The best anime of 2022 to watch, so far

2021 was a banner year for anime, featuring the long-awaited return of regular favorites such as Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventureand My Hero Academy alongside exciting new original anime like Oddtaxi, The Heike Story, Sonny Boyand SK8 the Infinity. 2022 is shaping up to be much of the same, with popular series such as Mob Psycho 100, Vinland Saga, The Devil is a Part-Timerand even Bleach slated to make their return later this year. And all signs point to the highly anticipated debuts of Chainsaw Man and Uzumaki!

There’s a wealth to choose from, and not nearly enough time in the day to watch it all, which is why we’ll be updating our list of the best anime airing in 2022 throughout the year as the seasons progress. Take a look at the best anime the year has to offer so far, and be sure to check back in when we update our list later this spring! For clarity and convenience, this year’s list is in alphabetical order.

Attack on Titan Final Season

Image: MAPPA

The final season of Attack on Titan may be the most contentious anime on this year’s best-of list. Much has been said and written on the final chapters of the Attack on Titan manga, from creator Hajime Isayama’s inferred pro-Imperialist sentiments to the series’ uncomfortable allegorical parallels to real-life historical atrocities. Bearing these criticisms in mind, it’s understandable to ask why Attack on Titan is on this list.

The answer is simple: Directors Jun Shishido and Yuichiro Hayashi and studio MAPPA have taken what is a messy and divisive conclusion and have produced (through 22 episodes) the best possible animated incarnation of it. The combined one-two punch of the season’s 20th and 21st episodes alone easily ranks as one of the most shocking revelations of any anime in recent memory, rendered through some of the most apocalyptic violence and imagery depicted in the series to date.

There’s nothing quite like being along for the ride of a Big Anime Event, where it seems everyone is watching (and dissecting) each new development in the series’ ongoing climax right alongside you. For all its controversies, the final season of Attack on Titan represents not only the culmination of one of the significant anime of the past, but undoubtedly decade qualifies as one of the must-watch anime events of 2022, flaws and all. —Toussaint Egan

Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2 is available to stream on Funimation and Crunchyroll.

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Entertainment District Arc

Image: Ufotable

After the frankly devastating Mugen Train Arc, Demon Slayer returns with heightened stakes. The Entertainment District Arc sees young hero Tanjiro and his friends Inosuke and Zenitsu following flashy Uzui, the Sound Hishara, as he goes undercover in the Entertainment District to sniff out a demon hiding in the midst. This arc starts out with more subterfuge than the typical Demon Slayer episode, as Tanjiro and his friends disguise themselves as courtesans and try to figure out where the powerful demon is hiding. The final battle takes up most of the arc, a devastating fight between the Demon Slayers and not one, but two powerful demons. It’s all gorgeously animated, with twists upon twists and most heartachingly, a brother-sister parallel between Tanjiro and Nezuko and the two demons. —Petrana Radulovic

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Entertainment District Arc is available to stream on Funimation and Crunchyroll.

My Dress-Up Darling

Image: Cloverworks

High school students Wakana Gojo and Marin Kitagawa both have uncommon hobbies: Gojo likes to make hina dolls (traditional Japanese dolls) and Marin is largely into anime and gaming, with an affinity for cosplay. Marin, who is a bubbly girl who dresses in gyaru fashion, asks Gojo to use his crafty skills to help make her cosplay and from there, a fantastic duo is born. Marin’s bubbly and kind personality mixed with Gojo’s reserved-but-determined mindset makes for an interesting relationship that breaks free from the usual set-up of a gyaru girl with a quiet boy (in which the gyaru girl simply teases the boy relentlessly while hiding her own feelings for him). Marin obviously cares for Gojo and isn’t doing anything to purposely hurt him or stress him out, even if he ends up getting embarrassed while taking her measurements. My Dress-up Darling does have an uncomfortable amount of fan service that makes me unsure if I can really recommend it, but the story itself is so refreshing that I had to include it on this list. —Julia Lee

My Dress-up Darling is available to stream on Funimation and Crunchyroll.

The Orbital Children

Image: Netflix / Production +h

After nearly 15 years since his last original anime, Denno Coil director Mitsuo Iso returns with The Orbital Children, a six-episode anime (released in Japan as two feature-length films) following the story of five children stranded aboard a commercial space station on the brink of a cataclysmic disaster. Through a dizzying tapestry of rich worldbuilding brought to life through beautiful animation, Iso and co. weave a coming-of-age story that takes the lives of five unsuspecting children and places them at the precipice of humanity’s expansion into the vast unknown of space. It’s a brilliant anime with dense, beautiful visuals that rewards both attentive first-time viewers and repeat watches alike. —TE

The Orbital Children is available to stream on Netflix.

Ranking of Kings

Image: Wit Studio

Ranking of Kings is a fantasy series where monarchs are measured by their deeds, and more importantly, their strength. Enter Bojji, a tiny, warm-hearted boy who is next in line to take on the throne from his ailing father, who is king. Bojji isn’t physically strong, and struggles to speak, thus leading him to communicate primarily through sign language. However, where his characteristics might lack in comparison to other more traditional leaders, he makes up for in heart. In the first episode, he literally takes the shirt off his back for someone in need.

Bojji is one of the most moving and compelling anime protagonists I’ve seen on screen, ever. Ranking of Kings charges even the most banal of moments with the highest stakes; It makes a non-lethal spar between Bojji and his half-brother somehow feel more important than a fight between gods. He makes for the perfect protagonist as his tiny stature and sense of awe make a sweeping fantasy land populated with golems, wizards, and giants feel all the more grand. That being said, Bojji is far from being the only character who stands out. Alongside him is his companion, Kage, who is the sole survivor of a once-persecuted clan, as well as his half-brother Daida, who struggles to find a way to power that feels true to him.

Ranking of Kings works because I would die for Bojji. However, this series is more than an underdog story. Based on the manga written and illustrated by Sosuke Toka, the anime nails all the fixings of a great fantasy series: intriguing creatures, mystical and dark magic, palace intrigue, and an adventure that takes the little lad to the depths of hell. It’s an incredible series so far, and one that I can’t recommend enough. —Ana Diaz

Ranking of Kings is available to stream on Funimation and Crunchyroll.