Netflix anime series
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With a lot more time on your hands to just stay home and binge-watch shows online, you may be inspired to add some anime titles to your screening line-up.
Whether you’re a seasoned anime lover or dipping your toes into the genre for the first time, this list of 20 must-watch Netflix anime series is sorted into beginner-friendly classics as well as lesser-known titles. A lot of them have numerous seasons and episode counts spanning hundreds, perfect to get lost in for hours on end.
Pssst…to get the most out of your viewing experience, make sure to use these Netflix hacks.
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Whenever newbies to the genre ask for recommendations, these age-old classics are at the tip of the tongue for any true-blue anime fan. Earning their reputation for good reason, delving into any one of these Netflix anime series is a good bet that you’ll be exposed to everything anime is internationally lauded for.
Image credit: Polygon
PSA: Don’t press play on this series on an empty stomach. As you’d imagine just by laying eyes on the title and thumbnail, Food Wars serves up tantalising tales of culinary battles. There’s just something visually captivating about animated food that makes us want to reach past our screens and grab a bite.
The story is based around students’ journey in a rigorous cooking camp within an elite culinary school. Feast your eyes on new gourmet creations each episode, from fluffy souffle omelettes to slurp-a-licious ramen. In fact, Eatbook was so inspired they even took a crack at recreating the iconic “Gotcha Roast Pork” dish!
Give it a try yourself. Who knows, by the end of Circuit Breaker you might become a budding home cook.
Seasons available on Netflix: 3 (Approx. 20 episodes each)
Runtime: Approx. 24 minutes per episode
Watch Food Wars on Netflix
Image credit: Animation World Network
Practically synonymous with the genre, Naruto is the origin of many pop culture references – from the hand signs and headbands to the meme-worthy “Naruto run”.
The long-running series follows the titular character on his journey of being a teenage ninja, with hopes of becoming the Hokage a.k.a. leader of the village.
Seasons available on Netflix: 9 (Approx. 27 episodes each)
Runtime: Approx. 23 minutes per episode
Watch Naruto on Netflix
Image credit: Gadget Freeks
Set in a world where superpowers are commonplace, a boy who was born sans special abilities is scouted by a top-tier hero to receive training within a “hero school”. My Hero Academia features an extensive cast of quirky characters, and discovering their unique set of traits and powers is half the fun.
It dabbles with ice, electricity and even reptilian capabilities within mere mortals, just to give you a taste of how wacky the range of superpowers is.
Seasons available on Netflix: 2 (25 episodes each)
Runtime: Approx. 23 minutes per episode
Watch My Hero Academia on Netflix
Image credit: Comic Book Reviews
The series offers an interesting premise: a notebook exists whereby any person’s name who is written in it, will die. The person writing the name has to visualise the victim’s face, so people who share the same name will not be affected.
If the cause of death is written within the next 40 seconds, it will take effect. If left unspecified, the victim will perish from a heart attack. Sounds spooky and all-too-effortless, right? Watch as a highschool student attempts to rid the world of evil through this powerful notebook, facing inner and outer conflict along the way as he inevitably develops a bit of a God complex.
Seasons available on Netflix: 1 (37 episodes)
Runtime: Approx. 22 minutes per episode
Watch Death Note on Netflix
Image credit: Games Radar
You’ve probably seen nightmarish screencaps of the gigantic humanoid forms from Attack On Titan used as meme fodder. Those terrifying creatures are the “titans” in question, and the series depicts life in a fantasy world where regular mortals reside in fixed territories.
3 walls have been erected to protect humankind from the man-eating titans, but a squad of elite soldiers brave these barriers to avenge the death of one’s mother, and the destruction of their hometown.
Seasons available on Netflix: 4 (Approx. 12 episodes each)
Runtime: Approx. 23 minutes per episode
Watch Attack On Titan on Netflix
Image credit: Otaku Kart
Completing this feel-good sports anime just might inspire you to pick up volleyball once Circuit Breaker ends. A junior-high student takes a leap of faith to join the school team despite his under-average height, earning himself the nickname “Little Giant”.
The match scenes are an adrenaline rush to watch, while the rest of the series also explores themes of camaraderie and unlikely friendships.
Seasons available on Netflix: 1 (25 episodes)
Runtime: Approx. 24 minutes per episode
Watch Haikyu on Netflix
Image credit: Game Revolution
The inspiration behind many botak memes, One Punch Man is known as “the most powerful superhero in the world”. So-named because he is able to knock any opponent out with a single blow, his otherworldly strength has rendered him unrivalled.
