50 most popular characters in anime history

Judging a Japanese anime series doesn't always depend on the quality of its writing or animation. Often, fans take part in popularity contests to decide which anime characters are the best. Intriguing, well-crafted characters can be decisive, transforming a mediocre anime series into a truly unforgettable one thanks to their star power. Some of the best-loved anime characters perfectly personify the best parts of their series, while others are masters at stealing the show.

The best anime characters tend to have that "it" factor that makes them the most popular of all, such as a combination of cool dialogue, memorable scenes or even an interesting philosophy and worldview. Every anime fan will have their own favorites, but a large handful of characters have still reached the top.

50/ Makima

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49/ Alucard

Hellsing

Alucard is the infamous vampire powerhouse of the seinen manga/anime series Hellsing . He's the very model of a convincing anti-hero, a sinister, ruthless warrior who fights his own kind in the name of the Hellsing Organization without any sentimentality. He might, however, make an exception for his protégé Seras Victoria, as he feels somewhat protective of her.

Hellsing's Alucard at a glance
Alucard is one of the most popular anime characters of all time because he's so engagingly masterful. Although his fights are predictably easy, it's always fun to watch Alucard taunt and play with his enemies, then crush them without even unleashing his full power.

48/ Sasuke Uchiwa

Naruto

Sasuke Uchiha is often considered the ultimate Shonen rival character, being the gifted and anguished counterpart to protagonist Naruto Uzumaki . Sasuke made a strong impression from the start as a talented ninja who often showed off Naruto, but they always formed a solid rivalry and pushed each other to become even stronger.

Naruto's Sasuke Uchiha at a glance

• Affiliations: Team 7, Learning under Orochimaru, Taka, Akatsuki
• MyAnimeList favorites: 28,601
• Voice actors: Noriaki Sugiyama (Japanese), Yuri Lowenthal (English dubbing)

Sasuke's true story began when he went rogue to gain more power with Orochimaru, breaking his bond with Naruto and the rest of Team 7. From then on, Sasuke blurred the line between anti-hero and villain, losing himself in the darkness until he reunited with Team 7 towards the end of the story.

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47/ Koyomi Araragi

Monogatari

Koyomi Araragi is the overall protagonist of the entire Monogatari franchise and is also the most commonly used narrator. Her high school life was turned upside down when the vampire Shinobu Oshino attacked her, and he has maintained a bond with her ever since. Koyomi regularly gives him her blood and, in exchange, he possesses vampiric powers such as regeneration.

Personally, Koyomi is a loner who rejects friendship, although the exact reasons seem to vary. In one instance, Koyomi rejected friendship to avoid being hurt if his friends were hurt, suggesting that he considers empathy a weakness. On another occasion, Koyomi said he avoided friendships because he preferred not to have a popular opinion distort his view of reality and truth..

46/ Yuno Gasaï

45/ Asuna Yuuki

44/ Sanji Vinsmoke

One Piece

A variety of One Piece heroes are among the most popular anime characters of all time, including prominent members of the Straw Hat crew like Sanji Vinsmoke. He's a martial artist and dedicated leader who's determined to regain the All Blue one day, but in the meantime, he's simply happy to be part of Luffy's crew and maintains a rivalry with Roronoa Zoro.

Sanji has won over countless One Piece fans with his zany ladylike ways, and he's always delighted to meet beautiful girls like Nico Robin, Princess Nefeltari Vivi and Mermaid Shirahoshi, among others. Fans also love Sanji's food-themed attacks and his tough-cool attitude with his suit and cigarettes in most story arcs.

43/ Eikichi Onizuka

Great Teacher Onizuka (GTO)

Eikichi Onizuka ranks among the most popular anime characters, not because of his magical powers or epic quests to save the world, but because of his coolness and earthy wisdom. Eikichi may be a punk delinquent turned teacher, but he has valuable life lessons to teach his students in classes 3 and 4.

More information on Eikichi Onizuka:

• Anime: Great Teacher Onizuka - GTO
• MyAnimeList favorites: 31 191
• Voice actors: Wataru Takagi (Japanese), Steve Blum (English dubbing)

Eikichi may have a perverse side and be very unorthodox as a teacher, but anime fans still love him because he feels like a lost young man trying to improve something about himself, albeit slowly. There's also the charming novelty of a wacky punk who becomes a teacher and barely knows what he's doing in the role.

42/ Saber

Fate

Saber is a major character in the Fate franchise. She's one of the many mythical heroes the main characters can summon to fight alongside them for the Holy Grail, and she's certainly also one of the strongest and noblest of them all. After all, Saber is a genre-oriented King Arthur, and she has a reputation to match.

In various anime and Fate novel scenarios, Saber has fought alongside and against all sorts of characters, and was even a love interest for Shiro Emiya in one of them. In combat, Saber is an expert with the Excalibur sword, which is generally invisible and has a wind-based blade.

41/ Taïga Aisaka

Toradora !

