The genre of shonen anime is mainly responsible for the plethora of anime fans today. Over the past few years, Japanese animation has only grown more popular with Western audiences, and shonen anime has mostly been the starting point. So, here are the 15 greatest shonen anime ever released, ranked.
15 – Jujutsu Kaisen
Jujutsu Kaisen is still a relatively new shonen anime series compared to other entries on this list. With the manga only recently ending and the anime only having two seasons, it’s hard to gauge the impact and legacy the series will have in the coming years. However, just by looking at the high-quality production of the anime and the level of storytelling on display, it’s easy to put Jujutsu Kaisen towards the bottom of the list.
Characters like Satoru Gojo and Yuji Itadori make for memorable protagonists, and the power system of cursed energy and techniques keeps things exciting and intensely spiritual. The Jujutsu Kaisen anime is a lot more gritty and intense than its current counterparts, making it a refreshing and visceral series with some of the best action sequences of modern-day Shonen.
14 – One Punch Man
One Punch Man is another recently released shonen anime. However, it more than lives up to the genre’s conventions by subverting them. What happens when your main character can win any fight with just a single punch? That’s the creative premise, focusing on the titular character, Saitama, as he tries to find meaning and purpose through fights with the toughest possible villains he can find.
One Punch Man is equally humorous and engaging, as the shonen anime tries to make fights as creative as possible, with a bevy of different heroes and villains serving as obstacles before Saitama ends conflicts with a single punch. Don’t be fooled, though — despite his fights only lasting a single punch (or maybe two if the opponent is really powerful), the animation done by Madhouse studio is some of the best seen in a Shonen Anime, making One Punch Man more than worthy of placing on this list.
13 – Hunter x Hunter
Hunter x Hunter is a classic shonen anime that stands out from the rest on this list because of its intricate world-building and power systems. Moreover, it can sometimes feel like most shonen anime are too straightforward, with central characters striving for more strength and power for surface-level reasons or shallow purposes. That isn’t the case with the series created by Yoshihiro Togashi, which boasts an impressive depth with its characters and narrative, making the adventure of the cast feel like it has a real purpose.
Moreover, fights in shonen anime must be remarkable, as there are already hundreds of titles within the genre. Thankfully, Hunter x Hunter more than lives up to the hype with overly complicated and highly strategic battles that make every strike have a distinct purpose. Hunter x Hunter is an incredibly special shonen anime and manga
12 – Naruto
Naruto is one of the “Big Three” always referenced when it comes to shonen anime and manga. Along with One Piece and Bleach, Naturo is often considered a cornerstone in the genre and a gateway series for many fans unfamiliar with Japanese animation. There are several reasons for that, with one of the main ones being its compelling cast of characters, specifically its antagonists.
The anime also has engaging backstories for characters besides the main one of Naruto Uzumaki —for example, antagonists like Itachi and Pain. Shonen anime could easily make their villains one-dimensional to get on with the series’ fights, but Naruto doesn’t do that. Instead, the anime carefully constructs the motivations and backstories of villains that seamlessly integrate into the worldbuilding, resulting in some of the most emotional and impactful fights a shonen anime could offer.
11 – Haikyu!!
Haikyu is a phenomenal sports anime that channels all the best parts of shonen into a story about volleyball. While the expectations of a shonen anime are larger-than-life fights and power systems, that isn’t always the case. Haikyu shows that a story as simple as a high school volleyball team trying to win games can also have intense shonen tropes translated into everyday conflicts and rivalries that regular people can relate to.
Sports are well suited to the shonen genre, and the stories of characters like Shoyo Hinata are given the development they deserve, which helps to make the matches that happen on the volleyball court hit as hard as they do.
10 – Gintama
Gintama is a groundbreaking shonen anime primarily due to how every colorful character is allowed to develop. Every relationship means something and even bit characters used for humor are essential in their own way. The episodic nature of this Shonen is also used to its fullest capability. While some iconic Shonen drags on with filler and the episodic format can sometimes slow the story’s pace, Gintama uses the story structure to play with genre conventions and its tone. The comedic and dramatic episodes are cleverly interweaved to create moving stories.
Gintama is also a shonen that has something for everyone. One episode of Gintama could focus on a giant mecha fight, and before you know it, the next episode is playing out like a hard-boiled detective noir akin to something like Cowboy Bebop. The range of genres shows the team behind Gintama‘s immense respect for genres of classic stories and always keeps viewers guessing.
9 – Death Note
It’s hard to think of a shonen anime as intense or dark as Death Note. The series is as iconic as they get, spawning live-action adaptations and numerous references throughout all facets of pop culture. The story follows Light Yagami, a genius high school student who stumbles upon the Death Note, which he then decides to use to try and use on people whom he deems criminals for the sake of a crime-free world.
Death Note asks thought-provoking questions, putting its characters in intense moral quandaries that only fuel the exhilarating cat-and-mouse game between Light and L, a renowned Detective investigating the deaths caused by the Death Note. This shonen anime stands out from the rest because of how it chooses to put its mental battles on display much more than physical ones, all while telling a philosophical and thought-provoking story.
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8 – Slam Dunk
Slam Dunk is another sports anime that uses all the tropes in shonen anime and applies them to the world of high school basketball. Created by the legendary Takehiko Inoue of Vagabond fame, Slam Dunk creates beautifully realized characters, each with their aspirations, struggles, and strengths, that each uses to bring the very best to their basketball team.
