Tokyo Ghoul is a popular manga that has received its fair share of anime adaptations as well. The story of Ken Kaneki as he transforms from an innocent student into a vengeful ghoul who gets into his many epic battles time and time again makes for a great read from start to end. However, while the manga is held in high regard by many fans, the same can’t be said for the anime.
Unfortunately, the anime has its fair share of critics who consider this adaptation to be inferior to the manga for a whole host of reasons. The changes made by the Tokyo Ghoul anime and its sequels have been the subject of much debate in the fanbase, and here are some major reasons why anime-only fans of the series should give the manga a shot.
6/6 The Pacing Of The Story Is Better
The biggest problem with the Tokyo Ghoul anime is that it tries to cram too many things into one season, leading to the anime moving at a pace so frenetic that there’s simply no breathing room for its more emotional and poignant moments. For what it’s worth, the first season of Tokyo Ghoul avoided this problem until the final battle. Meanwhile, both Tokyo Ghoul √A and Tokyo Ghoul:re have been absolutely abysmal in terms of maintaining proper pacing.
Suffice it to say, the manga doesn’t fall into this trap. The tone of the series is structured exactly how the creator wanted it to be, and the manga’s quality is noticeably improved as a result. Anime-only fans of Tokyo Ghoul who get into the manga will realize just how much better the story could’ve been in its adaptation, with the pacing being the least of the anime’s issues.
5/6 Kaneki’s Torture Is More Detailed And Disturbing
One of the most pivotal moments in Tokyo Ghoul is when Kaneki decides to surrender to Jason so that the latter doesn’t harm any innocents during his warpath. This turns out to be a horrible move from Kaneki’s end, with Jason showing the depths of his depravity once he starts torturing Kaneki both physically and mentally. Kaneki eventually broke when Jason forced him to choose between the fates of two innocent people, before killing both of them when his captive was unable to choose.
The anime shows Kaneki’s hair turning white dramatically during this scene, which isn’t the case in the manga. Instead, this change is more gradual, and the choice between the two people is also completely different in the manga. The anime showed the couple of Shu and Haru, while the manga saw Kaneki being forced to save either a mother or her child, which felt like a more powerful scene for many readers.
4/6 Hide Never Dies
In Tokyo Ghoul √A, Hide dies at the end of the season. However, his death was retconned by the time Tokyo Ghoul:re rolled up, which proves that the showrunners had absolutely no clue how to treat this character in the adaptation. It’s also a major change from the manga, where Hide is alive till the very end.
While his role isn’t the most important around, Hide still has his fair share of moments in the manga that are never really replicated properly in the anime. Instead, what viewers get is a shocking death scene that has absolutely no role to play in the grand scheme of things.
3/6 Kaneki Is Trained Properly
Most anime fans were bemused by the incredible dominance that Kaneki showed in his fight against Jason, serving as a way for him to finally get his revenge after being tortured in such a brutal manner. This makes total sense since the anime never really explained how Kaneki managed to develop his powers in the first place.
In the manga, Touka and Yomo actually train Kaneki for quite some time and help him get accustomed to his powers. The fact that this scene was omitted is pretty perplexing, especially since Kaneki’s victory against his tormentor doesn’t hold the same weight when viewers don’t really understand how the protagonist got so powerful in the first place.
2/6 The Violence Isn’t Censored
Perhaps the biggest reason why fans should check out the manga of Tokyo Ghoul is that the violence and gore in its printed form aren’t censored in the slightest. This is in stark contrast to the anime, which doesn’t a lot of the more brutal scenes in the manga despite it being a pretty violent show as is.
The topic of censorship is a slippery slope in anime as is, so it’s clear that Tokyo Ghoul wasn’t really winning fans over by censoring some of its brutality. Given how the violent nature of the battles is integral to enjoying the experience, it’s easy to see why anime-only fans will love seeing these brutal moments in their raw, uncensored glory.
1/6 Kaneki Forms His Own Group Instead Of Joining Aogiri
One of the most perplexing changes made in the anime is the fact that Ken Kaneki doesn’t form a group of his own to tackle Aogiri Tree. Instead, he actually joins Aogiri Tree in the anime instead, with the explanation being that he wanted to dismantle the enemy from the inside.
This change could’ve been for the better if it was executed well, but the rushed pacing of Tokyo Ghoul‘s anime meant that this idea served as nothing more than an excuse to skip certain plot points and only show the battles. Meanwhile, the group Kaneki formed to take down Aogiri led to the members forming a strong bond that elevated the emotional stakes of certain battles in the series.