Are you looking for the best anime to watch on HBO Max? People of all age groups agree that the rise of the anime industry is on the way. Sooner or later, the anime industry will overtake other famous film industries, such as Hollywood. It is only a matter of time when anime industry leads the entertainment business.
You will notice that more people are interested in watching anime movies than other movies. People prefer anime because of its animation, plot, character design, and emotions. Recently released anime movies like Suzume, One Piece Film: Raid, and The First Slam Dunk have taken the audience by storm.
Those anime movies are breaking the previous box-office records with their animation, plot, and music. Talking about the anime show, One Piece, Dragon Ball, and Naruto is the talk of the town for the year.
Due to this, many streaming services like HBO Max are in the race to provide better quality with quantity anime content on its platform. Anime like Spirited Away and Your Lie in April is the highlight of beautiful anime years, along with Tokyo Revengers — one of the most talked about anime of 2023. In terms of animation and adventure, the new season of Dr. Stone is the right choice to watch this year.
We at OtakuKart offer you the list of Best Anime To Watch On HBO Max. We did deep research for you and found these beautiful, entertainment-packed anime on HBO Max. To Save precious time, we only mentioned those anime — worth watching.
Best Anime To Watch On HBO Max
Anime is becoming increasingly popular. Every month, many anime of different genres are released. Thus, finding the best anime to watch on a specific streaming channel is challenging. No one wants to waste their precious time and energy watching worthless anime.
Anime that doesn’t deserve your attention also doesn’t deserve to be on the list. And for that reason, we do heavy research and find the best anime to watch on the HBO Max streaming platform. Every anime on the list is top-class with beautiful animation and worth your time. Some anime also won some major awards. Here we’ll share the best anime to watch this year on HBO Max steaming platform. Take a deep breath and read the article to the end.
Tokyo Revengers (IMDB: 8.0)
If you prefer watching crime-drama anime? If you like anime with lots of twists and turns? Tokyo Revengers is the best anime choice for you. It is one of the best crime-drama anime with an IMDB of 8.0. The anime is well-known for its top-class animation, crazy fight scenes, character development, and unique plot.
Based on the complete manga series of the same by Ken Wakui. Due to its popularity, an anime version was released in 2021, followed by a live-action movie in 2021.
Tokyo Revengers follows the life of Hanagaki Takemichi, who lost his girlfriend killed by the infamous Tokyu Manji Gang. His life changes when he finds himself 12 years in the past and his girlfriend still alive. He has to take this opportunity and save his girlfriend.
- Released Date: 2021
- IMDB: 8.0
- Genre: Crime, Thriller, Action, Action-Fantasy
- Episodes: Season 1 to Season 2: 37 Episodes
- Director: Koichi Hatsumi
- Status: Unfinished
Also Read: Top 60 Anime Similar to Tokyo Revengers That You Will Definitely Like
Dr. Stone (IMDB: 8.1)
Dr. Stone is another popular anime show on HBO Max. It follows three genres: adventure, science, and comedy. Based on the complete manga series Dr. Stone by Riichiro Inagaki. The main protagonist of this anime is Senku Ishigami, a boy resurrected in April 5738, only to discover himself in a world where time has stopped and destroyed all traces of human civilization.
It is one of the most beautiful anime that talks about the Petrification Age and how some people from before the Petrification World rebuilt human civilization. People of all ages love to watch this show just for its animation. It is top-class. Also, the story of this anime is unique — there is never a feeling of boredom, even for a second.
- Released Date: 2019
- IMDB: 8.1
- Genre: Shonen Manga
- Episodes: Season 1 to Season 3: 46 Episodes
- Director: Shinya Iino
- Status: Unfinished
Your Name (IMDB: 8.1)
The next anime on the list is responsible for bringing a storm of anime worldwide. Many anime are coming to the theater worldwide because of this one anime. The anime we are talking about is Your Name or Kimi no Na wa in Japanse is one of the best anime in history and also the third highest-grossing anime of all time. It is well-known for its beautiful animation, over-the-top character development, and music.
