And let me just warn you – they’re pretty stacked.
10. Space Pirate Captain Harlock
It’d be easy to take one look at this show and just call it a poor man’s Cowboy Bebop. However, anything close to Cowboy Bebop is still pretty good. Plus, the show is more than just the sum of its parts. For one, the fact that it visually still holds up (more or less) after four decades has to be admired. Secondly, the story writing is way above what you might expect. The captain is just a downright badass and the rest of the cast is pretty decent as well. And (if you do get invested in the show) there’s a lot of content to consume. With the original series being 42 episodes long and a whole slew of OVAs and movies, you can keep yourself busy.
9. GeGeGe no Kitaro
This is the type of show that can basically take over your life. I can’t really say that it’s for everyone, nor that it’s an easy recommendation. After all, you kind of have to be interested in Japanese folklore in order to get the intended experience. The show deals with yokai and their relationships with humans. The episodes are mostly episodic, but some plot points do get a bit more time to develop. And the characters themselves do grow throughout the entirety of the show. The reason I said the show could easily take over your life is because of just how many episodes there are. Like seriously, you’d be set for at least a few months even if you binged like crazy.
8. Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo
First off, let’s all take a second and recognize the fact that this is the best name for a show in existence. Even just saying it out loud is kind of fun. However, the fun really begins when you boot up the show itself (shocker, I know) – as this anime is insane. The concept sounds like an acid trip. The best kind of acid trip. The evil dudes in this show just want to steal all your hair. And the protagonist is a dude with a golden afro and steel nose hairs. You could see how he’s the antagonist’s worst nightmare – and a bunch of ridiculous situations ensue from this conflict. It’s all just ridiculous and therefore a must-watch.
7. Sailor Moon
It feels weird to put such a GOATed show this low on the list – but TOEI is pretty stacked overall. And of all the iconic IPs under their belt, Sailor Moon had the most issues going into the 21st century. It was the show that popularized the magical girl genre and for a while served as the only popular shoujo series. Actually, it’s probably still THE popular shoujo series. The main cast was absolutely brilliant (with Sailor Moon herself being the biggest mood) and the writing was enticing. Sure, it didn’t have flashy battle sequences, but it never failed to keep your attention.
6. Fist of the North Star
This show walked so that JoJo’s could run (insert Joseph running away GIF). It was macho beyond all belief and gave us some truly iconic moments. For one, it gave us the best audio bit for any fadeaway kill that’s still being used even in 2022. Now that’s some sticking power! Sure, the animation can’t compete with modern shows, but I can’t say that it’s unwatchable either. In fact, it even brings about a nice change of pace visually from your standard modern shows. And if nothing else, you should watch this show for the Kenshiro finishers alone.
5. Welcome to Irabu’s Office
A lot of you have probably never heard of this show – which makes its placing ahead of Sailor Moon and Fist of the North Star quite the hot take. However, I have to give this anime props simply because of how different it is. The story is fully confined to a psychiatrist’s office and each episode tackles a different patient (with an overall connectedness throughout). And the whole experience is just bizarrely hilarious. You never really know what you’re going to get, and the show even has a surprising level of depth.
4. World Trigger
The best way to describe this show is “a shounen for people who don’t like shounen”. I say that because the show absolutely is a shounen – with tons of action throughout. However, it doesn’t have a lot of the tropes shounen is known for. For example, no one is really overpowered. In fact, most battles come down to mental warfare instead of arm-wrestling. You also can’t win just by giving emotional speeches and believing in the heart of the cards. So, definitely a bit more grounded in terms of plot. It has somewhat of a slow start, but by the time you get to the end of season 1, you should be properly hooked.
3. Lovely Complex
I’m a sucker for a good love story. And that’s exactly what Lovely Complex is all about. The premise is rather simple – short king meets tall queen, and they learn how to battle body dysmorphia (and maybe find love along the way, who knows?). The characters are incredibly sympathetic and if you’re also in a position where you’re not happy with your height – you will be relating out of your mind with each episode. Plus, the show definitely has some charm – with the two leads bouncing off each other naturally and creating some pretty hilarious situations.
2. Dragon Ball Z
Dragon Ball Z aged like a fine wine if you ask me. Sure, a modern audience might not have the patience for a fight that spans fifty episodes. However, no one can deny just how hype those fights are! In fact, Gohan vs Cell is objectively still one of the best fights to have ever hit the anime medium (even though it’s literally of drinking age at this point). And certain characters were at their best during this season. Vegeta as a bad guy was always fun, stepdad Piccolo was wholesome, and Android 18 tested a lot of sexualities. Sure, it didn’t have the same stakes and budget as Dragon Ball Super. But this will always be a classic in my book!
1. One Piece
Come on – it’s One Piece. If you know that TOEI made this show, you should’ve already known that it was going to be number one. After all, it somehow managed to captivate an audience for over 23 years, with both the anime and manga still trending on Twitter rather regularly. It has some of the best world-building you’ll ever find, extremely hype fights, and downright iconic scenes that’ll never be short of legendary (nothing happened is my pick). The show still isn’t over. And who knows when this epis saga will finally end. What we do know is that its impact is going to be felt for decades, if not longer.
