Anirban Bhattacharya
‘Bleach’ is one of the popular shounen anime of all time. The characters and the concept are really interesting and entertaining. The series gets you hooked right from the first episode. The anime is about a teenager, Ichigo Kurosaki whose chance encounter with a shinigami changes his life forever. He is now a soul reaper or shinigami himself and must protect humans from monstrous beings known as Hollows. If you’ve been wanting to watch similar anime, then don’t worry, you have come to the right place. Here’s the list of best anime similar to ‘Bleach’ that are our recommendations. You can watch several of these anime like ‘Bleach’ on Netflix, Crunchyroll or Hulu.
15. Yuu☆Yuu☆Hakusho (1992)
‘Yuu☆Yuu☆Hakusho’ is quite similar to ‘Bleach’ when it comes to the premise. Both shows involve the main character going through a life-changing experience after encountering a shinigami. Both anime involve spirits and other monsters who can harm humans but cannot be seen by them. Yuusuke Urameshi, the protagonist of the anime, is 14 years old. He is a delinquent and loves making trouble. But one day, he does something good when he decides to jump in front of a moving car to save a kid. He dies but his sacrifice is so great that the authorities present at the spirit realm are impressed and do not want him to pass on. So, the heir to the throne of the realm, Koenma, decides to provide him an offer: if Yuusuke can complete a series of tasks involving him protecting Earth from evil spirits, he will be able to return to his life. Thus, Yuusuke embarks on this journey accompanied by Kazuma Kuwabara, his ex-rival and two demons, Hiei and Kurama.
14. Ushio to Tora (2015)
‘Ushio to Tora’ is a shounen anime having a supernatural theme like ‘Bleach’. While ‘Bleach’ has Hollows, ‘Ushio to Tora’ has Youkai. Both the series have the protagonist accepting extraordinary power after falling in dire situations. Ushio Aotsuki, the protagonist of the anime, is quite stubborn. His father is an eccentric temple priest who believes that there are dangerous monsters, Youkai, who pose a threat to humanity. Ushio does not care for his father’s claims until the day he discovers something beyond normal. He is doing chores at the temple due to the absence of his father when he stumbles across a Youkai in the basement, which has been impaled by the beast spear. The beast is Tora, who is known for his destructive powers. Tora coerces Ushio to release him but the latter does not comply. But when a Youkai attacks his friends, he has no choice but to release Tora. But he keeps the beast spear just to keep him in check. Now, Ushio and Tora are a pair who must deal with the threats of the supernatural world.
13. Busou Renkin (2006)
‘Busou Renkin’ is quite similar to ‘Bleach’ in terms of the premise and how the main characters get their powers. There’s just one difference: the protagonist of ‘Busou Renkin’ dies and is later revived, thus getting his new powers. Kazuki Muto gets killed by a monster while he tries to save a girl. But he wakes up later in his dorm, which makes him think of the incident as some kind of a dream. But when a serpent like monster attacks him and his sister, Tokiko Tsumura, the girl Kazuki saved appears and tells him that his dream was real and that’s the monster that killed him. Tokiko felt bad for him and revives him using a medallion. The medallion gives Kazuki powers to bring forth his own Busou Renkin, the only wepon effective against the monster Homonculus. Now, the duo must strive to protect Earth from such supernatural threats.
12. Naruto (2002)
‘Naruto’ is one of the most popular anime of all time. There are two instalments to this series which give us a total episode count of more than 400. So be patient since there are lots of filler episodes. The show follows the life of a young ninja, Naruto Uzumaki, who wants to become the best ninja and the Hokage (the leader) of his village, Konoha. On the day of his birth, the nine-tailed fox demon attacked his village. To safeguard peace and to protect the village, the Fourth Hokage seals the demon inside the newborn Naruto. The anime showcases the adventures of Naruto as he strives to achieve his goals. The show has a wonderful array of interesting characters, making it extremely entertaining to watch.
Read More: Anime Like Naruto
11. One Piece (1999)
‘One Piece’ is a great piece of shounen anime. Lots of action and adventures fill the series, which make it quite entertaining. The anime has around 800+ episodes. Don’t be put off by the sheer volume since the show is really worth investing your time in. ‘One Piece’ is about pirates, and focuses particularly on a pirate by the name of Monkey D. Luffy, who wants to become the pirate king by sailing across the dangerous stretch of sea known as The Grand Line and finding the treasure named One Piece. The treasure was left there by the previous pirate king by the name of Gold Roger.
