Only A True Anime Fan Would Be Able To Name All Of These Characters
- by Asad_T
- – on
- in Movies and TV
Anime has an extensive history of entertainment in the Japanese culture, and has been becoming more and more mainstream in the west as well. There is a very typical style of animation that comes with anime, with unusual hairstyles and colours, large eyes and dramatic dialogue. Many of the shows that shaped Japanese culture came from their anime, and because of their popularity, paired with the easy communication because of the internet, it's becoming more and more integral to the culture of the western countries as well.
If you consider yourself an anime fan, take the test below and match the names of the characters with the picture associated with them. There will be characters from mainstream animes, modern animes, and even some from the golden ages of before 2000s. Even if you didn't watch them yourself, there is little doubt that you at least heard of them. After all, every single one of these shows has a phenomenal fanbase, and all of them are amazing series worth watching. Some might start off a little slow, but no fan regrets investing their time into these franchises. They pay the time off immediately with lore, the fun, and of course, the other fans to enjoy the little tidbits that make you gush.
Which character is this?
My Hero Academia is about a world where everyone is born with genetic mutations known as "quirks". These quirks give the user fantastic powers, such as flight, flame control, cold control, decay, paralysis etc. Because of these fantastic powers, people have been able to choose a career and lifestyle that many have dreamed of but never could attain. It is, of course, becoming a hero. The anime follows the life of a quirkless young man who grows up to become the world's greatest hero.
Which character is this?
One Piece is one of the longest-running shows in Japan that has maintained an impressive amount of viewers. Monkey D. Luffy is a young boy who wants to grow up to become the Pirate King, and takes off on his quest to find a crew and a ship that will lead him to the Grand Line where he may find the One Piece, an infamous treasure left by the last Pirate King Gol D. Roger. The franchise has been ongoing since 1997.
Which character is this?
A cyberpunk, suspense anime set in the far future where humans and androids have learned to coexist peacefully, Ergo Proxy is known for it's stunning animation (given the time it was released) and the complex cat and mouse chase. It follows the story of an investigator who uncovers the murders committed by androids after a virus makes them self-aware. The investigator discovers not just a network of plots set out to undermine the entire world, but a secret government experiment gone very wrong, or very right.
Which character is this?
Following the life of two teenagers, Simon and Kamina who live in subterranean cities under the rule of the Spiral King, Lordgenome, Gurren Lagann is a mecha anime about rebellion. The teenagers reach the surface and, using a mecha called Lagann, they fight alongside the surface humans against the Spiral King. It's an intense story that spanned twenty-seven episodes filled with action, comedy, and science fiction sparkle. Where Gurren Lagann really shines is not just the plot, but the world building and the lore.
Which character is this?
Dragon Ball Z is one of the most legendary animes of all time. This isn't because of the plot, the animation, or the characters, but because of the simplicity of the show appealed to so many during their childhoods, that even now, many decades later after the original shows stopped airing, the fans are still enjoying the series in its now finished sequel Dragon Ball Super. There are some things that are just timeless, and this show is one of them.
Which character is this?
After an earthquake devastates the Japanese mainland, destroying most of Tokyo, the entire country is forever changed. A decade later, the story picks up following a student who was a survivor of the earthquake who has no memory of their life before the quake and is known as an escapee. One day, a mysterious figure in all red massacres the escapee's classmates and they are held responsible for the crime and sentenced to be offed.
Which character is this?
The Steins;Gate anime is based on a visual novel that was released back in 2009 and revolves around scientists figuring out how to send messages into the past, and thereby affecting the present. They accidentally discover it by using a microwave phone to text information about the passing of a neuroscientist only to find out that the scientist is still alive and the message had been sent before the event actually occurred. They begin an adventure of time travel that is as complicated as you might imagine it would be.
Which character is this?
Neon Genesis Evangelion is one of the most well-known Mecha animes of all time, and it follows the story of a boy who gets recruited into the shadowy organization known only as Nerv. Within the organization, he pilots a bio-mecha known as Evangelion and fights against creatures known as Angels to prevent a catastrophe that had ravaged the Earth fifteen years prior. It is the cause of the mecha anime franchise and is one of the best known shows of all time.
Which character is this?
One-Punch Man is the story of a world of heroes and villains who do typical heroism and villainy. Many people have different powers that they attained either through supernatural means, otherworldly means, or raw talent. The protagonist is the One-Punch Man who's able to handle any fighter no matter how powerful or vicious with one punch. It has fantastic animation and stylisation, and the fanbase is eagerly waiting for more and more seasons of their favourite characters on the small screen.
Which character is this?
In a world where there are professions known as Hunters, individuals that will chase down any rare animal, commodity, lawless outcast, a young boy finds out that his father had abandoned him because he was a Hunter himself. Despite this, instead of being angry, he chose to follow in his father's footsteps and Hunt down his dad. Along the way, the boy meets other Hunters and has various adventures of his own, and the characters were so appealing that the anime is still one of the better known animes of the past decade.
Which character is this?
In Guilty Crown, a high school boy gains a mysterious power where he can draw out something called "Voids" from other people, weapons that can be used with brutal efficiency. He is then thrown into a war between the government and the resistance known as Funeral Parlour, all the while struggling with his power and learning about his mysterious past. The anime draws inspiration from many genres, but the most profound is fantasy fiction with a slight dystopian touch to it all.
Which character is this?
