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Russia bans 'Death Note' and other 'violent' anime

A court blocked the shows on some streaming sites.

Madhouse

It seems a Russian court has started to scribble the names of anime series in a mysterious black notebook. A district court banned Death Note, Tokyo Ghoul and Inuyashiki on certain streaming websites over worries that teens are recreating violent acts from them. The St. Petersburg court system alleged that "Every episode contains cruelty, murder, violence," according to the The Moscow Times.

In December, five lawsuits were brought against 49 sites that stream anime. Prosecutors also called for bans on Naruto, Elfen Lied and Interspecies Reviewers.

The court blocked the distribution of Death Note and Inuyashiki on two websites and Tokyo Ghoul on one site. During Wednesday's hearing, an expert for the prosecution reportedly described Death Note as "potentially dangerous for a modern child."

Although the bans are specific to those sites and the court seems to be tackling anime on a case-by-case basis, there are suggestions that the Roskomnadzor censorship agency may treat the ruling as a general ban on the shows. Parents in Russia have been demanding a ban on Death Note since 2013, following the death by suicide of a teen who had a collection of the manga.