Best Shonen Adventure Manga With No Anime, Ranked

Summary

• Shonen Adventure manga like Heart Gear, Psyche Matashitemo, and Takopi’s Original Sin offer unique and compelling storylines.
• Despite not having anime adaptations, these manga, ranked by MyAnimeList, delve into themes of identity, psychic powers, and spreading happiness.
• Stories like Kagurabachi and Destroy All Humankind combine swordsmanship, magic, and card games to create intricate worlds worth exploring.

Shonen series such as Bleach, Hunter x Hunter, and Dragon Ball are most popularly known for their exciting stories, brilliant battles, and character development. Although the shonen umbrella can fall into different types of storytelling, none is more covered than the shonen adventure. Groups of characters take on missions or venture out on expeditions with the purpose of finding an answer to their problem, getting tangled up in intense fights, or simply finding a treasure at the end of the road.

This branch of shonen can also cover different elements, like supernatural powers (My Hero Academia), science and magic (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood), and demonic fantasy (Demon Slayer). Unfortunately, not every shonen adventure series gets the privilege of receiving an anime adaptation, and many excellent manga series have been left on the bookshelves, forcing fans to turn the pages of many chapters to get the full story.

This list of popular shonen adventure manga will be ranked based on their score from MyAnimeList (MAL). Every manga is rated with a score of 1 to 10, and even some of the best manga that come close to a perfect 10 have yet to get their chance on the television screen. Whether it’s the cost of turning a manga into an anime experience or the lack of popularity compared to some of the big hitters, here are the best shonen adventure manga that are still without an anime offering.

9

Heart Gear

MyAnimeList Score: 7.42

• Written and illustrated by Tsuyoshi Takagi.
• 7 Volumes, 53 Chapters.
• Published: April 3, 2019, to June 26, 2024.

Set in a post-apocalyptic world where humanity’s existence is on the brink of extinction, Heart Gear follows a young girl named Tetsu, who is a skilled mechanic, and her droid friend, Zett. Their dynamic is turned upside down after Lu accidentally activates Chrome, a gear without a base program. Together, the trio form an unlikely bond as they encounter attacks from enemy gears, while Lu’s mysterious background comes to light.

Heart Gear explores several themes, including identity, purpose, and the nature of humanity through its characters’ interactions and growth. Though they wish to live a peaceful and humble life, Lu, Zett, and Chrome face constant complications with gears that wish to destroy humanity, while Zett battles with his own kind to preserve it.

8

Psyche Matashitemo

MyAnimeList Score: 7.42

• Written and illustrated by Tsubasa Fukuchi.
• 15 Volumes, 142 Chapters.
• Published: July 9, 2014, to December 26, 2018.

In a normal life, middle-schooler Saike could lack all the ambition in the world and not think about his future without having to worry about the repercussions. Unfortunately, Psyche Matashitemo isn’t your every-day type of adventure shonen, and Saike’s minimalistic approach to achieving any dream is sent on a spiral as he witnesses his one and only friend lose her life in an accident.

Such a trauma could affect any person of any age, but this young student is struck with such grief that he develops a psychic power that has the ability to turn back time by one day. In a butterfly effect style of storytelling, Saike must go back in time to alert his friend of her demise while simultaneously avoiding altering anything that could affect their future.

7

Takopi’s Original Sin

MyAnimeList Score: 7.65

• Written and illustrated by Taizan 5.
• 2 Volumes, 16 Chapters.
• Published: December 10, 2021, to March 25, 2022.

After landing on Earth from his home, Happy Planet, the alien creature known as Happian aims to spread happiness across the planet and bring a smile to the faces of everyone he encounters. Unfortunately, he is met by a young girl named Shizuka Kuze, who is constantly bullied at school by her classmates and faces neglect at home with a mother who is never around and a father who is estranged from the family.

Despite his good intentions, Happian’s attempts to make Shizuka smile are met with disaster at every turn. Despite taking matters into his own hands (well, tentacles), Happian faces an insurmountable task of bringing joy to the life of Shizuka. Regardless of the impossibility, Happian will stop at nothing until he achieves her happiness.

6

Bloody Monday

MyAnimeList Score: 7.73

• Written by Shin Kibayashi and illustrated by Kouji Megumi.
• 11 Volumes, 96 Chapters.
• Published: March 28, 2007, to April 15, 2009.

When a dangerous virus (capable of killing anyone it comes into contact with in three hours) falls into the wrong hands, student and hacker extraordinaire Fujimaru Takagi must find a way to crack the code. Bloody Monday delivers an intense blend of action, suspense, adventure, and drama into the story of a young man juggling his academic life with his past of being the most reliable and notorious hacker in all of Russia.

