Hell's Paradise is one of three anime series that make up the unofficial "dark trio," alongside Jujutsu Kaisen and Chainsaw Man. All three are bloody, gritty action shonen series where the heroes are sometimes as monstrous as the villains, which is what sets these series apart from the original shonen "big three." But while the dark trio's series all have plenty in common, such as monsters and gore, they have some differences, too.
Hell's Paradise has many themes, concepts, and traits that Jujutsu Kaisen and Chainsaw Man lack, which helps this series develop its own identity and not just be another shonen action series. Even within the confines of the dark trio, let alone the larger anime world, Hell's Paradise is a totally different beast than what anime fans were expecting, and that's what makes it such a great watch.
10 Hell's Paradise Has Ninjas
Relatively few anime series have any ninja characters, even if ninjas seem like an obvious choice for many Japanese anime stories. A variety of series have just one token ninja character at most, while in the dark trio, Jujutsu Kaisen and Chainsaw Man have none at all.
Meanwhile, Hell's Paradise stars Gabimaru the Hollow, who is the most dangerous ninja from Iwagakure, and that reflects in his fighting style. His roguish ally Yuzuriha is also a ninja, though unlike Gabimaru, she's willing to use seduction as part of her technique, and not just throwing stars or fists.
9 Hell's Paradise Gives Its Hero A Lover to Fight For
The protagonists of Jujutsu Kaisen and Chainsaw Man are both teenage boys who are certainly not married, and neither of them has a serious girlfriend, either. It's true that Denji the antihero is fighting so he can impress his crush Makima, but those personal stakes aren't the same as what Gabimaru has in Hell's Paradise.
Unlike Denji and Yuji Itadori, Gabimaru is a married man, and he is highly protective of his charming wife, Yui. Even if Gabimaru often acts aloof and bitter, he does love his wife dearly, and he was eventually persuaded to admit that he is desperate to return home alive to his beloved no matter what.
8 Hell's Paradise Made Its Hero Truly Unkillable
Few anime series make their protagonists unkillable, since that would ruin all suspense and is impossible for any viewer to relate to. Vulnerable heroes are the most sympathetic, such as Izuku Midoriya/Deku in My Hero Academia, but Hell's Paradise decided to make its lead man, Gabimaru, invincible.
Gabimaru survived multiple executions, which impressed and frightened everyone who witnessed these failed killings. Gabimaru's secret is simple: he survives through sheer willpower so he can return home to his wife Yui, though Jujutsu Kaisen and Chainsaw Man wouldn't dare try something like that with Denji and Yuji. Those stories protect their heroes in other ways.
7 Hell's Paradise Features Criminals As Antiheroes
Chainsaw Man does feature some rough antiheroes in its cast, such as the bitter tsundere Aki Haytakwa and the crude, violent fiend Power, but they are devil hunter employees doing honest paying work. By contrast, many protagonists in Hell's Paradise are outright criminals, from Gabimaru to Yuzuriha to the brothers Chobei and Toma.
This anime didn't make its heroes criminals just for the sake of edgy storytelling. No ordinary person would agree to visit a faraway island and face almost certain doom there, but criminals on death row have nothing to lose and plenty to gain, so they're more likely to sign up for that expedition.
6 Hell's Paradise Blurs Its Morality
A variety of modern shonen and seien anime series create fuzzy boundaries between good and evil, such as with Eren Yeager in Attack on Titan. In the dark trio, though, not even the subversive and brutal Chainsaw Man blurred the lines of morality quite like Hell's Paradise did.
In Hell's Paradise, the lead characters are criminals who are definitely guilty of many horrible things, which does more than give them a reason to agree to that dangerous expedition. It challenges anime fans to wonder if people like Gabimaru and Yuzuriha deserve a second chance, and wonder what really makes for a "hero" in any sense.
5 Hell's Paradise Has A Treasure Hunt
While Jujutsu Kaisen and Chainsaw Man give their heroes open-ended goals, such as Denji trying to get a girlfriend and build a better life, Hell's Paradise gave its own heroes a clear, concrete goal from the very start. It's not yet clear in the anime how, when, or even whether Gabimaru and his allies will achieve that goal, but at least they know what they're aiming for.
Gabimaru and the other criminals aim to seize the elixir of life, whatever it may be, and bring it back. Only with that prize in hand can a death row criminal like Gabiumaru earn a much-desired pardon, and competition for that incredible reward is what's driving the criminals to fight one another, whether they're told to or not.
4 Hell's Paradise Has A Historical Setting
Jujutsu Kaisen and Chainsaw Man both take place in present-day Japan, adding monsters and magic to add some flair to an otherwise familiar setting. By contrast, Hell's Paradise is set many decades ago, making it more similar to Demon Slayer in that regard. Anyone who loves rustic historical anime series is bound to love Hell's Paradise for that reason.
Protagonist Gabimaru and his allies don't have the benefit of things like cars, walkie-talkies, firearms, or modern first-aid kits to survive their fights against the island's bizarre monsters. That helps crank up the suspense and tension in Hell's Paradise, with the heroes relying on antiquated tech to defy the odds against extreme danger.
3 Hell's Paradise Has Mystery Elements
Some shonen action anime series tell their viewers everything they need to know for the plot's sake, while others tantalize viewers with serious mysteries about how and why certain things came to pass. Fire Force is one example, and Hell's Paradise is another, setting it apart from Chainsaw Man and Jujutsu Kaisen.
As Hell's Paradise unfolds, Gabimaru and the viewers alike will ponder bizarre and gruesome mysteries about how this island and its supernatural inhabitants work. Of course, the biggest mystery revolves around where and what the elixir of life is, but there's plenty else to think about too, as Senta noted.
2 Hell's Paradise Goes To Another World
Even if Hell's Paradise is not an actual isekai anime series, it still has some isekai-like elements that Chainsaw Man and Jujutsu Kaisen both lack. Gabimaru and Sagiri were once on mainland Japan, but then they departed on the mission to find that elixir, which brought them to a bizarre, secluded island.
There, Gabimaru felt like he was in another world, including overgrown ruins, bizarre plant life, and most of all, the deadly spirits who lived there. In a way, that makes Hell's Paradise similar to the older Bleach anime, another fantasy action series that visits other worlds without fully committing to isekai.
1 Hell's Paradise Subverts Beautiful Things
All three titles in the dark trio have ample blood, gore, and horror in them, but only Hell's Paradise contrasts these grotesque elements with outwardly beautiful things. The mysterious island, for all its dangers, is home to gorgeous flora, and the flowers there grow rapidly and can consume people.
Hell's Paradise managed to make colorful flowers disgusting and horrifying, and fans got an early taste of that when dead bodies were brought back from the island, with unnatural flowers rooted in them. So far, deceptively beautiful flowers are actually more iconic in Hell's Paradise than the villains are, which is saying a lot.
