Anime Genres and Types - Complete list with recommendations
Honorable Mentions
The reason Fullmetal Alchemist is the best fantasy anime of all time is that it paints a fully realized, unique world with internally consistent rules that have real consequences. Building on that foundation, it delivers a story about two brothers that's as grounded as the setting is fantastic.
The 13 Most Popular Anime Genres & The Titles That Defined Them
The shonen genre is by far the most popular brand of anime and the majority of breakout hits and major successes like Dragon Ball Z, Naruto, and One Piece all fit into the shonen brand.
The 5 main anime genres are shonen, shojo, seinen, josei, and kodomomuke. How many genres of anime are there? There are dozens of genres and subgenres in anime.
Did you know that there are different types of anime? The five types are shonen, shojo, seinen, josei, and kodomomuke. Each kind of anime is focused on a specific target population of viewers.
As a type of animation, anime is an art form that comprises many genres found in other mediums; it is sometimes mistakenly classified as a genre itself. In Japanese, the term anime is used to refer to all animated works, regardless of style or origin.
Note that while the term "shōnen" tends to be used to refer to a few standard genres, it isn't technically a genre as it literally refers to the target demographic (and in Japan, generally refers strictly to manga, rather than animenote Light Novels are often marked with a generic "male" or "female" demographic.).
MangaAdventureFantasy FictionAction fictionNaruto/Genres
Shonen mangaSuperheroComedyAdventureComedy dramaScience fantasyMy Hero Academia/Genres
Naruto Uzumaki is one of the most famous anime heroes in the Shounen genre. He is infamous for being brash, immature, and foolish.
Shōnen manga (少年漫画), also romanized as shonen or shounen, are Japanese comics mainly marketed and aimed at a young teen male readership. These graphic novels and comics are primarily for boys between the ages of 12 through 18.
Anime refers to a specific style of cartoon produced or inspired by Japanese animation. Think of it this way: all anime shows are cartoons, but not all cartoons are anime. The art style associated with anime is very unique and recognizable.
Anime Top 10Top 10 Best Rated (bayesian estimate) (Top 50)#titlerating1Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (TV)9.082Steins;Gate (TV)9.043Clannad After Story (TV)9.028 more rows
Attack on Titan is serialized in Kodansha's Bessatsu Shounen Magazine. As the magazine's name suggests, it is a shounen magazine. The official way to identify a series is not just through its themes or characteristics, it is mostly classified by the magazine where it is serialized in.
What unites them, and all shonen anime, is a focus on young men, often seeking to become the best at what they do, to right a terrible wrong, and/or to protect the ones they love. These are passionate, idealistic stories about youth at its most zealous, full of action and heart.
Josei. There's manga for girls, full of first crushes and school-bound secrets, and then there's josei: manga for women who want to go beyond the schoolyard. Josei is where you'll find relationships examined beyond the initial kiss, lives after graduation, and a lot more action between the sheets.
Anime like The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Ms. Kobayashi's Dragon Maid, and Aria: The Animation include supernatural phenomena, dragons, time travel, and life on other planets — and yet each is a slice of life series.
Early works like Mazinger Z and Giant Robo set the stage for genre tentpoles like Patlabor, Full Metal Panic!, and the vast universe of the Mobile Suit Gundam series, creating a history of work that continues today in anime like Darling in the FRANXX .
Like other entries on this list, shoujo (literally "young girl") is technically a demographic, warped by time and export into a genre term. Accordingly, shoujo anime ranges far and wide in terms of subject matter.
That's because shonen really just means "for boys," making it more of a demographic category than a genre. In the age of anime as export, however, the term has gained genre connotations that cannot be ignored. When a kid loves Bleach and wants to read something else in that vein, he's going to end up searching for "shonen" — and generally speaking, he's going to find something new to love.
As you might guess, there's a fair amount of variation within iyashikei as a genre. Laid-Back Camp is one example, starring a group of girls who enjoy camping. The soundtrack is lilting and gentle, comedy isn't ever over the top, and creating a cozy atmosphere is the clear goal of the entire production.
The genre shonen can be considered the most popular form of anime. Although aimed at boys, many girls are also interested in this segment. What makes it even more popular is the fact that your audience is not aged, it can fit the preferences of children and adults. As we can see, this genre is the opposite of shoujo.
This genre is one that in its plot there is the presence of comic elements, or popularly known as funny. Basically it can contain jokes either directly or indirectly, actions and reactions that result in a comic surprise, situations of the same nature, etc. In short, everything that is funny and that can make someone laugh.
