Best Anime on Netflix Right Now (September 2023)

Cast: Shim Kyu-hyuck, Han Shin, Ryu Seung-gone

Originally a South Korean webtoon written and drawn by Park Tae-joon, Lookism was cleverly adapted into an animated series about a high school student who has the ability to switch between polar opposite appearances — from a conventionally attractive body to one that is deemed less desirable by societal standards. Utilizing the voices of actors Shim Kyu-hyuck, Han Shin, and Ryu Seung-gone, Lookism is a unique exploration of societal expectations, unrealistic beauty standards, and the challenges everyone faces when growing up, regardless of their physical appearance. With a message about inner beauty, bullying, and self-love, Lookism is a series for everyone. – Yael Tygiel

Cast: Reina Ueda, Kaito Ishikawa, Ayane Sakura, Kōtarō Nishiyama, Hiro Shimono

Based on the light novel-turned-manga series by Akumi Agitogi, My Happy Marriage is a romance series based on an alternate Japanese history where magic and spirits exist in the 19th century. The story follows Miyo Saimori, a young woman without any special abilities in a world of mysticism, which causes her to be forced into servitude and eventually sent off to marry a notoriously cruel and domineering army commander named Kiyoka Kudou. Anyone familiar with the aspirational nature of Shōjo romances knows that, although the relationship starts off tense and sometimes abhorrent, the two protagonists will eventually see something in each other that makes them feel complete. For newcomers to anime, this series is basically Cinderella meets Beauty and the Beast…but the beast is HOT!

Vinland Saga is a Japanese anime inspired by the manga of the same name. Created by Makoto Yukimura, Vinland Saga follows a young boy named Thorfinn (Yûto Uemura), who, after his father’s death, sets out on a revenge mission, determined to find his father’s killer. Through his adventures alongside Vikings, Thorfinn attempts to stay honorable. But over the course of the series, he is sold into servitude and struggles with the realities of his life. A darker series, Vinland Saga focuses on Thorfinn’s mental state, earning critical praise for its approach to violence and the effects thereof. – Yael Tygiel

Cast: Allyn Rachel, Kent Osborne, Alexander James Rodriguez

Listen, the pedants out there will decry this series as non-anime Western animation that doesn’t belong on the list, but aside from the soil on which the cells were drawn, Bee and Puppycat has all the tenets of a classic adorable anime like Hamtaro or Aggretsuko. For those unfamiliar with the show, Netflix has adapted the popular web series starring creator Natasha Allegri as the titular Bee, who finds a cat-dog hybrid creature called Puppycat that teleports her to an alternate dimension, where she kicks tail at otherworldly temp jobs. Though Fishbowl Space is quite strange, the internal journeys of Bee and the mysterious Puppycat feel relatable and insightful. The show is quirky and bursting with whimsical characters that feel custom-made for quoting with friends.

Creators: Masao Ōkubo, Shinya Umemura, Takumi Fukui

Cast: Miyuki Sawashiro, Tomoyo Kurosawa, Tomokazu Seki

Record of Ragnarok is an action-packed anime series directed by Masao Ōkubo, inspired by the manga written by Shinya Umemura and Takumi Fukui. A dark fantasy series, Record of Ragnarok focuses on exciting adventures and intricate martial arts. Record of Ragnarok is about a grand fighting tournament battling for the survival of humanity. With an eclectic roster of characters, Record of Ragnarok highlights how prominent historical figures and diverse gods from a variety of mythologies fight to preserve life from eradication. With a voice cast including Miyuki Sawashiro, Tomoyo Kurosawa, and Tomokazu Seki, Record of Ragnarok is available with subtitles and dubbed. – Yael Tygiel

Cast: Rie Takahashi, Mikako Komatsu, Yuichiro Umehara

Romantic Killer is an adorably clever anime series inspired by the manga from Wataru Momose. Romantic Killer follows Anzu Hoshino (Rie Takahashi), a single, ordinary teenage girl who focuses more on video games and her cat than boys. When the magical wizard-like creature Riri (Mikako Komatsu) transports Anzu to an altered reality, she finds herself forced to befriend the attractive and popular Tsukasa Kazuki (Yuichiro Umehara) if she has any hope to see her cat and home again. Through heart and humor, Romance Killer confronts a relatable part of growing up through a whimsically cute premise. – Yael Tygiel

