There are many different genres of manga and anime that help provide such variety towards the types of stories that are told in the medium. Over time, unique styles have grown popular, but it routinely turns out to be the shonen genre that finds the largest audience and is able to generate the biggest hits.
Shonen contains some of the most beloved anime and manga from the past several decades, but they can also be series that run for years without an end in sight. Thankfully, there are still lots of modern manga, aka ones that debuted this century, that have reached their conclusions.
10 Soul Eater
Soul Eater is a shonen series that follows many of the familiar staples of the genre, but it manages to feel unique largely due to the show’s enjoyable cast. The manga revolves around a special academy where teams reap the souls of humans.
Soul and Maka are a fantastic duo and there's a very clear goal for them that can sometimes feel repetitive but never manipulative. The battles and powers are handled in an exciting way as opposed to other shonen series where new skills can materialize out of nowhere.
9 The Disastrous Life Of Saiki K.
The Disastrous Life of Saiki K is a hilarious and delirious manga series that’s centered around a teenager with unbelievable psychic abilities. Curiously, Saiki doesn’t want to use his powers to take advantage of the world but instead would prefer to just be left alone to a life of solitude.
Generally, Saiki uses his powers to avoid social interactions or to come across as more normal. It’s a fantastic twist on slice of life stories and it actually contains an ending that’s surprisingly poignant.
8 Deadman Wonderland
Deadman Wonderland is an entertaining mix of horror with an engaging prison break drama. Ganta Igarashi finds himself sentenced to death at the brutal prison, Deadman Wonderland, for a crime that he didn't commit.
It's there that Ganta is reunited with an old childhood friend and the two don't only plot their escapes but begin to unlock the greater powers that lie within Ganta. Deadman Wonderland isn’t afraid to throw intense visuals at the audience. Since the anime adaptation rushes through the material and is not complete, the manga remains the best way to experience this story.
7 Food Wars!: Shokugeki No Sama
Food Wars! is a perfect example of the fluid nature of manga and anime and how these mediums can approach styles of stories that would be impossible elsewhere. Food Wars! looks at Soma Yukihara’s humble journey to become a full-time chef and become even better than his acclaimed father.
What makes Food Wars! so special is that it handles cooking and food preparation like matches between superheroes. Fantastic characters and amazing energy around culinary arts turn Food Wars! into a bizarre series that shouldn’t work, but does.
6 Claymore
It's a very common premise within shonen series that the central protagonist is a special individual who's a hybrid between human and whatever sort of demon the series trades in. Claymore is no different as Clare is half-human and half-Yoma, but the manga takes this familiar premise and repeatedly subverts expectations.
Clare and her team try to rid the world of these vile shapeshifting demons, but the places that Claymore reaches help elevate it to a higher and headier piece of art. It elegantly juggles violent action set pieces with deep questions on the nature of humanity.
5 Haikyuu!!
It’s impressive how shonen manga and anime can center series around any kind of sport imaginable, whether it’s ping pong, synchronized swimming, or the game Go. Haikyuu!! centers around a volleyball team and it’s a strong example of how something so simple can really resonate strongly with an audience.
Haikyuu!! is all about getting invested with these relatable characters and their struggles on the volleyball court. They’re considerably mundane stakes in comparison to some other shonen series, but Haikyuu!! still makes it feel like volleyball is the most important thing on the planet.
4 Gintama
Gintama is one of the funniest shonen series of all time. Gintoki simultaneously wants to respect the ways of the samurai but also get away with lazily doing nothing. Gintama involves gang wars, alien invasions, and so much more, but the plot is really inconsequential in the end.
Gintama is a gag anime that just wants to make the audience laugh and it beautifully accomplishes this. It's impossible for manga and anime fans to not love Gintama. It's a series that's "ended" several times over, but it looks like this crazy ride is at least temporarily over.
3 Fullmetal Alchemist
Fullmetal Alchemist has all of the makings of a great shonen series and it's easy to see why it's become so popular. The series is set in a fantastical world where alchemy is a vital, yet risky, source of power. Two brothers, Edward and Alphonse, find themselves on a difficult quest to retrieve the Philosopher's Stone with the hopes that it will restore their fractured family back to normal.
The strong bond between Edward and Alphonse drives Fullmetal Alchemist forward. That said, the manga's impressive world-building and sprawling fight scenes also help.
2 Assassination Classroom
Assassination Classroom's storyline is so addictive and perfect that it's shocking that the shonen manga is actually able to deliver and not draw out what seems like an inevitable conclusion. An octopus-like alien lands on Earth and vows to destroy the planet in one year's time unless his class of student assassins is able to take him out.
What follows is a complicated lesson in character dynamics as this alien both teaches and threatens these students, forming a powerful bond in the process. It's an extremely satisfying story that respects its audience.
1 The Promised Neverland
The Promised Neverland is a masterpiece in serialized storytelling. The material keeps its secrets so close to its chest that it is truly satisfying whenever The Promised Neverland lets out some more truth. The basic plot centers around a bunch of children in a mysterious orphanage, but everything begins to change once they question their environment and the world around them.
Lovable characters and a strong story help The Promised Neverland shine. It's a shonen series that doesn't overstay its welcome, which allows the content to become even stronger.