The category appeals to a large age group, although its primary audience is in the age range of 12 to 18 years. The genre shonen can be considered the most popular form of anime.
Seinen is a genre of anime aimed mainly at the adult male audience. In Japanese, the word "seinen" literally means "young", although it is also used to describe the target audience. Despite this definition, one more case of not being a rule, but the content will not, in many cases, fully satisfy the demand of other types of public.
Basically, this genre is distinguished from the others because in its plot there is some kind of relationship with music. That is, a music band or someone who works with music as the main theme.
By literal definition, harem is a word derived from the Arabic harãm, which means a group of women who live and share a house, living under the rules of a polygamous marriage. That is, in this genre there are several women married to a single person. The reverse can also happen.
Anime with Super Powers. This despite being well known, is not as popular as genres of magic, fantasy, ecchi or action. This genre encompasses only the types of plots that some people have supernatural powers that are not common in society.
Examples: Revolutionary Girl Utena or Kannazuki no Miko. Shōnen-ai or Yaoi is Japanese for 'boy-love'. These focus on love and romance between male characters. The term "Shōnen-ai" is being phased out in Japan due to its other meaning of pederasty, and is being replaced by the term "Boys Love" (BL).
Shotacon ("Shōtarō Complex") is the sexualization of under-aged male characters, the name coming from the lead child actor from Tetsujin-nijūhachi-gō. Example: Boku no Pico. Harem is a genre which focuses on a male character surrounded by the romance of multiple female characters.
Hentai. Probably the most popular kind of anime or at least something that everyone has heard of at least one in any conversation about anime. Hentai is the kind of anime that shows explicit content while having a minor plot going on in the background.
Drama usually means tension, dark, some depressing events, and something on those lines, very akin to the Angst and Fluff genre of fanfiction. Drama is coupled with other genres to make a more specific and detailed image of what to expect from a certain anime.
Popular seinen anime include Black Lagoon, Code Geass, Plastic Memories, Tiger and Bunny, Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo, and so on.
Shōjo. Following the trend, this word means ‘a young girl’ and is the intended target audience demographic. Shoujo anime most often like all the others is combined with another sub-genre like historical drama or sci-fi for storytelling purposes.
Popular harem anime include High School of the Dead, High School DxD, Clannad, Zero no Tsukaima, and so on.
Kodomo. The word literally means ‘child’ in Japanese. So, obviously, this is the kind of anime that is aimed at young kids to enjoy. This, however, though considered a genre, is actually more of a target audience demographic than a genre. These anime often don’t have a lot of story and are very episodic in nature.
This is when a male protagonist of a story is being crushed by more than 3 female or male characters in the anime. The male protagonist either has no idea about these romantic feelings or in the end, chooses not to get into an actual relationship with anyone.
Psychological: Psychological genre is one of the most researched genres in anime. Every single detail that delves into how the mind and psyche work is thoroughly researched and it really plays with your mind too. This genre tackles everything on a psychological basis.
Major Anime Genres 2020. Shounen: Shounen is the most popular genre of anime. It is not even a genre, it is more of demographic. Shonen anime can include sports, fantasy, science fiction, action, and even horror anime. The main target audience for this demographic is a young male or a teen. The best example of shounen anime is One Piece, Naruto, ...
Horror is a deep genre that will include a storyline too with all the ghosts, monsters, gore, and creeps. This genre basically attracts a mature audience. It really shows the dark side of anime. Some examples are Parasyte -the maxim, Another, School-Live!.
This genre basically involves characters with magic power that will help them to bend reality at their will. Some examples of magic genre anime are Inuyasha, Fairy Tale, Fullmetal Alchemist, and many more.
It can also be found in action anime, romantic anime, or even thriller. But nonetheless, it is a really good genre with some of the best anime out there. Some examples are Death Note, Durarara, Bakemonogatari, and more.
Comedy is such a flexible genre, Anime doesn’t have to make you laugh every single moment to be considered as comedy. Some Examples are: Grand Blue, Golden Boy, The Devil Is a Part-Timer and many more.
Have you ever thought that the anime you are currently watching falls under which genre or category? There are so many genres of anime that you can watch and enjoy. Most of the people really don’t know about the genre of anime they are watching. It is really important to know the genre of the anime as it helps you to select your next anime easily.
