The 10 best anime series you can watch on Netflix

Ten years ago, when I was starting to get into anime, Netflix’s library had a lot to be desired. There was enough to get me hooked into the genre, but not enough to keep me on the platform. And Netflix’s original anime? Disappointing, at best.

A lot has changed in ten years. Researching this piece, I was constantly thrown into delighted surprise at how many incredible series are now available on Netflix. I was also shocked at the number of amazing series I had to leave off: Cyberpunk Edgerunners, Devilman Crybaby, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, Komi Can’t Communicate, The Way of the Househusband, Romantic Killer. And those are just the Netflix originals.

So here’s just a handful of some of the best anime series can you watch with your Netflix subscription.

10. Pluto

You know Astro Boy? Osamu Tezuka’s beloved series, which is additionally credited as the first anime series ever produced? Pluto is a retelling of a particular arc from Astro Boy, but told darker and as a mystery.

Pluto speaks for itself. It’s dark, it’s gripping, and it will make you cry at the simple glance of a piano.

9. Violet Evergarden

Violet Evergarden—a Netflix exclusive—is one of the most acclaimed series ever by Kyoto Animation, a much-beloved veteran of the industry. So that alone should give you a sense of its quality. It’s a show which will emotionally destroy you in the best way.

Violet Evergarden tells the story of its titular protagonist, left emotionally hollow in the aftermath of a giant war. She takes a job as an “Auto Memory Doll,” transcribing people’s thoughts into letters.

8. Mob Psycho 100

Mob Psycho 100 is one of the best anime series ever made, full stop. The only reason it ranks lower on this list is because you can’t yet watch the third and final season on Netflix—you’ll have to venture to Crunchyroll for that one. Still, even in its unfinished form, Mob Psycho 100 is worth your time and more.

It’s the story of a boy who’s one of the most powerful psychics in the world, but his powers only kick into overdrive when he’s upset. Mob Psycho 100 is one of the most emotionally vulnerable and sincere action series ever made. It’s special.

7. Pui Pui Molcar

Is stop-motion anime? Well, it’s animated, so I’m going to say yes, in no small part because it allows me the opportunity to proselytize about Pui Pui Molcar. Which is a Netflix exclusive outside Japan.

Pui Pui Molcar boldly asks the question: What if guinea pigs had evolved into cars, and we could get inside them and drive them around, and they could poop us out in turn? The result is one of the most ridiculous, absurd, delightful series I’ve ever seen. Each episode is 2 minutes long (Netflix groups them into three), so your commitment until you, too, see the light is very minimal.

6. Death Note

There’s a handful of anime that are commonly sighted as “gateways” into the medium. Death Note is one of them. Personally speaking, Death Note was the anime that turned me from an enjoyer to someone greedily looking for new recommendations.

Death Note is a particular high that I’ve been chasing down ever since that first watch. Its premise is tantalizing: An intellectually brilliant high school boy gets hold of a notebook where you simply write down a name and that person dies, and decides to use it to punish criminals. What unfolds is a singular exploration of the uncomfortable gray spaces between good and evil, alongside one of the most edge-of-your-seat cat-and-mouse chases in television.

5. Monster

Madhouse produced Death Note almost immediately on the heels of Monster, which is widely lauded as a masterpiece. MyAnimeList users have ranked it the 23rd best anime (including TV and film) ever made. It sits right behind the first season of The Apothecary Diaries (which, damn straight).

Monster is a very dark, highly psychological story about, largely, the ramifications of a neurosurgeon being forced to chose which patients to save and which to let die. What evolves from that intense kernel is a highly gripping, highly suspenseful crime drama. And like Death Note, it’s only available on Netflix.

4. Pokémon Concierge

Again, is stop-motion anime? Far more important is this ridiculously bold statement that I’m completely comfortable making: Pokémon Concierge is the best Pokémon thing in existence. Games, previous TV series, all of it. Pokémon Concierge is the Pokémon experience I have been waiting for my entire life, and I cried several times watching it for that reason alone.

Pokémon Concierge excels at being a series that effortlessly brings in both adult and child audiences without dumbing anything down. It’s heartfelt, sincere, adorable, and warm, a series that fully understands the sizable portion of the Pokémon fandom that just wants things to be cozy.

3. Delicious in Dungeon

I well remember Netflix’s first original anime. It was not excellent. How far we’ve come.

Studio Trigger has delivered some bangers for Netflix. (There will be legit anger that I did not put Cyberpunk Edgerunners on this list, and those people will be right.) But there’s only so much space. And in Delicious in Dungeon, Trigger has arguably reached its highest high.

Incredible and highly empathetic characters, remarkable world-building, gorgeous animation, and a warmth that emanates out of the series like steam from a fresh hot pot—Delicious in Dungeon is one of the best anime series of the last five years, no question.

2. One Piece

Netflix has a lot of incredible shonen series, even most of the tentpoles: My Hero Academia, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Haikyuu!!, Hunter x Hunter. You should explore all of those, particularly Hunter x Hunter. But since all of these shows are available on one or more other platforms, I’ve reserved the “tentpole shonen” spot on this list for the series that, no joke, made headlines when it came to Netflix: One Piece.

Of course, Netflix is going all in on One Piece recently, what with the live-action and Wit Studio’s upcoming remake. But there’s nothing quite like the original. Netflix doesn’t have all of One Piece yet, but there’s enough to get you cooking. Or, if you’re interested in seeing what the series is like right now, Netflix is airing the new arc, with episodes delayed only a week.

And yes, One Piece really is that good.

1. Neon Genesis Evangelion

Netflix has the exalted status of being the only streamer on the internet with rights to the granddaddy of all anime: Neon Genesis Evangelion. If you deem yourself an anime fan and have not watched Evangelion, I don’t mean you gate-keep, but you have to fix that immediately. I’m sorry, I don’t make the rules.

Evangelion was cooked up by Hideaki Ano, who formed his own studio after being one of Hayao Miyazaki’s favorite animators. He made Evangelion in a time of deep depression and boy, does it show. It’s an impeccable look at humanity under the thin mask of being a show about fighting in big robots.