Is anime for kids or adults? Well, anime was made for all ages, but as time goes by, anime and its animation and censorship have also changed quite a bit. And maybe there are a few anime that are not appropriate for young kids to watch if they are just getting started.
Imagine a young kid who decides to watch Attack on Titan, Tokyo Ghoul, or even Berserk as his first anime. He will be scared the moment he sees all the bloodshed.
Best Anime For ’12-Year-Olds’ To Watch
We, adults, have grown up watching anime like Dragon Ball Z, Naruto, and One Piece. There are so many, and this anime is still trending and ongoing. Anime can teach you a lot of real-life lessons, and you will never bore watching them because of the amazing storyline, top-class visuals, and the feel of the dialogue by the voice actors. Also, don’t forget the music.
So to make your kid avoid watching Gore anime while they are young, we present you some of the best anime recommendations for a 12-year-old to watch as well as enjoy. This list is not ranked.
1. Doraemon
Doraemon is A legendary anime; everyone knows the name of this anime nowadays as it’s been going on for a long time. It follows the story of a 10-year-old kid, Nobita, who has experienced nothing but misery and misfortune, always failing in class and getting into trouble. Then one day, a Blue robot comes crawling from his study desk named Doraemon.
Doraemon, as a 22nd-century robot, was sent back in time by Nobita’s great-great-grandson, Sewashi, to help Nobita avoid bad circumstances so that his descendants could have a better life in the future.
Doraemon is a blue-cat robot who loves eating Doracake, but despite being a cat, he is afraid of mice. Anytime Nobita gets into trouble, Doraemon comes in to help him by pulling out a gadget from his 4D pocket. Nobita usually goes too far with gadgets and gets into even greater trouble with his friends.
Sometimes his gadgets are stolen by his friends Suneo and Gian, and he misuses them again. At the end of the story, Doraemon comes to solve the trouble they caused and teaches them the moral of the story about misusing gadgets.
IMDB has rated Doraemon 8.1 out of 10.
Also read: 13 Anime Like Doraemon That You Can Watch To Get The Same Feel!
2. Kiteretsu
Kiteretsu is an old-time and childhood favorite anime. It follows the story of a genius scientific inventor named Eiichi Kite, a.k.a. Kiteretsu, the descendant of the great inventor Kite`retsu Saisama. Kiteretsu invents and rebuilds things given in his encyclopedia, and one day he creates A robot named Korosuke who can speak, behave, and have emotions like human beings. Korosuke carries a small sword on his back, representing his status as a samurai. Korosuke is a naive character who loves to eat Korokke.
Korosuke helps Kiteretsu with inventions, but most of the inventions fail because of Korosuke. Kitertsu is a genius and has strong mechanical and inventive aptitude, but he is weak in sports. Kiteretsu is friends with Miyoko and sees her as a love interest; Kaoru is a bully, and Tongari antagonizes Kiteretsu and Korosuke. Kiteretsu and his friends go on many adventures and travel in the past with the time machine Kiteretsu built. Korosuke has a more striking resemblance to Doraemon as they both are robots, but Nobita doesn’t have attributes like Kiterestsu, and they both are weak in sports.
IMDB has rated Kiteretsu 7.2 out of 10.
Also read: Most Popular Anime Similar to Dr. Stone That Every Science Fan Needs to Watch
3. Digimon Adventure
Digimon follows the story of a group of boys and girls being sent to a parallel dimension and coming to a world named Digital World (Digiworld) while they are at summer camp. Yusuke and his friends were bewildered after traveling to the Digiworld. They were taken to Digiworld because they were chosen as the ones who could save the digital world from evil forces.
Yusuke and his friends receive a partner named Digimon, who is programmed to be with them with a device called Digivices. Digiworld faces the evil organization Croana, which plans to destroy the Digital and human worlds, so it is Yusuke’s job to build an army to stop Croana. Yusuke and his friends started to fight just to return home, but sooner or later, they started to fight for Digiworld and their Digimon friends.
They have to also collect Crest, which helps them evolve their Digimon to another level, making them stronger. At last, they face Apocalyman, the real enemy. Apocalyman is defeated, and the children are sent back to the human world, leaving their Digimon partners behind in Digiworld.