Thus, he embarks on a quest to seek worthy challenges. Ironically, his status of being undefeated actually launches him into boredom and restlessness. Go figure!
Seasons available on Netflix: 2 (12 episodes each)
Runtime: Approx. 23 minutes per episode
Watch One Punch Man on Netflix
Image credit: Otaku Fantasy
Hunter x Hunter tells the tale of how a lad discovers that his father – whom he had believed to be dead – is actually alive and well, and an established Hunter to boot! In this universe, Hunters are society’s elites who are tasked with capturing criminals and going on grand missions for elusive treasures.
The young boy then decides to follow in his father’s footsteps and begin Hunter training, placing himself into exhilarating scenarios well beyond his years every step of the way.
Seasons available on Netflix: 6 (Approx. 20 episodes each)
Runtime: Approx. 23 minutes per episode
Watch Hunter x Hunter on Netflix
Image credit: Comic Book
No, this series has nothing to do with the cleaning chemical. The main character in Bleach is a human-turned-Shinigami, which translates to God of Death. Think of it as Japan’s version of the Grim Reaper.
Plenty of fantasy-based story arcs are covered throughout its 300+ episodes, including immortality, supernatural soul-reaping abilities and the crossing of human realms and the “Soul Society”.
Seasons available on Netflix: 8 (Approx. 20 episodes each)
Runtime: Approx. 22 minutes per episode
Watch Bleach on Netflix
Image credit: Netflix
Inuyasha is a fabled tale where the titular character, a half-human half-dog demon, joins forces with an ancient priestess’ modern-day reincarnation. Follow along their tumultuous journey across feudal Japan to collect and piece back the precious and immensely powerful Shikon jewel.
Romance inevitably blossoms between the 2 main characters, and this anime also has a legendary soundtrack of gut-wrenching love songs such as BoA’s famous Every Heart.
Seasons available on Netflix: 2 (27 episodes each)
Runtime: Approx. 23 minutes per episode
Watch Inuyasha on Netflix
If you’ve crossed the must-watch classics off your checklist and are unsure of what anime to venture into next, we’ve scoured the catalogue of Netflix anime to bring you a balanced mix of genres. Some are light-hearted feel-good storylines you can get lost in over your WFH lunch break, while others will suck you right in for a solid marathoning sesh.
Former yakuza – a.k.a. Japanese gang – members turned J-Pop idols.
Image credit: Pinterest
A hilariously absurd concept as it is, Back Street Girls: Gokudols is about 3 yakuza members who commit a folly and now have to serve a ridiculous punishment dealt by their triad leader.
With death as the only alternative, 3 of them are forced to undergo gender reassignment surgery and debut as…wait for it – a J-Pop girl group. As you can well imagine, what ensues is madcap mayhem of their struggles in fame, stardom and womanhood.
Seasons available on Netflix: 1 (10 episodes)
Runtime: Approx. 23 minutes per episode
Watch Back Street Girls: Gokudols on Netflix
Image credit: Anime Evo
A refreshing breather from high-octane anime series which focus on illustrating the impossible, Violet Evergarden is a sentimental tale of a female soldier-turned-ghostwriter who has had to navigate life with prosthetic arms following an injury in combat.
Well-suited for audiences who prefer a slower pace, there’s no exhilarating assault to the senses with rapid action scenes, but the artwork is delicately splendid from the character’s costumes to the Industrial Revolution scenery.
Seasons available on Netflix: 1 (13 episodes)
Runtime: Approx. 24 minutes per episode
Watch Violet Evergarden on Netflix
Image credit: Netflix
If you’re into both role-playing video games and anime, Sword Art Online is where the 2 worlds collide in the best way possible. A gaming whiz manages to invent technology allowing players to control their in-game avatars through their real physical selves.
As wondrous as that sounds, crisis ensues when the first wave of excited users realise they’re trapped in the virtual universe and unable to log out. Worse still, players who suffer in-game deaths also die IRL, à la The Matrix.
Seasons available on Netflix: 1 (24 episodes)
Runtime: Approx. 23 minutes per episode
Watch Sword Art Online Netflix
Image credit: Animation Magazine
First created way back in 1987, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure has gone through quite the evolution from its manga origins all the way to a live-action film adaptation – and now the anime is available on Netflix for our viewing pleasure.