The manga it is based on began in 1997 and is still being written and animated to this day, making it one of the longest-running anime of all time. The manga is also leading as the best-selling manga series in history!
This iconic anime from the late 70s is one of the most popular, well-known, and continued anime in Japan. There was even a life-sized Gundam created in Yokohama! Mobile Suit Gundam was the biggest show to boost viewers' interest in Mecha anime.
The Clannad anime was based on a visual novel of the same name . The show follows the main character Tomoya Okazaki, a high school delinquent who has his life flipped upside down when he becomes friends with a girl named Nagisa Furukawa.
10 Isekai - Sword Art Online. Isekai is a genre of anime where the main characters enter a new world unlike their own, typically resembling a MMORPG or fantasy land. Sword Art Online was originally released back in 2013, and it boosted the genre into the spotlight. Of course, the show has faced loads of backlash and criticism for unoriginal ...
Haikyuu!! is definitely the most popular and well-received sports anime that defined the genre, with its hilarious and relatable characters, nail-biting competitions, and budding friendships. It's a classic that will go down in anime history.
6 Horror - Elfen Lied. This dark, horror anime went viral back at its release in 2004 and continues to be one of the creepiest and most famous horror shows in the genre. Elfen Lied is set in a world where a newly mutated species similar but stronger than humans are threatening to wipe out the Earth's population to replace it with their own.
It shouldn't be a surprise that Dragon Ball is the defining anime that shaped shonen anime as we know it today. The original manga and show were created back in the 80s and new series based on the classic are still being animated to this day.
Anime. Not to be confused with Amine. Anime ( Japanese: アニメ, IPA: [aɲime] ( listen)) is hand-drawn and computer animation originating from Japan. In Japan and in Japanese, anime (a term derived from the English word animation) describes all animated works, regardless of style or origin.
However, outside of Japan and in English, anime is colloquial for Japanese animation and refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. Animation produced outside of Japan with similar style to Japanese animation is referred to as anime-influenced animation . The earliest commercial Japanese animations date to 1917.
English-language dictionaries typically define anime ( US: / ˈænəmeɪ /, UK: / ˈænɪmeɪ /) as "a style of Japanese animation" or as "a style of animation originating in Japan". Other definitions are based on origin, making production in Japan a requisite for a work to be considered "anime".
An anime episode can cost between US$100,000 and US$300,000 to produce. In 2001, animation accounted for 7% of the Japanese film market, above the 4.6% market share for live-action works. The popularity and success of anime is seen through the profitability of the DVD market, contributing nearly 70% of total sales.
Anime artists employ many distinct visual styles. Anime differs greatly from other forms of animation by its diverse art styles, methods of animation, its production, and its process. Visually, anime works exhibit a wide variety of art styles, differing between creators, artists, and studios.
Three Tales (1960) was the first anime film broadcast on television; the first anime television series was Instant History (1961–64). An early and influential success was Astro Boy (1963–66), a television series directed by Tezuka based on his manga of the same name. Many animators at Tezuka's Mushi Production later established major anime studios (including Madhouse, Sunrise, and Pierrot ).
The animation industry consists of more than 430 production companies with some of the major studios including Toei Animation, Gainax, Madhouse, Gonzo, Sunrise, Bones, TMS Entertainment, Nippon Animation, P.A.Works, Studio Pierrot and Studio Ghibli. Many of the studios are organized into a trade association, The Association of Japanese Animations. There is also a labor union for workers in the industry, the Japanese Animation Creators Association. Studios will often work together to produce more complex and costly projects, as done with Studio Ghibli's Spirited Away. An anime episode can cost between US$100,000 and US$300,000 to produce. In 2001, animation accounted for 7% of the Japanese film market, above the 4.6% market share for live-action works. The popularity and success of anime is seen through the profitability of the DVD market, contributing nearly 70% of total sales. According to a 2016 article on Nikkei Asian Review, Japanese television stations have bought over ¥60 billion worth of anime from production companies "over the past few years", compared with under ¥20 billion from overseas. There has been a rise in sales of shows to television stations in Japan, caused by late night anime with adults as the target demographic. This type of anime is less popular outside Japan, being considered "more of a niche product ". Spirited Away (2001) is the all-time highest-grossing film in Japan. It was also the highest-grossing anime film worldwide until it was overtaken by Makoto Shinkai 's 2016 film Your Name. Anime films represent a large part of the highest-grossing Japanese films yearly in Japan, with 6 out of the top 10 in 2014, in 2015 and also in 2016 .