Legends
This spiky-haired hero’s original design had him wearing gloves and using blasters instead of his iconic energy attacks
Goku
This chaotic yellow mascot technically counts as a “rodent Pokémon,” even though it barely resembles one.
Pikachu
This masked revolutionary’s identity is known to only seven people at the start of his rebellion.
Lelouch Lamperouge
This mecha show's creator sketched his first giant robot designs on restaurant napkins before finalizing the concept.
Mobile Suit Gundam
In this anime, monsters called “Hollows” come from human souls that have lost hope.
Bleach
This Titan shifter is the only one whose transformation always begins with losing two specific fingers.
Eren Yeager
This talking cat claims to be royalty—but never provides proof in any timeline.
Luna, Sailor Moon
This archaeologist was the sole survivor of Ohara and joined Baroque Works under a false name to access forbidden knowledge.
Nico Robin
This director often reuses the same group of voice actors in nearly all of his Studio Ghibli films, contributing to a signature “feel” in his movies.
Hayao Miyazaki
This series’ protagonist can return to a previous point in time whenever he dies, but only he remembers what happened before.
Re: Zero
This Hunter x Hunter character took the exam so many times that Hisoka memorized all his habits.
Tonpa
This time-looping anime repeatedly resets on July 8th.
Higurashi, When They Cry
This gentle homeroom teacher is secretly one of the strongest assassins in his entire universe
Koro-Sensei
This mangaka is known for minimalistic character designs and exaggerated psychic battles, creating both a parody and a serious take on the superhero genre.
Mob Psycho 100
In this anime city, all crimes—even murder—can be predicted by scanning psychological stress levels.
Psycho-Pass
This pink-haired wizard once ate an entire poisonous monster because he thought it “looked tasty.”
Natsu Dragneel
This anime’s main character is canonically obsessed with milk despite being lactose-intolerant.
Edward Elric
This magical girl’s talking animal mentor is revealed to be manipulating destinies behind the scenes.
Kyubey, Puella Magi Madoka Magica
The creator of this romantic comedy originally specialized in horror manga.
Ranma 1/2, Inuyasha
In this post-apocalyptic anime, the remaining humans live in floating colonies above a deadly wasteland, and special pilots use mechs to fight mysterious creatures called Klaxosaurs.
Darling in The Franxx
This black-haired swordsman only survived his world’s original death game because of a system glitch.
Kirito
This anime features a villain whose power is literally “throwing dice to determine reality.”
Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Diamond Is Unbreakable
This idol character in Love Live! is secretly a hardcore otaku who writes fanfiction under a pseudonym.
Nico Yazawa
The creator of this dark fantasy series was inspired by a combination of Chinese folklore, European medieval history, and a childhood spent reading horror manga.
Demon Slayer
In this anime, human civilization literally lives inside the corpse of a god.
Made In The Abyss