The 8 Most Perfect Anime of the Last 10 Years, Ranked

Anime has delivered an incredible amount of peak fiction over the last decade, stories that have managed to reach the level of near-flawless storytelling, artistic consistency, and emotional impact, standing as the definition of true perfection. Whether through emotionally devastating character arcs, immersive world-building, breathtaking animation, or masterful pacing, the list of the decade’s perfect anime definitely left a lasting impression on audiences across the globe.

Fantastic anime like the underrated sci-fi gem Astra Lost in Space, which brilliantly proves just how satisfying and tightly written a sci-fi story can be even in a relatively short runtime, and the thrill ride that is Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, which stands as a true global phenomenon in its own right, are two perfect masterpieces of the last decade. On this list are the shows that are some of anime’s finest achievements seen in the last 10 years.

8

‘I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince so I Can Take My Time Perfecting My Magical Ability’ (2024–Present)

Not many realize that this anime is one of the most peak fantasy series ever created. The series, I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince so I Can Take My Time Perfecting My Magical Ability, follows reincarnated prince Lloyd (Makoto Koichi), who is absolutely obsessed with mastering magic, constantly spending his new life experimenting with increasingly absurd and overpowered magical abilities.

I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince is woefully underrated and deserves far more attention than it’s received since its release. The series uses its bright colors and quality animation to bring to life its source material with a perfection that goes consistently overlooked. It’s a genuinely entertaining standout, simply, for just how creatively excessive it is. With energetic action and an overpowered main character who wields absurd abilities and embraces magical experimentation, I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince never loses its sense of fun and unpredictability, which definitely dubs it as one of the most addictive fantasy anime in recent years.

7

‘Spy x Family’ (2022–Present)

This anime is quite the action-packed yet slice-of-life-esque watch that’s perfect for most anime newcomers to enjoy. Spy x Family centers around master spy Loid Forger (Takuya Eguchi) as he assembles a fake family for a mission, unaware that his adopted daughter, Anya (Atsumi Tanezaki), is a telepath and his new wife, Yor Forger (Saori Hayami) is a trained assassin.

Sure, plenty of anime balance action and comedy quite well, but Spy x Family brings an undeniable charm that is genuinely intergenerational. The TV series has gained favor with audiences, who adore its quirky characters and unpredictable storyline. Spy x Family is a true modern success, with fans heavily appreciating the show’s ability to shift between stylish espionage action, hilarious comedy, and genuinely heartfelt family moments. The anime is the perfect mesh of wholesomeness, disguises, secret identities, and action-packed moments, marking it as one of the best anime on its way to becoming a true defining gem of its era.

6

‘Astra Lost in Space’ (2019)

Astra Lost in Space is an underrated work of sci-fi perfection that may wield a relatively short runtime, but stands as one of the most satisfying complete stories in modern anime. The series follows a group of students who unexpectedly get stranded in deep space, and are forced to navigate new environments, teamwork, and unfolding hidden truths.

Astra Lost in Space is a perfect balance of survival, mystery, and sincere emotional storytelling. The series builds its tension through its unsettling, isolated setting while steadily developing character relationships and a much larger twist that viewers often never expect. Astra Lost in Space stands as a modern miracle in the sci-fi anime genre, a quality mixture that feels emotionally rewarding and consistently engaging from beginning to end. The series may be just one season, but it’s one fantastic bout of brilliance that definitely deserves a place on this list of anime hits of the decade.

5

‘Made in Abyss’ (2017–2022)

This haunting adventure is not as lighthearted as it may seem on the surface. Made in Abyss focuses on Riko (Miyu Tomita) as she dreams of following her legendary mother into a colossal vertical world filled with relics, ecological wonders, and bodily horror, known as the Abyss. When she meets a mysterious robot boy with no clear memory of his origins, called Reg (Mariya Ise), the two descend in search of answers.

There exist very few anime series that wield the masterful ability to build a world so deeply intertwined with danger as Made in Abyss does. The show’s setting isn’t just its backdrop; the Abyss itself stands as the central dramatic machine, controlling dread, wonder, and the progression of a brilliant story all at the same time. That blend of punishment and lure makes it uniquely unforgettable despite its mostly unknown status. Made in Abyss is a genuinely flawless anime, for its mystery design, rather chilling atmosphere, and very visceral stakes that dub it as one of the decade’s most singular accomplishments.

Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Personality Quiz
Which Sci-Fi Hero Are You Most Like?
Paul Atreides · Captain Kirk · Princess Leia · Ellen Ripley · Max Rockatansky

Five iconic heroes. Five completely different ways of facing an impossible universe. One of them shares your instincts, your values, and your particular way of refusing to back down. Eight questions will tell you which one.

🏜️Paul Atreides

🖖Capt. Kirk

✊Princess Leia

🔦Ellen Ripley

🔥Max Rockatansky

FIND YOUR HERO →

01

How do you lead when the stakes couldn’t be higher?
The way you lead under pressure is the most honest thing about you.

