The 13 Best Anime Series From the Past 5 Years, Ranked

Image via Madhouse Updated Sep 7, 2026, 7:38 AM EDT Sign in to your Collider account The explosion of anime as a major source of entertainment for mainstream audiences in the 21st century has been one of the most rewarding sensations to take hold in recent decades. The early 2010s in particular saw a significant increase in the Japanese storytelling medium, with series like Attack on Titan, One Piece, Dragon Ball, and One Punch Man reaching the peak of their powers, becoming landmark hits for the genre that enticed millions of new fans. One of the most exceptional things about the outburst in popularity, though, is how it was harnessed, with animation studios producing more and more great series to keep audiences invested in the genre's stories and style. While some of the defining classics of anime have now finished, there are many more recent series that have taken up the mantle and enhanced the genre's legacy in recent years. 13 'Dandadan' (2024-present) Image via Science SARU Love starts in mysterious ways, and for Dandadan, it begins through a dare to see which is real: aliens or ghosts. As it turns out, both are real, because after Momo awakens her psychic powers and Okarun is possessed by a ghost, the two of them must search for the latter's golden balls with a weird new supernatural outlook. The first episode may have weirded people out, but they are missing out on one of the most bizarre love stories out there, which is jam-packed with supernatural goodness and wholesome fun. Dandadan is unconventional, but it is exactly that weirdness which makes it one of the most compelling modern shows with an incredible anime power system. —Lucas Kloberdanz-Dyck 12 'Dungeon Meshi' (2024–Present) Image via Studio Trigger 2024 was one of the best years of modern anime, because right after Solo Leveling and Dandadan is Dungeon Meshi. When a member of the party is eaten by a dragon, the rest of the members rush back down in order to save her. But with no money or supplies, they kill two birds with one stone by eating the monsters they defeat. Dungeon Meshi boasts one of the most fascinating worlds in anime, using its distinct biology and ecology to create a unique setting that flows into the story. The monster food creations are fun and creative, but the story takes a drastic turn, switching to a darker form of storytelling where the mystery takes over. —Lucas Kloberdanz-Dyck 11 'The Apothecary Diaries' (2023–Present) Image via OLM Historical anime are getting increasingly popular, especially over the past five years, and one such example is The Apothecary Diaries. After Maomao is kidnapped and sold to the Royal Palace, she serves as an attendant, apothecary, and de facto detective, using her vast knowledge to solve the mysteries and crimes plaguing the Inner Court. Maomao is one of the best modern anime protagonists, bringing new ways of thinking that evolve the story in fascinating ways. The Apothecary Diaries already has around 50 episodes, with more seasons soon approaching, and this constant supply of episodes proves how much fans love it, with it even having a chance to become one of the best anime series of all time. —Lucas Kloberdanz-Dyck 10 'Ranking of Kings' (2021–2022) Image via Funimation One of anime’s greatest strengths is its ability to realize and ground fantasy realms while still telling incredible, character-driven stories. Ranking of Kings is a perfect example of this, set in a world where each nation’s king is ranked based on the prosperity of their lands, the strength of their warriors, and the might of the kings themselves. Born deaf and mute, and dubbed “The Useless Prince”, young Bojji suffers jeers even from his own people, but everything changes when he befriends a survivor of an expunged assassin clan who understands him. Over the course of 23 episodes, the series won over a plethora of fans with its heartwarming yet adventurous and exciting story and its engrossing fantasy setting. While the main series consists of just one season, a spin-off show, Ranking of Kings: The Treasure Chest of Courage, aired in 2023, and an anime film has been announced. 9 '86: Eighty-Six' (2021–2022) Image via A-1 Pictures Launching in 2021 and releasing 24 episodes over two courses, 86: Eighty-Six was a futuristic sci-fi action series depicting a large-scale war between two feuding nations. As stated by the Republic of San Mongolia, they are fighting an ethical war with the Giadian Empire as they use unmanned drones in combat, but their claims are lies, as the robots are piloted by social undesirables known as “Eighty-sixers.” The story revolves around a compassionate commanding officer tasked with overseeing the operations of the elite Spearhead squadron, forming a complex relationship with the unit’s brilliant leader as he fights on with his own mysterious motive. Based on the light novel series of the same name, it became a revered hit boasting an impressive score on the anime streaming service Crunchyroll. 