Standard Disclaimer: Additional Thoughts explores series a bit deeper than any of my normal reviews. As such, minor to major spoilers are contained.

In my mind, the two most subjective concepts in human society are good and evil. In any country around the world, there is no absolute when it comes to the two; what’s good or evil to one person may be completely different to another. What is evil after all? Are actions themselves evil or does the evil lie in the motivation that started it in the first place? One could debate this point until the end of time but nowhere is this concept better explored than in the series Hell Girl (Jigoku Shoujo) from original creator Miyuki Etoo and the staff at Studio Deen.

Originally animated in 2005, the story revolves around a website that can only be accessed at midnight. Whenever someone visits this website, they are able to put in the name of those that they have a grievance against. After entering a name, the ones who access the site are visited by Ai Enma and given an option. If they truly wish it, Ai will get revenge for them and ferry the cursed soul to hell but in exchange those who place the curse will also go to hell when they die. After a journalist named Hajime Shibata and his daughter, Tsugumi, begin to investigate the website a battle of wills ensues as they debate if the website is truly evil or not. The debate of good and evil takes place within these two characters.

One of the most unique aspects about Hell Girl is its almost complete lack of a constant villain. What is good and evil? Do the people who visit the site really understand what they are seeking? An eternity in hell for those they hate and themselves after they die. But is Ai Enma the source of this evil? People can argue until they are blue that Ai is the chief villain but is she truly the evil villain that they believe she is? In her position at the other end of the hell site, Ai delivers vengeance for those who seek it. But does acting as the messenger truly make her the evil one?

Perhaps the ones who are the most villainous are, ironically, the humans themselves. Despite Ai being an agent for hell, the humans in this series is where true evil lies but do any of them actually realize what they are doing or what they are asking for? Early episodes in the series revolve around a high school baseball player who kills another player. When vengeance is sought against him, who is the villain in this story? Ai is merely a deliverer of justice. When two high school best friends curse each other and one is sent to hell on accident, does this make the girls evil despite not even realizing what they are asking of Ai? What about the story of the young office lady and the boss who wants to use the hell site for her own selfish gains? In the end, a young girl is left with the mark of hell and a brand new life that includes more money than she ever dreamed. Does being bound to hell give her a brand new freedom in life? Is she now free of moral obligations?

In episode after episode, viewers are left with ambiguous questions and no answers. The peak of Hell Girl comes late in the series when a nurse that everyone loves is ferried away to hell. A good and gentle soul, this is one of the few moments of the series when Ai can truly be described as an evil villain. Until this episode, the debate of good vs. evil remained in a stalemate. No matter what point Shibata made up until this point, Tsugumi was ready with a reply that kept them even. In this episode, the writers behind this series create one of the most memorable twists in recent anime history in three different ways.

With this episode, Tsugumi and the audience is shown a completely inarguable point about the site that she has defended so persistently. All throughout the series, audiences are given case after case that constantly argues in various shades of grey. Always giving just enough information to allow those in the audience to lean one way or the other, this is the first time that Hell Girl creates such a stark black and white for the audience to see. In this episode, a man sends an innocent person to hell. Beyond the inarguable issues of an innocent person being sent to an eternity of horror; this episode is powerful more because of what it leaves to the viewers’ imagination.

Some will argue that the twist in this episode is nothing but a copout designed specifically so that the staff doesn’t have to provide a tough answer. But instead of looking at what is said, fans are better served to look at what is left over when nothing is clear. At the end of this episode, audience members are left with little to mull over. A deranged man has sent an innocent woman to hell and we don’t know why. With no answer to focus on, viewers are left with nothing but the emotions they feel towards this event just like Tsugumi.

Left with nothing but heartbreak and a shaken foundation, Tsugumi is left with only the incredible sense of grief that she feels. Something that she has defended so passionately has taken the life of someone she liked. Left with nothing, Tsugumi and audiences are forced to face a very bitter reality and even the densest individual can empathize with this situation.

Ever feel like the devil is looking over your shoulder?

With the close of the first season, viewers are going to be left with a lot of questions but none will be more pressing than where your own values suddenly stand. With strong points made throughout the series, Hell Girl stands out as the horror series that makes a person think in new ways. No matter your thoughts on good, evil or revenge; Hell Girl will make you question them. Presenting situations and issues one after another, one of the scariest things about this series isn’t the presentation of those being taken to hell but where it ferries your thoughts. If evil were presented to you in your everyday life, such as they are in this series, would you be able to identify them as such or would you see it as yet another shade of grey? Hell Girl won’t provide you with an answer to this question but the fact that it makes you ask the question at all is perhaps the biggest testament to the power of this series and Ai Enma.