20 anime similar to Black Lagoon based on genre, format, studio, and popularity
Looking for anime similar to Black Lagoon? Here are 10 anime recommendations that share similar themes, genres, or storytelling styles.
We selected these anime based on shared genres (Action, Adventure, Drama), similar narrative structures, comparable art styles, and positive fan overlap. If you enjoyed Black Lagoon, these series should appeal to your taste.
A new adaption of the manga of the same name by Togashi Yoshihiro. A Hunter is one who travels the world doing all sorts of dangerous tasks. From capturing criminals to searching deep within uncharted lands for any lost treasures. Gon is a young boy whose father disappeared long ago, being a Hunter. He believes if he could also follow his father's path, he could one day reunite with him. After becoming 12, Gon leaves his home and takes on the task of entering the Hunter exam, notorious for its low success rate and high probability of death to become an official Hunter. He befriends the revenge-driven Kurapika, the doctor-to-be Leorio and the rebellious ex-assassin Killua in the exam, with their friendship prevailing throughout the many trials and threats they come upon taking on the dangerous career of a Hunter.
Light Yagami is a genius high school student who is about to learn about life through a book of death. When a bored shinigami, a God of Death, named Ryuk drops a black notepad called a Death Note, Light receives power over life and death with the stroke of a pen. Determined to use this dark gift for the best, Light sets out to rid the world of evil… namely, the people he believes to be evil. Should anyone hold such power? The consequences of Light’s actions will set the world ablaze. (Source: VIZ Media)
Dr. Kenzo Tenma is a renowned Japanese brain surgeon working at a leading hospital in Germany. One night, Dr. Tenma risks his reputation and career to save the life of a critically wounded young boy over that of the town mayor who had been planning to support the hospital financially. A string of mysterious murders begin to occur soon after the operation, and Dr. Tenma emerges as the primary suspect despite no incriminating evidence. A doctor is taught to believe that all life is equal; however, when another series of murders occur in the surgeon's vicinity, Dr. Tenma's beliefs are shaken as his actions that night are shown to have much broader consequences than he could have imagined. Leaving behind his life as a surgeon he embarks on a journey across the country to unravel the mystery of the boy he saved.
"In order for something to be obtained, something of equal value must be lost." Alchemy is bound by this Law of Equivalent Exchange—something the young brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric only realize after attempting human transmutation: the one forbidden act of alchemy. They pay a terrible price for their transgression—Edward loses his left leg, Alphonse his physical body. It is only by the desperate sacrifice of Edward's right arm that he is able to affix Alphonse's soul to a suit of armor. Devastated and alone, it is the hope that they would both eventually return to their original bodies that gives Edward the inspiration to obtain metal limbs called "automail" and become a state alchemist, the Fullmetal Alchemist. Three years of searching later, the brothers seek the Philosopher's Stone, a mythical relic that allows an alchemist to overcome the Law of Equivalent Exchange. Even with military allies Colonel Roy Mustang, Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye, and Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes on their side, the brothers find themselves caught up in a nationwide conspiracy that leads them not only to the true nature of the elusive Philosopher's Stone, but their country's murky history as well. In between finding a serial killer and racing against time, Edward and Alphonse must ask themselves if what they are doing will make them human again... or take away their humanity. (Source: MAL Rewrite)
The story takes place in the year 2138 when virtual reality gaming is booming. Yggdrasil, a popular online game is quietly shut down one day. However, the protagonist Momonga decides to not log out. Momonga is then transformed into the image of a skeleton as "the most powerful wizard." The world continues to change, with non-player characters (NPCs) beginning to feel emotion. Having no parents, friends, or place in society, this ordinary young man Momonga then strives to take over the new world the game has become. (Source: Anime News Network)
The adventure is over but life goes on for an elf mage just beginning to learn what living is all about. Elf mage Frieren and her courageous fellow adventurers have defeated the Demon King and brought peace to the land. But Frieren will long outlive the rest of her former party. How will she come to understand what life means to the people around her? Decades after their victory, the funeral of one her friends confronts Frieren with her own near immortality. Frieren sets out to fulfill the last wishes of her comrades and finds herself beginning a new adventure… (Source: Crunchyroll)
