

Furuya, Jogorou

Supporting

Saitou, Shirou
Japanese

Sanka, Aria

Supporting

Asano, Mayumi
Japanese

Yasuda

Supporting

Iwase, Shuuhei
Japanese

Furuya, Doon

Supporting

Ogino, Seirou
Japanese

Sanka, Danichirou

Supporting

Ishizuka, Unshou
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Cook, Justin

Producer

Tateishi, Kensuke

Producer

Urasaki, Nobumitsu

Producer

Takatori, Masashi

Producer

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Opening Theme

"Esoragoto (絵空事)" by nano.RIPE

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Ending Theme

"Above your hand" by Annabel

Reviews

Feb 6, 2024

topnotbacon

Recommended

While not exactly a masterpiece, this show is definitely one of the most unique out there. There are plenty of interesting and satisfying twists, and the story flows nicely throughout. I always prefer to start watching a series before getting too deep in the reviews, but here are some spoiler free remarks:

The characters, while the actions some of them partake in are morally questionable, stand out as independently complex within their world, something not all works of fiction manage to accomplish. Although perhaps the characters being "morally questionable" is an understatement. This anime covers some pretty ugly concepts, and the art itself carries plenty of ... sexualization. Wholesome is not a word that should be used to describe this show.

There is, however, plenty of depth in some of the broader concepts found in the show. The problems of the characters are blown up, exaggerated, to bring some deeper themes up to the surface. This, in my opinion, was one of the best successes of the anime. For example: Is freedom worth dying for? It takes a few episodes, 3-4 really, for the show to settle in, for it to become apparent the type of show you're watching. Romance specifically only ever remains superficial, so don't expect much there. As an additional heads up, supernatural is not off the table.

The music is nice and thematically fitting, and add substance to the vibes. The opening and ending sequences are also well done.

The art has this sketchbook-esque feel, quite typical of a Studio Deen production. This may be a cause for concern, since their art seemingly ranges from a grade school doodle to, at its best, the character designs of KonoSuba. However the art of Sankarea was surprisingly refreshing. It was clean and simple, with plenty of odd angle shots almost reminiscent of a Shaft anime. There were a few jarring moments involving the layering of the background, but at the very least it keeps up with its time period. The art is definitely one of this show's strengths.

The plot has plenty of complexity, and at many points seems to hint towards tragedy, but as a stand-alone series lacks such power in its conclusion. There's a well-done climax, and the plot progresses nicely. It's always disappointing to finish a show only to realize it's been abandoned. Here's how I believe Sankarea works and doesn't work as a stand-alone series:

In fiction if a question is raised within the story it has to be answered, and, as an unfinished adaptation of the manga, it fails to do that. It does raise and answer plenty of them, enough to where the story itself can be appreciated, but many go unanswered simply because the source material keeps going. There aren't exactly any major plot holes, but plenty unfinished business. There is some sense of a conclusion within the anime, but to experience this as a stand-alone series, instead of tying up all the loose ends of the plot it sheds off most of its branches. In terms of plot, the anime ends up complete but imperfect. If a powerful ending is what you're looking for in this anime, you will have no such luck. Luckily the manga is finished now, so if you do finish this, you can always look there next.

Overall, I think this show is worth a watch. There is no other anime quite like it. Don't expect too much, but do pay attention.

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Apr 15, 2021

kurapikamisa

Mixed Feelings

Sankarea starts off really, really good! The main couple is pretty interesting with Furuya's weird zombie addiction and Rea's overly sheltered life and how they mesh together. The story itself is sort of .. err.. "fun" just with the whole ability to bring somebody back to life. Plus, there's surprisingly a lot of consideration put into each character's backstories which, alone, could make up for the horror aspect. Unfortunately, I don't think Sankarea really knows what it wants to be. There are serious moments they seem to brush over and long interludes where it feels like they're stalling. Still, I was very impressed with just ...

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Sep 2, 2022

MommaDuck

Not Recommended

Let me start by saying this. I've watched over 50 anime now, and I typically find MAL scores and reviews quite harsh with a lot of less popular anime - and I typically enjoy anything with an interesting synopsis and a MAL score over 7.

But this is by far my most regretful watch of them all. There is absolutely no substance to this anime, the story, or the characters - despite how optomistic I felt about it within the first half of its 12 episodes.

It actually has an okay start. You know it's going to be a weird anime right from the beginning - ...

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Poll: Sankarea Episode 3 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) Yumekichi11 - Apr 19, 2012	268 replies	by 5hadow17 »» Mar 16, 12:09 PM
Poll: Sankarea Episode 12 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) Stark700 - Jun 28, 2012	303 replies	by DrAkiMakura »» Feb 9, 2:34 PM
Poll: Sankarea Episode 11 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Jun 21, 2012	149 replies	by Archean-Return »» Oct 11, 2023 8:16 PM
Poll: Sankarea Episode 10 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) tsubasalover - Jun 7, 2012	160 replies	by Archean-Return »» Oct 11, 2023 7:33 PM
Poll: Sankarea Episode 9 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Yumekichi11 - May 31, 2012	134 replies	by Archean-Return »» Oct 11, 2023 7:00 PM

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Baabu

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