Best Superhero Anime

Key Takeaways

• The superhero anime genre expands globally with Japanese mangaka creating their own phenomenal takes amidst Western comic book trend slowdown.
• Satirical and creative postmodern superhero interpretations emerge in anime, blending traditional superhero plotlines with humor and unique twists.
• From iconic classics like
  Astro Boy
  to modern hits like
  My Hero Academia
  , superhero anime continues to evolve with diverse themes and narratives.

Western fans of superheroes have devoured the superhero-themed stories from Marvel and DC in recent years, with many new fans discovering the comics through film and TV show adaptations. Japanese mangaka have created their own phenomenal takes on the genre, and some of the best and most popular have been adapted into anime.

The Superhero genre has gone through some creative postmodern interpretations partly because of the extensive live-action adaptations. Some of the following anime shows and movies are more recent entries in superhero fandom, while others are older shows that have been rediscovered by a curious and resourceful fanbase with the internet at their fingertips.

Updated on November 3, 2024, by Oluwatokiloba Folami: One thing viewers can count on when watching superhero anime is that it captures their imaginations and takes them on an interesting journey of courage, sacrifice, and the eternal struggle between good and evil. These anime not only entertain but also challenge and expand the boundaries of what superhero stories can be, as they are often mixed with other genres like romance, sci-fi, fantasy, and so on, leaving viewers hooked and wanting more. Superhero anime take different routes, as some could be profoundly philosophical, lighthearted, or comedic, each bringing something unique. Whether through the lens of high school students endowed with powers in a world where heroes are as common as civilians like My Hero Academia or through the eyes of ordinary individuals who gain extraordinary abilities and face moral quandaries, superhero anime offers a diverse palette of narratives that reflect both human strengths and vulnerabilities.

25 Love After World Domination

Blends Superhero Action With Romance

• Release Date: April 8, 2022
• Studio: Project No. 9
• Number of Episodes: 12

This superhero anime is mixed with romance, offering viewers a refreshing take on both genres. In Love After World Domination, the Gelato 5 are a group of superheroes who want to save the world from Gekko, the villainous organization responsible for burning half of their world. The Gelato 5 consists of Fudo Aikawa, Hayato Ōjino, Misaki Jingūji, Daigo Todoroki, and Haru Arisugawa, and while they carry out their heroic duties, Fudo and Desumi fall for each other and try to date secretly.

What makes Fudo’s relationship with Desumi controversial and in secret is that Desumi works for Gekko, the villainous organization that Fudo and the remaining Gelato members are trying to take down. Fraternizing with the enemy is often not a good idea, but Fudo and Desumi do not care as they keep on with their duties in their respective but opposite organizations.

24 Tropical-Rouge! Pretty Cure

Middle Schoolers Who Are Also Superheroes

• Release Date: February 8, 2021
• Studio: Toei Animation
• Number of Episodes: 46

Manatsu is excited about her new life as she moves cities to be with her mother. Unknowingly for her, her life is going to be more interesting than what she expected. Manatsu is in a new city, a new school, closer to her mother, and everything is going well. Things start taking a fascinating turn when Manatsu encounters a real-life mermaid, Laura. Laura is looking for a group of warriors, the Pretty Cure, who will fight against the Witch of Delays attacking the Grand Ocean, the land of mermaids.

Manatsu receives power from the sea and becomes the Cure Summer after saving Laura from trouble. As the Cure Summer, she forms the Tropical Rouge! Pretty Cure team after her friends, Sango, Minoru, and Asuka all become cures, and they embark on an adventure to save the Grand Ocean. These superheroes are mere middle school girls, but they sure get the work done as they battle evil forces while participating in their school activities.

23 Fuuto Tantei

Two Detectives Come Together To Form A Superhero

• Release Date: August 8, 2022
• Studio: Studio Kai
• Number of Episodes: 12

This anime is known for fusing two uncommon genres. It blends superhero action with the detective genre, as Shoutarou and Philip are private detectives who come together to act as Kamen Rider W, a superhero who defends and protects the peace of their city, Fuuto. When they are not acting as the Kamen Rider W, they individually work as detectives at the Narumi detective agency, where they take on cases that often intertwine with the darker underbelly of Fuuto, involving criminals and corrupted individuals using Gaia Memories to wreak havoc.