Humans live alongside species known as Ghouls in the show Tokyo Ghoul. Ghouls resemble humans in every way, except they have an extra hunting organ known as a Kagune. This hunting organ is used to prey on the only food source Ghouls have: humans. As such, they are enemies of each other, and in the midst of it all, a boy gets hurt in a freak accident and wakes up half human, half ghoul. He no longer belongs to the world of the human, and the ghouls are reluctant to accept him.
Which character is this?
Puella Magi includes certain entities known as "Messengers of Magic". These creatures go to random girls who ache to have a wish of theirs fulfilled and through the power of magic, grant them what they desire. Surely getting what you wish for is a dream come true, but it begs the question: at what cost did it come? As it turns out, in return for having granted their wish, the girls must then become fighters against witches and other dark creatures born of curses to protect the rest of humanity.
Which character is this?
Naruto is one of the frontiers of anime in the west, and many people, even those who aren't really fans of anime, know of this show. The lore of Naruto is vast and immense and follows the story of a young orphan ninja who dreams of one day becoming the leader of his village. Being an outcast without many friends, it was hard for him to grow up, but he never let that get in the way of his will. He's a relatable character for many.
Which character is this?
Yuri on Ice is an award-winning sports anime about figure skating, where the skating was all choreographed real time and then animated. The show rose to critical acclaim and won three awards at the Tokyo Anime Festival and seven awards in Crunchyroll's Anime Awards. It follows the life of Yuri who, after being defeated in the finals, returns home with thoughts of giving up his figure skating career. A secret video of him skating went viral and a Russian skater comes to coach him back to victory.
Which character is this?
Set in a fictional world where the scientific branch of Alchemy is the most advanced, Fullmetal Alchemist is the story of Edward and Alphonse Elric who, using the forbidden art of alchemy, try to bring their mother back to life. The cost is greater than either of them could have imagined, where Alphonse loses his entire body, and Edward loses an arm and a leg. It wasn't successful, and now Alphonse lives inside a metal suit and Edward has a metal limb replacement for his lost appendages.
Which character is this?
A group of six sixth-graders start drifting apart from each other after one of them passes away in a fatal accident. Many years later, the leader of their friend group has become a recluse and doesn't go to high school. He starts seeing a ghost of his friend after her passing, where she professes that she can't move on until her wish was granted, but was unable to say what her wish was. Seeing this, the leader gets the group back together, and tries to help their friend move on.
Which character is this?
Free! is a swimming-based sports anime that has had light novels and has started its third season. Four friends in elementary school loved swimming competitively, and they won a tournament relay race when they were young. They parted ways after, and years later, in high school, they meet up again, and after a series of events, rekindle their love for competitive swimming and once again begin training and swimming. Thus begins a new series of adventures that keeps fans of swimming glued to their screens.
Which character is this?
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion or simply Code Geass is the story of how the former prince Lelouch gains a power known as Geass. These powers manifest differently in different people and depend on your personality, desires, and ambitions. For Lelouch, this was the ability to command someone to do anything he said, the power of complete obedience. He uses this Geass to begin his attack on the Holy Britannian Empire which has been conquering country after country and is set for world domination.
Which character is this?
A fictional academy gives its students Goku Uniforms which are special types of clothes made out of Life Fibers that give their wearers superhuman abilities. The school is run by a fearsome student who is challenged by a vagrant transfer on the hunt for the man who offed her father. The transfer student wields a special kind of scissor blade that can cut the life fibers, and while she initially fails, she begins to claw her way back to the top and find out the truth of her father.
Which character is this?
Ghost In The Shell is a complex story that deals with difficult questions and does not provide any easy answers. It revolves around a character that is completely machine in every way except one: the brain. This blurs the line between man and machine, because there is no discernible difference anymore. A machine is beginning to feel emotion, and man is beginning to lose emotion. Ghost In The Shell is an ambitious anime that deals, at its core, with the question of what it means to be human.
Which character is this?
Set in an alternate reality of the edo era, the anime Samurai Champloo follows the story of three individuals, a masterless samurai, a vagrant swordsman, and someone on the quest to find the "samurai who smells of sunflowers". The most prominent part about the show isn't the animation, the characters, or the style, it's the incredible mixing of genres that is completely unexpected. Samurai Champloo doesn't just take inspiration from the samurai era of Japan but also mixes in the modern day culture and concept of hip-hop among it. The show attained critical acclaim.
Which character is this?
Sword Art Online was an extremely popular concept when it was first unveiled. The idea was, there was a device which let you slip into a virtual reality of video games where you could live out the life you always lived in the games you played, and shows you watched. In SAO, you could meet other people through their own avatars until the creator of the game locked people in. The only way to escape was to complete the game, and then the race to the finish began.
Which character is this?
Sometime in the future, in 2071, Cowboy Bebop takes place. After an incident that made the Earth uninhabitable, the human race began to live and thrive on the nearby rocky planets. Because of the shakeup and the vast empty spaces in between, criminals began to thrive. This leads to the rise of Bounty Hunters also called Cowboys who would hunt down the criminals and bring them back alive for a reward. The protagonists of the series work off a spaceship known as Bebop.
Which character is this?
Bleach is another long-running anime following the story of Ichigo Kurosaki who, after a strange twist of fate, attains the power of the Shiningami, the Grim Reapers. He has an immense natural talent for this ability, far more than anyone else in the history of mankind, and he begins to use his newfound powers to protect the human race from ghostly Hollows, humans who have lost their soul. There are also beings known as Arrancars, Hollows who were able to tear off their mask and regain some semblance of humanity, allowing them to wield shinigami-like powers.