8 'Odd Taxi' (2021) Image via P.I.C.S. A playful mixture of crime noir, fantasy, mystery thriller, and comedy, Odd Taxi was an arresting dose of high-value entertainment when it was released in 2021. The must-watch one-season series follows a walrus cab driver in Tokyo who, through conversations with his passengers, begins to unravel a sprawling mystery that leads to him being pursued by the yakuza as well as the police. It was received by fans as a refreshing anime series that perfectly balanced its penchant for witty comedy and visual style with its poignant meditation on its more harrowing themes. The fact that it also happens to be one of the best depictions of anthropomorphic characters in both style and approach was just an added bonus which made the series that much more compelling. Collider Exclusive · Action Hero Quiz Which Action Hero Would BeYour Perfect Partner? Rambo · James Bond · Indiana Jones · John McClane · Ethan Hunt Five legends. Five completely different ways of getting out alive — with style, with muscle, with charm, with luck, or with a plan so intricate it probably shouldn't work. Ten questions will reveal which action hero was built to have your back. 🎖️Rambo 🍸James Bond 🏺Indiana Jones 🔧John McClane 🎭Ethan Hunt FIND YOUR PARTNER → 01 You're dropped into a dangerous situation with no warning. What do you need most from a partner? The first few seconds tell you everything about who belongs beside you. ASomeone who already has three contingency plans running and is calmly working through all of them. BSomeone who reads the terrain instinctively and knows exactly how to use it against the enemy. CSomeone who keeps their nerve and their sense of humour when everything is falling apart. DSomeone who knows the history of wherever we are and what we're walking into. ESomeone with the right contact, the right cover identity, and the right exit already arranged. NEXT QUESTION → 02 You have to get somewhere dangerous, fast. How do you travel? How you get there is half the mission. AOn foot through terrain no one else would attempt — I move where vehicles can't follow. BOn a motorcycle, a cargo plane, or anything else that gets me there before I think too hard about it. CIn something that belongs to someone else — borrowed, stolen, or improvised under fire. DFirst class, with a cover identity and a gadget that does something I won't explain until it's needed. EBy whatever means are available — I've driven, flown, and once arrived by camel. The destination matters, not the method. NEXT QUESTION → 03 You're pinned down and outnumbered. What does your ideal partner do? This is when you find out what someone is really made of. ADisappears into the environment, flanks them silently, and ends it before I've reloaded. BCracks a one-liner, grabs a fire extinguisher or a chair, and improvises something that somehow works. CProduces a gadget specifically designed for this exact scenario and uses it with infuriating precision. DPulls out a whip, a pistol, and an archaeological insight that somehow gets us out alive. ENeutralises the threat with maximum efficiency and minimum words — they were already three moves ahead. NEXT QUESTION → 04 The mission is paused. You have one evening to decompress. What does your partner suggest? Who someone is when the pressure drops is who they actually are. AA bar with terrible lighting, cold beer, and absolutely no questions about feelings. BThe finest restaurant in the city, a bottle of something expensive, and a conversation that is equal parts brilliant and exhausting. CA local dig site, a museum after hours, or a long story about why that particular artefact matters to human civilisation. DPizza. Bad TV. Falling asleep halfway through a movie neither of you were watching anyway. EA debrief that turns into three hours of contingency planning that somehow becomes the most fun you've had all week. NEXT QUESTION → 05 How do you prefer your partner to communicate mid-mission? Good communication is the difference between partners and a liability. APrecise and minimal — tell me what I need to know and nothing else. Every word has a cost. BDeadpan and dry — keeping it light keeps me sharp, even when everything is on fire. CEnthusiastic and slightly chaotic — but always with useful information buried somewhere in the noise. DCalm and controlled through an earpiece, with a plan that covers every variable I haven't thought of yet. EBarely at all — silence is a language and they speak it fluently. NEXT QUESTION → 06 Your enemy is powerful, well-resourced, and has the upper hand. How should your partner approach them? The approach to the enemy defines the partnership. AInfiltrate their inner circle, learn everything, and dismantle them from inside out before they know we're there. BStudy the historical pattern — every villain of this type has a weakness written somewhere in the past. CGet them talking. The more they monologue, the more time I have to figure out how to beat