As they try to stop the spread and usage of Gaia Memories, they go deeper into the dark world of people who are putting their world in jeopardy, and they act as Kamen Rider W with other individuals on the side of justice to put an end to the evil that is threatening the peace of their city.

22 Kinnikuman II Sei

Reluctant to Be A Hero

• Release Date: January 9, 2002
• Studio: Toei Animation
• Number of Episodes: 51

Most individuals tend to shy away from physical alteration, and Mantarou does not like the idea of fighting, even though his opponents are villains who are trying to destroy Earth. Mantarou is the son of the powerful king and wrestler, King Suguru, but he is the opposite of his father. King Suguru is a worthy and powerful hero, while his son, Mantarou, is lazy, a coward, and scared of fighting.

Mantarou has to put on his big boy’s pants and fight against the villains as his father is nowhere to be found. This anime takes viewers on an inspiring and action-packed journey as Mantarou grows from being a cowardly boy to a worthy hero as the Muscle League, a group of wrestlers, recruits and trains him to be prepared for his inevitable fight with the villains.

21 One-Punch Man

Showcases A Hero Who Can Defeat Any Opponent With One Punch

Saitama, the main character of One-Punch Man, is the most powerful superhero ever. That’s the premise of this show, which relies on satire to tell the story of a kindly but bored superhero in a whole world already choked with heroes.

Even though it pokes fun at the genre, it still has a lot of inspirational messages and borrows some typical plotlines that tend to get recycled in stories about superheroes. All Saitama asks for is a foe that’s worthy of him, which is a lot to ask when you can take out literally anyone with only one punch. The clever satire is one of the reasons this fairly recent entry is one of the best superhero anime in the history of the genre.

20 Hurricane Polymar

A Private Investigator Who Transforms To A Superhero

• Release Date: Oct 4, 1974
• Studio: Tatsunoko Productions
• Number of Episodes: 26

A vintage title that still has a lot of charm in the modern era, anime fans will see echoes of more current shows that use a similar template. The main character, Yoroi Takeshi, spends his days as a seemingly carefree young man who works for a bumbling private investigator in his spare time. The truth is that he’s really the superhero Hurricane Polymar, transformed and given superpowers by his special helmet.

This is one of the earliest examples of anime in any form, let alone the superhero genre. If you have trouble finding the original version, which was never released in DVD form, an OVA remake was released in 1997 and distributed by Urbane Vision in the US.

19 R.O.D The TV

Heroes Who Can Manipulate Paper

• Release Date: October 1, 2003
• Studio: J.C.Staff and Studio Deen
• Number of Episodes: 26

Bibliophiles and superhero fans alike will appreciate this quirky show, which features three sisters and their powers of paper manipulation. If this was a D&D subclass, it would be something like a Papermage or a Writing Warlock, and it’s interesting and entertaining to see how powerful Michelle, Maggie, and Anita can be by manipulating what seems like a mundane item.

The plot of this 26-episode series follows their adventures as bodyguards for a prominent Japanese writer. The show’s name, R.O.D. The TV, is an acronym related to the titles of the manga and light novels from which the series was adapted; “Read or Die” and “Read or Dream.” It’s unconventional but a great choice for a unique type of superhero anime.

18 Samurai Pizza Cats

Crime Fighting Cat Heroes

• Release Date: February 1, 1990
• Studio: Tatsunoko Productions
• Number of Episodes: 52

A fun and cute show that was localized for kids back in the day, this superhero anime was way ahead of its time. It played on the topic of heroes with less than heroic personalities, with the main inspiration being a parody of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles show, but the satire, jokes, and parody elements were mostly lost on the target audience.

The whole idea of a superhero show combined with comedy was also new at the time. For those who enjoy modern Marvel shows and films that also include quips and laughs, Samurai Pizza Cats is the ideal superhero anime, especially if the viewer likes the classic stuff.