AI absorb everything — every variable, every pattern — and move only when I know the path forward.
BI read the room, make the call, and own the consequences. Hesitation costs more than mistakes.
CI rally people. A cause needs a voice, and I refuse to let fear be louder than conviction.
DI assess the threat, establish what needs doing, and get it done without waiting for permission.
EI don’t lead. I act. Others can follow or not — I’m already moving.

NEXT QUESTION →

02

What is your greatest strength in a crisis?
The quality that keeps you alive when everything else fails.

APrescience — the ability to see further ahead than anyone else and plan accordingly.
BImprovisation — I’m at my best when the plan falls apart and I have to invent a new one.
CConviction — I know what I’m fighting for, and that certainty doesn’t waver under fire.
DComposure — I stay functional when everyone around me is falling apart. Panic is a luxury.
EEndurance — I outlast things. I take the hit and keep moving long after others have stopped.

NEXT QUESTION →

03

What is the thing you’d sacrifice everything else for?
Your deepest motivation is your truest compass.

AThe survival and dignity of my people — even if I have to become something frightening to ensure it.
BThe safety of my crew — every single one of them. No one gets left behind.
CFreedom — for my people, for every world still crushed under the weight of an empire.
DThe truth — what actually happened, what’s actually out there, whether anyone believes me or not.
EThe one person — or the one memory — that still makes any of this worth surviving for.

NEXT QUESTION →

04

How do you relate to the people around you?
Who you are to others under pressure is who you really are.

AWith intensity and distance — I care deeply, but the weight I carry makes closeness complicated.
BWith warmth and irreverence — I take the mission seriously, not myself.
CWith directness and trust — I say what I mean, and I expect the people I work with to rise to it.
DWith professional care but clear limits — I’ll protect you, but I won’t pretend we’re family.
EWith wariness that slowly becomes loyalty — I don’t trust easily, but when I do, it holds.

NEXT QUESTION →

05

You’re facing a threat that no one else believes is real. What do you do?
How you respond when you’re the only one who sees it defines everything.

APrepare in silence. If they won’t listen, I’ll be ready when they finally have to.
BKeep pushing until someone listens — and if no one does, handle it myself.
CBuild the case, find the allies, and make the threat impossible to ignore.
DDocument everything. The truth matters even if no one believes it yet.
EStop trying to convince anyone. Survive it. That’s the only argument that counts.

NEXT QUESTION →

06

What has your heroism cost you personally?
Every hero pays. The question is what — and whether they’d pay it again.

AMy innocence — I’ve seen what I’m capable of, and I can’t unsee it.
BPeople I loved — the command chair has a view, but it’s a lonely one.
CA normal life — I gave up everything ordinary the moment I chose the cause.
DMy sense of safety — I know exactly what’s out there now, and I can’t pretend otherwise.
EAlmost everything — and I’m still not sure what I’m carrying it all for. But I keep going.

NEXT QUESTION →

07

How do you feel about the rules of the world you’re in?
Every hero has a relationship with the system. What’s yours?

AI understand them deeply — and I know exactly which ones must be broken, and why.
BI respect the spirit of them and bend the letter when the situation demands it.
CThe system is the problem. I’m not here to work within it — I’m here to dismantle it.
DI follow protocol until protocol stops being useful. Then I make the call myself.
EThe rules collapsed a long time ago. What’s left is instinct, and mine are reliable.

NEXT QUESTION →

08

When everything is on the line, what keeps you going?
The answer is the most honest thing about you.

ADestiny — or something that feels so much like it that the difference no longer matters.
BThe people on my ship — their faces, their trust, the fact that they’re counting on me.
CThe belief that what we’re fighting for is worth every sacrifice, including this one.
DSheer refusal to let it win — whatever it is. I don’t stop. That’s just who I am.
EI’m not sure anymore. But the road is still there, and I’m still on it.

REVEAL MY HERO →

Your Hero Has Been Identified
Your Sci-Fi Hero Is…

Your answers point to the iconic sci-fi hero who shares your instincts, your values, and your particular way of facing the impossible.

Arrakis · Dune

Paul Atreides

You carry a weight most people would crumble under — the knowledge of what you’re capable of, and the burden of what you might have to become.

• You see further ahead than others and you plan accordingly, even when the vision frightens you.
• You are driven by loyalty to your people and a sense of destiny you didn’t ask for but can’t escape.
• Paul Atreides is not simply a hero — he is someone who understands the cost of power and chooses to bear it anyway.
• That gravity, that willingness to carry what others won’t, is exactly you.

USS Enterprise · Star Trek

Captain Kirk

You lead with instinct, warmth, and an absolute refusal to accept a no-win scenario — because you’ve always believed there’s a third option nobody else has thought of yet.

• You take the mission seriously without ever taking yourself too seriously.
• Your crew would follow you anywhere, not because you demand it, but because you’ve earned it.
• Kirk’s genius isn’t tactical — it’s human. He reads people, bends rules with purpose, and wills outcomes into existence through sheer conviction.
• That combination of warmth, audacity, and relentless optimism is unmistakably yours.

