It’s difficult to keep up with anime these days. Even the most devout fans of the medium will admit that there are quite a few shows to keep up with, so it’s understandable that a few series here and there would slip between the cracks. To fill this niche, we’ve got a list of fantastic, but underrated, anime that need far more love than they get. With every genre ranging from shonen battle series to darker adventure stories, one of these overshadowed series is sure to appeal to you.
Best of all, each entry on this list is easily and legally accessible through Crunchyroll. So close uTorrent, boot up your nearest console, and get ready to find a new favorite series.
Assassination Classroom (For Fans of My Hero Academia)
Assassination Classroom is an odd series that is far more emotional than it has any right to be. The series revolves around Koro-sensei, a yellow smiley-faced alien that blows up half the moon, then says he’ll destroy the earth in one year. His one request is to teach the underachieving Class 3-E of Kunugigaoka Junior High School in the art of assassination. The only snag is that Koro-sensei is actually a fantastic teacher.
While the rest of the school gave up on Class 3-E, Koro-sensei uses assassination lessons to bring out the best aspects of each student. It’s this mix of strong character-writing and meaningful action that makes Assassination Classroom stand out, even amongst its fellow legendary Weekly Jump alumni.
This post was originally written by Spencer Legacy.
Kaiji Ultimate Survivor (For Fans of Kakegurui)
Kaiji Ultimate Survivor is an anime that thrives on tension. After co-signing a loan as a favor to an unreliable friend, the titular Kaiji finds himself saddled with immense debt. Rather than work off the debt, Kaiji discovers the dangerous world of illegal (and possibly lethal) underground gambling.
The most intriguing thing about Kaiji Ultimate Survivor is that anyone can lose at any time, creating a sense of anxiety that permeates the entire series. Deaths, injuries, and bad decisions are all common in Kaiji, which keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout the entirety of the show’s two seasons.
D. Gray Man (For Fans of Blue Exorcist)
D. Gray Man is the kind of underrated anime that deserves to be far more popular than it is. Taking place in a fictionalized 19th century Europe, D. Gray Man is about a group of high-tech exorcists that do battle with the immortal Millennium Earl and his army of demonic Akuma. Because of the manga’s erratic schedule in its later years, D. Gray Man was subject to a long hiatus that killed a lot of its narrative momentum, keeping it from becoming the iconic franchise it could have been.
The supernatural story is a thoroughly enjoyable ride though, especially for people who like gothic and Lovecraftian themes, or supernatural battle manga in general. D. Gray Man feels different from other shonen series because of its unapologetically dark tone and mature themes.
Gundam Build Fighters (For Fans of Cardfight!! Vanguard)
What do you get when you combine Yu-Gi-Oh!, Pokémon, Vanguard, and Gundam? The answer is Gundam Build Fighters. Sure, Gundam isn’t a series that comes to mind when you think “underrated anime”, but this spin-off is an exception. Though there are some more fantastical elements to the story (a kid from space primarily), the series is largely based on a futuristic version of our world. Kids buy models of various mechs from throughout the Gundam series, and use them to battle one another on holographic battlefields.
It’s silly without pushing your suspension of disbelief too far, for the most part at least. It’s basic, it’s fun, and it features plenty of references for longtime Gundam fans. These references are rarely blatant though, meaning complete Gundam newbies can jump right in for some light robot-fighting fun.
Tegami Bachi: Letter Bee (For Fans of Attack on Titan)
Possibly the most underrated anime on this list, if you recognize Tegami Bachi, you probably read Shonen Jump when it was published in the West about a decade ago. Tegami Bachi has a unique tone that feels simultaneously filed with hope and drenched with despair. The world is scary, but the young mail-delivering protagonists push on against all odds to deliver the “hearts” of people to their loved ones. There are few series that I can compare Tegami Bachi to, as it’s the type of show you have to experience first-hand.
Outside of the artificially lit city, the world of Tegami Bachi is a dark one. Every dark corner is filled with “gaichuu”, huge insects that want only to eat people’s hearts and the Letter Bees that deliver them. Tegami Bachi is a criminally underrated series, and one of the few truly unique dystopian adventures.
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