Goku is living a peaceful life with his wife and son, however when a mysterious alien crashes to Earth and claims to be Goku’s brother, his peaceful life will come to an end. Learning he is one of the last members of the Saiyan race, alien thugs that conquer planets for another alien overlord, Goku and his friends must defend the Earth from a continuous onslaught of enemies.
Guys, it is DBZ. It’s a classic. Yet it is a classic we all rewatch constantly. If you want something the captures a fraction of its glory and have already exhausted Dragon Ball Super, give these recommendations a try.
Anime Like Dragon Ball Z
For Fans of Overpowered Shounen Protagonists
Seven Deadly Sins
In this feudal world, the realm is protected from those who seek to spread their evil by the Holy Knights. However, in the kingdom of Liones, a small group of Holy Knights known as the Seven Deadly Sins sought to overthrown the king only to be driven off. Now, ten years later, the world hunts for the Seven Deadly Sins, but the Holy Knights have now turned their blades on the king and taken control of the kingdom. Now it is up to his third daughter, Elizabeth, to find the Sins and help them take back control.
Seven Deadly Sins is heavily reminiscent of Dragon Ball Z. You have these overpowered heroes that seem to have no problem with normal people problems, but occasionally run into villains that are stronger than them. However, they either power up in some sort of transformation or find a way to beat them because their heroes.
Hunter x Hunter
Twelve-year-old Gon Freecss is determined to become a world-class Hunter, a skilled individual that performs all manner of dangerous tasks, just like his long-absent father. However, Gon finds that the path to achieving his goals is more challenging than he could have ever imagined, but in order to overcome it, Gon recruits some powerful friends.
Dragon Ball Z and Hunter X Hunter are both shows that are somewhat overshadowed by your Bleachs and your Narutos, but they are both excellent fighting animes. They run in the multiple arc format and in it you watch the characters get even more overpowered with each episode.
Fairy Tail
While looking to enhance her magic, celestial mage Lucy meets an energetic fire mage name Natsu. After finding out he is a member of the famous wizard guild Fairy Tail that she has long admired, the pair travel home so Lucy can join. Together with her new guildmates, Lucy and Natsu embark on adventures to help people, make money, and explore their vast magical world.
Fairy Tail is pretty much like a newer version of DBZ. It has all the same things that made you fall in love the Dragon ball Z in the first place like the fast-paced fights laden with unique abilities, the comedy, the wide array of interesting characters, but it all comes with some shiny new art.
For Fans of Less Plot, More Fights
Saint Seiya
In this world, there is a group of young men that fight to protect Athena called Saints. Enhanced by the power of the Cosmos, they are give supernatural fight abilities. This is the tale of Saint Seiya and his battle against perilous enemies.
I bet that even hardcore fans of Saint Seiya barely know what the plot of this show is. However, if you like DBZ for the fights and nothing else, Saint Seiya does possess some excellent fights without any plot getting in the way.
Fist of the North Star
After being betrayed and left for dead, martial arts master Kenshiro now wanders the post-apocalyptic world looking for his rival Shin, the man that kidnapped his fiancee, Yuria. Trained in the Hokuto Shinken school of martial arts, Kenshiro uses his martial skills to defend the weak from those that roam the wasteland. As new challenges and even stronger enemies continue to present themselves, Kenshiro puts all his skills to the test in order to bring Shin and his disciples in the Nanto Seiken school of marital arts to justice and get back his beloved.
If you want to get even more old school than DBZ and significantly more gory, then there is Fist of the North Star. It is bleak, depressing, but you have one incredibly muscled man that stands against the tide of wasteland villains. This doesn’t really matter, but both shows feature a wide array of thugs with mohawks as well.
Yu Yu Hakusho
Yusuke Urameshi has a dim future, but one day when he jumps in front of a car to save a child, he has no future at all except death. However, his selfless sacrifice gained the attention of the authorities from the spirit realm and they decide to give Yusuke an opportunity to regain his life. He must become a Spirit Detective and complete a number of tasks that protect the world of the living.
If DBZ is the king of fighting anime, then Yu Yu Hakusho is the prince. It really is the most similar on this list. You have characters that fight enemies to save the world and in tournaments. You have light shows in the form of beam cannons and other powers that people shoot off. However, the most similar part is how characters just suddenly have huge jumps of power while showing very little work being put in.
For Fans of Training to Get Stronger
S.Cry.Ed
A strange environmental phenomenon 22 years ago in the Kanazawa prefecture caused the land to split and protrude upwards reaching unprecedented heights, creating the secluded area known as The Lost Ground. Kazuma is a young mercenary who lives in the Lost Ground, looking for any work he can find to sustain his livelihood within the harsh environment. He is one of the few people that are gifted with the Alter ability, which allows him to plaster his right arm and torso with a metallic alloy.
While a little less flashy, as action anime series go, Scryed is still a pretty flashy when compared to DBZ. If you want similar fast-paced fights using more special powers and less fists, this is an excellent follow up.
Grappler Baki
As the son of Hanma Yuujiro, Hanma Baki trains intensely every day in order to finally beat and surpass his father. However, at this very moment, five of the world’s most dangerous and deadly criminals are breaking out of jail. They all seek out one thing – Baki. They all crave the taste of defeat and hope Baki can grant it to them. However, in this dangerous fight, Baki is not alone.
If you basically take away all the chi and extraterrestrial elements from Dragon Ball Z, it would look more like a light version of Grappler Baki. It is essentially just the main character training and fighting a variety of much stronger opponents, but it has a little more technical martial arts in it.
Hajime no Ippo
Makunouchi Ippo has been bullied his entire life, but dreams of changing himself. One day, he is saved by Takamura Mamoru, who happens to be a boxer. After Ippo faints, Mamoru takes him to his gym where Ippo asks to be trained in the sport of boxing.
Fighting… Training… Fighting… Training… You get the point, right? That aside, you get to watch the characters in both series get stronger and more buff, but Hajime no Ippo is firmly grounded in reality, though admittedly super addicting for a sports anime.
You think this selection of DBZ recommendations needs to be GAR’d up a little more? Rip up our comments section with your suggestions.