The lockers are splattered with blood, the student bodies are piling up and that's not mystery meat they're eating in the cafeteria… it's the faculty! And that's just the start of the worst day of school ever when a nightmarish virus is unleashed, turning humans into flesh eating zombies and converting Fujimi High School into a literal hell on Earth. Now it's a crash course in survival, and the only test or skill that matters is the ability to keep moving, breathing and fighting. Because if nerds, jocks and the surviving staff can't find a way to work together to escape this carnal house of education, they're all going to end up on the menu. And that's assuming there's anyplace safe left to escape to. (Source: Sentai Filmworks)
They arrive in silence and darkness. They descend from the skies. They have a hunger for human flesh. They are everywhere. They are parasites, alien creatures who must invade–and take control of–a human host to survive. And once they have infected their victims, they can assume any deadly form they choose: monsters with giant teeth, winged demons, creatures with blades for hands. But most have chosen to conceal their lethal purpose behind ordinary human faces. So no one knows their secret–except an ordinary high school student. Shin is battling for control of his own body against an alien parasite, but can he find a way to warn humanity of the horrors to come? (Source: Del Rey)
On August 10th of the year 2010 the Holy Empire of Britannia began a campaign of conquest, its sights set on Japan. Operations were completed in one month thanks to Britannia's deployment of new mobile humanoid armor vehicles dubbed Knightmare Frames. Japan's rights and identity were stripped away, the once proud nation now referred to as Area 11. Its citizens, Elevens, are forced to scratch out a living while the Britannian aristocracy lives comfortably within their settlements. Pockets of resistance appear throughout Area 11, working towards independence for Japan. Lelouch, an exiled Imperial Prince of Britannia posing as a student, finds himself in the heart of the ongoing conflict for the island nation. Through a chance meeting with a mysterious girl named C.C., Lelouch gains his Geass, the power of the king. Now endowed with absolute dominance over any person, Lelouch may finally realize his goal of bringing down Britannia from within! (Source: Bandai Entertainment)
The second season of Overlord. Continuing his quest to rule this new world, Ains begins to put the pieces in place for his conquest. But between a Lizard Man tribe uprising, and performing missions as adamantite adventurer Lord Momon, Ains has his work cut out for him! Thankfully he has his most loyal and willing subordinates to do his bidding. Nothing and no one can stop the supreme and mighty Overlord in his quest to rule all! (Source: Manga Entertainment)
The third season of Overlord. With his foundations now set in this new world, the first steps of Ains Ooal Gown's master plan apparent begin to come to fruition. The value of Carne village and especially the political value of his alter ego Momon are reaffirmed; the “hidden” genius of his actions is continuously met with shock and awe by Demiurge, Albedo, the rest of his guardians, and even Ains himself at his “great wisdom.” His attempts to act in a way befitting the ruler of Nazarick, continuing to further cement his guardian’s loyalty, push him ever further down the path of not-so-intentional world domination. Without human conscience due to being undead, he is motivated only to continue searching for other players from Yggdrasil and to gain power to better protect the children and home of him and his forty former companions. Lord Ains Ooal Gown maintains his mantle of Overlord and leads the Great Tomb of Nazarick unto the world stage, directly into a vicious power struggle between two great empires. (Source: Anime News Network)
When two people die at the same time, they’re sent to a place that’s neither heaven nor hell—a lavish bar between worlds where the stakes are high and the rules are simple: if you win you live again, if you die… you’re gone for good. Decim is the bartender charged with serving the souls who enter Quindecim. He may make a mean cocktail, but his true profession is to play the role of arbiter—a judge who determines whether or not a soul is worthy of reincarnation. To aid in his judgment, the bar’s patrons are forced to play simple games laced with sadistic twists designed to bring their true natures to light. To Decim, judgment has always been black and white—that is—until he meets a mysterious young woman whose fate seems impossible to decide. His indecision shakes the very foundation of the games and raises the biggest question of all: Who is fit to judge the dead? (Source: Funimation)
Naruto: Shippuuden is the continuation of the original animated TV series Naruto. The story revolves around an older and slightly more matured Uzumaki Naruto and his quest to save his friend Uchiha Sasuke from the grips of the snake-like Shinobi, Orochimaru. After 2 and a half years Naruto finally returns to his village of Konoha, and sets about putting his ambitions to work, though it will not be easy, as he has amassed a few (more dangerous) enemies, in the likes of the shinobi organization; Akatsuki. (Source: Anime News Network)
Saitama has a rather peculiar hobby, being a superhero, but despite his heroic deeds and superhuman abilities, a shadow looms over his life. He's become much too powerful, to the point that every opponent ends up defeated with a single punch. The lack of challenge has driven him into a state of apathy, as he watches his life pass by having lost all enthusiasm, at least until he's unwillingly thrust in the role of being a mentor to the young and revenge-driven Genos.