Created by: Koyoharu Gotouge

Cast: Zach Aguilar, Abby Trott, Bryce Papenbrook

Based on Koyoharu Gotouge’s popular sword-fighting action-adventure manga, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba follows a teenager named Tanjiro (Zach Aguilar), who joins the Demon Slayer Corp to exact revenge on the demons who slaughtered his family while also helping his sister, Nezuko (Abby Trott), as she becomes one. An underdog story, Demon Slayer allows Tanjiro to explore his unique approach to slaying, which provides him a different view from his cohort and an ability to find the good in demons – or at least try to understand their view. With a beautiful animation that has a gorgeous fluidity to it, Demon Slayer reveals unique fighting styles by changing the art style to express their individuality. – Yael Tygiel

Cast: Haruka Shiraishi, Shiki Aoki, Yuichiro Umehara

High-Rise Invasion is an action-packed anime series about a teenager, Yuri (Haruka Shiraishi), who finds herself atop high-rise buildings in a strange new skyscraper world. Yuri discovers she’s not alone in her adventure, as her brother is among the other high schoolers who have been transported. As she fights for survival against the white-masked killers hunting them, Yuri uncovers a deeper mystery about who is pulling the strings in this universe. High-Rise Invasion is a unique concept based on a hit Manga series written by Tsuina Miura, filled with big fights and even bigger mysteries. – Yael Tygiel

Created by: Hirohiko Araki

Cast: Matthew Mercer, David Vincent, Daisuke Ono

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure is truly that! Centered on a powerful family with superhuman abilities, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure follows the fantastical Joestars through their delightfully enchanting exploits. Crafted with deliberate use of unique art styles, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure manages to carefully bind together intriguing science-fiction elements, such as psychic abilities, with supernatural conditions, often punctuating the story with references to modern western pop culture, music, and fashion. The English dubbed version is beautifully handled by treasured voice actors, including Matthew Mercer (The Legend of Vox Machina), David Vincent, and Richard Epcar. – Yael Tygiel

Directed by: Shinchiro Watanabe

Cast: Koichi Yamadera, Unsho Ishizuka, Megumi Hayashibara, Aoi Tada, Koichi Yamadera

An iconic series that’s captured the hearts of both Japanese and international audiences, Cowboy Bebop is an intriguing blend of genres. Melting jazz and western with space ships and gangsters, there are so many aspects of this beloved anime that make it a fan favorite. No matter what you feel about the live-action adaptation, Cowboy Bebop is continuously rewatchable. With themes of regret and vengeance, this traveling group of space cowboys who hunt bounties across the solar system come into contact with some weird and exciting individuals. Though many of the episodes work fine as standalones, the story of Spike’s past stands as a connecting throughline that pushes the story forward. — Therese Lacson

Directed by: Tetsurō Araki, Masashi Koizuka, Yuichiro Hayashi, Jun Shishido

Cast: Yuki Kaji, Yui Ishikawa, Marina Inoue, Hiroshi Kamiya, Kisho Taniyama, Yu Shimamura, Hiro Shimono, Yoshimasa Hosoya, Daisuke Ono

If you want some downright dark and gritty drama to add to your anime plate, look no further than Attack on Titan. While it’s for a slightly older crowd due to its gruesome violence and body horror, the psychological trauma presented in Attack on Titan is some of the best among popular anime series. It takes place in a world where human survivors live in walled cities in fear for their lives from mysterious Titans, humanoid beings of anywhere from 9 to 200 feet tall who have a particular fondness for feasting on humans. The only line of defense besides the walls themselves are teams of dedicated scouts and soldiers who do their best to cull the population of Titans and protect the last vestiges of human civilization

Short on answers but heavy on incredible action and intrigue early on, Attack on Titan has become a massive hit. The most recent airing of Season 3, however, finally delivered a ton of mythology and lore dumps, some of which we’re still wrapping our heads around. In other words, now’s a perfect time for you to get going on Attack on Titan before the new season arrives! – Dave Trumbore

Cast: Kenjiro Tsuda, Shizuka Itou, Kazuyuki Okitsu

The Way of the House Husband is a short series about a gangster-turned-house-husband. This delightful series follows former Yakuza member Tatsu, who was once known as “The Immortal Dragon”. Since leaving the life of crime and marrying the career-driven Miku, he’s taken up another full-time job. Looking after the house! Between cleaning their home and fighting for the best deals on cabbage, Tatsu applies his own gangster intensity to these chores while simultaneously defying the stereotypes people might have for him upon first glance. A comedic slice-of-life, this is a quick binge that will leave you laughing and perhaps even a little proud of Tatsu’s daily accomplishments. — Therese Lacson