Taiga Aisaka is the co-star of the popular romantic comedy Toradora! where she and protagonist Ryuji Takasu begin the story with a crush on each other, only to gradually fall in love. Taiga didn't seem very likeable at first as an impetuous tsundere, but then anime fans got to know her more intimately.

Taiga Aisaka was far more vulnerable than her tough, tiger-like exterior had ever suggested, and Ryuji saw this for himself. Despite his differences with Taiga, Ryuji vowed to support and help her, and for this, Taiga was immensely grateful and came to truly appreciate him in every way that mattered.

40/ Shinobu Oshino

Bakemonogatari

Bakemonogatari's Shinobu Oshino is one of the most popular vampire anime characters. She has also been the protagonist of several different story arcs and is linked to some of the series' best-loved characters, including Meme Oshino from the Eikou Cram school and Kiyomi Araragi.

Shinobu was once a human being, a princess named Rola, but then she became cursed. Anyone who got too close to her was forced to commit suicide before a powerful vampire turned her into one too. For the time being, Shinobu is content to appear as an 8-year-old girl and dispense with most of her powers.

39/ Kamina

Gurren Lagann

Kamina is easily one of the most popular anime characters to fit the himbo archetype, according to MAL data. Kamina may be a "silly, loud but lovable" type, but there's much more to him than that. Kamina represents the oppressed nature of humanity and its desire to be free, with Kamina and Simon leading the attack against the beastmen to reclaim the surface of the Earth.

Kamina had a strong charisma in Gurren Lagann as the "cool big bro" type, serving as the unofficial leader of his team and co-pilot of the Gurren Lagann war robot. He left a profound impact on all who met him, and after his untimely death, Simon made sure to emulate Simon and perpetuate his spirit into the future.

38/ Ichigo Kurosaki

Bleach

Ichigo Kurosaki at a glance:

• His half-quincy status allows him to discover the best of both worlds in Bleach.
• MyAnimeList favorites: 33,129
• Doubler: Masakazu Morita (Japanese), Johnny Yong Bosch (English dubbing)

Ichigo has become a Shonen icon with his cool mix of isekai-style adventures, badass persona, elegant Soul Reaper powers and dogged determination to protect all his friends at all costs. Ichigo also has unexpected emotional depth, as he still struggles with the grief of his beloved mother's death, which has hardened the outer layer of his heart.

37/ Kiyotaka Ayanokouji

Classroom of the Elite

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji is one of the most popular anime characters to emerge from a high school anime series - in this case, Classroom of the Elite . He's a 2nd-year student at Advanced Nurturing High School, an unusual institution designed to ensure that the sons and daughters of society's elite receive a good education and become hard-working pillars of Japanese society.

What makes Kiyotaka such a popular anime character is not his self-aggrandizing qualities, but his amusing combination of extreme intelligence and laid-back, uninviting outward personality. He seems harmless and sweet on the outside, but Kiyotaka is a very perceptive person who can manipulate others and get what he wants with his intelligence.

36/ Violette Evergarden

Violet Evergarden is a popular, emotionally-charged anime series whose titular heroine, Violet Evergarden herself, is popular with anime fans. Violet survived a terrible war and lost both her arms. She now has two metal prostheses that enable her to work as an automatic memory doll.

Violet is a charming but emotionally vulnerable lady kuudere, determined to help people connect or reconnect with the power of typed letters. She might even be reduced to tears, happy or sad, after completing a dictated letter and helping people deliver it.

35/ Osamu Dazaï

Bungou Stray Dogs

Osamu Dazai is one of many Bungou Stray Dogs characters based on a real person - in this case, Osamu Dazai, the Japanese author and novelist who lived from 1909 to 1948. The animated version of this character is also intended to contrast with Bungou Stray. Dog protagonist Atsushi Nakajima.

This popular anime character belongs to the Armed Detective Agency, although he also ran an underground organization called Port Mafia. Osamu is also one of the darkest anime characters, the bandages on his body representing his fixation with suicide.

34/ Hisoka Morow

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33/ Arataka Reigen

Mob Psycho 100

Anime fans love dandere protagonist Shigeo Kageyama in Mob Psycho 100 , but according to MyAnimeList, they love secondary character Arataka Reigen even more. Unlike Mob, Reigen has no psychic or supernatural powers, but he makes up for this with clever tricks and sheer charisma.

Whereas Mob is the real psychic powerhouse of the spirit consulting office and the like, Reigen is the businessman in a suit in charge, and he makes it look good - and silly. With his sly words and "fake it 'til you make it" mentality, Reigen has convinced many clients that he, too, is a master of the arcane.

32/ Roy Mustang

Fullmetal Alchemist : Brotherhood

Colonel Roy Mustang is a major secondary character in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood , an ambitious military officer who aspires to one day rule the entire nation of Amestris. He almost lost himself in rage and hatred for Envy, but his friends pulled him back from the brink and he learned his lesson.

Roy Mustang has many fans because of his devastating flame chemistry, his charming good-hearted anti-hero personality with a comedic edge, and his engaging relationship with the other characters. He and Edward often bored each other, but Roy was Maes Hughes' best friend, and Riza Hawkeye is special to him too.