To make matters worse, the mysterious antagonist who possesses the virus has managed to frame Fujimaru’s father, elevating the stakes tenfold. In order to prevent the Christmas Massacre and clear his father’s name, Fujimaru must dive back into his previous life of hacking systems and solve the problem before it’s too late.

5

Dai Dark

MyAnimeList Score: 7.82

• Written and illustrated by Q Hayashida.
• 6 Volumes, 44 Chapters.
• Published: March 12, 2019, still ongoing.

Zaha Sanko is your ordinary teenager living his life to the fullest, but there’s a dark secret that is preventing him from doing so happily. A curse has turned his bones into a sacred power, offering anyone that possesses them any wish they choose — even if it’s to rule the world. This dark fantasy manga that blends elements of adventure and comedy has left readers hanging onto the edge of their seats as they turn the pages, hoping for Zaha to survive another day.

Unfortunately, doing so may be easier said than done. Various factions across the world are targeting Zaha in order to capture the power of his bones, and he is left to fend off these attacks alongside his skeletal friend, Avakian, and their dark powers.

4

Kagurabachi

MyAnimeList Score: 7.90

• Written and illustrated by Takeru Hokazono.
• 5 Volumes, 69 Chapters.
• Published: September 18, 2023, still ongoing.

Following the end of the Seitei War, renowned blacksmith Kunishige Rokuhira and his son, Chihiro, aim to live a life of solitude. Their plans take a disastrous turn when Chihiro’s father is murdered by a gang of powerful sorcerers, who take off with the six sacred blades, forged by his father. Three years later, after turning 18, Chihiro continues to live his life with anger and resentment towards his father’s assassins, and vows revenge.

Taking after his father, Chihiro crafts the seventh sacred blade with the sole purpose of using it in battle to slay those who wronged his family, while retrieving all six remaining sacred blades. The adventure takes Chihiro down a road of self-fulfillment and learning, as he attempts to perfect the swordsmanship while using the sacred blade and unlocking its true potential.

3

Fire Punch

MyAnimeList Score: 7.92

• Written and illustrated by Tatsuki Fujimoto.
• 8 Volumes, 83 Chapters.
• Published: April 18, 2016, to January 1, 2018

When a world is ruled by the Ice Witch, the conditions those who are forced to live in it may prove to be too much for the average person. In Fire Punch, the unruly lives of those who bear the cold incite rage and anger, leading to violent riots and the persecution of anyone born with special powers. For Agni and Luna, siblings born with regenerative powers, they seek shelter with the town elders and away from the violence, aiming to continue living as normally as their environment allows.

Their situation grows dire as their village is attacked by a fire user named Doma, whose intentions are to burn anything and anyone in his way to the ground. The village, and Luna, are burned to ash, but Agni’s regenerative abilities keep him alive despite being set ablaze. Forced to live with the excruciating pain of being burned while not being allowed to die, Agni learns to tolerate the pain while seeking retribution for his sister’s death.

2

Psyren

MyAnimeList Score: 7.94

• Written and illustrated by Toshiaki Iwashiro.
• 16 Volumes, 145 Chapters.
• Published: December 3, 2007, to November 29, 2010

The story of Psyren follows a student by the name of Ageha Yoshina, a confident and charming young man who is always willing to help anyone in need — for a fee. One day, Ageha’s entire world is turned on its head as he finds a business card at his home with a number to call. Deciding to keep it, he is surprised to learn that one of his classmates, Sakurako Amamiya, is also in possession of the same business card, drawing mystery to the nature of its existence.

After Sakurako mysteriously disappears, Ageha is forced to call the number on the card, drawing him into the world of Psyren. There, he must use his newfound powers to find and save Sakurako, while fighting off powerful monsters known as “Taboo.” These monsters are no bullies on the playground, and the battle between life and death becomes clearer each passing day Ageha spends in his new surroundings.

1

Destroy All Humans. They Can’t Be Regenerated.

MyAnimeList Score: 8.01

• Written by Katsura Ise and illustrated by Takuma Yokota.
• 17 Volumes, 58 Chapters.
• Published: November 26, 2018, still ongoing

Destroy All Humans. They Can’t Be Regenerated. follows the story of Hajime Kano, a dedicated Magic: The Gathering player, and Emi Sawatari, a superior classmate that bests him in every subject. Their rivalry takes an unexpected turn when they discover each other’s passion for the game, known simply as Magic, leading to a series of competitive matches that deepen their connection, while cementing their desire to one-up the other in battle.

Although the two classmates got off on the wrong foot through bickering during classes and the drive to receive better grades over the other, their connection through the Magic card game helps them learn more about one another. As the turn of the millennium draws near, Hajime and Emi grow closer together through their shared love of a fantasy-based card game and the understanding of their differences.