I've Watched a Ton of Cyberpunk Anime — Here Are 3 That Blew My Mind

Due to the unique historical and societal nuances of Japanese culture, the cyberpunk genre in anime has evolved in a drastically different way than the western installments in the genre, resulting in some absolutely monumental creations.

There have been countless cyberpunk anime shows over the years, but only a select few have managed to bring something radically new to the table, so let's take a look at three of the most stunning of them.

It should also be noted that we're going to focus explicitly on TV shows, so don't expect to see 1988's Akira or 1995's Ghost in the Shell, because while they're absolutely brilliant, they're full-length animated movies.

Ergo Proxy (2006)

The series begins as a fairly familiar cyberpunk story set in a world devastated by an apocalyptic event, where humans live alongside androids known as AutoReivs in a domed city called Romdeau.

When a series of murders committed by AutoReivs who have suddenly become self-aware shakes the city to its core, Re-L Mayer begins her investigation, which eventually leads her to Vincent, a mysterious man who has recently immigrated to the city.

But when the characters are forced to venture into the outside world, the story takes a drastic turn and becomes an elaborate fable filled with philosophical allusions, exploring the themes of God, humanity, and identity.

Texhnolyze (2003)

Much like the previous entry on our list, Texhnolyze blends the genres of cyberpunk and post-apocalypse, but spices things up with ideas of rejection of technology, becoming a kind of anti-cyberpunk story that throws the usual genre tropes out the window.

The main plot revolves around Ichise, an underground fighter who loses an arm and a leg, has them replaced with cybernetic limbs against his will, and wants to get rid of the unwanted augmentations.

But the story is filled with all kinds of metaphors, delves deeply into the question of not losing oneself to technology, and demands the viewer's full attention, because if you miss a single crucial detail, it won't be explained later.

Serial Experiments Lain (1998)

Though the other two entries on our list are by no means simple, this series somehow manages to overshadow them, as it is incredibly complicated and there is a good chance that you won't understand it at all even after watching it several times.

Unlike most cyberpunk stories, Experiments is set in a relatively non-futuristic world and begins with a girl who recently committed suicide and starts sending emails to her classmates.

Lain Iwakura decides to investigate the mystery, which sends her down an insane rabbit hole exploring ideas of what the Internet is, humanity, society, and a whole lot of other things that make the series arguably the most unique installment in the genre.