These are the best anime shows of 2022
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2022 was another banner year for anime! Some long-running shows continued to wow, some old friends returned to screens, and more than a few new titles made a major impact on viewers.
But with all that choice, it can be hard to know what to dive into. Lucky for you, we’ve rounded up the best anime shows 2022 had to offer.
SPY x FAMILY
SPY x FAMILY is 2022’s biggest breakout success. Based on the popular manga, this screwball spy series is equal parts action show and heartwarming slice-of-life comedy. The main draw is adorable telepath Anya, who makes up one-third of a very special blended family alongside secret agent and adoptive dad Loid, and assassin-in-hiding mom Yor.
The show’s glossy animation, produced by titans CloverWorks and Wit Studio, gets used to great effect for both ridiculous comedic moments and effortless action scenes. If you watch one anime from 2022, make it SPY x FAMILY.
Chainsaw Man
Chainsaw Man was the most anticipated new series of 2022, and is based on Tatsuki Fujimoto's hugely popular manga. Luckily for viewers, the show, produced by animation superstars at MAPPA, lived up to the hype - delivering big-budget action at its finest.
The sharp visual style and impressive fight choreography make for thrilling viewing, and are backed up by strong characterisation and a surprisingly unique take on the demon-hunter format.
Ranking of Kings
Ranking of Kings came out of nowhere at the tail end of 2021, enrapturing anime fans with a gorgeous euro-fantasy vibe and a delightfully empowering story about a young deaf Prince.
The show has stayed near the top of this list all year thanks to masterful writing, which subverts fantasy tropes at every turn, and its beautiful painterly animation style. Suffice to say. we are very excited to have Boji return to our screens in 2023.
My Hero Academia (Season 6)
My Hero Academia is a part of the anime furniture at this point, but season six returned with a bang in September and has blown us out of the water so far.
The show is masterfully balancing its extensive roster of characters, ensuring that all of your favourites get a moment to shine. On top of that, it's also paying off over six years' worth of storytelling to build a really awesome, superheroic finale.
Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury
Space lesbians! Giant mechs! What more do you want? The Witch From Mercury, the latest standalone installment in the long-running Mobile Suit Gundam franchise, is a breath of fresh for both the series and mecha anime as a whole.
The action take place primarily around a prestigious school for the future CEOs of various spacefaring supercompanies, where students settle arguments with duels in giant mechs.
The Witch From Mercury successfully mixes the high-stakes politicking that makes Mobile Suit Gundam so beloved with funny and charming characters that even the most hard-hearted pilot will get attached to.
BOCCHI! THE ROCK
BOCCHI! THE ROCK is already an underrated gem. The series, which follows the extremely socially anxious Bocchi on her journey to join a rock band, is the year’s funniest anime (by a country mile) and the perfect antidote to the high-octane shonen shows surrounding it on this list.
The cast of characters is incredibly likable, and the show’s approach to adolescence tackles modern issues while also being incredibly relatable to anyone who’s ever felt like an outsider.
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners is Netflix’s big anime success story this year. The show, a spinoff from the 2020 video game Cyberpunk 2077, is exactly the sort of neon-soaked hyperviolent action series you’d expect from the animators at Trigger (responsible for shows like Kill La Kill).
Edgerunners is gaudy and loud but manages to avoid too much fanservice and tell a surprisingly nuanced and character-driven story within its outrageous world. If you’re looking for a true visual feast, this is the one for you.
Demon Slayer: Entertainment District Arc
Demon Slayer season 2 officially kicked off last year with the wildly successful Mugen Train movie, and was followed up with the Entertainment District Arc.
Although the show was a little slow to find its footing, the adventures of Tanjiro and co have never looked better and the season’s final 3-episode fight sequence was a true shonen masterclass.
Mob Psycho 100 (Season 3)
Mob, Reigen, and the whole gang returned this year for the third (and potentially final) season of Mob Psycho 100, after just over two years off our screens.
The series continues to throw everything at the wall visually, with face-melting displays of psychic power, without ever sacrificing the absurdity and humanity (see this season’s giant broccoli storyline) that make it so beloved.
Episode 12 has just aired and we implore any lapsed fans to jump back in for what might be the show’s most shocking finale ever.
Attack on Titan: Final Season Part 2
Life as an Attack on Titan fan is harrowing to say the least, and not just because of all the bone squashing and people munching. Over the years, Hajime Isayama's game-changing manga has been extremely challenging to adapt thanks to numerous delays and a surprise studio switch.
But it turns out we shouldn't have been worried. In fact, season four has given us some of the best-ever episodes, and also some of the most experimental too. Attack on Titan has never been one to hold our hand and gently guide us through the world of Marley, Paradis Island, and beyond, but this time around the show has taken great delight in stretching what anime is even capable of with some bold and harrowing plot decisions. All bets are off, it seems, now that we're heading into the very last chapter.
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