Yami Shibai

The mysterious, yellow-masked Storyteller is a man whose true name and origin are both unknown. He appears at dusk where children gather and recites sinister tales based on Japanese urban legends, to which his young audience eerily intakes. However, the Storyteller is no ordinary teller of tales. He incorporates a kamishibai, a traditional paper-scrolling device, to add visuals to his already demented narration.

A series of short horror stories, Yami Shibai begins with a bachelor who, after moving into a new apartment, immediately starts sensing a malevolent glare being pressed into him. A single talisman rests on his ceiling, but he has no way of knowing it is one of the few safeguards that separate him from a bottomless pit of suffering. Each story is more terrifying, more appalling, and more sickening than the last as the Storyteller's audience find themselves being sucked into the vicious world of his words.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Storyteller Main

Tsuda, Kanji Japanese

Inoue Supporting

Hosoya, Nobuyuki Producer

Takashima, Tomoya Episode Director

Aoki, Tact Episode Director

Nakamura, Manabu Episode Director

Reviews

Dec 13, 2025

Oni_Lens

Recommended

Yami Shibai Season 1 is an inconsistent but memorable horror experience. Not every episode works, and some stories feel confusing, underdeveloped, or simply uninteresting. However, when the series gets things right, it delivers genuinely unsettling horror that lingers in your mind. The strongest episodes are those that feel close to real life urban legends, curses, loneliness, technology, and psychological pressure. These stories don’t rely on loud jump scares, but instead build discomfort through atmosphere and familiarity. On the other hand, weaker episodes often suffer from vague execution or ideas that fail to fully connect. As a whole, Season 1 feels experimental. Some episodes hit hard ... and remain memorable even years later, while others are easy to forget. This uneven quality prevents the season from being truly great, but it also gives it a unique identity.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

What did you think of this review?

Nice 0

Love it 0

Funny 0

Confusing 0

Informative 0

Well-written 0

Creative 0

More reviews by Oni_Lens (1)

Show all

Read more

Show less

Open

Gift

Report

Jul 21, 2025

KrenZane

Mixed Feelings

*Brief Review-Reflections*

~~

There's little to say about a spontaneous watch with a couple of friends while waiting for an hour to be killed within university premises, but Yami Shibai provides an opportunity to bring the audience closer to Japanese-flavored urban horror stories styled in animation whose peculiarity brings out--strangely--a sort of charm in it. To be upfront, that, alongside the united decision of making some jumpscare moments comical by painting horrifying faces on the foundation of the Surprised Pikachu meme does not help to stop us from being unserious about it throughout the episodes, but when it works it's imprinted onto memory comfortably to say the ... least. Admittedly, there were times the stars aligned for the anime for some reason, and the **Zanbai** and **The Family Rule** episodes produced fright and chills.

What's great about straightforward episodic content running for minuscule lengths is that there is little difficulty in remembering every event that has occurred due to its self-containing nature. Couple that with the goal of the horror genre to be a powerful stimulant to spur primal emotions, then we've got perfectly memorable food on our plate. It's a different story regarding the delectability it induces to the palate, however. *Yami Shibai* is simply a charming set of brief Japanese horror stories that wear its heart on its sleeve and offers a glimpse into the creative realm of supernaturals that nation is culturally within the boundaries of.

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

What did you think of this review?

Nice 0

Love it 0

Funny 0

Confusing 0

Informative 0

Well-written 0

Creative 0

More reviews by KrenZane (66)

Show all

Read more

Show less

Open

Gift

Report

Sep 16, 2024

SgtSalamander

Not Recommended

I'm not mad, just disappointed. The stories that they had to play with here had so much potential and were genuinely interesting. I stuck around only because I hadn't heard of them before and wanted to hear how they turned out. How they treated these stories felt kind of lazy in comparison to what they could have pulled off.

The art is stagnant, devoid of energy and gives off more of a storybook vibe, which they're probably going for on purpose. Regardless, the style they chose keeps their ghosts and monsters from jumping out at ... you, and not once was I anything more than mildly creeped out. Even at that, it was at the story itself and not how they presented it to me.

The sound is audible, and delivers nothing more than is absolutely necessary.

The characters are decidedly two-dimensional, and I found myself caring for them in one way and only one- how they were going to get themselves killed, cursed, or captured. I had no investment in them most of the time, and even when they did end up writing a good character, it was gone by the next episode due to the nature of the format. It is below average for sure, but still maintains some merit in it's atmosphere (which is no doubt provided by the stories the anime is telling and not the show itself) and as a vehicle to get these stories to more people. Now if these stories were written by the people behind Yami Shibai and not just accumulated by them, that would be commendable, because they are essentially good stories. Though, upon further research I found this was not the case. These stories are based off the rich tapestry of Japanese folk tales and urban legends which already exist, written into short story form, and poorly adapted to the screen. In this way, it would have done better as a book of spooky stories or something like that. I reiterate that there's nothing wrong with the tales themselves, I would just like to see them presented in a way which lives up to their potential. Overall this title is comprised of a series of good horror stories presented in a decidedly sub-par fashion. Watch it if you want to, but you should probably read these stories or have a friend tell them to you; Your imagination can do a better job than Yami Shibai.

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

What did you think of this review?

Nice 0

Love it 0

Funny 0

Confusing 0

Informative 0

Well-written 0

Creative 0

More reviews by SgtSalamander (300)

Show all

Read more

Show less

Open

Gift

Report

One Main Character

by Gino99

50 Entries · 152 Restacks

Short Horror Anime

by Keizakomu

48 Entries · 88 Restacks

Non-professional VAs as the main characters Part 3

by GreatTeacherKen

28 Entries · 1 Restacks

North American Anime & Manga Releases for June

Here are the North American anime, manga, and light novel releases for June. Week 1: June 3 - 9 Anime Releases Bokura wa Minna Kawai-sou (incl. Hajimete no) (The Kaw...read more

Jun 2, 2025 5:04 AM by Aiimee | Discuss (1 comment)

North American Anime & Manga Releases for April

Here are the North American anime & manga releases for April. Week 1: April 5 - 11 Anime Releases Gakuen Alice Complete Collection Garakowa -Restore the World- B...read more

Apr 4, 2016 12:43 PM by Sakana-san | Discuss (7 comments)

	Poll: Yami Shibai Episode 13 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Sep 29, 2013	100 replies	by joro_gum0 »» Jan 3, 8:47 AM
	Poll: Yami Shibai Episode 12 Discussion ( 1 2 ) Stark700 - Sep 22, 2013	58 replies	by Oni_Lens »» Dec 13, 2025 8:07 AM
	Poll: Yami Shibai Episode 11 Discussion ( 1 2 ) Stark700 - Sep 15, 2013	51 replies	by Oni_Lens »» Dec 13, 2025 8:06 AM
	Poll: Yami Shibai Episode 10 Discussion ( 1 2 ) Stark700 - Sep 8, 2013	59 replies	by Oni_Lens »» Dec 13, 2025 7:59 AM
	Poll: Yami Shibai Episode 9 Discussion Stark700 - Sep 1, 2013	43 replies	by Oni_Lens »» Dec 13, 2025 7:58 AM

Top 15 Best Horror Anime: Are you Afraid of the Dark?

Let’s take a look at some of the best horror anime ever, featuring all the scary elements a horror story should have - death, zombies, ghosts, gore, tragedy, the paranormal, and more! So clear your schedule, call over some friends, switch off the lights, grab the popcorn and prepare to be terrified!

by markfaris1

1,812,970 views

Spoiler

RecommendationCollectionHorrorMonsters