Anime is a powerful storytelling medium that continues to evolve every decade, yet there’s a tremendous amount of reverence that’s held towards the ‘90s. Each anime decade follows its own unique trends, some of which have become evergreen staples of the medium. There’s a lot that can be learned through older anime series especially now that many programs from the ‘90s are beginning to receive sequels or modern reboots.
The ‘90s is a formative period of transition for anime that contains a number of groundbreaking series. There’s more nostalgia for the ‘90s than ever before, but there are certain series that stand the test of time and are just as strong now than when they first premiered.
Updated April 18th, 2023 by Casey Coates: This list has been updated to reflect CBR’s current publishing style and to include trailers for the best anime of the ’90s.
10 Serial Experiments Lain
13 Episodes
Some of the ’90s’ most popular anime are bright, colorful shonen and adventure series that appeal to widespread audiences. The prevalence of this mainstream content makes edgy programs like Serial Experiments Lain stand out even more in comparison.
The 13-episode psychological horror series feels a full decade ahead of its time through its examination of virtual worlds, identity avatars, and the idea of digital martyrdom that’s extended through mankind’s reliance and addiction over the Internet and technology at large. Lain Iwakura’s cynical saga was a lot to endure in 1998, but it’s received a major renaissance with modern audiences who relate with Lain’s fears more than ever.
9 The Vision Of Escaflowne
26 Episodes, 1 Movie
The ’90s were an exciting decade where several genres reinvented themselves through taking on the traits of other types of series. The Vision of Escaflowne begins with the qualities of a classical fantasy isekai once Hitomi gets whisked away to the mythical world of Gaea.
Hitomi learns that she plays a vital role that can help unite Gaea’s fractured world, but on top of these fantasy archetypes there’s also a heavy mecha and steampunk influence. The titular Escaflowne mecha can transform into a mighty metallic knight, complete with sword, as well as a dragon behemoth, which are some of the most creative mecha designs to come out of the decade.
8 Now And Then, Here And There
13 Episodes
Now and Then, Here and There is a quaint 13-episode anime that in many ways is the perfect series to reflect the end of the ’90s and the start of a harsher time period. Now and Then, Here and There riffs on the fun flourishes of the isekai genre by sending a young boy, Shu, to a desolate future wasteland during his efforts to protect a mysterious girl named Lala-Ru.
Shu and Lala-Ru face a nihilistic world where water is a scarce resource and oppressive militaries reign supreme. Now and Then, Here and There is a harsh reminder that series featuring young characters don’t always tell happy stories.
7 Slam Dunk
101 Episodes, 5 Movies
Sports anime continue to dominate the medium, but Slam Dunk (1993) still holds the title as a superior shonen sports series that goes to some surprising places over the course of its 101 episodes. The 2022 feature film, The First Slam Dunk, attempts to introduce modern audiences to the joys of this pivotal sports anime.
However, it struggles to achieve the same level of charm as the ’90s original. Modern basketball anime like Ahiru no Sora may make Slam Dunk feel antiquated, but the original achieves a certain suspense that makes Sakuragi and company’s basketball matches carry the same weight as an intergalactic superpowered slugfest.
6 GTO: Great Teacher Onizuka
43 Episodes
Anime loves to celebrate schools of hard knocks that become punishments for the worst juvenile delinquents in the nation. GTO: Great Teacher Onizuka eschews these juvenile detention center conventions through the revelation that its new and unconventional teacher, Eikichi Onizuka, used to be a member of a biker gang himself.
Onizuka has a rough background, but he fails to intimidate his students in the same way that they terrify him. A genuinely sweet story is told throughout GTO where both Onizuka and his ruthless students learn from each other and improve in beautiful ways.
5 Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team
12 Episodes
The prolific mecha franchise, Mobile Suit Gundam, continues to reinvent itself after more than four decades. The ‘90s are an exciting period of change for Gundam that push the franchise towards different extremes, whether it’s the lighter shonen tone to G Gundam or the angsty melodrama of Gundam Wing.
Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team is a 12-episode OVA that’s a cut above the rest of the decade’s Gundam content. The grounded series stays landlocked on Earth and chronicles the casualties of war through a decidedly more human perspective. It’s a stark take on mecha warfare that stood out in the ’90s, but is still special two decades later.
4 Trigun
26 Episodes
Trigun is an explosive gunslinging action series that features a larger-than-life protagonist, Vash the Stampede, who has pledged a life of love and peace despite his immense talents as a hired gun and weapon of destruction. Trigun lures in audiences as an outlandish and ultra-cool action series, but it soon reveals its fragile heart and the compounded pain its protagonist carries.
It’s a powerful subversion of ’90s action anime. Studio Orange has rebooted Trigun in 2023 with a look and lore that’s quite different from its ‘90s predecessor, but Trigun Stampede has positively impacted the current decade of anime just like Trigun influenced other ‘90s action series.
3 Yu Yu Hakusho
120 Episodes
Shonen series are incredibly prevalent in anime and some of the genre’s most iconic shows came out of the ’90s. Yu Yu Hakusho is a superb example of battle shonen theatrics that don’t overstay their welcome with a laborious and overextended number of episodes. The growth that Yusuke Urameshi and the rest of his spirit warrior allies experience is genuinely heartwarming.
Yusuke is introduced as a rough around the edges juvenile delinquent, but concludes Yu Yu Hakusho as a courageous, selfless hero. Strong characterization and creative battles, especially during the Dark Tournament Saga, make Yu Yu Hakusho a ’90s staple.
2 Cowboy Bebop
26 Episodes, 1 Movie
Certain anime have hit greater highs and achieved more surprising narrative turns than what’s accomplished in Shinichiro Watanabe’s Cowboy Bebop, but the cozy science fiction anime is a sublime combination of visuals, music, storytelling, and characters. Cowboy Bebop follows a group of ragtag bounty hunters and at first glance, the epic sci-fi anime seems deceptively simple in nature.
Cowboy Bebop understands how to mesh itself with different genres, whether it’s horror, westerns, or even a hazy drug trip experience. It knows when less is more with its cast and stories, which helps its action-packed and emotionally charged finale crystalize the hero’s journey Spike Spiegel undertakes.
1 Neon Genesis Evangelion
26 Episodes, 1 Movie
Neon Genesis Evangelion is lightning in a bottle anime storytelling that’s the standout series from the ’90s, but it’s also largely considered to be one of the top anime of all-time. Evangelion masquerades as a dour mecha series where giant robots duel against monstrous Angels in order to prevent an apocalyptic event from taking place.
Evangelion succeeds on this front, but it turns into a scintillating character study and a deconstruction of grief, identity, and legacy. Hideaki Anno’s own cynical thoughts begin to steer Evangelion’s surreal visuals and aggressive narrative turns. It’s a unique experience that’s proven hard to replicate, even in Anno’s own Rebuild of Evangelion feature films.
