The 10 Best Anime Shows Ranked

Anime has evolved a lot over the years. From the original big three anime that we grew up with (Naruto, Bleach and One Piece), to even older shows like Dragonball, today, Anime has gone mainstream. But what are the 10 best anime shows you should watch?

#10 Bleach

One of the big three anime that helped establish anime as a mainstream medium here in the US, anime fans who grew up in the 2000s will be familiar with this often controversial anime pick. What really stands out about Bleach first and foremost is the artwork. In fact, the actual manga volumes themselves are worth reading because of how beautifully they are illustrated.

This fantastic artwork is well translated into the show, especially the earlier seasons. Where it stalls, however, is in regards to storytelling. After the first major arc, Bleach pretty much just recycles the plot for each subsequent arc.

For this reason, the anime was unceremoniously canceled before it finished its final seasons. But Bleach fans rejoice! Shonen Jump has confirmed that Bleach will be returning to the screen for its 17th and final season!

It could be that after so much time away, fans will come rushing back for the final season – making it its most successful run yet.

#9 Naruto & Naruto Shippuden

Naruto is not without its share of flaws. An almost insurmountable number of fillers, and an overly fan servicing final arc are the two main problems that come to mind at first. Still, the show did a ton to pave the way to anime mainstream fandom that we now have today, and an entire generation of fans basically grew up watching Naruto’s journey to become Hokage.

If you are going to tackle this size-able anime, make sure you find a good filler guide so you can skip the them – the main storyline is long and satisfying enough. Two of the best arcs include the Pain arc and the Land of Waves arc.

#8 Dragon Ball Z

Dragon Ball Z is the godfather of Shonen anime. Without it, shows like Naruto, One Piece and Bleach just wouldn’t have been possible. It establishes the Shonen hero journey that we all know so well now – one that was leveraged by shows like Naruto and others time and time again. The show itself is also epic, and that combined with its lasting impact on anime earns its rightful place on this list.

#7 Vinland Saga

Vinland Saga contrasts well with Dragon Ball Z. Whereas Dragon Ball Z established anime tropes, Vinland Saga shows us where anime can go, now that it has a very established viewer base. No longer relegated to massive battles between heroes and villains, Vinland Saga retells historic tales from the Viking Age through the eyes of a young Icelander.

Much more historically accurate than History Channel’s Vikings, Vinland Saga appeals to many of the fans of the former show now that it has reached its end. It is a truly immersive blend of great storytelling, fantastic art, and stellar fight scenes that surely rank among the top fight scenes of all time.

As an anime, Vinland Saga is still very, very young. But we still have great things to see past season one.

#6 Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood

Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood is quite unique. It doesn’t really follow the typical tropes of a Shonen anime like the “big three” that dominated the magazine back in the day. However, what it does do incredibly well is tell a unique and compelling story about two brothers who made a grave error at a young age and are seeking redemption. A case study in successful world building, Full Metal Alchemist’s world is very well thought out, balancing well between complexity and simplicity, much in the same way that Avatar the Last Airbender did.

Additionally, FMAB is a fantastic moral tale, and has a truly fantastic ending – making the show a cohesive whole from beginning until end.

#5 Attack on Titan

Attack on Titan blew fans away when it first aired those many years ago. It came during the era of Game of Thrones when fans were enthralled with shows that would often kill off main characters, giving the feeling that basically nobody was safe.

What’s more, the action animation in AOT was the likes of which we hadn’t really seen before. All of that coupled with a compelling plot and a feeling of utter dread that persisted throughout the first season of the show created a worldwide phenomenon.

The show has just finished the first part of the final season, so fans won’t have to wait long for the epic conclusion.

Read this list of the 10 strongest characters in AOT

#4 Violet Evergarden

Just when you think interesting, story driven anime have reached their zenith, a new one comes along that totally blows you away. Violet Evergarden is one of those shows. With beautiful artwork and a gripping tale of remorse, loss and redemption, Evergarden will pull at your heartstrings all the way until the ambiguous ending. The only thing wrong with this show is the fact that season 2 can’t come out soon enough.

#3 Death Note

Death Note is a fantastic show with arguably the most compelling plot in all of anime for the first 2/3rds of the show. Unlike most shows in the world of anime that frequently veer of course in order to extend their story across several episodes, Death Note tells one cohesive narrative, only breaking from its frenetic and thrilling pace after the first two thirds of the run. Then, a really controversial and tragic thing happens in the plot that causes the show to lose a little bit of steam. Still, even when the show is a little bit slower during its final few episodes, it is still telling a cohesive story, and setting up a fantastic finale that certainly does the show justice.

If the story had kept up the same level of intensity that we saw in the first two thirds of the show, Death Note could very well have ended up not only at the top of this list, but of most anime lists out there.

#2 Cowboy Bebop

Many consider Cowboy Bebop to be the greatest anime show of all time. And it certainly is great. And when it is at its best (Ballad of Fallen Angels for example), no one does it any better. However, the only thing that this show lacks is a story driven, cohesive plot throughout. Instead what we get is a more episodic show that only really contains narrative driven episodes every several episodes. It’s during these few, scant episodes that the plot is really driven along. The rest of the time, you are really just along for whatever zany adventure Spike and company get themselves into.

Although Cowboy Bebop makes for an intense and emotional first watch and it undeniably has had a lasting legacy on anime as a whole, the scattered, episodic style of the show can be a little challenging for rewatches.

#1 Samurai Champloo

Made from the same studio that we have to thank for Bebop, Champloo follows a very similar pattern to its ancestor. It contains a cast of characters thrown together by chance who are mostly strangers. We only learn about them through brief flashbacks.

However, where this show fares better than Bebop is mostly due to the fact that there is more of a plot. Instead of bounty hunters drifting aimlessly through space (which is also the charm of Bebop) we get a group of characters on a very linear quest – to find the samurai who smells of sunflowers.

Thanks to the more linear plot, Champloo is little easier to follow than Bebop. Also, the legendary action animation that helped make Bebop what it is also powers this anime, making for some of the greatest sword fight scenes in all of anime fandom.