Anime is notorious for having filler arcs. Animation studios don’t do filler as much these days, but back in the day, producers needed a way to keep audiences entertained until the next volume came out and gave them more material to work with.
Audiences don’t always like filler arcs, especially modern audiences who have been spoiled by streaming services and tighter plotlines in TV shows. Nonetheless, there are still some filler arcs that fans love. They’re not for everyone, but even so, most Redditors agree that these filler arcs hold up next to canon.
10 Kill La Kill: Recap
Despite being an old staple in anime, recap episodes are pains in the neck for creators and viewers alike. It’s hard to make them entertaining, and very few are done right.
Most fans consider Kill La Kill one of the few recap episodes that were done right. DemonikFlame even goes so far as to say “Kill la Kill is the only anime to do a recap correctly,” partly because of its comedic tone. It outright tells the audience that this is a recap, and here’s everything that happened. It’s also super short — the entire episode lasts under three minutes. This makes Recap more of a prologue to the finale than a proper episode, but the fans on Reddit don’t seem to care.
9 My Hero Academia: Everyone’s Internships
Although My Hero Academia stuck closely to the source material, it did have one or two filler episodes. One fan favorite is “Everyone’s Internships.” In this episode, some side characters continue their internships while the main cast is out fighting.
For many viewers, the students’ internships were a highlight of MHA. Goobasaurus1 from Reddit said, “It would’ve been cool to see the whole class’ experiences instead of just a couple of them.” This episode catered to its fanbase while also providing a solid story.
8 Sword Art Online: Calibur Arc
The Calibur Arc is a side story from Sword Art Online, where the gang goes on a quick quest before the Mother’s Rosario arc. As far as arcs go, it isn’t the highest quality, and some viewers prefer to skip it.
Most SAO viewers enjoy it, though. Ryuuji Gremory states it’s a fun side story that “let our main cast for once have a good time gaming together without anyone having a traumatic experience.” Others share the same sentiment. The Calibur Arc’s a rare ray of sunshine in an otherwise dark and angsty series. The characters get to have fun, and the audience gets to breathe for a moment before moving on to the next adventure.
7 Fullmetal Alchemist: The Phantom Thief
Ironically, the writer who wrote one of the show’s darkest episodes also wrote one of the lightest. “The Phantom Thief” is a fun mystery in which Ed and Al Elric match wits with a cunning thief with mysterious motivations.
Although many FMA viewers dislike the episode, Psiren has become a fan favorite. She’s clever and beautiful and plays the Elric brothers like fiddles. Some fans, such as BahamutLithp, said, “I always thought it was a shame she never came back.” Unfortunately, Psiren has stayed a one-time character.
6 Black Clover: Devil Banisher Arc
Black Clover has very few filler episodes and only one filler arc: the Devil Banisher Arc. In the arc, a group of commoners and peasants form the Devil Believers and try to sacrifice the main character to gain more power. They are not necessarily evil or greedy. They’re just tired of getting caught in other people’s battles and feeling helpless.
Even viewers who think the Devil Banisher Arc is skippable find it entertaining. Jame5p420 says, “You won’t miss anything major if you skip it…it’s just an extremely entertaining episode.” The episode showed a side of war that isn’t always explored in fantasy, and the fans appreciate that.
5 Gintama: If You Can’t Beat Them, Join Them
Gintama is notable for having good filler arcs. According to wavyhairedsamurai, “You’d never realize they were filler anyway. They’re typically good, and you should definitely watch them.” “If You Can’t Beat Them, Join Them” is one such episode.
It’s a meta story where the main characters discuss how to end the final episode. They each come up with different ideas, and each one is more chaotic than the last and full of cartoon hijinks. The episode is a fan favorite and is considered one of Gintama’s funniest adventures.
4 Dragon Ball: Goku’s Ordeal
“Goku’s Ordeal” from Dragon Ball Z is one of the more divisive episodes in the series. Instead of featuring epic fights, Chi Chi forces Goku and Piccolo to take driving lessons. Of course, hijinks ensue, and things do not go as planned.
“Goku’s Ordeal” isn’t essential to the narrative, and some old fans will tell new audiences to skip it. On the other hand, others genuinely enjoy the episode. Sk1nny_d00d states, “Goku and Piccolo learning to drive is my favorite filler episode.” It’s a funny episode where Goku realizes that not being normal isn’t a bad thing.
3 Samurai Champloo: Baseball Blues
It’s an old trope in anime to have an episode where the characters take a break from the usual action to do normal, everyday things. They go to the beach, clean house, or play a friendly sport. Samurai Champloo’s “Baseball Blues” is one of those episodes.
In this adventure, the heroes play baseball with a group of Americans. It’s one of the weirder adventures in Samurai Champloo. However, many fans have expressed their love for this episode on Reddit. BecauseGeicoCan says, “All I know is that it was the funniest episode I have watched in anime.”
2 Bleach: Zanpakuto Arc
Bleach hasn’t had the best luck with filler arcs. However, the Zanpakuto Arc remains a fan favorite. Limexa34 says, “This is the only filler that I didn’t delete from my computer.” The Zanpakuto Arc sees the Shinigami’s Zanpakuto spirits rebelling against their masters, led by the mysterious Muramasa.
It’s a cool and creative concept that’s executed very well. The Zanpakuto Arc features some of Bleach‘s best fight scenes, and Muramasa is a fantastic villain. Some fans don’t like this filler arc, but many find something good about it.
1 One Piece: G-8
Many anime fans believe the best anime filler arc is One Piece: G-8. Almost everyone on Reddit has something good to say about it, but the ultimate conclusion is that it set the standard for filler arcs in anime.
GWook says, “G-8 made me a fan of One Piece.” Cvox7 says, “It’s highly acclaimed cuz it’s the best filler one…even thou I find it better than some canon arcs.” Ci23422 analyzes why it’s good, which boils down to this, “The writers incorporated lots of [Skypiea] stuff, re-enforced characters’ backgrounds, and had an antagonist that was good and didn’t get put down at the end of the arc.”