Every year, new hit series and trending franchises are released from the world of Japanese anime and manga. The major new series for the 2021 spring and summer seasons are being released. There is still half a year before the end of the year, but let’s take a look at the top trending Japanese anime and manga of 2021 so far!
Dragon Ball
The manga Dragon Ball, which began in 1984, is still very popular in 2021, and has never stopped trending in Japan. This started in the golden age of anime and became the inspiration for many new action manga series to come afterwards. Products released as part of this franchise have been hot on the sales charts for many years, and the many protagonists in the story have become unforgettable cultural icons for fans.
One Piece
The popular ‘king of manga series’, which is published in the Shueisha Weekly Shonen Jump magazine. The series covers the adventures at sea of the pirate Monkey D. Luffy and his companions as they overcome many ordeals in order to obtain a big secret known as the One Piece. Through their hardships, there are many adventures on the open seas in this series that have lots of life lessons to teach. The anime is broadcast every week in the morning hours in Japan, and new issues of the manga continue to be released.
Detective Conan (Case Closed)
This famous mystery manga series was born from the writings and illustrations of Japanese manga artist Gosho Aoyama. It is the story of high school detective Shinichi Kudo who, after being infused with drugs by a shadowy organization that caused his body to shrink, tries to investigate the mysteries of this organization and solve various other cases. Detective Conan’s fans range from adults to children, and the anime version of this series is often rebroadcast on Japanese TV.
Ghost in the Shell
A new anime series from this franchise was released as recently as last year. The action-packed story content not only keeps the hardcore fans interested, but also with modern technology, the battle scenes are more impactful than ever before, so that fans can more acutely feel the tense atmosphere.
Naruto
This manga called Naruto is set in a world of ninjas, and tells the story of how Naruto Uzumaki, the outcast protagonist who lost his parents, has overcome difficulties many times through his strong willpower, and is become a hero admired by everyone. Although the manga series has ended its run and full story, the series’ popularity has not diminished, and so a sequel series was started to meet the needs of the many loyal fans.
Pokemon
A game franchise which is beloved by people all over the world. The first-generation game in Japan sold more than 8 million copies, and there are currently 898 kinds of Pokemon creatures featured. Its large assortment of cute and powerful creatures, in addition to the famous game series, have appeared in anime, manga and trading card adaptations. Games in this series have been played all over the world for decades, and new fans join the ranks year over year.
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Known as a masterpiece series, the newest movie adaptation in the Evangelion series was released just this year! After this movie was released, the production staff said that there is still much in the universe not yet known to the fans. It was a movie that many people discussed this year. Because the content of the story is so deep, there have been many different interpretations of the story among fans over the years, and the depth of this series that leads to these interpretations is also one of the reasons why the popularity of this franchise remains undiminished to this day.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba
This year’s trending series that everyone has heard of at this point, Demon Slayer is very popular among both adults and children. It is serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump, and covers the story of the protagonist Tanjiro Kamado, who is on a journey to kill demons in order to find a way to turn his little sister Nezuko, who was turned into a demon, back into a human.
Mobile Suit Gundam
Countless series have been released as part of the Mobile Suit Gundam franchise. In addition to the iconic designs of the Gundam, the world with its heavy war-torn setting has attracted the attention of many viewers. In certain series, the set year overlaps/closes in relation to other series, and the audience can take a closer look at the larger picture of the same time and area from the perspective of another group of protagonists.
Attack on Titan
The unforgettable setting and the twists in the story have contributed to Attack on Titan’s impressive popularity. The anime series shows the events that are harder to depict in the manga version in more detail. The story chronicles the life of protagonist Eren Yeager, who lives in a world under assault by violent giants. Driven by the shocking memory of seeing his mother eaten by giants before his eyes, Eren goes through a shocking story of revenge against these giants.
If you don’t know much about anime and manga, the above-mentioned works should be your first choice! Their franchise-related merchandise is also very popular, with some merch so rare that those who have them will never sell them! So if you have a collector’s spirit in you, they will become quickly enjoyable hobbies for you as well!
