The Best Anime of Each Genre

WatchMojo

They're the best at what they do! Join Ashley as we look over the best anime that exemplify their respective genre

Transcript

00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the absolute best anime

00:12to watch of any genre.

00:22SPORTS – Hajime no Ippo Franchise

00:24Grab your gloves and put up your dukes, this is one boxing anime that's not to be missed.

00:31Whether you're a sports fan or not, everyone can appreciate Hajime's journey from a scrawny

00:36weakling into a fisty-cuffs champ. It's the definition of empowering.

00:41Although, the thrilling tournaments, emotional training arcs, and outstanding fight choreography

00:55don't hit either. Those elements turn Hajime no Ippo into the pinnacle of what a sports

01:05anime can and should be. Plus, when you add up all the sequels, Hajime no Ippo can keep

01:11you entertained in the ring for a good long while.

01:19SCI-FI – Cowboy Bebop What happens when you mix a space opera with

01:23a spaghetti western? The answer is, of course, Cowboy Bebop. Boasting quirky characters and

01:30style for days, Spike Spiegel's intergalactic adventures are a must-watch for any fans of

01:37science fiction. Or westerns. Or really, good stories at all, without giving too much

01:48away, Cowboy Bebop toys with the genre conventions to craft a unique narrative that's as engaging

01:55as it is inspiring. That's not to say it doesn't have its fair share of tragedy,

02:05though. No matter if you're checking it out for the spaceships or the bounty hunts,

02:10Cowboy Bebop is a show you won't forget.

02:19Romance – Kaguya-sama Love is War In a meet-cute for the ages, Kaguya and Miyuki

02:26fall head-over-heels for each other as part of the student council. The catch? They're

02:32both too prideful to admit it, leading to a series of elaborate schemes to make the

02:37other confess. In a nutshell, that's Kaguya-sama for you. A romance that throws all pretenses

02:48to the side in favour of a fresh, funny and engaging take on love stories. It'll leave

02:58you swooning, laughing, crying and then swooning all over again, usually in the span of a single

03:05episode. Even if Happily Ever After takes a while to reach, the journey is still totally

03:10worth a watch.

03:14Mystery – Detective Conan Reverting into a kid's body is bound to

03:18cause a few issues with daily life. Doubly so if you're trying to solve crimes, but

03:24that's just par for the course in Detective Conan. Despite his youthful look, Conan takes

03:29it upon himself to crack any case he comes across. And he's pretty good at it too.

03:39Over the course of a thousand episodes and counting, Conan's cracked codes, tracked

03:44down killers and figured out all kinds of cold cases. Detective Conan is the kind of

03:58cosy, reliable mystery that never gets old, and it has a decade-spanning legacy to prove

04:04it.

04:05Horror – Higurashi When They Cry series

04:15If you're looking for all things scary, Higurashi is the show for you. Chronicling

04:26a series of mass murders across various timelines and universes, it's pretty much the de facto

04:32horror anime at this point. After all, it's got just about everything – supernatural

04:38folklore, slasher-inspired death scenes, and a nail-biting mystery that always keeps you

04:43coming back for more. It's one hell of a frightful binge, especially because, like

04:57any good horror villain, Higurashi likes to come back for a sequel. With light novels,

05:02manga, and alternate realities galore, die-hard horror fans will never run out of Higurashi's

05:08violent mayhem. Trust us, that's a good thing.

05:16Fantasy – Freerun – Beyond Journey's End

05:19Elven mage Freerun and her team of adventurers scoured the land, vanquished the Demon King,

05:25and restored peace to the world – and that's just in the first episode. Half a century

05:40later, Freerun faces the reality of remaining youthful while her human companions pass on,

05:46and decides to reunite with them at the resting place of souls. As you can probably surmise,

05:58Beyond Journey's End is a uniquely heartfelt spin on the genre that prioritises emotional

06:04beats over flashy action. Though, don't worry, there's still plenty of that too.

06:10Freerun only uses magic to explore its characters, not overshadow them – which is exactly why

06:16it's fantasy at its finest.

06:26Drama – Steins Gate – The words grounded character piece and time-travelling microwave

06:33don't sound like they should go together, but that's what makes this anime something special.

06:38Despite the high-concept premise, Steins Gate is far more interested in exploring the human

06:50experience than delivering any kind of soapy plot twist. Sure, there's a whole lot of cliffhangers

06:56and mysteries, but they always serve to question a person's character, trauma, or moral compass.

07:08You know you're in good hands when an anime makes interpersonal relationships more interesting

07:17than literal time travel. It doesn't matter if it's reheated or not,

07:22Steins Gate is definitely worth adding to your watchlist.

07:30Comedy – Gintama – The pitch here is pretty straightforward. Gintoki Sakata is a freelancer

07:37who works odd jobs to scrape by. Oh, and the world is inhabited by aliens. Just go with it,

07:43Gintama's much better that way. Really, trying to describe the show at all is kind of a fool's

07:57errand. It's a gut-busting sitcom one episode, a loving parody the next,

08:02and a cutthroat action shounen after that.

08:07The only thing you can count on is that Gintama will have you laughing till you cry.

08:17It doesn't sound like it should work, but the show's good-spirited sense of humour and

08:22bottomless well of ideas has kept it an anime cornerstone for a good reason.

08:27Adventure – One Piece – Setting sail with Monkey D. Luffy is never a bad idea.

08:44In pursuit of the titular treasure known as the One Piece, he and the Straw Hat Pirates

08:49have traversed just about everything you'd ever want from an adventure series.

08:54They've found the biomes, met memorable characters,

08:57and done more than their fair share of fighting, too.

09:06But above all that, there's a real sense of world-building and community in One Piece that

09:11makes it all feel like part of one long journey. Also, who doesn't love to hang out with Luffy?

09:17As long as he's steering this ship, there's never been a better time to come aboard.

09:24If you're on your phone, make sure to go into your settings and switch on notifications.

09:51Action – Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood – It doesn't take a philosopher's stone to realise

09:56that best-in-class animation leads to best-in-class fight scenes.

10:01Just look at Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood.

10:09The impeccable production values sell the weight and scale of each pulse-pounding conflict like

10:15no other. Thanks to the show's fully-realised combat system, the action never lets up,

10:21and never gets stale either. If anything, it's addictively rewatchable.

10:33Add in a fantastic narrative full of twists, turns, and alchemic action, and it's no wonder

10:40Brotherhood is considered one of the greats. There's a lot of high-stakes battle anime out

10:45there, but Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood is just in another league.

10:56What's your go-to anime genre? Let us know in the comments below.

11:10Be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to be notified about our latest videos.

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