Definitive Top 100 Anime of All Time
Hey there - My name is Michael Bellonis, and I’m here to rank the 100 Greatest Anime of All Time. While I’m whittling away at this list, my goal is to leave reviews of the anime I watch here, and rank them at the end of the review. So, I’ll give details about the anime, review them, and at the end will show my current MAL ranking, whether or not it’s a contender for the list, and if so where at in the ranking it currently falls (all subject to change once the list is finalized).
Comments will be open, so please feel free to discuss - but remember, this is all subjective, so keep it friendly!
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Some ground rules for the list: This list will only go over anime series - be it web series, OVA, seralized. As long as it’s an anime series, and not a movie, it’s eligible for this list (movies are a whole other beast, I’ll dedicate a list to them). There won’t be any hard rule against multiple titles from the same director or studio - as long as it’s good, it’s eligible. This list will encompass all of anime, so it won’t have any bias to any specific genre or era of anime - so it won’t be chock full of just Shonen titles, or have classics pushed to the top just because they’re classics and the list had an obligation.
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A little about myself before you dive in: As a Toonami kid, I’ve been watching anime since the late 90s - but more than that, I have studied anime and film history, have watched hundreds and hundreds of movies, have read countless comics, books, and manga, have taken whole writing courses, and even write my own comic books - all that is to say that I at least have a little qualification to be making this list apart from just being an anime fan. So, I hope that helps you see this as more than just another list that showcases the latest, flashiest Shonen Jump adaption (though, those can be great, too!).
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Wandering Son
The Eccentric Family
Casshern Sins
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This list is temporary, and only sums up the ones I have reviews up for - The reviews on this page only showcase the anime I’ve been recently watching, whether it’s a first time watch or a re-watch. There are many others on my list that I’ve seen in the past and know my feelings on, but I won’t show here just yet.
Top 100 Anime Ranking (Not Final)
8 - Kaiba (2008)
14 - Orange (2016)
18 - Gunbuster (1988)
41 - Time of Eve (2008)
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This is a list of all the anime I’ve watched and reviewed that unfortunately do not make the cut.
Journal with Witch (2026) - REVIEW
“It might help to start keeping a journal. About the things people say to you…or the things that they don’t. About whatever you feel or don’t feel.”
Journal with Witch is a 13 episode anime directed by Miyuki Ôshiro (Natsume’s Book of Friends, Yuri on Ice).
Skip and Loafer (2023) - REVIEW
“You can never tell what people are thinking. So, I’ll try to understand them - little by little.”
A 12 episode anime adaption that was released in 2023 and was directed by Kotomi Deai (Michiko & Hatchin, Kids on the Slope).
Pluto (2023) - REVIEW
“Whether our killer is human or robot - there’s a devil inside them, and it must be stopped.”
An 8 episode ONA series that was released in 2023 and was directed by Toshio Kawaguchi (Neon Genesis, Gundam).
The Girl From the Other Side - OVA (2022) - REVIEW
“She is my light in the darkness. That darkness where I’ve always been. If it weren’t for Shiva, I would have stayed there forever.”
The Girl From the Other Side is a 3 episode OVA that was released in 2022, and was directed by Yutaro Kurobo.