Why animated horror can get under our skin
Shows about switched identities and friendly ghosts to make you reflect on the psychological effect of the animated horror genre
In the days of cable TV in India, one of my favourite shows was Courage: The Cowardly Dog, which aired on Cartoon Network from 1999. The eponymous dog had a pink body and bad teeth. He was terrified of everything, but always ready to protect his human, an elderly woman named Muriel, who lived in the middle of nowhere with her husband Eustace.
It was classic Stephen King territory, set in the rural south of America, invaded by aliens from outer space, terrifying doppelgangers, shadowy monsters, spooky chickens, and more—all of it packaged as animation. Alongside this gallery of rogues, poor Courage had to deal with cantankerous Eustace, who couldn’t stand the sight of him and took great delight in terrorizing him by pulling out an outsized scary mask.
Watching the show with my little brother, I enjoyed the droll humour that series creator John Dilworth put into every episode—however macabre and absurd the plot might be, there was always the comfort of knowing it would all end well. But for my sibling, who is nearly 12 years younger to me, it was quite another matter to be jolted by the bizarre turn of events, and be often frustrated by Eustace and Muriel’s incomprehension of Courage’s stream of warnings, delivered in a pidgin of pitiful barks, groans and whimpers. My brother’s reactions reminded me of the time I nearly fainted watching The Exorcist as a dare from a sadistic cousin.
Horror affects us differently at different stages of our lives. The more sophisticated its presentation, the more it tends to creep under our skin. In his analysis of the case of “The Sandman", Sigmund Freud coined the now-iconic term “Das Unheimliche", translated into English as “the uncanny", to describe an experience that is seemingly familiar but also eerie. The German term, which literally means “unhomely," feels more appropriate. What should have been “of the home" becomes “not of the home", leaving us—both children and adults—vulnerable to the fears we have repressed.
Horror, in the Freudian sense, is subtler than the viewer screaming in fright at Regan in The Exorcist regurgitating green projectile vomit. It is, rather, the knowledge that there are demons inside and outside us, either externalised as Hydra-headed threats in Courage’s life or internalised as monsters that human beings have the potential to turn into.
Animated horror may seem like a paradox, but it can be profound and deeply disturbing. As Halloween approaches, here are four shows, other than Courage, that will get you in the mood for the season.
Parasyte: The Maxim
This Japanese TV show, released in 2014-15, may seem like a parable based on H.G. Wells’ classic novel, The War of the Worlds. An alien parasite species invades the earth, taking over human bodies. Most of them take control of the host’s brain and then use the shell that is the body to prey on other humans. However, in the case of the 17-year-old Shinichi, the parasite is only able to seize his right hand. As a result, he becomes a hybrid of human consciousness and alien superpower, desperate to save his friends and family from harm. Shinichi, who calls his alien invader Migi, is forced to confront questions of right and wrong—such as, why is it okay for humans to turn other animals into mincemeat for food, but wrong for aliens to do the same to humans?
Streaming on Netflix.
Haunted Hotel
Much more cheerful in its tenor, this American series, launched earlier this year, is set in a hotel haunted by a cast of otherworldly creatures. Katherine, a single mother of two pesky kids, inherits her brother Nathan’s hotel after his death. But her entrepreneurial venture is thwarted by the many ghosts, including Nathan’s, who haunt the place, scaring away guests with their antics. Among them is a child-demon called Abbadon, who is unable to cross over into hell, sinister intruders causing gory massacres, and a tentacled monster called Jessica. In the midst of this daily mayhem, the family is forced to confront unspoken feelings of loss and grief.
Streaming on Netflix.
The Summer Hikaru Died
Another story of switched identities, this Japanese show, based on a manga series, dropped earlier this year on Netflix. When Hikaru returns home after a week of mysterious disappearance one summer, his best friend Yoshiki senses something off about him. As he learns the terrifying truth about who Hikaru has become, Yoshiki gets drawn into a spiral of tragic and traumatic incidents, which compel him to make some hard choices. In a world where friends and families are betraying bonds of long-standing trust, this story is likely to resonate with many.
Streaming on Netflix.
Dororo
In this 2019 Japanese show, based on another manga series, Daigo Kagemitsu, a ruler from the Sengoku period, makes a pact with 12 demons, exchanging his unborn son for the prosperity of his kingdom. What follows is the arrival of a baby that is unspeakably disfigured. The baby is set adrift in the river by his mother, rescued by a kind doctor who makes him whole again, and eventually grows up to be a formidable samurai. Together with young companion, a thief named Dororo, he sets out to conquer demons. The real source of horror, as Freud astutely noted, lies, more often than not, in the home itself—or in dealing with the loss of home. Visual triggers remain only side pieces, in contrast, in the psychodrama of terror.
Streaming on Prime Video.
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