Thorfinn is son to one of the Vikings' greatest warriors, but when his father is killed in battle by the mercenary leader Askeladd, he swears to have his revenge. Thorfinn joins Askeladd's band in order to challenge him to a duel, and ends up caught in the middle of a war for the crown of England. (Source: Kodansha USA)
The rules of alchemy state that to gain something, one must lose something of equal value. Alchemy is the process of taking apart and reconstructing an object into a different entity, with the rules of alchemy to govern this procedure. However, there exists an object that can bring any alchemist above these rules, the object known as the Philosopher's Stone. The young Edward Elric is a particularly talented alchemist who through an accident years back lost his younger brother Alphonse and one of his legs. Sacrificing one of his arms as well, he used alchemy to bind his brother's soul to a suit of armor. This lead to the beginning of their journey to restore their bodies, in search for the legendary Philosopher's Stone. Note: Episodes 11, 12 and 37 were adapted from the light novel "Fullmetal Alchemist: The Land of Sand."
Bored with life and considering the real world to be just a “crappy game,” savvy sibling shut-ins Sora and Shiro have withdrawn into their own fantasy world filled with video games. However, one day they find themselves summoned to another world by a boy who calls himself “God,” their abilities are about to be put to the ultimate test! Now not only their fates — but the fate of all of humanity — will be decided by a series of games that may just be the hardest these super-geniuses have ever faced! (Source: Sentai Filmworks, edited)
A year has passed since "The Black Rebellion" and the remaining Black Knights have vanished into the shadows, their leader and figurehead, Zero, executed by the Britannian Empire. Area 11 is once more squirming under the Emperor's oppressive heel as the Britannian armies concentrate their attacks on the European front. But for the Britannians living in Area 11, life is back to normal. On one such normal day, a Britannian student, skipping his classes in the Ashford Academy, sneaks out to gamble on his chess play. But unknown to this young man, several forces are eying him from the shadows, for soon, he will experience a shocking encounter with his own obscured past, and the masked rebel mastermind Zero will return.
Naruto Uzumaki, a hyperactive and knuckle-headed ninja, lives in Konohagakure, the Hidden Leaf village. Moments prior to his birth, a huge demon known as the Kyuubi, the Nine-tailed Fox, attacked Konohagakure and wreaked havoc. In order to put an end to the Kyuubi's rampage, the leader of the village, the 4th Hokage, sacrificed his life and sealed the monstrous beast inside the newborn Naruto. Shunned because of the presence of the Kyuubi inside him, Naruto struggles to find his place in the village. He strives to become the Hokage of Konohagakure, and he meets many friends and foes along the way. (Source: MAL Rewrite)
The second season of Vinland Saga. After his father's death and the destruction of his village at the hands of English raiders, Einar wishes for a peaceful life with his family on their newly rebuilt farms. However, fate has other plans: his village is invaded once again. Einar watches helplessly as the marauding Danes burn his lands and slaughter his family. The invaders capture Einar and take him back to Denmark as a slave. Einar clings to his mother's final words to survive. He is purchased by Ketil, a kind slave owner and landlord who promises that Einar can regain his freedom in return for working in the fields. Soon, Einar encounters his new partner in farm cultivation—Thorfinn, a dejected and melancholic slave. As Einar and Thorfinn work together toward their freedom, they are haunted by both sins of the past and the ploys of the present. Yet they carry on, grasping for a glimmer of hope, redemption, and peace in a world that is nothing but unjust and unforgiving. (Source: MAL Rewrite)