While anime has been popular in the United States for a long time, the explosion of streaming services has really helped push the genre even further into the mainstream. Specialty platforms like Crunchyroll and Funimation host many of the best new and classic titles, while Netflix is increasingly becoming a destination for exciting original series. Anime content on Hulu has also grown tremendously over the past few years, and now there are a large number of movie series available for subscribers.
But with so many anime available on Hulu, it’s hard to know where to start. Anime can be an intimidating genre for newcomers, and even for fans, it can be difficult to keep up with the amount of titles available at times. So we’ve scoured Hulu’s current library of anime titles and picked out some of the must-see classics and underrated gems that are worth your time.
So, check out the best anime shows and movies on Hulu below. All of these titles are included in the basic Hulu subscription, which starts at just $ 6 per month. You can check out our full list of Hulu plans and pricing for 2021 (including the Disney Plus with Hulu plan) for more details if you’re considering signing up. There is also a 30 day free trial if you just want to try it or watch a specific show.
All five seasons of one of the most beloved anime shows of the ’90s can be found on Hulu. Based on Naoko Takeuchi’s longtime manga, the show follows the adventures of teenage student Usagi Tsukino, who, under the overpowered pseudonym Sailor Moon, helps protect Earth from a variety of strange creatures and beings. dangerous.
The Attack on Titan manga is one of the best-selling of all time, and the anime adaptation has rightfully become one of the most acclaimed of recent years. The story of the gigantic man-eating Titans and heroic Eren Yeager is both gruesome and thrilling, and brings something truly new to the post-apocalyptic subgenre.
The ever popular One Piece follows the bizarre and very funny adventures of the rubber-bodied Luffy and his mad crew, the Straw Hat Pirates. The series has aired since 1999 and will soon reach its 1000th episode. The first six seasons are available on Hulu, and it’s never too late to find out why this is one of the most-watched animated shows ever made.
The international success of Katsuhiro Otomo’s dazzling 1989 adaptation of his classic cyberpunk manga did a lot to introduce Western viewers to anime and is now considered one of the best sci-fi films ever made. Akira is an essential viewing for new anime viewers and can be seen endlessly for longtime fans.
Netflix’s highly anticipated Cowboy Bebop is on its way, so now is the perfect time to revisit the original series. Shinichirō Watanabe’s epic tale of a team of intergalactic bounty hunters is a genre masterpiece that places as much emphasis on the characters as it does on the thrilling space action. And who can forget this amazing and eclectic musical score?
Yu-Gi-Oh is one of the most lucrative media franchises of all time, comprising manga, movies, video games, collectible cards, and two animated series. The second of these shows is available on Hulu. It focuses on Yugi, a schoolboy who becomes the host of a mysterious play spirit and uses the Duel Monsters card game to solve problems with his friends and defeat evil.
Ninja Scroll was one of the many animated films that helped the genre gain popularity in the West in the early 90s, as well as make Madhouse one of Japan’s most important animation studios. It’s a bloody, gripping film set in feudal Japan, which mixes bloody action with supernatural horror.
The hugely popular My Hero Academia returned in May with Season 5, and every new episode is currently Hulu every week. But if you haven’t seen anything from the series yet, you can watch the previous four seasons and follow Izuku Midoriya, a boy born with no powers in a world filled with superheroes, as he trains to fulfill his dream. to become it.
Based on Koyoharu Gotouge’s hugely popular manga series, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba is set in Taishō-era Japan and focuses on the war between humans and demons. This elegantly animated and thrilling spectacle has become a cultural phenomenon, with the recent Demon Slayer film, Mugen Train, marking the biggest foreign language opening weekend in US box office history.
One-Punch Man tells the story of Saitama, an overpowered man who can defeat his opponents with – you guessed it – a single punch. While a change of animation studios results in a very disappointing second season, the inventive and funny season 1 comes highly recommended.
Takashi Okazaki’s love for hip-hop and soul music led him to create the iconic hero Afro Samurai, a black samurai-based party on the legend of Yasuke, which also inspired the recent Netflix show of this title. Afro Samurai was developed primarily for the American market, with Samuel L. Jackson voicing the main character.
Masashi Kishimoto’s Naruto is the fourth best-selling manga series in history, and there have been 720 incredible episodes of the anime version, spread across two separate shows. The first series is available on Hulu – it’s the shorter of the two, but there are still over 200 episodes of the fun and exciting adventures of young ninja Naruto Uzumaki to dive into.
Without a doubt one of the most powerful war films ever made, Tomb of the Fireflies was written and directed by Studio Ghibli co-founder Isao Takahata. He follows two orphaned siblings as they struggle to survive near the end of World War II. It is a magnificent and devastating masterpiece that remains an absolute highlight of the genre.
Bizarre is the right word for this infinitely inventive and beautifully illustrated series that follows the heroic Joestar family through the generations, with overpowering adventures, supernatural horrors, comedies, dramas and philosophical concepts. It’s a sight that’s hard to describe, but easy to love.
The very surreal and fun assassination class has the kind of plot that you will only find in anime or manga. A powerful and dangerous octopus-like being gives humanity one year to keep it from destroying Earth, and in the meantime takes a job as a high school teacher. A group of children from another class is responsible for destroying the creature.
In a world where demons occupy a dimension parallel to ours, twin brothers discover that their father is Satan and begin training to become demon-fighting exorcists to stop him. Blue Exorcist is a mix of horror and dark fantasy, and fans of both genres should check out its unique excellent season. A follow-up series, Blue Exorcist Kyoto Saga, is also available on Hulu.
Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata’s acclaimed manga spawned a variety of TV and film adaptations and spinoffs, but the original anime show is still the best. A young man finds a book that causes the death of anyone whose name is written on it, so sets out to rid the world of evil. Death Note asks questions about fate and morality while being a dark and gripping supernatural thriller.
While most of the shows on this list are adapted from manga, Eden of the East is an entirely original series. It’s a mysterious conspiracy drama about a young man and young woman who find themselves embroiled in a bizarre game to “save” Japan. The unpredictable plot and likable characters make viewing addicting, even when what’s going on isn’t entirely clear.
This captivating cyberpunk series draws its influence from films such as Minority Report, Brazil and Blade Runner; but it still offers its own clever and quirky take on the genre. It takes place in a dystopian future where public sensors continually scan its citizens to determine their tendency to commit crimes.
Samurai Champloo was Shinichirō Watanabe’s first animated series since his classic Cowboy Bebop. This show is a period tale featuring an alternate version of Edo-era Japan, and follows a trio of heroic misfits as they set out in search of the “sunflower-smelling samurai.” Like Cowboy Bebop, it combines genres in an inventive and hugely entertaining way – it’s not as renowned as this previous classic, but worth watching.
