Top 10 Great Anime Series That Were ABANDONED

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the anime series that were dropped, despite the potential for more story or with more material to adapt. We won’t be including any shows that got proper reboots.

In a time when isekai anime are everywhere, it’s shocking that one as original as this never got a season 2! Step-siblings Sora and Shiro are an unbeatable gaming team who are transported to a world where everything is decided by games. With nothing but their wits, this duo plan to climb to the top of their new world’s hierarchy, despite humans being regarded as the weakest of the world’s races. The mind games and unexpected reversals at play are incredibly entertaining! Some of these games still live in our heads rent-free over a decade later (not to mention that killer soundtrack!). Sure, we got a prequel film, but a life with no new “No Game No Life” is no life at all!

Sports anime often have trouble maintaining their popularity, particularly if they’re anime-originals. “Yuri!!! on ICE” sees a young Japanese figure skater compete with a Russian skater who shares his eponymous name, while at the same time deepening his relationship with his coach, Victor. The series made a big mark when it debuted, thanks to its beautiful animation and depiction of a gay romance - both of which we’re always happy to see more of! However, plans to make a film never materialized, nor did a second season. “Yuri!!! on ICE” was “born to make history,” and while it already has, we’d love to see it make more!

It may not have been one of the Big Three, but “Reborn!” was still one of the most popular Shounen series of the 2000s. The story follows Tsuna Sawada, a Japanese high schooler told that he’s the heir to an Italian mafia gang. Initially hesitant and cowardly, Tsuna, under the guidance of the infant hitman, Reborn, creates a crew of his own that battles against powerful rivals with supernatural abilities. Unfortunately, the anime ended without adapting the manga’s last two arcs that would have given fans some much needed closure and answers. Unfortunately, even fans’ dying will modes weren’t enough to save it.

Another sports anime that ended before its time, “Eyeshield 21” is about Sena, a high school boy who reluctantly joins his school’s American football team, the Devil Bats. Despite his initial reservations, Sena soon becomes the team’s star running back. He even has to protect his identity with the titular eyeshield, pretending to be the team’s assistant so other teams won’t try to recruit him. Although the series did increase the popularity of the sport in Japan, it wasn’t enough to stop the show from being canceled. And the Devil Bats never even made it to the Christmas Bowl!

What if various historical figures were dropped into a fantasy world and forced into battle to save it? Such is the fantastic premise devised by “Hellsing” creator, Hirano Kouta! The mashup of larger-than-life figures from history makes for some surprising, bloody, and often hilarious interactions, both among the famous faces and with the fantasy races they meet. While a second season was promised, and a few OVAs were released on DVD, a full-blown season 2 seems unlikely, given the manga’s sporadic release schedule. We have our fingers crossed for more OVAs though!

When it comes to boxing anime, “Hajime no Ippo” is easily the champion. The series follows the titular Ippo, a teenage boxer, on his journey to become the best. Along the way, Ippo’s peers and rivals get plenty of development too, with their fights getting equal attention. And yet, despite the show’s quality, only about half of “Hajime no Ippo” has been adapted onscreen. To put that into perspective, when the manga started, the Berlin Wall was still standing! While some deaths among the main cast and some poor sales may have hurt chances of the anime continuing, we’re hoping it can punch above its weight class to get a continuation.

When the eponymous Kaiji finds himself saddled with a debt, he finds himself embroiled in the world of high stakes gambling. Each game he gets involved with masterfully ratchets up the tension and stakes to the point where you’ll be chewing your fingernails with worry yourself! “Kaiji” is another anime whose source material has been running for a long time. Yet despite the ample material available (and a few spin-offs getting anime of their own), the series has yet to get another season. Who do we have to make a wager with to ensure it does?

This underrated space western classic may not have achieved the same success as contemporaries like “Cowboy Bebop,” or even “Trigun,” but it’s still a quality show. The adventures of Gene Starwind and the rest of the crew of the Outlaw Star featured plenty of humor and flair. Despite the manga continuing and there even being a spin-off anime, “Outlaw Star” tragically wasn’t popular enough in Japan to earn it a follow-up. So, although the search for the Galactic Leyline continues in other media, it will probably never be animated at this point.

Why this absolute gem of an anime wasn’t a bigger hit, we’ll never know! The series follows simultaneous plots of a group of criminals, ne’er-do-wells, and immortals aboard a train bound for New York City, and flashbacks to a mafia conflict with more immortals in the Big Apple. Sure, the non-linear narrative can take some getting used to, but each and every character in this ensemble is entertaining in their own way and they all bounce off each other like they’re from the films of Quentin Tarantino or Guy Ritchie. Even the dub is great! And with the light novels and manga still running, it’s not like there isn’t more material!

Look - we know there has been “Berserk” anime after this one. But let’s be honest - they don’t measure up! A few skipped elements aside, this is still the best adaptation of the dark fantasy masterpiece we’ve gotten so far! And it only covers the first two arcs! It may be decades old at this point, but it perfectly captures the tragic, grim atmosphere of the life of Guts. The battles are epic, the music is profoundly moving, and the ending still gives us nightmares! We can only envy the world where the anime continued with this production team and hope that our world gets the continuation or reboot “Berserk” deserves some day.


Is there an anime deserted by its creators that we left out? Don’t forsake us - share your favorites in the comments!