Animehas never been bigger than it has been in the past few years. Thanks to the advent of streaming and the general uptick in quality for major productions, it’s been easier than ever for people to watch anime and have fun doing it, and that’s led to the entire medium being the most popular and mainstream it’s been since the 90s and 2000s.
Now’s one of the best times for a person to be an anime fan, especially with the wide variety of options afforded to them. With how popular and affordable streaming has become in recent years, it’s easier than ever for people to stream old and new anime alike at their convenience, and as a result,anime fans old and new are in a perfect place to watch some of thebest anime a person can watch. A few of those anime especially stand out, as any anime fan would be remiss to pass up a single one of them.
J.C.Staff’sAzumanga Daiohis a slice-of-life anime centered around five—later six—girls and their two teachers across three years of high school. Unlike other slice-of-life anime, which tend to involve romance or have some gimmick behind why the main characters associate with each other,Azumanga Daiohfeatures nothing of the sort and is focused solely on the daily lives of the cast.
While the anime never has anything particularly deep to say,Azumanga Daiohexcels through its great comedy and character writing, all of which more than hold up over 20 years later. The series is one of the oldest examples of the “cute girls doing cute things” subgenre of anime, and that alone makes it a great one to watch.
CloverWorks’Bocchi the Rock!stars Hitori Gotoh, a girl with crippling social anxiety who’s suddenly recruited to be the new guitarist in the band Kessoku Band. Now, as Hitori—now with the nickname Bocchi—commits herself to the band, she’ll find herself slowly but surely gaining the exact life she hoped for.
In addition to having some of the most gorgeous and creative visuals in modern anime,Bocchi the Rock!’s great comedy, combined with its surprisingly heartfelt narrative about social anxiety, always makes it fun to watch. It’s one of the biggest anime to come out of the 2020s, and withBocchi the Rock!season 2 officially in development, there’s plenty more in store for old and new fans alike.
Madhouse’sMonsterstars Kenzo Tenma, a brain surgeon working in Germany who rose to success after the sudden deaths of the people who tried to railroad him for prioritizing a child over the now-deceased mayor. As it turns out, the one responsible for those deaths was that child, Johan Liebert, who has since grown up to be a murderous sociopath, and now Tenma has taken it upon himself to bring Johan to justice and uncover the massive conspiracy behind his existence.
Monsteris one of the best crime dramas in and out of animationthat gets the most out of its story at every turn. It’s the most iconic work of legendaryseinenauthor Naoki Urasawa, and it’s the best anime for anyone looking for something dark and down-to-earth.
Madhouse’sFrieren: Beyond Journey’s Endstars Frieren, the virtually unaging elf mage of the adventurer party that defeated the demon lord. While Frieren initially didn’t think much of her time with everyone, the death of the Hero, Himmel, made her realize how much she cared about them, and her regret over letting Himmel die without seeing that pushes Frieren to go on a new journey to learn how to better understand people.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s Endhas some of the most gorgeous visuals and animation of any anime to come out in recent years, with every episode filled with beautiful scenery and camerawork for every scene. The series was quick to take the world by storm during its run, and the popularity it’s gained is unlikely to fade anytime soon.
In Shaft’sPuella Magi Madoka Magica, after a chance encounter with a monster called a Witch, Madoka Kaname learns of the existence of magic and, of course, magical girls. Kyubey, the creature who oversees the magical girls, offers Madoka a chance to become one, herself, and help protect her home from Witches, and as Madoka ponders over the decision, she quickly discovers that being a magical girl is nowhere near as good as Kyubey first made it out to be.
Not only are the visuals some of the best in all of anime, butPuella Magi Madoka Magica’s dark and deconstructive take on the magical girl genre makes for deep and poignant writing from start to finish. It’s one of thebest magical girl animesomeone can watch, and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon.
Studio Pierrot’sBleachstars Ichigo Kurosaki, a boy whose strange ability to see ghosts leads to him learning about Soul Reapers, the guardians of the afterlife, and the bloodthirsty monsters they protect people from called Hollows. When a Hollow puts his family in danger, Ichigo is forced to become a substitute Soul Reaper to protect them, and that begins a constant series of battles to protect Ichigo’s loved ones old and new, in addition to the entire world.
Bleachis an anime that always gets to the core of what makes a goodshonenanime with its stylish characters and fight scenes, all of which have been brought to their peak in its recent revival,Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War.Bleachis known as one of the“Big 3” ofshonenanime, and it more than deserves that stellar reputation.
Bones’Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhoodis the remake of the originalFullmetal Alchemistanime from the early 2000s. The series has the same basic plot of the Elric brothers looking for the Philosopher’s Stone to get their bodies back, but unlike the original anime,Brotherhooddoesn’t diverge from the manga and adapts the entire story from start to finish.
It’s one thing forBrotherhood’s animation to be just as good as the original anime’s, butthe decision to properly adapt the manga’s story allowedFullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhoodto boast one of the best stories in all of anime from start to finish. It’s a series often heralded as one of the best anime of all time, and overall, it’s easy to see why.
The world of Sunrise’sCowboy Beboprevolves around the enigmatic, intergalactic bounty hunters known as Cowboys. Series protagonist Spike Spiegel is one of these Cowboys, and the anime chronicles his and the rest of the crew of theBebop’s adventures around the galaxy as they hunt down bounties and occasionally confront their sordid pasts.
Cowboy Bebopis another anime often heralded as one of the best anime of all time, and sure enough,Cowboy Bebopmore than earns its stellar reputation thanks to its gorgeous animation, dramatic storytelling, and incredible soundtrack courtesy of Yoko Kanno. Fewsingle-season animehave left as big a mark asCowboy Bebop, and overall, it’s easy to see why.
Naruto
Studio Pierrot’sNarutostars Naruto Uzumaki, an aspiring ninja who’s spent his entire life ostracized by his peers for being the vessel to the ferocious Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. Naruto seeks to become the next Hokage, the leader of his ninja village, and earn everyone’s respect, and his quest to do so puts him at the center of one major conflict after another until it falls on him to save the entire world.
As another member of the “Big 3” ofshonenanime,Narutois one of the best anime a person can watch because of its fun cast and engaging story complemented by consistently gorgeous fight scenes. Few anime are as iconic asNaruto, and with over 20 years of content to digest, there’s plenty to keep someone engaged for years to come.
Gurren Lagann
Cast
Gurren Lagann is an anime series set in a future where humans live in underground villages. The story follows Simon and Kamina, who break free to the surface and pilot the titular mecha to fight against oppressive forces.
In Studio Trigger’sTengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, humanity has been forced to live underground for centuries under the threat of murder by the Spiral King. When Simon discovers a mysterious robot called a Gunmen, however, he and his blood brother Kamina end up joining humanity’s fight against the Spiral King, and Simon’s part in it all has him grow into a man that can take on not only the world, but the entire universe.
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagannis the perfect embodiment of Studio Trigger’s work thanks to how effortlessly it combines gorgeous visuals with bombasticand surprisingly heartfelt writing. It’s one of the best mecha anime a person can watch, and any fans of the genre would be remiss to pass it up.
