We're at a point where US and Japanese pop culture are reciprocating a level of influence on each other. The history and development of anime were influenced by classic American cartoons from the Golden Age of Animation. In the years that anime has exploded in popularity in North America, major US productions have been notably influenced by anime — The Matrix was publicly stated to be influenced by '90s anime movie Ninja Scroll and the beloved Avatar: The Last Airbender owes an obvious stylistic debt to anime techniques and storytelling conventions.
With that in mind, it's hardly surprising that there are several anime and manga series that have clearly been influenced by the US superheroes coming from Marvel and DC Comics — and other smaller publishers, too. There are several stand-out superhero anime and manga series. For fans of the comic book heroes from Marvel and DC, these anime shows are sure to be particularly enjoyable.
My Hero Academia is the icon of superhero anime
We discussed My Hero Academia in more detail during our recommendation of the series, but as easily the most popular superhero anime, this list wouldn't be complete without it. The original My Hero Academia manga ran from 2014 to 2024 and has sold more than 100 million copies. The similarly popular anime is on pace to close out the storyline with one more season slated for later in 2025.
My Hero Academia is a quirky series in more ways than one. On a literal level, the genetic anomalies that exist in the series's world granting 80% of the population superpowers — a bit like a more widespread version of Marvel's X-Gene — are actually called Quirks. The Quirks themselves range from pretty unique twists on superpowers we've seen before like gravity control or telepathy or size-changing to some pretty out-there power sets like being a humanoid rabbit. This pairs well with the series's vivid art style — the personality on display in the world building is reflected in the personality of the art. Despite generally being light-hearted, My Hero Academia does also have moments of high stakes and emotional weight.
Shy portrays the struggles of a superhero balancing her duties as a hero with her everyday life
Although Shy predates the newer series by several years, it actually feels very similar to Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. Much like how Peter Parker has to balance the obligations of an everyday high-schooler with his duties as a superhero, Teru Momijiyama finds herself thrust into the role of a fledgling superhero while struggling with the emotional turbulence of being a teenager. It's no accident that her superhero name is Shy — Teru is painfully shy and awkward.
Despite being a fairly quirky series like My Hero Academia, Shy focuses a lot of time on exploring the emotional weight of being a superhero, especially at 14 years old. Notably, the series begins with Shy failing to rescue a civilian in danger and the first major story beat is Shy losing her self-confidence and access to her powers and then struggling to regain them with the help of her fellow heroes.
One-Punch Man is not quite a parody, not quite a homage of classic superheroes
Deconstructing and subverting the superhero genre has been common since at least as far back as Watchmen, so One-Punch Man isn't unique for dismantling the genre and its conventions. It is fairly unique for doing so while remaining good-hearted about it. As much as One-Punch Man is satirizing the superhero genre, it's mostly doing it for comedic effect, rather than to make any scathing philosophical statements.
True to form, main character Saitama can defeat most of his enemies in a single punch, and much of the humor on display comes from how boring the life of a hero who never faces a serious challenge is — with his most consistent weakness being a terrible sense of direction that prevents him from getting to the fight in the first place. Still, there is a serious undercurrent to One-Punch Man, with one of the major antagonists being the literal God of the series's cosmos.
The third season of the One-Punch Man anime was recently confirmed for October 2025.
Go! Go! Loser Ranger! is Power Rangers meets The Boys
Like the alleged "heroes" of The Boys, the Keepers, the Power Rangers-esque squad of transforming heroes from Go! Go! Loser Ranger! is more concerned with being a popular brand than being legitimate heroes. Although the Keepers did legitimately save the Earth from an alien invasion, they went on to turn their mission into something resembling the Harlem Globetrotters or a pro wrestling promotion: forcing the remaining alien footsoldiers to face them in a weekly staged combat that, of course, the Keepers never lose and keeps the spotlight firmly on them.
The series follows the efforts of Footsoldier D, one of the generic alien minions, as he attempts to infiltrate and undermine the Keepers. He ultimately finds himself in a three-way conflict with the Keepers, who are despicable but more self-centered than outright evil, and the alien invasion's remaining leaders, who are both a genuine threat to the Earth and a target of Footsoldier D's ongoing resentment, since he perceives them as having abandoned and betrayed the footsoldiers. Ultimately, Go! Go! Loser Ranger! is a series that follows multiple factions that are basically all equally terrible, but the premise should still be intriguing to North American viewers, since there isn't really anything else that specifically subverts the Power Rangers premise like this.