The Rebellion · Star Wars

Princess Leia

You are the kind of person who holds the line when everyone else is losing faith — not because you’re fearless, but because giving up simply isn’t something you’re capable of.

• You lead through conviction. Your voice carries because your belief is unshakeable.
• You gave up everything ordinary the moment you chose the cause, and you’ve never looked back.
• Leia is not a supporting character in her own story — she is the moral centre of the entire rebellion.
• That same fierce, principled, unbreakable core is what defines you.

The Nostromo · Alien

Ellen Ripley

You are not reckless, not grandiose, and not particularly interested in being anyone’s hero — you just refuse to stop when it matters.

• You see threats clearly, you document the truth even when no one listens, and when the time comes you handle it yourself.
• Ripley’s heroism is earned, not performed. She doesn’t have a speech — she has a flamethrower and a plan.
• You share her composure under the worst possible pressure, and her refusal to pretend the monster isn’t there.
• When it counts, you don’t flinch. That’s everything.

The Wasteland · Mad Max

Max Rockatansky

You have been through fire that would break most people — and what came out the other side is something the world underestimates at its peril.

• You don’t ask for help, don’t need validation, and don’t wait for anyone to tell you the rules no longer apply.
• Your loyalty, when it finally arrives, is absolute — but it’s earned in silence and tested in action, not in words.
• Max is not a nihilist. He is someone who lost everything and found, against his will, that he still has something worth protecting.
• That bruised, stubborn, ultimately human core is exactly yours.

↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ

4

‘The Apothecary Diaries’ (2023–Present)

This beloved anime is the romance everyone seems to be thoroughly addicted to. The Apothecary Diaries centers on Maomao (Aoi Yūki), a young girl who is kidnapped and sold to the imperial rear palace, where her practical intelligence and pharmacological obsession quickly draw the attention of the enigmatic Jinshi (Takeo Ōtsuka).

The Apothecary Diaries has it all. It’s the perfect concoction of romance, slow-burning chemistry, sly humor, mystery, historical palace atmosphere, and a leading lady at the helm of it all, who completely captivates audiences. The series is definitely worth an immediate watch for those who haven’t yet witnessed its brilliance. The Apothecary Diaries is genuinely iconic, as the series remains engaging throughout its entirety. Without relying on explosive action, the memorable anime instead builds its tension through court politics, fascinating deduction, and character interaction, standing strong as one of the genre’s most refreshing successes.

3

‘Jujutsu Kaisen’ (2020–Present)

Jujutsu Kaisen is an action-filled wonder that definitely deserves a place among the most peak anime series of the decade. The show follows Yuji Itadori (Junya Enoki), who swallows a cursed finger in order to save others, becoming host to a monstrous power that pushes him into the hidden world of cursed energy, institutional ruthlessness, and deadly exorcists.

With the show’s handling of motion impact and urban horror, Jujutsu Kaisen has made quite a name for itself. It’s a major breakout hit that is unusually good at making its school-supernatural setup feel lethal rather than comforting. Jujutsu Kaisen has seen countless awards and gained many fans, earning viewers’ devotion often after just a single watch of its intense story. Delivering amazing supernatural spectacle and bridging it with genuine character pain, the incredible anime’s place on this list is definitely well-earned.

2

‘Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba’ (2019–2024)

This action-packed anime is no doubt one of the greatest animated works of art ever gifted to audiences. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba centers around the young Tanjiro Kamado (Natsuki Hanae), a boy whose routine return home is met by blood and gore, his family completely eviscerated. With only his sister left at his side, and completely changed, Tanjiro sets out to join the Demon Slayer Corps.

From sleek animation to an insanely captivating story, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba checks all the boxes for what makes a perfect anime. It’s a cultural force, a series that even Crunchyroll has crowned anime of the year back in 2020. Sure, Demon Slayer‘s writing can be much simpler than some on this list, but the series elevates its straightforward storytelling through its unforgettable action scenes, emotional sincerity, and some of the most breathtaking visuals ever witnessed in modern animation. The fantastic anime definitely stands as one of the greatest in its genre seen in the past decade.

1

‘Mob Psycho 100’ (2016–2022)

Very few anime in existence stand as such rare perfection as Mob Psycho 100 truly does. The amazing, completed series follows middle schooler Shigeo “Mob” Kageyama (Setsuo Ito), who is a bizarrely powerful psychic and simply wants more than anything to be ordinary.

Mob Psycho 100 is a massive spectacle of animated brilliance, and yet somehow it still maintains its compassion and emotional sincerity in a masterful way. It’s a genuine masterpiece, not only in animation but also in its peak balance of supernatural action, comedy, and hard-earned emotional maturity that’s honestly better than almost anything currently in the medium. Mob Psycho 100‘s is truly a quality anime with every arc a deeper dive into Mob as a person rather than just an upgrading fighter, marking it the perfect watch for anyone in search of a genuinely brilliant anime.