I’m somewhat of a shounen anime connoisseur, there are phases where I only am in the mood to watch shounen anime and nothing else. In times like these, I’m just looking for those classes power ups, the nostalgic battle sequences and dialogue (“I’ll do as you wish and send you to hell with the rest of your friends”). Lol, I’m looking at you Rob Lucci. I want to see a bullied kid stand up for himself and learn martial arts thereby greatly surpassing his bullies in strength and going onto defeat demons with superhuman strength.
There are a lot of GOOD shounen anime out there, and there are a few must-watch shounen anime, and there’s the best shounen anime out of them all. “There’s a number one shounen anime?”, you may ask. Yep, there is. I might be just a tad biased, but I’d love for you to trust me on this one. Katekyo Hitman Reborn, Blue Exorcist, Sword Art Online, Magi, D. Gray Man, Black Clover, Bleach, Toriko, Dragon Ball Z, Fairy Tail, these are just some examples of the GOOD shounen anime that I was referring to. Hunter x Hunter, Yu Yu Hakusho, Naruto, Death Note, Hajime no Ippo, and One Piece are up there on the list of being exceptional anime where you could go watch any single one of them right now and be very happily occupied from start to finish. If I HAD to choose the number two best shounen anime of all time, it would be One Piece, and then Hajime no Ippo sitting solidly at number 3.
Drum Roll please….. Major. “Major gas”, “major what..?”. Just Major, it’s a sports anime about baseball. If you’re not into sports anime and have some kind of stubborn bias against them, I am begging you to give them a shot. They are just as good as your precious Naruto! The power ups in sports anime are just translated to skill increases in the respective sport. Many a time the enjoyableness of sports anime is akin to the greatest show you’ve ever if not greater. Characters, storyline, plot twists, action, drama, tearjerking scenes, it’s all there!
Why is Major is best shounen anime of all time? It is the complete package of what a shounen anime is supposed to be and it is so freaking enjoyable at the same time. We get something that I’ve not really seen in other shounen anime, which is getting to see the main character throughout his entire life; from the toddler state up until and into adulthood. This does really well for making you become attached to the main character, Goro. It helps that Goro is an extremely likeable and cool character. There are 6 seasons in Major and the first few seasons cover all of Goro’s school life, where he plays on the baseball team of each school. The greatest thing about Major is the JOURNEY, it’s the most satisfying ride in anime that I’ve seen to date. Manga is a different story, but that’s a story for another day.
Major had me crying like a baby on multiple occasions. I’ve never just straight up enjoyed every single episode of an anime as I did with major. You DO NOT have to be into sports to love this anime, I promise you. And no, I was not paid to write good things about this anime lol! Please make an account and comment how you enjoyed Major, or if you did not.