This is shaping up to be the best year in anime history.By Josh Rosenberg PUBLISHED: MAY 21, 2024 4:41 PM EDT
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If you thought 2023 was a damn good year for anime, just wait until 2024 wraps up. Nearly every major series is airing new episodes this summer, alongside theatrical releases and new imaginings of the classics. You may be thinking that anime can’t get any better following last year’s stellar Jujutsu Kaisen season 2, but this year’s slate is already blowing me away. One Piece is boasting a new animation style, Demon Slayer opened its third season with a one-hour special, and the action-packed Kaiju No. 8 is exceeding expectations for the Shonen Jump manga’s first adaptation onscreen.
This year will also see Dragon Ball debut its grand return, alongside another rework of Junji Ito’s Uzumaki and Haikyuu!!‘s first film in theaters.If that wasn’t enough, Delicious in Dungeon, My Hero Academia, Bleach, Blue Lock, and Chainsaw Man are sure to keep anime fans happy. If there was ever a year in contention for the best year in anime history, 2024 is absolutely stepping up to the plate. Check out our favorites from 2024 so far below.
1
Delicious in Dungeon
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Delicious in Dungeon | Official Trailer #1 | Netflix
In a fantasy world where people explore massive dungeons to find treasure and fight mysterious beasts, one group of companions takes to cooking and eating the monsters to survive. The humorous and lighthearted series is finally adapted in this Netflix original, which is sure to make you hungry—even when they’re eating something insane.
2
One Piece (Season 21)
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＜オープニング映像フル＞TVアニメ「ONE PIECE」／オープニングテーマ「あーーっす！」歌：きただにひろし
Send some prayers to One Piece‘s animators, because the series didn’t even take a week off in between seasons. Debuting a flashy new animation style in the opening and hopping right into an adaptation of the manga’s current arc, the team behind the celebrated pirate series is steamrolling into season 21 and has the anime looking the best it ever has.
3
Solo Leveling
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Solo Leveling | OFFICIAL TRAILER 4
Solo Leveling follows the weakest human on Earth during a full-scale alien invasion. After a chance encounter, he’s given the power to fight back and solve the mystery of the monstrous invaders.
4
Kaiju No. 8
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Kaiju No.8 | MAIN TRAILER
While reading Kaiju No. 8, it was clear that the Godzilla-esque kaiju series would be perfect for an anime adaptation. Borrowing heavily from classic mech series such as Neon Genesis Evangelion, the story follows Earth’s need to protect the planet from massive intelligent monsters by borrowing the technology of defeated past foes.
5
Demon Slayer (Season 4)
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Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Promotion Reel 2024
Following an explosive third season, Demon Slayer returned this summer with a one-hour premiere as the story heads into the Hashira training arc. The series is also embarking on a worldwide fan tour in 2024, including special screenings of Demon Slayer‘s most emotional episodes.
6
Mashle (Season 2)
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MASHLE: MAGIC AND MUSCLES The Divine Visionary Candidate Exam Arc | OPENING THEME
Mashle season 2, subtitled Magic and Muscles, is an absolute hit. The Harry Potter parody series about a protagonist who is all muscle and no magic debuted the song “Bling-Bang-Bang-Born” by Japanese band Creepy Nuts in the opening credits, and the song just entered its 15th straight week on top of Billboard‘s Japan Hot 100 chart.
7
Wind Breaker
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WIND BREAKER | OFFICIAL TEASER
Crunchyroll’s newest anime, Wind Breaker, is a brawler that hits like a truck. There’s no anime magic or power levels here—just high school delinquents looking for fights.
8
Tonbo!
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Tonbo! – Official Trailer | It’s Anime
Simple and serene, Tonbo! is the best new sports anime of 2024. Less fiery than the genre’s more shonen-dependent staples, the new golf series on Amazon Prime Video—which is set in Japan’s Tokara Islands—takes its time to breathe and embody the inner peace that a sport like golf provides.
9
Metallic Rouge
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Metallic Rouge | OFFICIAL TRAILER
Blending themes from Neon Genesis Evangelion and Kill La Kill, Metallic Rouge is a genre-bending mech anime that doesn’t shy away from its queer undertones.
10
My Hero Academia (Season 7)
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My Hero Academia Season 7 | OFFICIAL TRAILER
My Hero Academia heads into its long final arc beginning in season 7, as the school for superheroes plans on bringing down the League of Villains once and for all.
11
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End
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Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End | OFFICIAL TRAILER
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End combines Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings fantasy with magical anime battles. The story follows a thousand-year-old elven mage who reunites with her fellow heroes years after they killed the Demon King.
12
Sand Land
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SAND LAND: THE SERIES – Teaser Trailer
Alongside Dragon Ball Daima, Akira Toriyama’s earlier project, Sand Land, received an anime adaption in 2024 thanks to Hulu. The series follows a demon child and a desperate sheriff on the lookout for water after natural disasters cover the world in sand.
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