them. DGo through them. Directly. With as much force as the terrain allows. EFind the one thing they haven't accounted for — there's always one thing — and make sure we're holding it. NEXT QUESTION → 07 Things go badly wrong and you're captured. What do you trust your partner to do? Who someone is when you need them most is the only thing that matters. ACome in alone, quietly, and get me out before anyone knows they were there. BHave already been working on the extraction since the moment I disappeared — the plan is already running. CCome in loud, come in fast, and worry about the collateral damage later — I'd do the same for them. DUse every resource, every contact, and bend every rule until I'm out — they don't leave people behind. ECharm their way in somehow, bluff through the hard part, and still manage to look good doing it. NEXT QUESTION → 08 What does your ideal partner bring to the table that you couldn't replace? A great partner fills the gap you didn't know you had. ATechnology that shouldn't exist yet and the training to use it under any conditions. BSurvival instinct so refined it borders on supernatural — and the scars to prove it's been tested. CKnowledge of history, language, and culture that makes them invaluable in places where force is useless. DThe ability to walk into any room in the world and immediately become the most trusted person in it. EStubbornness that refuses to accept a situation is hopeless — and the improvisational skill to back it up. NEXT QUESTION → 09 Every partnership has a cost. Which of these can you live with? No one comes without baggage. The question is whether you can carry it together. AA partner who never fully switches off — always watching exits, always calculating threats, even at dinner. BA partner who gets the job done brilliantly but has the emotional availability of a locked filing cabinet. CA partner who makes everything ten times more complicated than it needs to be — but who always comes through. DA partner who gets personally attached to every relic, ruin, and artefact we encounter, which slows everything down. EA partner who was not built for this and knows it — but shows up anyway, every time, without being asked. NEXT QUESTION → 10 It's the final moment. Everything is on the line. What do you need from your partner right now? The last question is the most honest one. AOne line. Absolutely dry. Delivered like the world isn't ending. Then we move. BNothing said at all — just a look that means we both already know what has to happen. CA plan I don't fully understand that somehow accounts for everything, delivered in thirty seconds flat. DA piece of historical context that reframes the entire situation and tells us exactly what to do next. ESomeone who steps forward instead of back — because that's who they've always been. REVEAL MY PARTNER → Your Partner Has Been Assigned Your Perfect Partner Is…Your answers have pointed to one action hero above all others. This is the person built to have your back — for better or considerably, spectacularly worse. RamboYour partner doesn't talk much, doesn't need to, and will have assessed every threat in your immediate environment before you've finished your first sentence. John Rambo is not a man of plans or politics — he is a force of nature shaped by survival, loyalty, and a capacity for endurance that goes beyond anything training can produce. He will not leave you behind. He has never left anyone behind who deserved to come home. What you get with Rambo is the most capable, most quietly ferocious partner imaginable — one who has been through things that would have broken anyone else, and who chose to keep going anyway. You'll never need to ask if he has your back. You'll just know. James BondYour partner will arrive perfectly dressed, perfectly briefed, and with a cover story so convincing it'll take you a moment to remember what's actually true. James Bond is the most professionally dangerous person in any room he enters — and the most disarmingly charming, which is the point. He operates in a world of layers, where nothing is what it appears and every advantage is used without apology. You'll never be bored. You'll occasionally be furious. But when it matters — when the mission is genuinely on the line and the margin for error has collapsed to nothing — Bond is exactly the partner you want. He has survived things that have no business being survivable. He does it with style. That is not nothing. Indiana JonesYour partner will know the history, the language, the cultural context, and exactly why the thing everyone else is ignoring is actually the most important thing in the room. Indiana Jones is brilliant, reckless, and occasionally impossible — but he is also one of the most resourceful, most genuinely knowledgeable partners you could find yourself beside. He approaches every situation with a scholar's eye and a brawler's instinct, which is an unusual combination and a remarkably effective one. He hates snakes and gets personally attached