The world is thrown into disarray when the deadly—and aptly named as it slowly petrifies its victim—Medusa Virus emerges. With no other way to save humankind, a handful of people are selected to be put into cryosleep in hopes that a cure might exist somewhere in the future. Kasumi is one of 160 people chosen for this; however, she is sceptical of the possibility and treats the event like any other sleep. When she and the other chosen ones awaken from their slumber, they find the Cold Sleep Capsule Centre littered with thorns and the world populated by horrific monsters and creatures that they have never seen before.

Gibiate and Ibara no Ou share the same basic plotline–the world is at some point in the future ravaged by a deadly pandemic and then there are big scary monsters that kill people. While Gibiate outright explains that the monsters are humans who have undergone horrific transformations, Ibara no Ou goes in a slightly different direction; however, the basic idea of a deadly virus that changes people’s morphology in some way remains consistent in both titles.

A hyperspace gate appears in the Pacific Ocean, leading the way to a world of monsters and other fabled creatures. The city of San-Teresa is home to two million such creatures; however, no city is without its problems. With the increasing level of crime in the city, the San-Teresa Metro Police establishes a new unit, with the former JSDF soldier Matoba Kei at the helm. When a fairy trafficking case goes horribly wrong, Kei’s partner loses his life, leaving Kei hungry for revenge. The force replaces Kei’s partner with Tilarna Exedilika, a Knight of Mirvor from the Farbani Kingdom, who has also been working at finding the kidnapped fairy and bringing her back to the kingdom.

Gibiate and Cop Craft have very different plotlines; however, both titles feature a universe where monsters are introduced to human society. In Gibiate, this happens by way of viral infection resulting in transformation, while Cop Craft’s varied creatures arrived through a gate opening in the very fabric of reality. Both titles feature protagonists who are in some way traumatized by their varied interactions with the monsters, but also protagonists who are not natural residents of the location in which they find themselves having these interactions.

Oribe Mutsumi and her classmates were set to go on a school trip; however, things go incredibly wrong when their plane crashes and they are left stranded on a deserted island. Mutsumi possesses a great deal of knowledge about nature and the outdoors and is optimistic about their odds of survival; however, she is unaware that the island is populated by giant killer insects! Will Mutsumi and her classmates even last three days?

The Island of Giant Insects and Gibiate share certain attributes, such as the story being driven by the main character’s introduction into a dangerous environment featuring giant monsters of some kind. Both series share the cosmetic similarity of having their respective giant monsters animated with 3D CGI. Unlike Gibiate’s main characters, when the cast of The Island of Giant Insects were in their mode of transportation, they were merely marooned on an island and not an entire timeline.

During the industrial revolution, humanity is rocked by a deadly virus that turns the infected into horrific zombie-like creatures known as “Kabane”, which can only be killed through the destruction of their metal hearts. Residents of the island of Hinomoto can credit their safety from these abominations to the huge walls that protect their settlements, which can only be accessed via train. Ikoma is a young train technician who has been using his spare time to craft a weapon that he believes can easily pierce through the Kabane’s tough skin, he just needs an opportunity to test it. Who knows, he might just get that chance!

Like Gibiate, Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress features a post-apocalyptic Japanese landscape shaped by the emergence of a deadly virus. The main difference is that Kabaneri is set in an alternate version of the past, while Gibiate is set in the future. Kabaneri’s deadly virus is similar to the Gibia virus in that it causes the infected to morph into horrific, human-eating beasts.

In 2029, Japan is rocked to the core by the outbreak of the aptly named “Apocalypse Virus”, an event which was later dubbed “Lost Christmas”. Seeking foreign aid, Japan is returned to a kind of normalcy with the intervention of a military organization known as GHQ. Ten years later, Japan remains subjugated by GHQ, prompting the emergence of the resistance group known as Funeral Parlour, led by Tsutsugami Gai.

17-year-old Ouma Shu is an awkward high school student who meets Yuzuriha Inori, a prominent member of the resistance during a very important mission. They seek to obtain “The Power of Kings”, which grants the wielder the ability to draw out the physical manifestation of a person’s personality – their “Void”. Shu inadvertently comes into possession of the ability, causing him to become an unwilling yet crucial participant in the fight to take back Japan.

The main similarity between Gibiate and Guilty Crown lies in the fact that both are set in a post-apocalyptic future shaped by the emergence of a deadly virus. With regards to the viruses that set off the events of their respective series, both viruses feature symptoms which result in morphological changes in the victims. In a loose sense, Ouma Shu’s involvement in the fight waged by Funeral Parlour for Japan’s freedom is similar to the inadvertent involvement of Kenroku and Sensui in the survival of a humanity 400 years forward from their own time in that both sets of protagonists are displaced but forced to participate.

The year is 2021 and humanity is in a precarious situation when the parasitic Gastrea Virus infects people, turning them into monsters. The remnants of humanity live behind the Monolith–thick, high walls made from “Varanium”, the only material that can hurt Gastrea. Tendo Civil Security is one outfit of human resistance against the Gastrea. Satomi Rentaro is a Promoter of Tendo Civil Security, an individual tasked with fighting against the Gastrea threat through the deployment and supervision of an Initiator, a little girl imbued with superhuman abilities because of exposure to the virus. Aihara Enju is Satomi’s partner-in-arms, fighting against the monstrosities in a post-apocalyptic Tokyo.

The main similarity between Black Bullet and Gibiate is the theme of viral infection leading to grotesque transformations in human beings. Both anime are set in some kind of post-apocalyptic future where humanity has been driven to the very brink, but a sliver of hope exists in the main characters, who are unlike any of the other characters for divergent reasons. If Black Bullet is serving us viruses and giant monsters, Gibiate is serving something like Samurai