Makoto Shinkai is the director of this anime, and he did a top-class job directing the anime. He is well-known for Weathering With You, The Garden Of Words, and recently released Suzume. Kimi no Na wa won eight awards which is enough “why it is worth” watching. If you are looking for an anime to watch with your girlfriend? Your Name is the best anime for you.
It talks about two strangers who live opposite to each other. A girl named Mitsuha Miyamiz — lives in the rural town of Itomori and wants to go to Tokyo, Japan. A boy named Taki Tachibana lives in Tokyo, Japan, and wants to live peacefully. The actual story begins when two strangers wake up in each other’s bodies for no reason. Watch this beautiful anime on HBO Max.
- Released Date: 2017
- IMDB: 8.1
- Genre: Romance, Comedy, Drama
- Episodes: Movie
- Director: Makoto Shinkai
- Status: Finished
Weathering With You (IMDB: 7.5)
Weathering With You is another masterpiece by Makoto Shinkai. The anime animation is top-class, with mindblowing romantic moments and music. It talks about a boy who left home to live freely and achieve his dream.
His destination is Tokyo, Japan, and he believes it is the best place to live. But getting a job in Tokyo for an underage boy isn’t easy. He soon realized the reality that no one was ready to hire him. And it is understandable since he is underage.
Luckily, our main character meets a stranger named Keisuke Suga, who helps him financially and gives him a place to stay. The beautiful story of Weathering With You starts when Hodaka Morishima meets a strange girl, Hina, who lives with her younger brother. This is one of the best anime to watch with your crime partner this rainy season.
- Released Date: 2019
- IMDB: 7.5
- Genre: Romance
- Episodes: Movie
- Director: Makoto Shinkai
- Status: Finished
Also Read: 20 Anime Movies like Weathering With You That You Should Watch!
Death Note (IMDB: 9.0)
Grab the tub of popcorn, dime the light, shut the curtains, and watch this highly popular anime, Death Note, on HBO. It is one of the best dark-fantasy anime that follows the life of Light Yagami, who discovers “Death Note,” a creepy black notebook on the school ground.
It belongs to soul reaper Ryuk, who falls this book in the living world. The Soul Reaper used this book to kill anyone they wished. Death Note is one of the few anime shows with a beautiful plot and mind-blowing character development. Death Note is perfect in every way.
- Released Date: 2006
- IMDB: 9.0
- Genre: Anime, Horror, Drama, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Crime TV genre, Animation, Fantasy
- Episodes: Season 1: 37 Episodes
- Director: Tetsurō Araki
- Status: Finished
Kill La Kill
As all the people who love watching anime series might already know that anime is literally the best because of various factors but there is surely the main one. The anime plots are able to reach those kinds of heights in fiction as well science and fantasy that can never be achieved by any other show of sorts.
As for this anime title, Kill La Kill, the fans will be able to see that the main concept is pretty ludicrous. As for the genre employed by the creators in the series, it shares an equal scant nature to its cast and throws light on self-awareness.
Apart from all of the absurdity that is displayed on the screen for us, the fight sequences in the show are pretty amazing. And the creativity of the animators, well, it is something to kill for. I mean, they have this new sort of weapon which is also very cool and is called scissor swords. The entire plot is more or less based on taking revenge.
You can think of it in this manner if you have read Merchant of Venice by Shakespeare and how the Jewish lord Shylock wanted to extract his share of revenge from Antonio for wronging him and calling him a dog. But all of this sort of revenge here in Kill La Kill is in the animated format.
All this while, you guys should know that the series has been created by Trigger Animation. They are popularly known in the anime entertainment sector for creating one of the best projects, and this is why have now established themselves as a household name.
It is my personal recommendation to start your anime journey with Kill La Kill because it is capable of taking you through the ride of a classic anime venture.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
If you are more of a family type of person, then without a doubt, this anime is going to give you the chills. The main concept that acts as the backbone of this anime is that its story is based on two brothers and expanded into two seasons.
Each installment takes us through their journey and narrates all the ups and downs that they had to go through. The brothers are Edward and Alphonse who are so so close that they are ready to do anything for each other.