IMDB has rated Digimon Adventure 7.8 out of 10.
Also read: 50 Best Adventure Anime On Netflix That Will Take You On A Journey
4. Pokémon
Pokémon is an all-time favorite and a trending anime today. It follows the story of a young boy named Ash Ketchum from Pallet Village who gains the right to train a Pokémon. Ash dreams of becoming a Pokémon Master. Ash receives his first Pokémon from Professor Oak, named Pikachu.
At first, Pikachu is very uncooperative. During their adventure, Pikachu is attacked by a group of Spearow. Ash jumps in to save Pikachu from a Spearow attack; that way, Ash earns Pikachu’s friendship.
Pikachu is injured, and Ash takes him to the Pokémon Center to get him treated. He steals Mitsy’s bike, but eventually, he wrecks it, and Mitsy will not leave Ash until he compensates her for the bike. Mitsy becomes the second partner. Ash and Mitsy face a Criminal organization named Team Rocket, which appears to steal Pikachu from Ash. Pikachu overpowers them, which inspires numerous attempts to steal Pikachu from Ash.
Ash goes to Pewter City, where he faces Gym Leader Brock. After defeating Brock, he earns his first badge, and Brock decides to tag along with them on their Pokémon Master journey, making Brock the third partner. Then, Ash travels with Mitsy and Brock in order to achieve his goal of becoming a Pokémon master.
IMDB has rated Pokémon 7.5 out of 10.
Also read: 8 Anime Like Shinigami Bocchan to Kuro Maid
5. My Hero Academia
If you are a fan of superhero fights, this anime is for you. My Hero Academia follows the story of a boy named Izuku Midoriya, who is quirkless in a world where 95% of the population is born with quirks. Midoriya always dreamed of becoming a hero like All Might but couldn’t without any quirks.
One day, his friend Bakugo was taken hostage by a villain. Without a second thought, he went in to help Bakugo, displaying great heroism that encouraged All Might to do the same to rescue Bakugo from the villain.
All Might meet Midoriya while he is on the way home and tells him how he is also quirkless and how he inherited the power of One for All; it has been inherited from one generation to another. The League of Villains is a group of villains who are planning to overthrow the hero society with Tomura Shigaraki with the power of decay.
Shigaraki also has a tragic past, which is known in later seasons. When the League of Villains kidnaps Bakugo, thinking they could turn Bakugo into a Villain, Midoriya and his companions come up with a plan to save Bakugo.
We get to see the ultimate showdown between one for all and all for one, which ends the hero’s day of All Might using the last inch of his power. With All Might, standing strong with his hands up as a sign of victory. In the later seasons of My Hero Academia, we get to see both the UA high school festival and the UA sports festival.
IMDB has rated My Hero Academia 8.3 out of 10.
Also read: 100 Superhero Anime Series To Watch On Netflix in 2023
6. Crayon Shin-chan
It is the story of the protagonist of Crayon Shin-chan, Shinnosuke Nohara, also known as Shin-chan. Shin-chan is the son of Misae Nohara and Hiroshi Nohara. Shin-chan also has a younger sister named Himawari. Shin-chan is a 5-year-old kindergarten boy who acts overly mature. Shin-chan is very curious and has no shame whatsoever, but he also displays surprising talent in activities like Running, Swimming, Kendo, and others.
Shin-chan is often seen with his pants pulled down and doing the buttocks dance. He loves to eat Choco Chips, his favorite chocolate biscuit. Shin-chan admires the television superhero named Action Kamen and dreams of becoming like him when he grows up. Shin-chan doesn’t like to eat green peppers. Shin-chan loves to eat and sleep and is also stubborn, which he inherited from his grandfather. Shin-chan has a group of friends named Kazama, Nene, Masao, and Bo, and they form a group named Kasukabe Army.
Shin-chan is typically seen wearing an animal costume. Shin-chan is always late for his school bus due to taking a long time in the bathroom, leading Misae to take him to school on a bike. Shin-chan is also attracted to an older girl named Nanako, with whom he usually flirts, gaining this trait from his father and grandfather. Shin-chan revolves around the life of the Nohara family and the problems created by Shin-chan.
IMDB has rated Crayon Shin-chan 8.4 out of 10.