While the anime isn’t a complete adaptation of the famous manga, the retro ’90s series fantastically brings the characters to life, which is the most crucial part. The older animation has its charm, and the comedy aspects of the anime have also aged surprisingly well. Of course, there’s also The First Slam Dunk, the anime film released in the U.S. in 2023 that serves as a companion piece to both the anime and manga and is easily one of the best sports anime movies of all time.
7 – Jojo’s Bizzare Adventure
Jojo’s Bizzare Adventure is an anime bolstered by Hirohiko Araki’s unique art style from the manga. The shonen anime features all the dynamic poses, eccentric character designs, and vivid nature of the manga. Moreover, this is a shonen anime that is distinctive because of the unique power sets of Stands. The manifestation of a character’s fighting resolve/spirit is as shonen as it gets, and given that each character in Jojo’s is so wholly different from one another, each fight and encounter in the Bizzare Adventure feels fresh and exciting.
Jojo’s Bizzare Adventure is also easily the funniest of the shonen anime on this list. It is filled with a level of irreverence and camp that, when paired with over-the-top dialogue and comedic timing, makes this anime one of the most memorable on this list.
6 – Gurren Lagann
There aren’t many mecha anime like Gurren Lagann. Featuring plenty of high-octane robot fights and robotic transformations, it’s easy to be in awe of the dazzling fights on display. However, looking at the anime on a deeper level, there’s a heartfelt story of brotherhood, trauma, and learning to move on with your life despite devastating losses. Gurren Lagann grounds its fantastical storytelling in surprising moments of humanity.
The lore behind the mechs that appear in most fights in the series also serves to build the characters’ relationships. Gurren Lagann feels real despite the high-concept sci-fi because its characters don’t stay stagnant like in most shonen. There’s growth that makes the journey feel worthwhile, and also an absolutely incredible soundtrack that ranges from operatic to hip-hop.
5 – Bleach
Bleach is another one of the Big Three, created by Tite Kubo. However, it stands apart from the other two titles that share the mantle because of the unique situation surrounding its anime adaptation. While Naruto has ended and One Piece is ongoing, Bleach’s anime adaptation took a hiatus following poor reception and decreasing popularity. The series has been overlooked in the past years and should be more popular, especially since the anime has been revitalized to adapt the series’s final arc: The Thousand Year Blood War.
Bleach’s newest season features stunning animation and continues to showcase the clever and creative worldbuilding established by Tite Kubo in the manga. The show has all the makings of an iconic shonen anime: giant swords, ridiculous power scaling, colorful villains, and some of the most intense fights you’ve ever seen.
4 – Attack on Titan
Attack on Titan was more than just a shonen anime. It was a cultural phenomenon whose mystery box of a story enthralled fans who weren’t even interested in anime to begin with. The character of Eren Yeager is as prototypical as shonen anime protagonists come, but his story arc throughout five seasons is anything but expected. Attack on Titan is darker than most, with intense themes that deal with real-world issues.
That doesn’t stop the anime from having insane fight scenes involving Titans. Attack on Titan has its cake and eats it, too. It delivers highly choreographed action sequences driven by politically charged story points that speak to the human condition and the prejudice one can develop from upbringing. Attack on Titan is as heavy as a story can get, but that doesn’t stop it from being one of the best Shonen anime ever released.
3 – Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood
Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood was the second attempt to adapt the hit manga, and it didn’t disappoint. Brotherhood plays out like a political thriller, with one conspiracy after another fueling the story of two brothers on a quest to make themselves whole again. In between all the intricate exposition and impressive worldbuilding involving Alchemy, Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood pulls out all the stops with fights that combine traditional hand-to-hand combat with Alchemy, making the action stand out more than any other anime on this list.
Studio Bones clearly put their all into every tiny detail of every fight in Brotherhood, making this shonen anime considered one of the best of all time, especially as it is almost constantly in the #1 spot on MyAnimeList, the premier website for anime fans to rate and share their opinions on all genres of anime. Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood is a genre-defining series that any anime fan should watch.
2 – Dragon Ball Z
Without Akira Toriyama, it’s very possible that we wouldn’t have shonen anime as it is today. The late mangaka was a trailblazer, and his Dragon Ball manga, which was eventually turned into an anime, would help to bolster the popularity of not just Japanese Animation but the medium in general. The stories of Son Goku and his enemies turned friendly rivals such as Piccolo, Vegeta, and more as they battle it out in a variety of tournaments never get old thanks to the distinct art style and intense fights that have just the right amount of build-up.
While Dragon Ball can sometimes seem repetitive, it deserves one of the top spots on this list because the story structure and stakes it established for the Z fighters would be used as the blueprint for countless shonen that would follow. Between Goku’s Spirit Bomb and the Father-Son Kamehameha between Gohan and Goku during the Cell Games, there are plenty of cathartic and unforgettable moments that set Dragon Ball apart from everything else on this list.
1 – One Piece
Eiichiro Oda’s long-running shonen manga is rivaled only by the anime that adapts it. One Piece is, without a doubt, the greatest shonen anime of all time. Toei Animation has recently taken the past few seasons of the anime to a whole other level, with the epic conclusion to the Wano Country Saga and the introduction of Gear 5 breaking the internet and crashing streaming services because of the hype surrounding it.
One Piece has an incredible (and long) story, and the anime never skips a beat— in fact, most of the time, it expounds on the story and character beats of the manga. It creates a whole new way to experience the story of Pirates, government corruption, and the ultimate quest for freedom. One Piece has everything from pulse-pounding fights to extremely detailed world-building for every new island and profound themes of class struggle that are still resonant to this day.
And that’s the 15 greatest shonen anime ever released, ranked.
Published: Oct 1, 2024 12:59 pm