As long as the plot is concerned, we witness that Edward, along with Alphonse set on an adventure to find a very powerful stone. It is said that if they get possession of this thing, they will be able to fix their family.
But obviously, it is an anime shoe and nothing comes with ease in these. As they are on their path to find the stone, they make themselves prone to a supernatural situation and put themselves on the radar of a variety of foes.
Despite all the action scenes in the series, it is able to pull the plugs of your heart with all the emotional concepts it first started out with. If you think that this anime is a perfect match for you, then all you have to do is tune in to HBO Max and start watching the show.
Your Lie in April
When it comes to watching an anime that has a perfect blend of a variety of themes, then this anime surely counts. Your Lie in April is mainly based on music and develops through this theme only. But obviously, it is not the only one present in the show.
I mean, the show can get so dramatic in some instances and forgets the fact that it has to be lighthearted. That does not matter because all in all, the plot is so amazing that it keeps you hooked from the start till the end.
The main protagonist of the show is going through a dark, depressed sort of phase after his mother passes away. The thing that you should know is that he is a great pianist, but now, he is unable to play because he is so traumatized by the event, that he can not hear the sound of his own music.
The entire world has become just a tasteless drama for him and he can not help but see everything in grayscale. The story follows him around as the man resigns from the world that he used to admire so deeply and goes on to live as a broken man.
Later in the scenes, he comes across a very passionate player of violin and soon realizes that he loves her. This new feeling in his heart makes him come back to his art once again and start playing the piano.
From afar, it might look as if the series is just about love as well as music, but if you dive in deeper, no one can stop you from realizing that it is emphasized more on the power of these factors in life and how they are able to change any person.
Spirited Away
This is a project by Hayao Miyazaki and is an anime film. This is one of those content that makes you realize how animation contains the power to mix everything that you only can imagine with the things in reality. Every audience that has ever seen this film only has kind words to say and even critics have announced that this is Hayao’s best work till now.
As it is rightly said, the director really did not hold back in any form while creating this project. He just unleashed his imagination onto the story and did not care about what will anyone think. And this is why the film has proved itself to be so popular that everyone wants to watch it. The main protagonist is a young girl who just wants to be a normal kid among all her peers.
But eventually, as the story goes by, she ends up in a resort that is only meant for supernatural creatures. This is when the realization strikes her that she has to pay off all the debts of her family in order to save her parents from the crisis.
The story employed in Spirited Away is very simple. There are not many drama or action scenes employed in the film and honestly, with a plot like that, it hardly needs anything to amplify its tale. If you want to sit back and enjoy life for a moment, then this is the story that you must tune into.
The film has taken as basic concepts as that shows by Alice in Wonderland but has put its own spice in that.
Princess Mononoke
This is an animated film that provides fans with nothing but powerful insight into every action that a man does which directly affects nature. This tale was created by Hayao Miyazaki and surely narrates a true message that we might have otherwise overlooked.
We know if the project is done by this director, it has to be amazing, so there is nothing that should stop you from checking out the film available on HBO Max.
As for the main concept of this tale, we know that it is more of a classic one and has been witnessed by the audience in the past too. But the special thing about Princess Mononoke is its amazing character arc that develops through the scenes.
Later, when the backstory and all have been provided to us already, we can witness that there is no rivalry between man and god as well as animals. If you really watch this anime film, it won’t be long before realizing that there is more to the story than is seen by the eye on the surface.
These battles happening against the parties will make you realize how everyone is fighting for the same thing but is unable to understand that because their mind is set in different ways.
All this while, you might already know that Miyazaki has created a lot of films as well as content shows in his career and they all have turned out to be awesome. But Ashitaka, the main protagonist of Princess Mononoke, is still dubbed as one of the strongest ever.
On the other hand, if we go on and discuss the visuals, then I must say they are top-notch. The creator has included extraordinary fight sequences that we have never seen before that come along with the beautiful animation as a cherry on top.
Although, if you have doubts that you will not be able to sit through the disturbing scenes where the infection spreads among the different races, then this anime feature is not for you.
