Shonen anime is the most popular genre in this medium, featuring a wealth of amazing stories that have become popular for all the right reasons. While the realm of shonen has experimented with several settings, there’s always something magical about the traditional battle shonen manga that has enraptured and captivated fans from all over the world time and time again.
That being said, some long-running battle shonen anime adaptations suffer from incorporating a silly amount of filler in their shows, which is pretty detrimental to the series’ quality. Thankfully, the following anime don’t suffer in this regard and let people sit through their entire runtime without having to skip through hours of boring filler.
Updated on October 10, 2022, by Ritwik Mitra: Battle shonen anime are all the rage for being easy to follow, especially when the fights in these shows are a blast to get through, courtesy of great fight choreography and scintillating animation. However, many people get tired of such anime when filler arcs with little to no stakes whatsoever come into the picture. Thankfully, the following anime serve as the perfect antidote against the boredom of filler, with the runtime of each show on this list being almost completely devoid of any meaningless filler.
14/14 Dragon Ball Z Kai
Dragon Ball Z is one of the greatest shonen anime of all time. However, the original run of the anime was lambasted for its incredible amount of filler, extended panning shots, and lengthened fighting sequences that served only to pad the runtime and nothing else.
Suffice it to say, Dragon Ball Z Kai is a godsend for people who want to experience this legendary anime for themselves without having to sit through copious amounts of filler. The show is an absolute blast, with its pacing being pretty great in its own right.
13/14 Mob Psycho 100
With the latest season of Mob Psycho 100 right around the corner, there’s no better time for people to get into this brilliant anime. The creator of One-Punch Man has clearly put his heart and soul into creating this webcomic as well, with its anime adaptation being absolutely brilliant.
Watching Shigeo struggle with the act of not relying on his amazing psychic powers is quite entertaining. Of course, the battles between the many espers in the series are also quite engaging in their own right, with Mob’s latent potential being a joy to witness every single time it’s unleashed.
12/14 Soul Eater
Soul Eater is an anime that started off on the right foot indeed. Even its ending, labeled as controversial by many, still didn’t technically have any filler from the anime’s point of view.
However, people who want to see the proper storyline of the series as envisioned by the creator need to read the manga. Unless Soul Eater gets the Brotherhood treatment, it will always remain in the shadow of other battle shonen anime.
11/14 Fate/stay Night
The Fate series is one of the most popular shonen works of all time. The Holy Grail War makes for a riveting setting where Shirou Emiya, Saber, and the rest of the characters get their time to shine.
The series is also completely devoid of any filler and has a bunch of other anime in the series that are great to witness in their own right. Fate/stay Night serves as a great entry point into this unique world that will hook many fans time and time again.
10/14 My Hero Academia
While My Hero Academia isn’t completely devoid of filler, the amount of anime-original content is so less that this won’t be an issue at all. If anything, most people who love the show won’t mind seeing a few extra episodes featuring their favorite characters!
The story of My Hero Academia is concise, and the animation is great too. It’s a great show with excellent pacing that isn’t hampered by unnecessary and unwanted filler arcs.
9/14 JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is one of the best shonen manga of all time, but the series is pretty old. It was clear that adapting this series would be a major task, but David Production has done a great job with the same.
The fact that all seasons of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure feature absolutely no fillers does wonders for the show’s pacing. It’s a great series that any fan of over-the-top shonen anime will fall in love with.
8/14 Attack On Titan
The legendary statue of Attack on Titan is something that every fan is familiar with. The show has taken some wild twists and turns, transforming from a run-of-the-mill battle shonen anime into one of the deepest and most engrossing anime of all time.
The latest season is yet to end, but fans have already labeled Attack on Titan as one of the greatest anime ever made. Fans of shonen anime that don’t meander around will have a great time binge-watching this show.
7/14 Yu Yu Hakusho
Given the time period in which Yu Yu Hakusho was released, it’s genuinely surprising to see that this show is an anime with no filler! This is great since fans can enjoy one of the best shows around without having to skip certain episodes.
While Yu Yu Hakusho ends on a rather tepid note, the anime’s arcs are still pretty great in their own right. It also features one of the greatest tournament arcs in battle shonen history, which is saying something, given how prevalent this kind of arc is in most anime.
6/14 Hunter X Hunter
Both Yu Yu Hakusho and Hunter X Hunter were written by Yoshihiro Togashi, one of the greatest mangaka of all time. The latter is still ongoing to this day and is one of the best battle shonen manga ever made.
The 2011 anime is one of the best ways to experience this masterpiece and catch up to the point where the series’ hiatuses get too much to bear. The fact that this anime only has two recap episodes in a show that spans almost 150 episodes is a pretty massive achievement in itself.
Fullmetal Alchemist is a manga so popular that it actually has two anime adaptations. The first one was pretty faithful to the manga until it caught up, following which it decided to pursue an original story instead of waiting for the manga to get ahead.
The second adaptation, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, is one of the greatest anime ever made. The brilliant animation, riveting story, and a total lack of filler truly place this anime in a class of its own.
4/14 Parasyte: The Maxim
Just like JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, Parasyte: The Maxim is the adaptation of a manga that ended its run all the way back in the 90s. This adaptation was headed by the animation giants Madhouse, and the sheer quality of this show’s animation proves why it’s so great.
Parasyte: The Maxim has a fairly riveting story and some great character moments that make it well worth a watch. The show only spans 24 episodes and is completely devoid of any meaningless filler.
3/14 Jujutsu Kaisen
Jujutsu Kaisen absolutely burst onto the scene, courtesy of some amazing animation and great battle choreography. The show’s take on Jujutsu Sorcerers, Curses, and the like is fairly simple to understand and pretty great as well.
With a movie coming out sooner than later, it’s clear that Jujutsu Kaisen will be around for quite some time. Only time will tell how this anime will develop over time, although the manga is in a pretty promising place already.
2/14 Demon Slayer
Speaking of new battle shonen anime with great animation, it would be downright criminal to not mention Demon Slayer in this conversation. The show’s premise is fairly simple, but it’s the amazing job that Ufotable has done with the adaptation that places it in a class of its own.
Demon Slayer features some of the smoothest battle scenes ever animated, with the adventures of Tanjiro and his friends making for a great time. The Entertainment District arc was another visual extravaganza, and fans can’t wait to see the future arcs that Ufotable has in store for them.
1/14 One Punch Man
One Punch Man was one of the most popular anime around when its first season was released. The quality of Madhouse’s animation, coupled with the hilarious nature of the show, placed it in a class of its own.
The second season might’ve suffered a pretty major drop in its animation quality, but the story is still great. Unfortunately, the third season is yet to be announced, and fans can’t wait to see how Saitama’s legacy develops as the most powerful superhero of all time.