Thevast majority of animefeature underdog stories that are compelling every single time, despite how cliched these narrative structures may be. Fans can’t help but root for a hero out of his depth who must employ all the grit they have to unlock a new level of power and beat down their foes.
A lot of shows employ this structure to great effect, making it easy for fans to support the underdog as they slowly become stronger and eventually achieve their goals or defeat a powerful enemy who should’ve outclassed them in their encounter.
One of the best and most compelling underdog stories fans can enjoy,My Hero Academiais a blast to watch as fans see Midoriya rise from humble beginnings to eventually become the inheritor of One for All. While his body can’t handle the power of this Quirk early on, he makes major strides to address this incompatibility.
After developing the Full Cowl style to protect his damaged arms, Midoriya eventually figured out that he could use the Quirks of past users to make himself stronger. This turned him intoone of the strongest superheroes of all timewho can hold his own against powerful villains like Shigaraki Tomura and All for One.
Naruto is the underdog everyone loves cheering for, with this dogged hero using his determination and hard work to achieve his goal of being the Hokage. He was looked down upon as the Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails, but that didn’t stop him from getting strong on his terms and turning into a prodigy’s rival.
With every arc, Naruto slowly gets stronger and acquires the skills he needs to take out anyone standing in his way. His speeches may be lampooned nowadays, but there was something magical about this underdog besting Pain’s main body and going to Nagato, using his powerful worlds to change the Rinnegan’s user heart as the villain made up for his actions andcemented Naruto’s reputation as the Leaf Village’s hero.
Ichigo may not be the most well-written shonen anime protagonist around, but there’s no denying that this hero makes up for it by being spectacular in battle. The Substitute Shinigami has risen against all the odds to accomplish ridiculous feats of strength, such as when he mastered Bankai in just under three days.
While some of his powerups are harder to explain, watching Ichigo consciously and unconsciously using his powers to take on the strongest foes inBleachis a blast every single time. The Thousand-Year Blood War has given the shinigami another chance to become stronger than ever, making him the prime candidate for a battle against Yhwach himself.
Despite an ending that reflected Togashi’s insecurities about his work in a clumsy manner,Yu Yu Hakushois still one of the most iconic anime series that fans will love to watch. Watching Yusuke come back from the dead with the powers of a Spirit Detective is a ton of fun and makes him an easy hero to root for.
The rest of the group acquires a ton of power on their terms, eventually letting them take on stronger foes without breaking a sweat. The highlight ofYu Yu Hakushois undoubtedly the Dark Tournament, with Yusuke’s victory against Toguro being an unlikely yet massive achievement that serves as the cherry on top of a splendid arc.
Tanjiro is a young boy thrust into a battle against demons after his family wasmercilessly murdered by Muzan. He decides to become a demon slayer and trains in a style that he isn’t naturally inclined towards, making every fight during his Water Breathing phase a joy to witness.
The underdog manages to pick himself out of a tough spot every time to come out victorious, with his battle against Rui being the moment whenDemon Slayerturned into one of the most popular anime of all time. As he slowly masters Sun Breathing and develops the Demon Slayer Mark, Tanjiro will acquire the power he needs to face off against the Upper-Rank Demon Moons before eventually taking on Muzan himself.
Dragon Ball Zis a series that needs no introduction, withGoku and the Z Warriorsrising to the occasion and taking out their enemies time and time again. What makes these battles so compelling is how the heroes are pushed against the ropes time and time again, only for them to break their limits and unlock powerful transformations that completely change the tide of battle.
Standout underdog-to-hero moments arrive in the form of Goku’s original Super Saiyan transformation against Frieza and Gohan shattering his elements to become an Ascended Super Saiyan who’s power was on a whole new level. Both of these moments came when the heroes were facing impossible odds, only for their rage to overflow as they overpowered their respective antagonists and achieved victory.
It’s easy to labelBlack Cloveras a cliched anime that isn’t worth watching, especially since the series starts on such a slow note. However, as Asta slowly develops his powers, fans can’t help but root for a natural underdog who is developing promising powers.
Despite lacking any magical talent and being laughed at by other Knights, Asta proves everyone wrong and uses a combination of his strength and his Anti Magic skills to turn into one of the most powerful characters in the series. The scary part is that he has yet to reach his ceiling, making it hard to call him the underdog anymore now that he boasts such monstrous power that only the strongest antagonists in the show can stand a chance of taking him on in a fair fight.
Ken Kaneki is a hapless boy who was thrust into the bloody world of ghouls against his will. He was squeamish about having to drink blood and tried to resist his urges for the longest time. However, after being tortured by Jason for days, something snapped.
He embraced his ghoul side and took part in a gruesome battle where he ate Jason’s kagune and became even stronger. This sparked Kaneki’s rise to power, which was hindered after his abduction only for him to become a reliable leader andone of the most powerful ghouls around inTokyo Ghoul.