Also read: 7 Best Anime Movies That You Can Watch With Family
7. Naruto
If you are a fan of Ninja action, this anime is for you. It follows the story of a 13-year-old protagonist named Naruto. Naruto is a resident of Hidden Leaf in Konoha village. Naruto has witnessed pain ever since he was born, striving hard to achieve recognition in his own village, and then he decides to vow to become the Hokage of the Hidden Leaf of Konoha, a Hokage respected by everyone. Naruto is a Jinchuriki carrying a nine-tailed fox inside him, which was sealed inside by the 4th Hokage Minato before his death.
The people of the village are scared of Naruto as he is a Jinchuriki, and everyone avoids him. Naruto appears for the Genin exam and is allocated to a team, including Sakura of the Haruno Clan and Sasuke of the Uchiha Clan in Team 7. Kakashi a Jonin was appointed as team leader of team 7. Before Team 7 goes on a mission, Kakashi wants to clear a test for him. After several attempts and teamwork, Kakashi approves of Team 7. Team 7 starts a mission where they face Zabuza, a former ninja from Hidden Mist Village.
Sasuke, the lone survivor of the Uchiha Massacre, seeks revenge on his older brother, Itachi Uchiha. Sakura is Kunoichi, who is deeply in love with Sasuke and specializes in Medical Ninjutsu. Later, Sasuke leaves the hidden leaf village and trains under Orochimaru to get stronger and get his revenge. Naruto also vows to bring Sasuke back to the village, as he is his only best friend. After that, Naruto decides to go train with Master Jiraiya to get stronger for 2 years.
After 2 years, Naruto comes back to the village with new looks and continues to go on a mission with his new team 7, bringing Sasuke back to the village. Naruto is a really long series to watch.
IMDB has rated Naruto 8.4 out of 10.
Also read: 47 Popular Anime Like Naruto That Fans Would Love
8. Cells At Work
If you want to understand your body in more of an anime way, this is the anime for you. The story revolves around two main protagonists, anthropomorphic cells named Red blood cells and white blood cells. The job of anthropomorphic cells is to keep the body healthy 24/7. Cells at work mainly focus on a newbie red blood cell, AE3803, which often gets lost during deliveries, and a white blood cell, U-1146, whose job is to fight against the germs invading the body.
A red blood cell who just started her job of delivering oxygen, nutrients, and carbon dioxide all over the body meets a Neutrophil (U-1146), who saves her from the Pneumococcus attack. She is clumsy and often gets lost during deliveries, but she has a strong determination to perform to her best ability.
A white blood cell, whose job it is to kill germs and pathogens invading the body, is ruthless and violent, but he is soft-spoken and gentle.
He saved AE3803 from a bacterium attack at a training exercise in school. Cells at Work is a good anime and is recommended if you want to learn more about how the body works and stays healthy.
IMDB has rated Cells At Work 7.5 out of 10.
Also read: 50 Action Anime Series To Watch On Netflix
9. The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.
The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. is a psychic high school comedy anime. It follows the story of a 16-year-old high school boy from PK High School, Kusou Saiki, who was born with Psychic powers, including psychokinesis and teleportation. He tries to keep his psychic abilities a secret from everyone at school.
Saiki has a friend named Nendou Riki, whose brain he cannot read, as Saiki finds him stupid and has nothing to read to his brain except for eating ramen after school.
Saiki also makes another friend, Shun Kaido, who suffers from Chunnibyou syndrome, after meeting upperclassman Mineo. Aren Kuboyashi, a former gang member, came to live a simple high school life. Kokomi Teruhashi, who is loved by everyone at high school, tries to get the attention of Saiki. The other Psychic power user in the anime, there, is Reita Toritsuka, who has the ability to see and communicate with spirits.
Aiura Mikoto, who has the power of fortune-telling and sees people’s auras, Saiki also has a genius older brother who always competes with Saiki and gives her trouble just for fun. One time, Saiki decided not to rely on his power and live a normal life, but during the Meteor crash incident, he decided to use it again. The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. is a very funny anime, and it is definitely recommended for you to watch.
IMDB has rated The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. 8.3 out of 10.