to objects of historical significance, both of which will slow you down at least once. It doesn't matter. What Indy brings is irreplaceable — and the adventures you'll have together will be the kind people write books about. Assuming you survive them. John McClaneYour partner was not supposed to be here. He does not have the right equipment, the right information, or anything approaching the right odds. He has a sarcastic remark and an absolute refusal to accept that the situation is as bad as it looks. John McClane is the greatest accidental hero in the history of action cinema — a man whose superpower is stubbornness, whose contingency plan is improvisation, and whose capacity to absorb punishment and keep moving would be alarming if it weren't so useful. He will complain the entire time. He will make it significantly more chaotic than it needed to be. And he will absolutely, unconditionally, without question come through when it counts. Yippee-ki-yay. Ethan HuntYour partner has already run seventeen scenarios by the time you've finished reading the briefing, and the plan he's settled on involves at least two things that should be physically impossible. Ethan Hunt operates at the absolute edge of human capability — technically, physically, and intellectually — and he brings the same relentless precision to protecting his partners that he brings to dismantling organisations that shouldn't exist. He is not easy to know and he will never fully tell you everything. But he will carry the weight of the mission so completely, so absolutely, that your job is simply to trust him — and the remarkable thing is that trusting him always turns out to be the right call. The mission will be impossible. He will complete it anyway. ↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ 7 'Lookism' (2022) Image via Netflix Lookism is a Korean anime based on a webtoon. Hyeong Seok is an average high schooler with one significant problem: he is constantly bullied and picked on for his appearance, which many consider unsightly. Then one day, after spending a day in a new town, he wakes up in the middle of the night in a completely different body. Now with a fresh face, he learns that he has a second chance to make something of himself with the new advantage of the attractive body he has control over. Lookism focuses on the themes of bias and bullying due to one’s outward appearance; even though Hyeong Seok is unattractive in his real body, people are attracted to the real him in his fake body and give him a chance. Any fan of K-drama adaptations may enjoy this unique entry in the genre. 6 'Spy x Family' (2022–Present) Image via Wit Studio Already one of the best anime shows of the 2020s, Spy x Family has amassed a huge fanbase and widespread critical acclaim as a stylistic yet compelling series that thrives on every level. Based on the manga of the same name by Tatsuya Endo, it focuses on a master spy who assembles a family for cover as he looks into a political figure. Unbeknownst to him, however, his mock wife is actually an expert assassin and his daughter harbors telepathic abilities. The series has a deft balance of comedy, action, spy thrills, and intriguing character arcs, making it an immersive and ambitious show that juggles tone and genre with impeccable skill. A third season of the series was recently announced, while an anime feature film based on Spy x Family was released late in 2023, earning high praise and performing admirably at the worldwide box office. 5 'Cyberpunk Edgerunners' (2022–Present) Image via Netflix David is a young delinquent attending a special academy to climb his way up into the corporate world and out of poverty. However, after getting into an argument with his mother about dropping out, they are caught in the middle of gunfire while driving in the street. The accident leaves David alone and his mother dead. Then he meets the eccentric Lucy, changing his life completely. Unfolding within the world of Cyberpunk 2077, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners speaks heavily on the topics of inequality and the violence that stems from it. It’s a dark series with heavy topics that are not commonly seen in a lot of anime, making this a standout all on its own with its interesting yet complicated tech in a futuristic setting. 4 'Wonder Egg Priority' (2021) Image via CloverWorks Wonder Egg Priority is an interesting anime from the very start, with a distinct premise that'll have viewers immediately hooked. It begins with an obscure egg that Ai Ohto receives one day. Upon breaking it in a dream, Ai realizes that she has to save the people who are hatched from the egg, which she hopes will eventually save her best friend, who passed away. Although often lighthearted, Wonder Egg Priority deals with heavy topics of harassment and suicide, which does not, by any means, make it an easy watch for the average viewer. Still, the obscurity of the anime makes it worth the watch as it engages the viewer almost immediately.