NoBadPicks

Anime Like Files of the Unexplained

If you loved Files of the Unexplained's Documentary and Crime storytelling, these anime deliver a similar experience — selected for art style, narrative depth, and emotional impact. Each includes where to stream it now.

Top Picks

The First 48
7.9

The First 48

2004

The First 48 follows detectives from around the country during these first critical hours as they race against time to find the suspect. Gritty and fast-paced, it takes viewers behind the scenes of real-life investigations with unprecedented access to crime scenes, autopsies, forensic processing, and interrogations.

Baywatch Nights
6.2

Baywatch Nights

1995

Baywatch Nights is an American police and science fiction drama series that aired in syndication from 1995 to 1997. Created by Douglas Schwartz, David Hasselhoff, and Gregory J. Bonann, the series is a spin-off from the popular television series, Baywatch.

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
7.8

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

1962

A continuation of the anthology series “Alfred Hitchcock Presents”, hosted by the master of suspense and featuring thrillers and mysteries.

77 Sunset Strip
6.9

77 Sunset Strip

1958

Stu Bailey and Jeff Spencer are the wisecracking, womanizing private-detective heroes of this Warner Brothers drama. They work out of an office located at 77 Sunset Strip in Los Angeles, California, right next door to a snazzy restaurant where Kookie works as a valet. The finger-snapping, slang-talking Kookie occasionally helps Stu and Jeff with their cases, and eventually becomes a full-fledged member of the detective agency. Rex Randolph and J.R. Hale also join the firm, and Suzanne is their leggy secretary.

Paranormal Caught on Camera
8.2

Paranormal Caught on Camera

2019

Some of the most amazing, eye-opening and downright scary paranormal videos from around the world are featured as a panel of experts break down the footage and analyze what exactly the eyewitnesses captured.

History's Greatest Mysteries
7.8

History's Greatest Mysteries

2020

Investigates a wide range of historically compelling topics and the mysteries surrounding each including the Titanic, D.B. Cooper, Roswell, John Wilkes Booth, and more. Fresh, new evidence and perspectives will be showcased, such as never-before-released documents, personal diaries and DNA evidence.

Alfred Hitchcock Presents
7.8

Alfred Hitchcock Presents

1955

A television anthology series hosted by Alfred Hitchcock featuring dramas, thrillers, and mysteries.

A Nero Wolfe Mystery
7.8

A Nero Wolfe Mystery

2001

Genius detective Nero Wolfe and his right-hand man, Archie Goodwin, solve seemingly impossible crimes.

More Anime Like Files of the Unexplained

Snapped
7.8

Snapped

2004

The fascinating cases of every day, seemingly average moms, wives and girlfriends accused of murder. Did they really do it? And if so, why?

Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction
7.2

Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction

1997

Can you tell the difference between fact and fiction? Several stories of strange, mysterious and incredible occurrences are chronicled during each episode. It is up to the viewer to decide which stories actually happened and which were completely fabricated by the show’s writers. The answer is revealed by Jonathan Frakes at the conclusion of each episode.

A Haunting
7.3

A Haunting

2005

These are the true stories of the innocent and the unimaginable. Based on true events, A Haunting dramatises some of the scariest stories, revealing a world in which tragedy, suicide and murder have left psychic impressions so powerful that innocent people become forced to deal with them decades later. Through mesmerizing first-person accounts, the mystery and origin of each haunting is powerfully revealed and leaves a lingering sense that life—and death—are much stronger then anyone could have possibly imagined.

Hill Street Blues
7.6

Hill Street Blues

1981

A realistic glimpse into the daily lives of the officers and detectives at an urban police station.

Vera
7.5

Vera

2011

A sharp detective with a messy life, DCI Vera Stanhope patrols her “patch” of northeast England, pursuing the truth in cases of murder, kidnapping, and blackmail. Vera is obsessive about her work and faces the world with caustic wit, guile and courage.

Paranormal Witness
7.4

Paranormal Witness

2011

A tense, filmic and high-octane drama-documentary series that brings to life the stories of people who have lived through paranormal experiences that defy explanation. Using a mixture of intimate first-hand testimony and grittily realistic drama, the audience is transported into a world turned upside down by extraordinary and terrifying events.

Barnaby Jones
6.9

Barnaby Jones

1973

Barnaby Jones is a television detective series starring Buddy Ebsen and Lee Meriwether as father- and daughter-in-law who run a private detective firm in Los Angeles. The show ran on CBS from January 28, 1973 to April 3, 1980, beginning as a midseason replacement. William Conrad guest starred as Frank Cannon of Cannon on the first episode of Barnaby Jones, "Requiem for a Son" and the two series had a two-part crossover episode in 1975, "The Deadly Conspiracy".

Cold Case Files
8.5

Cold Case Files

1999

Explore compelling cases that have gone cold for years, chronicling the journeys of the detectives who reopened them. The detectives relive the events of the crimes, reveal new twists and startling revelations, relying on breakthroughs in forensic technology and the influence of social media to help crack these cases.

Baretta
6.4

Baretta

1975

Baretta is an American detective television series which ran on ABC from 1975 to 1978. The show was a milder version of a successful 1973–74 ABC series, Toma, starring Tony Musante as chameleon-like, real-life New Jersey police officer David Toma. While popular, Toma received intense criticism at the time for its realistic and frequent depiction of police and criminal violence. When Musante left the series after a single season, the concept was retooled as Baretta, with Robert Blake in the title role.

Agatha Christie's Poirot
8.2

Agatha Christie's Poirot

1989

From England to Egypt, accompanied by his elegant and trustworthy sidekicks, the intelligent yet eccentrically-refined Belgian detective Hercule Poirot pits his wits against a collection of first class deceptions.

The Vow
7.0

The Vow

2020

The docuseries follows people deeply involved in the group NXIVM — which is faced with various charges, including sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy — over the course of several years.

Annika
7.1

Annika

2021

The sharp, witty and enigmatic DI Annika Strandhed, as she heads up a new specialist Marine Homicide Unit (MHU) that is tasked with investigating the unexplained, brutal, and seemingly unfathomable murders.

Why These Anime Are Similar

These recommendations share core qualities with Files of the Unexplained (2024): Documentary and Crime themes, comparable animation style, and similar narrative pacing. NoBadPicks uses TMDB collaborative filtering, genre matching, and AI analysis to surface anime most likely to resonate with fans of Files of the Unexplained.

See full details for Files of the Unexplained (2024)

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