Also read: 50 Best Comedy Anime Streaming On Netflix
10. Inazuma Eleven
If you love Soccer, this anime is definitely for you. Inazuma Eleven follows the story of Endou Mamoru, the goalkeeper at Raimon Junior High. The soccer club has six players (Ryuugo Someoka, Heigorou Kabeyama, Teppei Kurimatsu, Shin’ichi Handa, Ayumu Shourinji, and Sakichi Shishido).
Endou asks them to practice soccer, but none of them seem interested in it, and Endou tells them they will enter the Frontier Tournament this year. Later in the evening, Endou plays soccer with the elementary school and, by mistake, hits the two guys passing; that pisses them off, and he comes to hit.
Later on, Gouenji Shuuya comes in and kicks the ball, hitting them in the face, which gets the attention of Endou, who wants him to join his Soccer club. Gouenji joins Raimon Junior High, and sooner or later, Endou gets a match against Royal Academy, the strongest team to play with, and if they lose, their soccer club has to be disbanded.
The current member refuses to play in the game, and Endou goes out recruiting other players. Ichirouta Kazemaru joins the club, and other players like Kuusuke “Max” Matsuno, Jin Kageno, and Kakeru Megane join the club.
On the day of the match, Teikoku scored 10 points, and Raimon scored 0 points in the first half. Kageyama orders Kidou to ruthlessly destroy them, and Kidou threatens that if Gouneji doesn’t join the game, he will destroy every last player.
Later on, Gouenji joins the game. Endou manages to stop Kidou’s Death Zone attack with his new skill, God Hand, and passes the ball to Gouneji to score using Fire Tornado. Raimon wins the game by default after Teikoku forfeits the game after seeing Gouenji’s power. Endou keeps on recruiting new players for the Frontier tournament and meets many other amazing players.
IMDB has rated Inazuma Eleven 8.1 out of 10.
Also read: 40 Amazing Sports Anime Shows To Watch!
11. Detective Conan
If you love mysteries and detective stories, this anime is for you. Detective Conan follows the story of a 17-year-old high school boy, Shinichi Kudo who is known as the Saviour of the Japanese Police Department due to his ability to solve difficult cases and great intelligence. One day, he takes her friend Ram Mori to a tropical island.
While Shinchi and Ran were on a Rollercoaster, there was a murder, and Shinchi solved the case in an instant. Soon after the murder, he sees a man in black clothes running, and Shinchi decides to spy on him.
Shinchi then notices a blackmail case and tries to take the picture, but the second partner comes from behind and knocked out Shinchi on the ground. The man in black gives him a poison named APTX 4869, and as the poison starts to take effect, Shinchi’s body shrinks to that of an elementary school kid.
The poison didn’t kill him, but it shrank him. Shinichi decides to keep his identity a secret, changing his name to Conan Edogawa, and starts living with Ran Mori and her father.
Conan enrolls at Teitan Elementary School, where he makes friends and forms his own Junior detective league. Conan continues to dig deeper into the black organization to find out the truth about his shrinking body and get his antidote.
Conan later encounters an elementary transfer student named AI Haibara, who reveals herself to be a former member of the black organization under the code name Sherry.
Sherry was the creator of the drug that shrank Conan. Sherry and Conan join hands to find the Black Organisation. Later on, we see how Conan helps the FBI plant a spy in a black organization. Conan later finds a temporary solution to get his body back to normal by drinking Chinese alcohol. Anime continues with so many mystery cases to be solved.
IMDB has rated Detective Conan 8.5 out of 10.
Also read: 34 Best Anime Like Mashle: Magic and Muscles To Watch Right Now
12. Fairy Tail
Fairy Tail is magic Wizard anime. It follows the story of Lucy Heartfilia, who comes to join the Fairy Tail Guild and encounters Natsu Dragneel. Natsu and his team embark on numerous missions, battling criminals, illegal dark guilds, and ancient demons created by the immortal cursed Zeref. They then travel to Sirius Island to find out the truth about the founder of the Fairy Tail Guild.
The battle between the Fairy Tail Guild and Griomore’s minds attracts the attention of the evil black dragon Acnologia. After several encounters with Acnologia, the dragon slayers managed to survive. Fairy Tail goes to war with Tartaros, a dark guild that aims to unseal the Zeref’s ultimate demon END. Acnologia again returns to annihilate both guilds, and we find out that Igneel was sealed with Natsu all this time and emerges to go on the fight against Acnologia and is brutally defeated.