As the film starts, you will realize that its pace has not been picked up quite fully and gives us every detail in the plot. But as the story goes by, you will come to acknowledge that Princess Mononoke has executed one of the best scenes that we can ever have by Miyazaki.
Konosuba – God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World!
Initially, the audience witnessed that KONOSUBA started off with a video game series that quickly elated to an animated feature show. As it has now become an anime, if you see the show, you will realize that the creators have skillfully taken advantage of the video game structure.
The plot of the series throws the entire spotlight on Kazuma, who is a normal boy trying to live a life as easily as possible just like the other teenagers of his age. Later in the scenes, the story turns around and we witness that he dies in a car crash.
Well, this is not the end of his tale, though. We witness that the boy wakes up in a world that is full of fantasies. Here, Kazuma starts to adjust to his surroundings and becomes a member of a powerful party and really finds his confidence. He witnesses that he can finally do something good in his life and is worth it.
If you want to relax on a Sunday afternoon, the Konosuba is the series that you should opt for. It is a light watch in itself but surely has very weird dynamics. You will find that the series contains Kazuki as well as his colleagues, and they all make up for the comedic elements of the series.
Inuyasha (IMDB: 7.9)
Inuyasha is a classic anime that follows the life of Kagome Higurashi, a middle school girl. She unintentionally slips under a well at her family shrine and ends up in modern Tokyo, Japan. She encounters a half-dog demon and half-human Inuyasha.
After encountering Inuyasha, our main character finds that she’s the reincarnation of a priestess. And now, she has a job to do — protect a sacred jewel from evil with the help of a half-dog demon and half-human Inuyasha. If you like watching Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood? You’ll definitely love this one.
- Released Date: 2000
- IMDB: 7.9
- Genre: Animation, Adventure, Fantasy, Comedy
- Episodes: Season 1 to Season 7: 193 Episodes
- Director: Yasunao Aoki
- Status: Finished
Also Read: 54 Anime Like Bleach To Watch In 2023
Noblesse (IMDB: 7.1)
Noblesse is one of the best dark-fantasy anime with many twists and turns. Based on the famous South Korean manhwa of the same Name by Son Je-ho. The anime adaption of this manhwa was released in 2016 and was available on HBO Max from 2020. It was consider considered one of the most successful anime of all time.
Noblesse talks about a handsome vampire named Cadis Etrama Di Raizel. He finally awakens from his sleep after 820 years. It is a perfect combination of adventure, action, fantasy, and animation and keeps you engaged from start to finish.
- Released Date: 2020
- IMDB: 7.1
- Genre: Animation, Dark-Fantasy, Action
- Episodes: Season 1: 13 Episodes
- Director: Shunsuke Tada
- Status: Unfinished
Hunter × Hunter (IMDB: 9.0)
Hunter × Hunter is one of the most talked about adventure-fantasy anime with an IMDB of 9.0. The show stars Gon Freecs, a 12-year-old boy who wants to become a Hunter like his father. His father left him and his mother at a young age because Hunter’s duty is more important than family.
On his way toward Hunter’s exam center, Gon encounters Leorio — who wants to become Hunter only for money and fame. Both become good friends — as the story progresses, they make many friends and enemies.
- Released Date: 2011
- IMDB: 9.0
- Genre: Adventure Fiction, Fantasy, Martial Arts
- Episodes: Season 1 to Season 6: 148 Episodes
- Director: Hiroshi Kōjina
- Status: Finished
Bungo Stray Dogs (IMDB: 7.8)
If you like watching action fantasy with a slight touch of mystery? Bungo Stray Dogs is for you to watch this year. It is a supernatural anime show that never disappoints. The main attraction of this anime is a teen named Nakajima Atsushi, an orphan who got kicked out of his orphanage for his supernatural powers.
His life changes when he saves a stranger from attempting suicide. The stranger is Dazai Osamu, a superior member of the Armed Detective Agency and ex-executive of the underworld organization.