17 Sailor Moon

From Teenagers To Superheroes

These beautiful soldiers are known for their fabulous footwear, and their leader, Sailor Moon, was deliberately drawn with distinct red boots as a shout-out to Superman. Sailor Moon not only defined the beautiful girl genre for a generation, but it also gave us a whole team of all-female superheroes and a serialized animated drama, a concept that was still rare in North American cartoons.

Sailor Moon is so popular that it commands a massive merchandising and media empire that’s still making money decades after the original show first aired and remains one of the world’s favorite anime superheroes. New fans can enjoy the Sailor Moon Crystal remakes that follow the manga along with the original series, which had a unique storyline.

16 Powerpuff Girls Z

Crime Fighting Sisters

• Release Date: July 1, 2006
• Studio: Toei Animation
• Number of Episodes: 52

Powerpuff Girls Z is more of a remake than a reboot, as many of the major plot points in the original show are absent. Powerpuff Girls Z loses the detail of the main characters being sisters and gives them different personalities and powers than their Cartoon Network counterparts.

What stays the same is the theme of superheroes, and whereas the older show was a satire this one takes fighting crime and saving the world more seriously. It’s told using the magical girl aesthetic, with each hero having a special power and corresponding weapon, typical features of hero anime as if it had come from Japan in the first place.

15 Astro Boy

Robotic Hero

• Release Date: October 1, 1980
• Studio: Tezuka Productions
• Number of Episodes: 52

A vintage classic that many fans report was the first anime they ever saw on local television, AstroBoy not only revived the superhero genre but also defined the aesthetic that would come to be known as “anime.” It was one of the first cartoons to air on Japanese television in the 1960s, and the version most North American viewers are familiar with was the second series, which is a full-color remake of the original.

AstroBoy touches on several different genres that have a healthy international fan base, like science fiction and young adult, which is one of the reasons it’s so universally popular and remains a popular superhero anime. The face of the main character is as iconic as other figures like Mickey Mouse or the golden arches of MacDonald’s.

14 Samurai Flamenco

Showcases The Protagonist’s Naivety Towards Heroism

• Release Date: October 18, 2013
• Studio: Manglobe
• Number of Episodes: 22

The 22 episodes that encompass Samurai Flamenco include an interesting twist. The premise when the story begins is that superheroes and their powers don’t exist, and the audience assumes that as sweet as Masayoshi Hazama is to dream of becoming a superhero, it’s nothing more than a fantasy.

However, expectations are neatly subverted when the male model dons a costume and starts to fight crime when he’s not posing for the cameras. When the story turns fantastic, and malevolent creatures appear that aren’t supposed to exist, will a real superhero be able to fight them?

13 Microsuperman

Microscopic Hero Who Fights The Unseen Bacteria That Are Threats To Human

• Release Date: 7 April 1973
• Studio: Toei Animation
• Number of Episodes: 26

A classic from the early 1970s, the original manga was entitled Microid S and ran from March to September 1973. The anime adaptation of Microsuperman consisted of 26 episodes and ran from April to October of the same year, following the early tradition of the TV show running concurrently with the comic books.

The title of the anime calls back to Superman, but this is more like Ant-Man because the main characters are the size of and take on the power of insects. The hero is Yanma the Dragonfly Man, the leader of the Microids, and his allies include Butterfly Girl and Beetle Boy.

12 Marvel Future Avengers

Integrates Iconic Marvel Heroes Into Anime

• Release Date: July 22, 2017
• Studio: Madhouse
• Number of Episodes: 26

A collaboration of Madhouse and Disney Japan, this is a fun superhero anime to watch just for the visuals no matter what, and like their conventional counterparts, they also had a comic book before they appeared on film.

Marvel Future Avengers tells the story of three teenagers raised and trained by Hydra to use their powers against the Avengers. After their first mission, however, they start to doubt the narrative they’ve been told and one of them manages to reach Tony Stark and ask for help. The plotline of the first season is about how the protagonists, with the help of the Avengers, free themselves from Hydra and help defeat their evil plan.