Directed by: Takuya Igarashi

Cast: Maaya Sakamoto, Mamoru Miyano, Masaya Matsukaze, Kenichi Suzumura, Yoshinori Fujita, Ayaka Saito, and Daisuke Kirii

A satirical take on the classic shōjo manga tropes, this romantic comedy follows the everyday lives of the Ouran High School Host Club, a school club of young boys who spend their free time entertaining and flirting with the young women of their private upper-class school. The show is funny, flirty, and filled with silly escapades and nail-biting romance, and the show’s characters are equally fantastical in their personalities and perspectives. Maaya Sakamoto’s Haruhi Fujioka, a young girl who is forced to disguise herself as part of the club to pay off the breaking of an expensive vase, is a quirky and wholesome portrayal of the differences between her modest upbringing and the wild and sometimes chaotic personalities of the wealthy boys of the Host Club. The show is an interesting take on the portrayal of class separation and gender expectations, with a healthy dose of high school drama. — Olivia Fitzpatrick

Directed by: Sam Deats, Adam Deats, Spencer Wan, and Amanda Sitareh B.

Cast: Richard Armitage, James Callis, Alejandra Reynoso, Graham McTavish, Theo James, Adetokumboh M’Cormack, and Jaime Murray

Based on the popular video game franchise of the same name, Castlevania explores the hellish lands of Wallachia, a once prospering nation brought low by the dark hand of Dracula, voiced by Graham McTavish, and his demons. The series is gory, gruesome, and wrought with nightmare-inducing creatures of all shapes and sizes, brought forth by Dracula to destroy the humans he despises so much after the death of his beloved wife. Hiding away in his castle as his minions do his bidding, Dracula is hunted by his own son, Alucard (James Callis), and his companions, Trevor Belmont (Richard Armitage) and Sypha Belnades (Alejandra Reynoso). The three of them, a dhampir, a monster hunter, and a Speaker magician respectively, fight their way through Wallachia, hell-bent on ending the war that has wracked the nation. Beautiful animation, a thrilling soundtrack, and top-tier voice acting only add to this hauntingly beautiful series. — Olivia Fitzpatrick

Directed by: Shin’ichi Matsumi

Cast: Chikahiro Kobayashi, Jonah Scott, Brian Beacock

Beastars excels on a philosophical level: It’s a story about nature vs nurture, instinct vs rational thought and control. A carnivore may desire to attack and devour an herbivore, but a rational member of a civilized society will find a way to resist and deflect that urge. An alpha male may yearn to attack rivals and conquer sexual objects of desire in a detached sort of way, but those striving to maintain humanity manage to control themselves and fight their natural instincts. That’s the push-and-pull conflict that’s at the center of Beastars, whether it’s grounded in animal instincts or the power structure of a high school class system. And it’s all handled with such maturity that sometimes you forget to laugh at the cheeky jokes about the well-known promiscuity of rabbits in the real world or the fact that there’s an herbivorous panda brandishing a bamboo crossbow to take down carnivores who lose control.

Beastars is a refreshing change-up to more predictable and familiar anime series; it’s also one of the year’s best that will be hard to top from here on out. Season 2 is already a go in Japan–though it remains to be seen if / when it’ll arrive on Netflix–but Season 1 left us with a few questions: What happened to Louis? Will Legoshi and others ever investigate the death of Tem? Just who was Legoshi talking to in the final episode, and what did that empty tray of medication have to do with the mysterious figure? Hopefully we’ll find out later this year! – Dave Trumbore

Created by: Lesean Thomas

Cast: Kenn Michael, Kamali Minter, Stephanie Sheh

Keeping in mind our reasoning that, if it falls under Netflix’s category of “anime” then we’re considering it anime, Cannon Busters is a great new addition to the catalog. It’s a love letter to classic anime series like Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, and Outlaw Star with enough original material to bring it into the same conversation as those iconic shows. It’s got bounty hunters, coin-operated mechs, insanely powerful androids, and a splash of magic to throw an extra aspect into the kitchen sink of a series. Somehow it all works.