 

31/ Zero Two

Darling in the FranXX

Zero Two is a fairly popular waifu anime from the mecha anime series Darling in the FranXX . She was introduced as a wild and mysterious girl with pink hair and short red horns, and quickly latched onto protagonist Zero Two as her beloved co-pilot.

Even if anime fans didn't like the anime's ending, Zero Two still made a strong impression as an offbeat waifu warrior. His strong yet gentle personality secured his position as one of anime's most popular characters.

30/ Mai Sakurajima

Rascal

Mai Sakurajima left a strong first impression when she first appeared in the anime "Rascal", standing in the middle of a library in a rabbit costume, while everyone ignored her. She was one of the many victims of teenage syndrome and also befriended the protagonist, Sakuta Azusagawa.

Mai is a bit of a kuudere and tsundere. However, she's also one of the most popular anime characters, as she has a good heart beneath that cold, emotionally distant exterior. She also got on well with Sakuta's younger sister Kaede, who really needed the personal support of a big sister like Mai.

29/ Yato

Noragami is a popular fantasy anime based on the manga of the same name. In this series, the gods are real, but some are frustrated by minor gods like Yato, who aims to form a great religion around himself one day, one favor at a time.

Yato can be temperamental and vain at times, but he's also a true friend to Hiyori, and strangely approachable for a deity. Above all, Yato maintains a constant feud with his egotistical father, and the two could come to blows, with Hiyori caught in the middle.

28/ Kirito

Sword Art Online (SAO)

Sword Art Online has gradually become an anime giant. The series influenced the isekai boom that fans know today, as well as becoming one of the medium's most successful franchises. Even now, new anime seasons are trying to capture the success of Sword Art Online, and there seems to be a new isekai series announced every year.

While every member of Sword Art Online's eclectic cast has played a part in defining the series, its main man will always be the pro gamer himself, Kirito. Whether anime fans relate to Kirito's calm demeanor or adore his various adventures in video games and romance, Kirito fills heart-stopping containers everywhere with his charisma.

27/ Hitagi Senjougahara

Bakemonogatari

Bakemonogatari's Hitagi Senjougahara stands out from the other female characters in the series. She's sarcastic, painfully frank at times, and has undergone significant character development. She also stands out as one of the most controversial, as fans seem unable to make up their minds about her.

Senjougahara is Koyomi's main love interest in Bakemonogatari. She's a real tsundere with a clever word for any situation. Hitagi seems totally unapproachable and even deliberately intimidating, but she begins to open up to others later on.

26/ Joseph Joestar

25/ Megumin

Megumin is a quirky parody of most magical girls and witches in anime, which fits perfectly with Konosuba's satirical themes. Megumin is a talented teenager specializing in explosive magic and absolutely nothing else, and she can only set off one explosion a day.

Although Megumin can be a selfish little thing in need of a lot of support, anime fans still adore her as one of the funniest and most memorable Best Girls. And she's not just a comic character; Megumin becomes Kazuma's best friend and has to put up with Yunyun's one-sided rivalry with her, which strains their friendship a little.

24/ Rem

Re: Zero

Rem from Re:Zero is one of the most loyal characters in the series. Early in the series, Subaru meets Rem and her twin sister, Ram, while they are employed by Roswaal L. Mathers.

Overall, Rem is an excellent sister to Ram, and her loyalty to Subaru is admirable. Although a little impulsive, Rem is ready to step in and defend them both, whatever the cost. Although not the strongest fighter, Rem's mental resilience cannot be denied.

23/ Spike Spiegel

22/ Kakashi Hatake

Naruto

Naruto's Kakashi Hatake is one of the anime's most beloved mentors. In search of Team 7, the Copycat Ninja has always passed on the importance of teamwork to young shinobi. Although he is strong enough to work alone, Kakashi's experiences have taught him that teamwork is always better than rushing arrogantly into battle alone.

Naruto's Kakashi Hatake at a glance

• Nicknames: Kakashi of the Sharingan, The Copy Ninja
• MyAnimeList favorites: 47,057
• Dubbers: Kazuhiko Inoue (Japanese), Dave Wittenberg (English dubbing)

Kakashi's lines, jutsu imitation skills and mental resilience are just some of the reasons why fans love him so much. Kakashi has repeatedly proven himself to be a jutsu innovator, a sarcastic genius, an overall likeable character and an admirable ninja.

21/ Saitama

One Punch Man

Saitama is the beloved bald protagonist of One-Punch Man . He's the most powerful being ever to exist in his universe, but he's come a long way to get there thanks to his simple but rigorous training routine. While he originally became a hero for fun, Saitama eventually realized that he wanted to be recognized and respected as a true hero.

Since Saitama is so masterful, no enemy really bothers him. Unfortunately, he's become jaded by heroism, since no one can keep up with him. Sadly, Saitama wanders, praying for a strong opponent so he can feel alive again.