While my knowledge of the world of Anime is mostly limited to Evangelion and Appleseed, it doesn’t take a connoisseur to admire the artistry which is portrayed in the 25 minutes of each episode of Jigoku Shoujo (Hell Girl).

Hell Girl, much like Evangelion’s Rei Ayanami, is a quiet yet commanding presence who leads a team from the afterlife by answering distress calls people put up on a website which operates only after midnight. The way they deal with the victim (usually a bully) once they have accepted an assignment to send them to hell is the real treat, as it is executed (no pun intended) in carefully crafted psychological horror.

There are three elements which repeat themselves on each episode, making it more than just a gimmick; like House’s medical investigations they are in fact a remarkable trademark, to wit; the visual play on Enma Ai’s (Hell Girl) red eyes, the red thread on the voodoo doll representing blood, and the last sequence involving the canoe ride through a lake which leads to hell itself.

But, unlike those from House, the writers from Hell Girl have managed not to repeat themselves too much, coming up with as many different applications to a concept that is admittedly limited.

Episodes 13 and 24 from the first season are standouts (I’m beginning to watch the second one, a third is on the way). The moral predicament; that the person who uses the website will go to hell once they themselves die as well, should make the curious think twice before attempting to use the real website, which is said to function in real life in Japan time after twelve o’ clock.