The steampunk’d fantasy land of Gearbolt is the setting for a tale that follows a trio of misfits who are thrown together against all odds. There’s S.A.M., the naive, high-end, friendship robot who’s on a mission to reunite with her best friend–and heir to besieged kingdom–Kelby; her pal Casey Turnbuckle, an out-dated, repair robot in search of an upgrade; and wanted outlaw Philly the Kid, an immortal fugitive who drives the Cadillac Eldorado, which just so happens to transform into a giant fighting mech. It’s a fantastic trio on their own, but the characters they meet along the way add a lot of variety to the mix. Stick around to the end if you want to know exactly what a “Cannon Buster” is; we just can’t wait to see what’s next. – Dave Trumbore

Created by: Yoh Yoshinari

Cast: Megumi Han, Fumiko Orikasa, Michiyo Murase / Erica Mendez, Stephanie Sheh, Rachelle Heger

After a successful crowdfunding campaign to release a short film, Yoh Yoshinari’s Little Witch Academia finally got a full series order – and it’s on Netflix! The easiest way to describe the show is “The Harry Potter of anime”, we follow a group of girls who attend a prestigious academy for young witches. This is as wholesome a fantasy anime as you will find, with a Disney-esque sense of innocence, lovable and quirky characters and a simple story that always remains uplifting.

Created by: Kazuki Takahashi

Directed by: Kunihisa Sugishima

Cast: Shunsuke Kazama, Kenjiro Tsuda, Hiroki Takahashi / Dan Green, Eric Stuart, Wayne Grayson

After Digimon and Pokémon battled it out for best gateway anime for kids in the ‘90s, Yu-Gi-Oh! came in the early 2000s to try and take the crown of “Best Gateway Anime with the Best Tie-in Card Game”; there is a good chance this was not only your first anime, but your first trading card game. Battle lines were drawn in many elementary and middle schools between those who played Yu-Gi-Oh! and those who were loyal to Pokémon or “Magic the Gathering.”

As an anime, Yu-Gi-Oh! is a fun show about a kid named Yugi Mutou, a card duelist who believes in “the heart of the cards” whatever that is, and solves the magical Millennium Puzzle which allows him to play host to the ancient spirit of a gambling pharaoh. The series’ mythology is vast, the story is full of twist, turns, and one endless tournament arc, and most importantly it is a lot of fun to play along if you get the actual playing cards.

Created by: Shinji Higuchi, Mari Okada

Directed by: Shinji Higuchi, Hiroshi Kobayashi

Cast: Misaki Kuno, Tomoyo Kurosawa, Satomi Arai / Christine Marie Cabanos, Sarah Anne Williams, Erika Harlacher

Studio Bones has given us a big variety of some of the best anime series in recent years, from Fullmetal Alchemist, My Hero Academia, and Mob Psycho 100, to the upcoming Carole & Tuesday. You should be paying attention to any series that simply carries their name, and Dragon Pilot is no exception.

A mix of Transformers, the art style of Studio Ghibli, and How To Train Your Dragon, Dragon Pilot is simultaneously a fantasy military show, a painfully realistic look at what it’s like to be a woman entering the workforce, and an all-round fantastic series.

We have an unconventional anime protagonist – an adult woman who, not knowing what to do with her life after highschool, makes an impulse decision to join the Air Self Defense Force. She quickly becomes part of a secret group of pilots that don’t fly planes but rather dragons with armor that disguise themselves as planes. Dragon Pilot is entertaining, consistently goofy, and also a poignant look at the double-binds that society places on women in the workplace.

Created by: Makashi Kishimoto

Cast: Junko Takeuchi, Maile Flanagan, Kate Higgins, Chie Nakamura, Noriaki Sugiyama, Yuri Lowenthal Studio

Part of the “Big Three” shonen series together with One Piece and Bleach, Naruto is an anime series so massively popular it is nearly impossible to ignore. Even if you’ve never watched a single episode of anime, chances are you’ve at least heard about Naruto (even if it’s from the Area 51 memes).

It’s easy to see how Naruto became such a popular series: the antagonists are for the most part likeable, the action is stunning and well-directed, involving tactics and strategies. But more than that, it all boils down to Naruto himself being one of the most entertaining and well-developed characters in anime history. Throughout five seasons we see the aspiring ninja evolve from a trouble-maker brat into a leader and even a father, a.k.a. “Boruto’s Dad.”