10 Sci-Fi Anime That Are (Almost) As Good As Dandadan

With the end of Dandadan Season 2, fans will have to find other anime to fill the void while they wait for another season. Luckily for sci-fi fans, there are plenty of fantastic sci-fi anime that are easy to fall in love with. From long-running series to fantastic one-season anime, there’s an endless supply to go through when it comes to sci-fi anime.

Sci-fi anime is vast, and when paired with other genres like comedy or time traveling, each one offers something new and unique. Dr. Stone offers an engaging story about science and past historical scientific inventions, while Gintama tells a hilarious story that has the perfect blend of action and sci-fi elements amid its comedy. Whether fans are looking for something alien-related or something about time paradoxes, the sci-fi genre will never run out of choices.

Gurren Lagann Is a Mecha Anime Full of Energetic Characters

Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, generally shortened to Gurren Lagann, is a popular mecha anime that fans still love to this day. It follows Simon and Kaima, two young teens who lived underground for most of their lives, and climb up to the surface world to fight against the Spiral King. They go on an incredible journey, creating allies of all kinds to stand a chance against the being that’s been oppressing humanity.

What makes Gurrenn Lagann an incredibly satisfying anime watch is how each event furthers the main plot. Nothing is truly filler, and every fight that takes place raises the stakes higher than the previous fight. It sends a strong message about oppression and power, topics that will never get old with time.

Kaiju No. 8 Is an Inspiring Anime About Never Giving Up

Kaiju No. 8 is all about resilience and never giving up on one’s dream, even if it feels like it’s too late. Kafka has always had a childhood dream of joining the Defense Force, but has never been able to achieve it until the last minute. After a parasite enters his body and gives him incredible power and strength, Kafka is able to finally do what he has always wanted to.

While Kaiju No. 8 has a predictable story, that doesn’t detract from its enjoyable qualities. It has fantastic characters to keep viewers intrigued and humor that is always bound to make fans laugh. Unlike most shonen anime, the protagonist is older, making this anime feel somewhat more mature than others.

Parasyte: The Maxim Shows the Potential Horrors of Alien Life Meeting Earth

Parasyte: The Maxim is one of many takes on how an alien invasion might appear. While many renditions show a dramatic takeover, what makes Parasyte: The Maxim stand out is how it shows how a gradual, alien takover might appear. It follows the story of Shinichi, a high school student who manages to stunt the process of an alien taking over his body.

Parasyte: The Maxim isn’t just about Shinichi trying to protect humanity. It focuses on humanity as a whole as well, and shows the complexities of life forms and also what it means to be human or to have empathy. The complicated relationship between Shinichi and the alien fused to his arm, Migi, often sparks complex debates about life and morals.

Erased Is a Trippy Time-Traveling Murder Mystery Anime

While Erased doesn’t have aliens that endanger humanity or have the characters battling against oppressive rulers, it’s a suspenseful story about trying to prevent a murder that makes it hard to put down. It follows the story of Satoru, a 29-year-old man who travels back in time to prevent the deaths of his classmates back in elementary school. He does everything he can to prevent these murders, which will lead to saving his mother from her own gruesome death in the future.

From the get-go, Erased immediately grips viewers with its shocking suspense and grisly murders. While the initial hook for the anime is to witness Satoru change fate, viewers will ultimately fall in love with all the characters that are shown and root for their happiness, despite the tragedies destined for them. Erased tells a story about perseverance and defying death, no matter what the cost is.

Trigun Is a Thrilling Adventure That’ll Entertain Fans Until the Last Episode

Trigun follows Vash, a notorious gunman who’s actually a pacifist, despite the violent rumors swirling around his identity. Constantly being hunted down by others, Vash employs Meryl and Milly, who attempt to clear his name and clean up the mess he makes whenever he tries to fix something. All the while, Vash is desperately trying to find his twin brother, who has plans to ruin humanity beyond repair.

