Hey kids! Do you like gothic mystery with a side of mild eldritch horror in the mix? Do you like the original Brothers Grimm fairy tales or the ones by Hans Christian Andersen? Do you want something that harkens to all you Victorian era loving Hot Topic goth kids? Do I have the show for you. Shadows House is an anime based on the ongoing manga by Somato. It centers on a mysterious Western-style mansion high atop a cliff, where mysterious, faceless beings known as Shadows, whose entire bodies are as black as coal and emit soot depending on their emotional state. Because they have no faces of their own, they have servants known as Living Dolls, with each shadow being assigned their own individual Living Doll. Such is the case for young Emilico, a bubbly, curious blonde girl who lives to serve her more stoic, quiet mistress Kate. But Emilico can't help but wonder just what Shadows House is all about. Who are the Shadows? Why do they emit soot? Why are they revered as nobles? Why must living dolls not think of "trivial matters" i.e. anything that isn't serving their masters? What even are the Living Dolls? Shadows House is full of mysteries, and Kate and Emilico soon find themselves uncovering all sorts of terrible secrets.

If I were to describe Shadows House as a show, it'd probably be a mix of something like Alfred Hitchcock's Rebecca, Jane Eyre, and to a lesser extent Hansel and Gretel, since the former two are gothic, atmospheric mysteries with dark undertones and the latter is about children being trapped by a wicked villain for unscrupulous purposes. The whole series feels like an old Western fairy tale given new paint, with the animation reflecting this. I haven't read the manga, though I do want to at some point, the animation, done by CloverWorks, manages to really bring Shadows House and its creepy atmosphere to life. Everything about Shadow Houses' production feels ornate, from the patterned embroidery on the Shadows' clothing to the gardens and long hallways, it really oozes that Victorian gothic aesthetic. Of course, the animation itself is no slouch either. It's not exactly a sakuga-fest bursting with kineticism, but the actual character movement does its job well, and nothing looked off-model to my eyes. The music also manages to be similarly eerie and creepy when it needs to, and fairly versatile even without going for that vibe, using everything from low cellos to high violins. Both sets of openings and endings are also well made and well sung.

The core of Shadow House's whole premise is its cast of characters, namely the fact that every single shadow is paired with a living doll who is supposed to serve as their face, so you'll be seeing a lot of pairs in this show. There's a lot of characters in the show, and some manage to receive some development while others don't. Part of this is deliberate, as the truth behind why the shadows and Living Dolls are what they are is one of the main mysteries of the show, but even with 13 episodes, Shadows House doesn't get to give every single named character their time in the limelight. I did find the main ensemble to be interesting to follow, both the shadows and their Living Dolls, and they manage to carry the show just fine, with their development culminating quite a bit in season two. Some of the side characters get some time to do stuff as well, but the rest of them just either take up space or only do very little before getting shunted into the background. I found Edward in particular to be rather grating, as he's just your typical cartoon villain who hates the heroes and plots against them for seemingly no reason. He probably has more to him in the manga. Also, I liked Emilico just fine, but I can see some people finding her perpetually sunny personality to be a little too saccharine and cutesy for their tastes.

I'm normally not one for mystery series, and seeing as Shadows House's anime is based on an ongoing manga, not every plot thread is going to be wrapped up or followed up on, which is inevitable when adapting a manga that hasn't ended yet. Even so, my gripes with it and its cliffhanger ending aside, I did enjoy my time with Shadows House, enough that I do plan on reading the manga when I have the time and funds. It's a slowly-evolving mystery series that really feels like a Western fairy tale in all the best ways.