10 anime to watch if you like My Hero Academia: Vigilantes

The world of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes offers a unique perspective into the streets and shadows of hero society. Focusing on unlicensed vigilantes taking justice into their own hands, it explores complex themes of morality, recognition, and what it truly means to be a hero.

For fans who crave more genre-flipping action centered on antiheroes struggling in the margins, here are 10 thought-provoking anime recommendations to dive into next. From subverting superhero tropes to exploring dystopian futures, these series confront harsh realities through gripping sci-fi and emotional drama.

10 must-watch anime for fans of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes

1) Tiger & Bunny

This superhero anime doubles as commentary on fame, corporate greed, and the media saturation of our celebrity-driven culture—all while delivering exhilarating action. It centers on veteran hero Wild Tiger, who is past his glory days, and hotshot rookie Barnaby Brooks Jr. as they team up to fight crime on a reality TV show.

Like the vigilantes in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, Tiger and Bunny tackle street-level criminals while confronting themes of exploitation and the toll of public heroism under mass commercialization. Fans of the exploration of hero work's mental and social impacts will appreciate this series’ thought-provoking take.

2) One Punch Man

One Punch Man (Image via Madhouse, J.C.Staff)

Satirizing superhero fiction with clever comedy and bombastic fight scenes, One Punch Man focuses on Saitama—an ordinary young man who trained so intensely he became an invincible hero able to defeat any foe with a single punch.

Despite his immense strength, Saitama struggles to gain recognition in the professional hero organization. Mirroring major My Hero Academia: Vigilantes themes, this anime flips standard superhero tropes by highlighting an unknown, unlicensed hero disregarded and stagnating in the establishment's shadow.

The anime's exaggerated comedy mixed with relatable struggles for appreciation makes for an utterly enjoyable underdog tale.

3) Psycho-Pass

This dystopian sci-fi crime thriller is set in a future where a person's criminal tendencies are scanned, measured, and tracked by an omnipresent system. It follows law enforcement officers tracking down criminals while gradually uncovering disturbing truths about the system they uphold.

Like the moral grays in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, Psycho Pass explores justice's complex interplay with order and chaos. Fans of Vigilantes' fusion of crime, drama, and action will appreciate this violent, philosophy-driven series presenting ambiguous heroes and villains on an ideological collision course.

4) Dororo

Dororo (Image via MAPPA, Tezuka Productions)

This supernatural action anime set in war-torn medieval Japan centers on Hyakkimaru, a young warrior born without 48 body parts after his father sacrificed them to demons, and orphan thief Dororo, who hunts demons to reclaim what Hyakkimaru lost.

Echoing major themes in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, Dororo highlights the struggles of outcast antiheroes fighting for justice despite having no glory, fame, wealth, or special abilities to rely on. It shows how greed and cruelty emerge when order collapses, but also highlight the hope and compassion that unite the marginalized.

Viewers will connect with Dororo's well-developed central duo as they confront moral dilemmas and the darkest sides of human nature while striving to build lives of purpose. Though they start with nothing, Hyakkimaru and Dororo find strength through perseverance and mutual trust.

5) Darker than Black

Darker than Black delivers a mysterious, volatile breed of gritty anime action. Set in a city where a strange phenomenon called Hell's Gate appeared years ago, the anime revolves around powerful Contractors who gained special abilities at the cost of becoming more calculating and rational, requiring them to perform specific compulsive behaviors after using their powers.

It follows Hei, a Contractor working as a hitman while concealing his identity and powers from most rival intelligence agencies. Like the vigilantes in My Hero Academia, Hei contends with choosing between his own dubious brand of justice, survival, and larger organizations trying to control or eliminate Contractors.

6) Zankyou no Terror

This conspiracy thriller anime focuses on two teenage terrorists carrying out calculated bombings across Tokyo while playing a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse with police. While they attempt to minimize casualties, their actions still create dangerous situations.

Zankyou no Terror explores justice, morality, and political corruption through tense drama and psychological action. Fans of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes' serious, psychologically complex tone will appreciate this anime's dark, stylish atmosphere and troubled antiheroes fighting back against systemic rot in unconventional ways.

The thrilling mind-games and shadowy maneuvering mirror the subversive acts of rebellion from lawful authority shown in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes.

7) Samurai Flamenco

Samurai Flamenco starts out as a quirky comedy-drama following male model Masayoshi Hazama's childhood dream to become a hero by fighting petty crimes at night in a flashy, home-made superhero costume.

However, things escalate beyond his wildest expectations as he confronts larger-scale villains and genre-bending surprises that subvert superhero stereotypes.

Like the earnest yet overzealous Koichi in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, viewers will relate to and root for Masayoshi despite his unorthodox methods clashing with establishment heroes and police. Both anime provide refreshing twists on the superhero genre.

8) Akudama Drive

Akudama Drive (Image via Studio Pierrot)

This gritty sci-fi action anime is set in a dystopian cyberpunk future rife with unrestrained civilian violence and government corruption, overseen by a totalitarian political faction. The plot centers on an ordinary citizen named Swindler who is coerced into taking a risky delivery job with a group of dangerous, high-profile super criminals known as Akudamas.

Akudama Drive matches My Hero Academia: Vigilantes' tone of high-stakes action, murky morality, and tragic backstories, leading people outside the law to employ extreme, violent measures for survival, principles, or their twisted ideals of justice.

9) Paranoia Agent

This psychological mystery thriller explores humanity's inner darkness through interwoven tales of strange assaults by a boy on rollerblades dubbed "Lil' Slugger" by the media.

As the investigations unfold, the anime reveals unsettling insights into the human psyche and how people construct the illusion of order to suppress anxieties, guilt, and despair bubbling beneath the surface.

Like My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, Paranoia Agent analyzes complex facets of violence, victimhood, authority figures, the media, and the fuzzy line between illusion and reality. It's a fascinating, unnerving trip that fans of the complex moral themes in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes will appreciate.

10) Tokyo Revengers

Despite having no supernatural powers, Takemichi Hanagaki gains the ability to travel back in time when he shakes hands with Naoto Tachibana, his late girlfriend's brother, who survived in an altered timeline.

He attempts to reshape history to save his girlfriend Hinata and others from being killed by the Tokyo Manji Gang. Echoing major themes in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, Takemichi struggles to overcome a powerless past and change not only his own fate, but also protect others without any special abilities to rely on.

Viewers will easily connect with and root for these flawed, "Quirkless" underdogs in stories subverting chosen one tropes.

Conclusion

Whether one craves more shadowy moral ambiguity, complex introspection of justice philosophies, or earnest underdog heroes struggling in a harsh world, these 10 anime offer engrossing experiences for My Hero Academia: Vigilantes fans. Exploring unique perspectives on heroism, these series deliver complex drama and thrilling, tragic action centered on the fringes of society.