Overpoweredanimecharacters are always fun to watch because they can surprise almost every other character with their feats of strength or skills. In some anime, the fact that someone has these amazing abilities is kept a secret. In other iterations, the main character has no problem flexing their abilities out in the open.
Having an overpowered main character can be both a blessing and a curse for a story. Struggling and overcoming challenges is what draws viewers in. If the main character wins all the time, there’s no suspense. So which anime manages to balance that the most?
10Solo Leveling
Upgrading Skills Endlessly
Solo Leveling is purely a power fantasy. Starting off as weak, Sung Jin-woo tries his hand at being a hunter only for his entire party to be destroyed. Luckily, this incident results in Jin-woo gaining control of a leveling-up system that allows him to get stronger.
There is no limit to how strong he can get, as the once mocked E-rank hunter quickly becomes one of the strongest characters in the world. While not too complex in plot, it has many cool moments that are cranked up to the extreme.
9Mob Psycho
An Esper Seeking Peace
Mob Psycho haspsychic abilities beyond comprehension. However, to balance things out, he doesn’t always get to use them at full strength. In fact, Mob trains himself so that he doesn’t accidentally unleash these powers by accident and can lead a peaceful life.
This allows other characters like Reigen to share the spotlight on an even footing. With great comedic moments and stellar animation to capture the supernatural aspect of those with esper abilities, Mob Psycho delivers a manageable plot that fits perfectly with Mob’s personality.
8Mashle
Challenging The Beliefs Of Society
Punching through every single enemy can get boring. Luckily, Mashleis a comedythat not only makes it work, but also gets creative with it. While many enemies will end up on the other side of Mashle’s fists, his true enemy is societal beliefs.
How can Mashle prove that his strength is just as good as the magic they teach at the academy? He can’t fly on a broom, but he can kick the ground hard enough to send himself through the air. He can’t cast fire spells, but he can punch so fast the heat and friction ignite the flames.
7One Punch Man
The Most Powerful Hero Vs The World
One Punch Man works best as a comedy. With one punch, Saitama can defeat anyone. This is great when it comes to saving the world, but in terms of getting satisfaction as a hero, it gets boring for him. This drives him to find one opponent that can truly give him that glory he craves.
The first season of One Punch Man also focuses on Saitama’s daily life, which often proves more of a challenge than his heroic work. He slowly gathers a group of admirers who want to learn from him. There are also many good jabs at the hero genre.
6The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.
Using Power To Be Left Alone
Comedy does well for overpowered main characters. Saiki K is similar to Mob Psycho, but rather than seeking out a life of peace, Saiki uses his power to create the perfect world. Characters have different hair colors due to Saiki’s manipulation of reality. No one can get hurt either.
Saiki K does this in an attempt to keep under the radar. Unfortunately, this attracts the attention of many eccentric characters that idolize him and won’t stop giving him the very attention he wants to avoid.
5Sword Art Online
Becoming Powerful Through Video Game Logic
While many characters are overpowered from the get-go,Kirito does so with game knowledge. He still needs to grind to level up, but being a beta tester allows him to understand the world of Sword Art Online faster than everyone else.
Sword Art Online is mostly a gamer’s power fantasy, but understanding how Kirito manages to become so powerful makes his feats more believable. It’s the difference between someone playing a game casually versus someone who understands the game genre well enough to quickly grasp gameplay mechanics.
4Death Note
Fumbling The Most Powerful Murder Weapon
Not everyone needs super strength to be overpowered. When Light Yagami gets his hands on the Death Note, he is virtually unstoppable as the notebook can kill without leaving a trace. Unfortunately, he makes several mistakes early on that bring him under suspicion of being Kira.
Killing criminals in a specific region and during certain hours causes the detective, L, to narrow down the list of suspects. Meanwhile, Light tries to discover L’s true name. This back and forth makes for excellent drama despite having a character that could potentially dominate the world.
3I May Be A Guild Receptionist, But I’ll Solo Any Boss To Clock Out On Time
Defeating Mountains Of Work
Alina is blessed with a Dia Skill that many other adventurers covet and go on dangerous missions for. However, all she wants is to have a cozy position working as a guild receptionist, get paid fairly, and clock out on time.
Despite having abilities that would make her one of the most powerful adventurers of all time, she tries her best to stay out of that life. She only breaks out her Dia Skill when a dungeon causes her to work overtime. Not only is her story fun, but one of the most relatable.
2Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End
Power Doesn’t Conquer All
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End manages to have an overpowered main protagonist without overdoing it. After all, her power is used mostly as a way for other characters to measure her skill and age. Frieren also isn’t fighting in every single episode.
Frieren acts as a mentor to Fern and Stark during their travels. Frieren’s biggest struggle is understanding humans more. So, while she is overpowered, the power isn’t the focus of the narrative but how she grows from her experiences. This helps her understand those around her in the presence and just how much of an impact her original party had on who she became.
1Dragon Ball
Technique Over Power Levels
Before Goku becomes a powerhouse in Dragon Ball Z, the original Dragon Ball balances things out just a bit more. Here, Goku starts off overpowered by human standards and only gets stronger with each fight. He can withstand being shot at and can surprise his enemies with his strength, but he can still be bested by different techniques.
As the series progresses, he trains harder to become the strongest martial artist in the world. Along the way, he defeats major threats such as the Red Ribbon Army and King Piccolo. When Dragon Ball Z starts, the battle with Radditz set a new bar for Goku to surpass.
