Anime has arguably never been stronger. Like Vegeta’s after reading power levels of over 9,000 in Dragon Ball Z, my scanner is shattering at the cultural force of animation in 2024. Megan Thee Stallion just dressed up as Starfire from the Teen Titans for Halloween. Hip-hop duo Creepy Nuts scored back-to-back number-one hits in Japan for their songs on Dan Da Dan and Mashle, and Olympic gold medallist Noah Lyles hid Yu-Gi-Oh! cards in his tracksuit this summer for good luck. The list goes on, but we nerds are finally winning.
This year’s anime slate is also fantastic so far. One Piece boasted a new animation style that reinvigorated enthusiasm for the 25-year-old (and counting!) story. Demon Slayer opened its third season with a mind-blowing one-hour special, and Dragon Ball finally returned for a new series. New titles such as Kaiju No. 8, Blue Box, and Delicious in Dungeon are sure to become fan favourites in no time. We’ll also see Chainsaw Man return by the end of the year, alongside North American streaming releases for the Haikyu!! and Blue Lock films.
Honestly, every new year feels like the best year in anime history. So until 2025 rolls around, check out our favourites from 2024 below.
When you think about anime, the image of a muscle-popping cartoon man with spiky hair is likely your first response. For most offerings, you’re not too far off. But Japanese animation isn’t only bound to screaming macho men. If you’re looking for something a little more intellectually stimulating, look no further. In Orb: On the Movements of the Earth, a scientist’s journey to convince 15th-century Poland that the Earth revolves around the sun is dramatised into a life-or-death scenario against the teachings of the church.
The Elusive Samurai is a simple tale. After a trusted confidant betrays his family, the young Hojo Tokiyuki sets out in 1300s Japan to find allies who will aid him in his revenge. The series excels due to its stellar animation, as it’s helmed by the same studio in charge of Spy × Family and Bocchi the Rock!
Dragon Ball returns this year for the series’ first new entry since 2015’s Dragon Ball Super. Titled Dragon Ball Daima, the series follows Goku and his superpowered friends after they’re mysteriously aged down into children. It might feel like a cheap way to reboot the series, but there’s plenty to love for both new viewers and longtime Dragon Ball fans.
Written by Chainsaw Man creator Tatsuki Fujimoto, the short story Look Back was turned into a full-fledged film on Amazon Prime Video. The story follows a young artist who finds purpose in life after discovering her passion for drawing manga.
The hit volleyball anime has only skyrocketed in popularity ever since the summer Olympics, where Japanese fans wearing Haikyu!! jerseys filled the stands in Paris. Now that the televised anime series is complete, Haikyu!! plans to finish out the story with two movies in theaters, starting with The Dumpster Battle. The first Haikyu!! movie became the second-highest-grossing Japanese film of the year so far. Now, it's available to watch at home.
Tired of a long day at work? Bartender: Glass of God will soothe the soul. The anthology series follows a bartender named Ryu who can make any thirsty customer forget about their troubles.
In a fantasy world where people explore massive dungeons to find treasure and fight mysterious beasts, one group of companions takes to cooking and eating the monsters to survive. The humorous and lighthearted series is finally adapted in this Netflix original, which is sure to make you hungry—even when they’re eating something insane.
Before season 2 of the popular soccer anime arrived, Blue Lock decided to keep the ball rolling with a spin-off movie. Titled Blue Lock: Episode Nagi, the film focused on the backstory for one of the fan-favourite characters—a prodigy whom the main character teaches to fall in love with the sport once again. His story continues in the second season, which tackles the next stage in his soccer journey.
Send some prayers to One Piece’s animators, because the series didn’t even take a week off between seasons. Debuting a flashy new animation style in the opening and hopping right into an adaptation of the manga’s current arc, the team behind the celebrated pirate series is steamrollering into season 21 and has the anime looking the best it ever has.
Blue Box is the heartwarming story of two sporty teens who fall in love. But amid their budding romance, can both Taiki and Chinatsu lead their respective teams to nationals?
Momo believes in the supernatural but doesn’t believe in aliens. When she meets Okarun, a conspiracy-minded fanatic who doesn’t believe in ghosts, both of their worlds are flipped upside down.
After a chance encounter on the train, romance blossoms between Yuki, a 19-year-old college student who is deaf, and Itsuomi, a multilingual classmate who sets out to learn sign language to communicate with her.
As you read Kaiju No. 8, it’s clear that the Godzilla-esque kaiju series was perfect for an anime adaptation. Borrowing heavily from classic mech series such as Neon Genesis Evangelion, the story follows Earth’s need to protect itself from massive intelligent monsters by borrowing the technology of defeated past foes.
Solo Leveling follows the weakest human on Earth during a full-scale alien invasion. After a chance encounter, he’s given the power to fight back and solve the mystery of the monstrous invaders.
Following an explosive third season, Demon Slayer returned this summer with a one-hour premiere as the story heads into the Hashira training arc. The series is also embarking on a worldwide fan tour in 2024, including special screenings of Demon Slayer’s most emotional episodes.
Mashle Season 2, subtitled Magic and Muscles, is an absolute hit. The Harry Potter parody series about a protagonist who is all muscle and no magic debuted the song “Bling-Bang-Bang-Born” by Japanese band Creepy Nuts in the opening credits, and the song once spent 15 straight weeks on top of Billboard’s Japan Hot 100 chart.
Crunchyroll’s newest anime, Wind Breaker, is a brawler that hits like a truck. There are no anime magic or power levels here—just high school delinquents looking for fights.
Simple and serene, Tonbo! is the best new sports anime of 2024. Less fiery than the genre’s more shonen-dependant staples, the new golf series on Amazon Prime Video that’s set on Japan’s Tokara Islands takes its time to breathe and embody the inner peace that a sport like golf provides.
Blending themes from Neon Genesis Evangelion and Kill La Kill, Metallic Rouge is a genre-bending mech anime that doesn’t shy away from its queer undertones.
My Hero Academia heads into its long final arc beginning in season 7, as the school for superheroes plans on bringing down the League of Villains once and for all.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End combines Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings fantasy with magical anime battles. The story follows a thousand-year-old elven mage who reunites with her fellow heroes years after they killed the Demon King.
Alongside Dragon Ball Daima, Akira Toriyama’s earlier project Sand Land received an anime adaption in 2024 thanks to Hulu. The series follows a demon child and a desperate sheriff on the lookout for water after natural disasters cover the world in sand.