11 Heroman

Shy Boy To Confident Hero With A Giant Robot By His Side

• Release Date: April 1, 2010
• Studio: Bones
• Number of Episodes: 26

As if any further confirmation were needed that the superhero anime genre has entered the satirical age, here’s a selection that makes fun of the genre while relying on its most notorious tropes. The producers and creators at Bones Studio, the Japanese company that created Heroman, brought it full circle by including Stan Lee as a writer, and he created the basic premise of the series.

It’s simple, classic superhero material, focusing on a normal kid who ends up with a toy that has extraordinary powers, mainly that it turns into a big giant robot. The two of them have to face a group of malicious aliens that a local science teacher has accidentally summoned to Earth.

10 Beast King GoLion

Space Explorers Tasked With Restoring Pece To The Universe

• Release Date: March 4th, 1981
• Studio: Toei Animation
• Number of Episodes: 52

In Japanese, the full name of Beast King GoLion is Hyakujuu-Ou GoLion, and North American audiences will know it as Voltron: Defender of the Universe. When the series was localized into English by Peter Keefe in 1983, he changed some of the plot and characters to make it more appropriate for children, and the show enjoyed more popularity in the US than in Japan in the mid-1980s.

GoLion is the name of a giant sentient robot who lives on ancient Earth, and angers a celestial being with his power and arrogance. As GoLion’s punishment, he is broken into five lion-shaped pieces and hidden across the globe. In the year 1999, humans returned from space to a planet ravaged by nuclear war, and they can only save humanity by reassembling GoLion.

9 Tentai Senshi Sunred

Rude And Unconventional Hero

• Release Date: October 3, 2009
• Studio: AIC A.S.T.A.
• Number of Episodes: 26

Can a superhero ever retire? Is that possible, or do they just grow bored and useless, living off their girlfriend and using nicotine as a food group while their enemies harass them via cooking shows? Tentai Senshi Sunred is a story about the latter, an anime about a character who’s done with being a superhero.

It’s part of a genre referred to as light parody, and it takes place in a modern setting that could be any Japanese city. The hero, Sunred, has long since sold his “superbike” and now has to deal with his sworn enemies, the Evil Florsheim Army, in mundane everyday situations.

8 My Hero Academia

Showcases A World Where Individuals Are Born With Special Abilities

Here’s a twist on the superhero genre. The story doesn’t just play with the whole idea of origin stories, it also has some creative ideas regarding the nature of superpowers. In the universe of My Hero Academia, superpowers are called “Quirks” and everyone has a different one.

My Hero Academia isn’t the story of a superhero trying to exist in a world of normal people. Izuku Midoriya, the hero of our story, is born into a world of superheroes, but he has no powers. Izuku still dreams of becoming a superhero, and he is eventually recruited by the inspirational All Might and sent to a prestigious high school for superheroes in training.

7 Cyborg 009: Call Of Justice

Cyborgs Who Use Their Powers For Good

• Release Date: 2017
• Studio: Production I.G, Sanzigen
• Number of Episodes: 12

This isn’t a series but a film compilation that consists of three movies, which compile, update, and continue a story that’s been in circulation for more than half a century. The first Cyborg 009 comics were released in 1964 and their popularity fueled a series that lasted for decades until concluding in 1981.

Cyborg 009: Call of Justice recalls the history and lore of this universe while telling yet another unique story, which means fans of both drama and superheroes will like it. How do superheroes live with the aftermath of their actions, and do their missions ever really end?

6 Guyver: The Bioboosted Armor

Bio Enhanced Superhero

• Release Date: August 6, 2005
• Studio: OLM
• Number of Episodes: 26

A must for fans of mecha or big giant robot anime, the original manga, Bio Booster Armor Guyver, is the real star of this story. The manga encompasses 60 volumes, and Guyver: The Bioboosted Armor only goes up to ten volumes. The plot contains healthy amounts of both mecha and body horror, and there is also a saga that includes genetically engineered soldiers.

When the Chronos Corporation loses several of their experimental Guyver suits, teenager Shō Fukamachi finds them and merges with the armor, essentially giving him superhuman abilities. In a classic superhero anime plotline, Shō must defeat the evil corporate entity and rescue the woman he loves.