Bluntly speaking, those who have witnessed the big fours of the anime “One Piece, Dragon Ball, Naruto, and Bleach” know the difference between classic and new-gen anime. With no hatred, these four cannot be replaced; nonetheless, new-generation anime series have already swept the world by storm with a fresh approach and perspective.
The basis of these new treasures that we’ve seen in recent years is the driving force behind anime’s global popularity. I don’t wanna spoil here literally, so make sure you stick to the end to find out if you’re missing any new-gen gems.
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10: Mashle: Magic and Muscles
If we mix up the series Harry Potter and Black Clover together, the product we will get is literally Mashle: Magic and Muscles. Does this mean it’s a cheap replica? Well, it is, but in a better way.
This new-generation anime, whose popularity shot to global prominence following the release of season two, is an impressive ripoff that combines a magical high school setting with a funny art style.
This story follows the magicless, airheaded dude, Mashle, who may be the most unfortunate in this world since being magicless is no less than sin in Mashle’s world. But guess what? Mashle is blessed with insane physical abilities enough to cope with his magicless setback.
9: Blue Lock
I suppose that the years 2012–2014, with anime like “Kuroko’s Basketball, Ping Pong The Animation, Haikyu!!,” were the best for fans of sports anime. Given these achievements, a sports anime will inevitably make it onto the list of new-generation series. Thus, in 2022, we obtained Blue Lock.
This visually stunning soccer anime was created by 8-Bit Studios and has earned quite a name within a short span.
This crisp shonen follows a bunch of kids who have been recruited by Japan’s mysterious football training facility, “Blue Lock,” to pick an attacking play to secure the upcoming biggest soccer event.
8: The Apothecary Diaries
Before the release of The Apothecary Diaries, fans were skeptical about medicine-related slice-of-life shows. However, all changed overnight as The Apothecary Diaries emerged as a pleasing mystery anime, winning the hearts of fans with its vibrant art style.
As the new era of anime has already begun, nobody cares about run-of-the-mill anime shows with nothing new. This is where The Apothecary Diaries anime shines with a super unpredictable plot that makes you guess every second where this event is actually leading to.”
The show follows your cold, mature teenage Apothecary Mao Mao, who got abducted and ends up in the royal kingdom as a mere servant. Within months, her talent as an apothecary shines and helps her climb through the ranks.
7: Chainsaw Man
Just hand over a successful manga to Mappa Studios, and they will cook a money-making machine with their super-good action choreography and art style. Mappa is one of the most popular anime studios for creating successful new-gen anime.
Chainsawman is, hands down, a masterpiece of Mappa with a crazy good blend of supernatural and violent. This goriest new-gen anime follows run-of-the-mill underdog protagonist Denji, who got killed by his father’s debtors.
Before meeting his demise, he merged with his pet chainsaw devil (Pochita) and awakened as a chainsaw man, wreaking havoc. With his newfound powers, he was approached by Makima to work for a security agency that eliminates harmful devils. The anime is also getting a movie this year.
6: Ninja Kamui
Ninja Kamui‘s success has literally shown that beautifully drawn action sequences are the most essential elements in the success of an action-based show.
Ninja Kamui delves right into the plot, and the animation quality exceeds today’s standards, making for a thrilling start for new-gen anime lovers.
The plot of this show revolves around a former Ninja who had chosen to live a simple life, forming his family, until his family got butchered by his clan members. Now this 21st-century Ninja has only one resolve: Vengeance.
5: Demon Slayer
Demon Slayer is proof that any anime can cash any typical Shonen storyline if it is created beautifully. Even though hardcore Otakus consider this anime overrated, there’s no denying the fact that Demon Slayer owns the record for the highest-grossing anime movie (Mugan Train).
The anime revolves around Tanjiro Kamado, a wholesome boy whose family got slaughtered by a demon, and his remaining sibling turned into a demon.
He embarks on a journey by joining the Demon Slayer Corps in the hope of finding a cure for his sister. Maybe the plot is overrated, but the way Ufotable has paced it truly wins hearts globally.
4: Solo Leveling
Nowadays, where even mediocre storylines do great, how come fans can expect less from the super-famous Korean web novel “Solo Leveling?”
Fans’ only desire regarding this project was to get smooth animation, and A-1 Pictures fulfilled their requirement by cooking it on hot flames.
Solo Leveling is not very unique, but it follows the usual Shonen storyline where the main character is the only hunter able to power up. With this OP ability, he conquers the dungeons, defeating powerful monsters, and that’s pretty much the whole plot. The anime’s second season also debuted.
3: Jujutsu Kaisen
Jujutsu Kaisen has quickly established a loyal fanbase comparable to one of anime’s big four. Aside from the controversy, Jujutsu Kaisen’s storyline and Mappa’s animation adaptation assignment have the potential to make this new-generation anime the most popular and successful of the decade.
Whether we’re talking about the plot, characters, art style, animations, pacing, or soundtrack, everything is top-tier and justifies the excitement around this shonen successor anime.
The program is set in Japan, where demonic curses cause devastation, and some sorcerers emerge to exorcise these curses. Among them is our airhead, Itadori Yuhi, who eats a special-grade curse and awakens the god of curses, Sukuna.
2: Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End
I was skeptical about giving this anime a shot until the news caught me off guard that Frieren Beyond Journey’s End has been ranked as the number one anime on Mal.
As an Otaku, you would already know how common the demon king trope is in anime, but this new-gen anime is staged after the journey story of the immortal MC (Frienren).
There is a chance that this fresh method has helped this anime rise through the ranks, but the main reason is its very calming rhythm and eye-catching art style, which makes the episode move like a pleasant breeze.
1: Attack on Titan
Regardless of mal ratings, IMDB ratings, or crowd estimation, it is difficult for anime to achieve such a compact, full of twists and turns tale with excellent foreshadowing like AOT.
The anime depicts a fictional world in which humanity lives behind massive walls, unaware of what is beyond them. One day, all calm was lost when a gigantic titan appeared and destroyed the wall, resulting in many losses, including Eren’s mother. Eren now has only one goal in mind: to destroy every titan that exists.
After nearly a decade, the anime show is still the most popular on Mal, with the largest active fandom.
Conclusion:
The motive of this little piece of content was to shed light on some renowned new-generation anime shows while explaining what makes them truly new-gen. I hope you have enjoyed it.
