With its confluence of gothic themes and graphic, erotic violence, Wicked City is today considered a prime example of science fiction anime from Japan's bubble economy period.

In Tokyo, Renzaburō Taki, a salaryman for an electronics company by day, and a Black Guard when needed, has sex with Kanako, a young woman who he has been meeting at a local bar for three months.

While awaiting Mayart's arrival at Narita, Taki is attacked by two Radicals at the runway, but is saved by his partner—a beautiful fashion model named Makie.

Makie and Taki find him in a soapland in the grip of a Radical who has sapped his health, prompting a frantic trip to a spiritual hospital under Black Guard protection.

While tending to each other, Makie reveals to Taki that she was once romantically involved with a member of the Radicals, and that she joined the Black Guard because of her belief in the need for peace between the two worlds.

A final attack by Shadow comes against Taki and Makie, which is deflected by more lightning generated by a surprisingly healthy Mayart, who reveals that he was actually hired to protect his "bodyguards".

Although angry with Mayart because they were not informed of the Black Guard's plans, Taki implicitly admits that he loves Makie and, per the hotelier's advice, wants to protect her and their child.

[5] Richard Harrigton, also of The Washington Post, saw the film as an attempt to create the Blade Runner of Japanese animation, citing its distinctively languid pace, linear storytelling and gradual exposition.

He noted that Yoshiaki Kawajiri composes scenes like a live-action filmmaker, and complimented his deft cutting and camera angles, but felt that the "Saturday-morning style animation" and juvenile story did not warrant the effort.

[16] Marc Savlov of The Austin Chronicle gave the film two and a half out of five stars, calling it a "better-than-average" treatment of the "demons from an alternate universe" subject matter.

He said Wicked City was easier to follow than the latter due to having a more linear and rapid storyline, along with the lack of flashbacks and cyberpunk jargon that Savlov disliked in the genre.

Arrington thought that the visuals and the fight scenes were generally done well, and that the English dub was acceptable, though exhibited some "wooden elements" endemic to all anime titles.

Regarding the sexual violence in the film, Arrington found it excluded recommendation for most viewers, commenting, "Though not nearly as gruesome as Legend of the Overfiend, Wicked City is definitely not for children and not really for adults either.

"[19] Theron Martin of Anime News Network said that "in all, Wicked City isn't great fare, but if explicit, sexually-charged supernatural action stories appeal to you then it should fit the bill quite nicely.

"[20] Literary critic Susan J. Napier describes the film in her book, Anime From Akira to Princess Mononoke, as having similar depictions of the female body as its contemporaries: objects to be "viewed, violated, tortured" while also being "awesomely powerful, almost unstoppable".

[21] In John Hackett and Sean Harrington's Beasts of the Deep: Sea Creatures and Popular culture, the authors place The Wicked City alongside Hokusai’s octopus prints as re-establishing a link between the maritime and the erotic.