Anime 101

The basics

• Anime is animation from Japan.
• Manga is Japanese comics. Most popular anime are adapted from manga.

Studio Ghibli

Hayao Miyazaki’s studio makes hand-drawn films adults love as much as kids: My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, and Spirited Away, which won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature in 2003. The Boy and the Heron won it again in 2024.

The words you need

• Shōnen: aimed at teen boys, but watched by everyone. Big fights, friendship and training arcs (Naruto, One Piece, Demon Slayer, Jujutsu Kaisen).
• Isekai: a character gets transported into another world, often a game-like one.
• Weeb: a hardcore anime fan, said as a joke or an insult depending on who’s talking.

The giants

• Dragon Ball Z: a gateway for a whole generation, especially through US TV in the late ’90s and 2000s.
• One Piece: a manga running since 1997 and one of the best-selling comics in history. Netflix made a live-action version in 2023.
• Demon Slayer: its 2025 film Infinity Castle became the highest-grossing anime movie ever worldwide.

Anime and hip-hop

Rappers grew up on anime too. Kanye’s "Stronger" video borrows from Akira (1988). Megan Thee Stallion, Lil Uzi Vert and plenty of others reference Naruto and Dragon Ball in their lyrics, outfits and tattoos.