Among the biggest and best of anime heroes are some smaller, yet just as worthy characters: children! Not only are they just as capable as adults in some cases, but they can also achieve feats that are possible precisely because they’re kids.
To find out fans’ picks for anime starring children, Anime!Anime! held a survey between Apr. 24 and May 1 with 161 people polled altogether. There was also an incredible tie of 6 different anime coming in 7th place, so a total of 12 anime made it onto the list. Ready to find out the top titles?
New and old alike made it onto this list with the currently airing Darling in the Franxx, starring children who must defend humanity with giant mecha robots, along with everyone’s classic favorite Doraemon, the titular character being a robot sent from the future for seemingly hopeless fourth grader Nobi Nobita! Which kids managed to boost their anime to the top, though?
First up in 3rd place is Digimon Adventure! This whole series is centered around the “DigiDestined,” a group of heroes who happen to be children, but are fated to protect Earth and the Digital World from evil alongside their Digimon friends.
Next in 2nd place with 9% of the vote is Crayon Shin-chan, which follows the everyday lives of the Nohara family in Saitama prefecture. The eldest Nohara son, Shinnosuke (known as Shin-chan), is a troublemaker and probably the best-known 5-year old in all of Japan, having entertained children and adults alike for years!
Finally, 1st place goes to none other than Detective Conan with 19% of the vote! This iconic anime is centered around Edogawa Conan, a 1st year elementary school student and detective. Despite his appearance, he’s actually a high schooler named Shinichi, but with all of the mysteries he’s dragged into, he might just be the busiest elementary school student in the world of anime.
Whether they’re saving the anime world or entertaining us with their antics, we can all agree that this list contains a whole lot of amazingly active kids!
Adapted with permission from Anime!Anime!