- Released Date: 2016
- IMDB: 7.8
- Genre: Action, Mystery, Supernatural
- Episodes: Season 1 to Season 4: 40 Episodes
- Director: Takuya Igarashi
- Status: Finished
Jujutsu Kaisen (IMDB: 8.5)
Jujutsu Kaisen is one of the best dark-fantasy anime. Based on the ongoing manga series of the same Name by Gege Akutami. It revolves around the concept of cruse-energy. Also, an animated film was released in 2020 named Jujutsu Kaisen 0. The film was considered a massive success worldwide.
The main focus of this anime is a teenager named Yuji Itadori, a kind-hearted person — spends most of his free time at the school Occult Club for fun. His grandfather is in hospital, and he visits them frequently. The story begins when an evil curse spirit attacks his school and causes massive trouble. To save his friends from curses, he himself becomes a curse. Jujutsu Kaisen is one of the best anime to watch on HBO Max this year.
- Released Date: 2020
- IMDB: 8.5
- Genre: Dark Fantasy, Action, Comedy-Drama
- Episodes: Season 1: 24 Episodes
- Director: Sunghoo Park
- Status: Unfinished
Also Read: 23 Anime Like Jujutsu Kaisen – Best Similar Anime Recommendations
Erased
This is the most addictive anime tale that you are ever going to come across and makes for a perfect light watch when you do not want to get attached to something too intriguing. There are 12 episodes of the show available and all have the same genre, that is, murder, crime as well as mystery.
The show also has a contribution of supernatural elements that make it even more fun to watch. As it turns out, the main protagonist of the series is Satoru who is going through something known as revivals. This is his ability which allows him to go back in time a few minutes or second as it might have been required. This factor helps him to save his life as well as those people around him.
There are many concepts on which Erased has placed its backbone on but the major one is kindness. We see how Satoru selflessly helps to rewind time in order to help the public. But this is not the case with him when he literally goes back in time 18 years.
At first, he could not understand why he has been brought back so many years but later, as he witnesses everything, Satoru realizes hoe every action has deeper consequences. Stuck in the little version of himself, Satoru now has to find a serial killer whose actions are going to harm his mother after 18 years.
The show has an excellent debut of the mystery genre when it comes to Satoru finding the murderer while befriending all the people who are going to be his future victims.
Erased is a series where you would grow attached to the characters. It creates an emotion in us that we never knew we had. As it turns out, you know how the character is done but you can not help but watch as they slowly move towards their death.
This process gets a lot heartwarming and it is hard to imagine anything that is this sad. There are a few action scenes here and there and in this show, you would really like Satoru to succeed in his work of protecting his kind and saving his mother from potential danger in the future. Even the villains in this series are frightening and make up for the antagonist bits of the story.
91 Days
The main concept of anime these days is majorly based on revenge and we love to see how the characters engage in fight sequences in order to get their share of revenge. One such anime series is 91 Days which has driven its inspiration from the likes of The Departed as well as Batman and The Untouchables.
As for the plot of this series, it is quite unusual. It is because we witness the main protagonist, that is, Angelo Lagusa setting on a journey to extract her share of revenge on the people who have killed her folks. These were the major intentions of our lead character and this is why she starts infiltrating the public. Now, the unique twist in this show comes when the timeline and pace are revealed.
I mean, the entire series is set in the Prohibition Era of Chicago and this establishes a new outlook that is different from the common anime shows. 91 Days has to be an emotional story apart from revenge as it is based on how the main protagonist is suffering through her grief after the loss of her family.
Now, you must be wondering why the anime has such a strange title, that is, 91 days? It is because the plot has set a sand clock on itself that runs for only 91 days. Actually, Angelo has this much period of time only to take off his revenge against the mafia who has killed his entire blood.
As each episode passes by, we witness the thrill that comes with the deadline coming closer and closer.
Such type of anime is pretty prevalent in the entertainment sector and obviously, who does not love to have such chills when it comes to watching revenge shows.
All in all, 91 Days is a great piece of art that comes along with amazing visuals that you should watch while searching for a show that will blow your mind off. Despite the fact that the plot of the anime series is not as unique as it should be, the series builds exceptional tension in the eyes of new anime watchers and is a great watch.