Trigun is known for its entertaining blend of action and humor, but also masterfully includes tragedy into the fold. Vash is a fantastic protagonist to follow as well, and instead of being mindlessly violent and destructive, he tries his best to minimize whatever damage he can. Trigun explores the depth of humanity and dives into deep philosophical topics that leaves viewers reflecting upon themselves as well.

Dr. Stone Has Scientific Explanations for Almost Everything It Encounters

After a catastrophic event turns every human on Earth to stone, Senku awakens from the stone-induced slumber and makes it his goal to save humanity from the strange catastrophic event that has turned everyone to stone. As a high school genius, this feat isn’t impossible for him, and he makes tons of allies and enemies along the way in his quest to save his friends and loved ones. Throughout the anime, he recreates technology lost to history, and is always one step closer to achieving the impossible.

Dr. Stone is a unique anime that focuses a ton on science, while still making its story fun and fictitious in a way that’s still believable. There’s not a lot of anime out there that focus on building up humanity from the ground up by recreating historical scientific and technological achievements, which makes Dr. Stone an intriguing anime to watch. On top of its scientific exploration, it also features a ton of lovable and unique characters to drive the story forward.

Plastic Memories Dives Into the World of AI and Androids

Plastic Memories takes place in the future, where androids and AI have advanced to drastic measures. It follows the story of Tsukasa, a man who joins a company called Sai Corporation in the Terminal Service section. Their goal is to retrieve androids named Giftias, who face the risk of becoming hostile due to their personalities breaking down after the end of their lifespan.

Plastic Memories is an anime about the cycle of life and death and also what it means to be human in a technologically advancing world. Isla, a Giftia, and Tsukasa form a strong emotional bond, despite Isla being an android and Tsukasa being human. The anime explores the bittersweet side of their relationship, which is limited on time.

Steins;Gate Is One of the Best Visual Novel Adaptations

Steins;Gate was an incredibly popular anime in the 2010s, and still remains well-regarded among many anime fans. It follows the mind-boggling adventures of Rintaro, who continuously messes with time traveling to prevent specific tragedies from occurring. Time traveling is no walk in the park, and Rintaro finds himself thrust into an unforgiving world ever since he discovered the cruel consequences of using time travel.

Steins;Gate‘s strongest qualities are its endearing characters and how it deals with time travel. The topic of time travel is often hard to manage in believable and intriguing ways, but Steins;Gate does it in a way that works incredibly well with the story it’s telling. While it shows time travel as a tool of wonder, it also shows the harsh consequences it has when it comes to the butterfly effect, post-traumatic stress disorder and the overall perspective on human nature.

Gintama Is the Top Comedy Sci-Fi Anime

Gintama is another side of the sci-fi genre that is unlike any other. It blends in other elements like historical and comedy to truly make it shine in its own way. Taking place in an alternate Japan during the Edo period, it follows the story of Gin and his companions, who live in a world where aliens have taken over humanity.

While Gintama is full of comedy, it also has serious arcs filled with action and strong character development that completely catches viewers off guard in the best way possible. The ability for the anime to shift from its comedic manner to something more serious and complex isn’t jarring and only makes the watching experience even more enriching. Gintama will constantly surprise viewers with its unique story and humorous characters.

Ghost in the Shell Talks About What It Means to Be Human

Ghost in the Shell dives deep into what it means to be human in a world filled with advanced technology of all sorts. It follows the story of Maj, a cyborg agent, who hacks into the minds of cyborg-humans. She constantly debates her own life as a cyborg, especially in her chase after a hacker who can change the makeup of a cyborg’s personality.

Ghost in the Shell is considered one of the best sci-fi anime films for a number of reasons. It blends 2D and 3D animation in unique ways, making it incredibly eye-catching to watch. On top of that, it also has incredibly philosophical themes that constantly leave viewers pondering their own view on life and humanity. Identity is such an important part of life, especially for humans, and the anime deeply explores this aspect of society.