Made in Abyss

Finally, Noshi and me completed this anime, which comes highly rated on all the specialised websites.

It's not that we didn`t like it, it's just that after episode 2 Noshi went in a sort of anime break and it lingered around for quite a while before being picked up again.

An orphaned girl named Riko lives in the Belchero Orphanage in the town of Orth. The town surrounds a strange, giant hole going deep into the earth, which is commonly called the Abyss. The Abyss harbors artifacts and remnants of a civilization long gone, and is therefore the popular hunting spot for so-called Cave Raiders, who undertake arduous and dangerous descents into the mist-filled pit to recover whatever relics they can find. Returning from the Abyss can be dangerous as "the Curse of the Abyss," a mysterious and potentially fatal malady, manifests upon ascension. The deeper one goes, the more acute the effects of the curse; few who have descended into the lower regions have returned to tell of their experiences. Some legendary Cave Raiders earn the title of White Whistle, one of them being Riko's mother, Lyza. 

Riko's longing in life is to follow in her mother's footsteps and become a White Whistle. One day she discovers a robot resembling a human boy in the Abyss and names him Reg. Riko and her friends sneak Reg into Belchero and quickly welcome him into their close-knit group. Some time later, a balloon reaches the surface from the depths of the Abyss containing pages of discoveries made by Lyza, as well as a message for Riko stating she is waiting at the bottom of the Abyss. Riko, determined to find her mother, bids farewell to her friends and departs to the Abyss with Reg as her companion. 

Inside the Abyss, they are quickly confronted by all the sorts of monsters and life that lives down there, becoming more deadly with every level they descend further on the route to the bottom at the sixth level.  During the journey, Riko learns the disturbing truth about herself, but they also befriend a survivor of the Curse, Nanachi.  

This is a very heavy anime to be honest, starting out as a seemingly innocent children adventure tale, but slowly transforming into a very heavy, and dark story that even caused Noshi to burst out in tears.  

Now to watch the movie that takes the story further onwards!