Made in Abyss

Those adorable character designs are a trap — Made in Abyss is one of the most emotionally brutal fantasy series you'll come across. It looks like a children's storybook, and then it absolutely isn't. Riko is a young orphan living in a town built around the edge of a massive, seemingly bottomless chasm called the Abyss. Her mother was a legendary explorer who descended into it and never came back. One day Riko finds Reg, a robot boy with no memories, in the upper layers of the pit. Together they decide to descend into the Abyss to find her mother — except there's a catch. The deeper you go, the worse the "Curse" hits you when you try to come back up. Nosebleeds at first, then hallucinations, then things you really don't want to think about. This 13-episode TV series from Kinema Citrus has some of the most gorgeous world-building and environmental design in anime, paired with a Kevin Penkin soundtrack that hits harder than it has any right to. The sense of wonder and discovery is real, but so is the dread. If you liked the tension and dark turns of The Promised Neverland or the way Attack on Titan builds a world that feels beautiful and hostile at the same time, this one's in that lane. Just know going in — the cute art style is a trap, and the gore theme tag is earned.