A year later, Fairy Tail and the other guilds are at war with the Alvarez Empire, ruled by Zeref. Zeref wants to get his hands on Fairy Heart, which Mavis sealed with the Fairy Tail guild. Zeref manages to get Fairy’s heart from Mavis, but in the end, Mavis lifts her and Zeref’s immortality curse, reciprocating their never-ending love, which ends up killing both of them.
IMDB has rated Fairy Tail 7.9 out of 10.
Also read: 30 Best Action Anime Of All Time, Ranked By Fans
13. Haikyu!!
Haikyu!! is a volleyball sports anime. If you are into Volleyball, this anime is for you. It follows the story of a boy named Hinata, who once was inspired by the Little Giant Volleyball play on TV.
After that, Hinata starts to play volleyball, and later, after 3 years, he gets to play in his first official volleyball tournament against Kitagawa Daiichi, where he meets Kageyama Tobio. Hinata’s team loses very badly. Due to his desperate attempt to score Hinata with his super reflexes, he manages to score on point at the end of the game by chance, which surprises Kageyama.
They both met again at Karasuna High School. Later, Kageyama and Hinata get into an argument, and that’s when the captain of the Karasuna volleyball team walks in and tells them they can’t join the club unless they get along with each other. They challenged that if they won the game against the 3rd year, they could join the volleyball club. During the challenge match, Hinata surprises everyone with his jumping power, as if he were flying despite being small in height.
Thereafter, they meet the other members, Tsukishima and Yamaguchi. As time goes on, Hinata and Kageyama start practicing their combo of quick attacks. Later on, Karasuna gets to practice against Aoba Johsai, where Kageyama meets his old teammate Kindaichi, who teases him by calling him King of the Court from the past.
As the practice match goes well, we get to see Oikawa, a former teammate of Kageyama who is a setter and surprises everyone with his serves. Karasuna wins the match in the end. Now we get to meet the libero of the team, Nishinoya, who makes his cool entry by perfectly receiving Kageyama’s serve.
Nishinoya leaves as he learns that Asahi isn’t back. After numerous attempts to recruit Ukai as their coach, Takeda finally manages to bring him in. As soon as Ukai appears, he organizes the match against the neighborhood volleyball association. Where we get to see Asahi, the former ace of Karasuna. After the match, Asahi finally got his confidence back to play volleyball. Ukai was shocked to see Hinata and Kageyama’s quick attack. Later on, training camp begins with Nekoma, where we get to hear the many backstories of the upperclassmen.
IMDB has rated Haikyu!! 8.7 out of 10.
Also read: 60 Best Anime Available On Netflix
14. Barakamon
Barakamon is a slice-of-life anime. It follows the story of a 23-year-old man named Seishuu Handa, a calligrapher who has dedicated his life to art. One day during an exhibition, one of the elderly curators comes in and makes a comment that is unoriginal.
Seishuu quickly loses his cool and punches him. Due to this incident, Seishuu’s father sent him to Gato Island near Kyushu to cool down and reflect on what he had done. As soon as he arrives at Gato Island, he finds himself in a rural area.
Sheishuu tries to find new inspiration for his calligraphy and to develop his own unique style. As a teenager, Seishuu was short-tempered and popular among boys and girls. Seishuu meets a 7-year-old girl named Naru in her first year of elementary school. Naru lives on Gato Island with her grandfather.
Naru is a childish and curious girl. Naru visits Sheishuu’s house every day to play, but Seishuu kicks her out every time. Naru and others call Seishuu sensei.
Naru doesn’t let Sheishuu work in peace, always creating problems and letting others barge into his home every single time. Later on, we see that Seishuu doesn’t like kids but ends up being a teacher at Naru’s school, and kids start to like him. Barakamon is a reflection of how a city boy changes his life after coming to the countryside and experiencing new things.
IMDB has rated Barakamon 8.3 out of 10.
Also read: 12 Anime Like Zom 100: Zombie Ni Naru Made Ni Shitai 100 No Koto