The series features various members of the Joestar family across different eras and settings, from 19th century England to modern-day post-tsunami Japan. In every arc, the new protagonist under the Joestar or “JoJo” lineage has a personal mission and corresponding villains to conquer.
Seasons available on Netflix: 2 (Approx. 43 episodes each)
Runtime: Approx. 23 minutes per episode
Watch JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure on Netflix
Image credit: Netflix
If you’re into sci-fi fantasies touching on the topics of teleportation, time reversal and “resetting” life, Re:Zero will be right up your alley. The story kicks off with a young man entering an alternate realm, with medieval settings and half-animal humanoids.
While trying to make sense of his new surroundings, he encounters danger and quickly learns that in this new universe, he is able to return to a set checkpoint every time he dies. And so begins the careful crafting of his new life, which he can tweak and start over as he pleases.
Seasons available on Netflix: 1 (25 episodes)
Runtime: Approx. 25 minutes per episode
Watch Re:Zero on Netflix
Image credit: Thegorbalsla
This bright, cheery and oftentimes quirkily animated series chronicles the eighth-grade adventures of 3 gal pals. In a bid to make school life less mundane, they create a sort of CCA where the club’s goal is just to play games and pass the time.
For those who are fans of Spongebob Squarepants’ style of absurd cartoons and hyper-realistic drawings, Asobi Asobase: Workshops of Fun will likely send you into chuckle fits when the perfectly pretty characters transform into comically ridiculous caricatures at a moment’s notice.
Seasons available on Netflix: 1 (12 episodes)
Runtime: Approx. 23 minutes per episode
Watch Asobi Asobase: Workshop of Fun on Netflix
Image credit: Reel Rundown
The title really tells it like it is. In an intriguing take on the whole reincarnation concept, That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime sees a regular middle-aged office worker being reborn in a separate world after his mortal being is killed.
His new state is a slime blob, complete with thoughts, emotions, and special superpowers such as the ability to devour anything to mimic its appearance and skills. Determined to ditch his previous monotonous life for a 180° change, he embarks on quests of epic proportions – such as single-handedly taking down an army of 200,000 orcs.
Seasons available on Netflix: 1 (24 episodes)
Runtime: Approx. 23 minutes per episode
Watch That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime on Netflix
Image credit: Dash Gamer
Those who fancy anime series about school life and blossoming romances will get a kick out of Kaguya-sama: Love Is War, but it’s not your typical saccharine love story. Veering from the tried-and-tested formula of secret crushes, sweet confessions and hand-written love notes, this story actually makes a contest out of the main characters’ affections for each other.
In a battle of pride and wits, 2 privileged students at an elite school establish that whoever professes their feelings for the other party first, is the loser.
Seasons available on Netflix: 2 (Approx. 7 episodes each)
Runtime: Approx. 24 minutes per episode
Watch Kaguya-sama: Love Is War on Netflix
Image credit: Comic Book Reviews
Here’s a futuristic concept that you’ve probably never heard of, even from the most imaginative Young Adult novel series. Set in the year 2113, members of society are to undergo brain scans which determine their likelihood of committing a crime. Quite literally a death sentence at its most extreme, citizens producing dissatisfactory results are immediately apprehended.
Told through the lens of a rookie inspector in the city’s Criminal Investigation Department, Psycho-Pass will be a hit among those who enjoy crime and suspense dramas, or tech sci-fi thrillers like Black Mirror.
Seasons available on Netflix: 2 (Approx. 16 episodes each)
Runtime: Approx. 22 minutes per episode
Watch Psycho-Pass on Netflix
Image credit: Netflix
There are lots of anime series where the main character or ensemble cast possess extraordinary strength or physical superpowers. In Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, the protagonist has the enviable ability to make anyone and everyone obey his bidding.
This is achieved through the implantation of commands within a subject’s minds, once he locks eyes with them. As such, this almighty lad assumes the role to lead Japan’s rebellion against the Britannia invasion.
Seasons available on Netflix: 2 (25 episodes each)
Runtime: Approx. 24 minutes per episode
Watch Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion Netflix
With the extension of Circuit Breaker, all of us are racking our brains for things to do at home. There comes a point where every season of our fave Western programmes have already been done and dusted, and all the K-dramas watched and re-watched as well.
Whether you’re giving anime a try for the first time or are jumping into a fresh new series, we hope this list of Netflix anime series aids in killing boredom and helping time faster. Remember, we’re all doing our part to stop the spread of COVID-19 and save lives simply by staying at home!
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