Generally speaking, anime is largely considered to be more popular among a male audience, leaving content creators with little reason to produce many relatable, strong, and independent female roles. While popular series such as Bleach, My Hero Academia, and Demon Slayer have a selection of powerful girls to boast of, they are often sidelined during most major battles, leaving the men to claim all the glory.
There are several storylines with a leading lady that is certainly something to write home about, particularly within the Shojo genre. However, for an anime to qualify for having a noteworthy female cast, it needs to promote more than one woman with depth to her character (and no manic pixie dream girls allowed)!
10 Carole And Tuesday
Many female-orientated musical-themed anime tend to produce rather generic, cutesie characters without much substance to them; however, Carole and Tuesday goes against the grain with its inspirational narrative and saucy content. While boasting one of the largest LGBTQ+ casts in anime history, these gifted girls create many melodious masterpieces that are presented with enough emotion to bring a tear to anyone's eye.
Even the antagonistic Angela and Dahlia endure their own set of struggles as everyone competes for the top spot in Mars' Brightest; while the political turmoil becomes increasingly difficult to ignore. It is left up to two girls from opposite sides of the tracks to inspire unity in a nation, and they are most certainly up for the challenge!
9 Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
Even though Cyberpunk: Edgerunners has a particularly male-dominated cast, most fans couldn't help but fall in love with Lucy and Rebecca, while others have mad respect for Dorio's strength and Kiwi's secretive eccentricity. While this series is effectively an action-packed love story with David Martinez as the focal point, the girls' significance becomes more and more evident at every twist and turn.
With a multitude of cybernetically enhanced superhumans to contend with, it takes a great deal of talent for a "little girl" to make much impact; but the Cyberpunk ladies prove to be formidable forces all on their own. Female empowerment is certainly the name of this game, as even the all-powerful David has to rely heavily on his "girly" co-stars on his path toward victory.
8 Fruits Basket
While Tohru undeniably takes the cake as Fruits Basket's Best Girl, and the Sohma boys hog the bulk of the storyline, a great deal of effort is still put into individually developing the female side characters to create a thoroughly well-rounded cast. This heart-warming slice-of-life supernatural Shojo has certainly made an impact on anime fans, with Tohru effectively becoming the ultimate role model for many young ladies.
Whether it be Rin's emotional backstory, Akito's jaw-dropping drama, or any other Zodiac gals that captivate one's attention, this successful romantic comedy happily collects male fans along with its female audience (due to its delicate character portrayals). No stone is left unturned in this highly-celebrated series, which has essentially been running since 2001 (and rebooted in 2019).
7 KonoSuba: God's Blessing On This Wonderful World!
Kazuma's harem may not be the most talented bunch of ladies around, but what they lack in skill, they make up with in pure entertainment value. Focusing on the funnier side of Isekai adventures, KonoSuba is the perfect parody that supplies plenty of gasps and giggles, along with a healthy supply of thirst traps for fans to goggle over.
Although the Goddess Aqua is technically the primary "heroine" (and the one who got Kazuma into this mess in the first place), she struggles to maintain sole custody of the limelight once Megumin and Darkness waltz in and win viewers' hearts. Each quirky girl has their own distinctive character build (that often completely contradicts the stereotypical expectations), accompanied by compelling relationship dynamics that don't all revolve around fighting over a love interest.
6 Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean
While the Joestar family's world is filled with strong female characters, the girls take center stage in Jojo's Stone Ocean, with Jolyne Cujoh leading the pack as she does everything in her power to save her father's life. While incarcerated at Green Dolphin Street Prison, Jolyne gets a crash course in the supernatural spectrum when her Stand abilities suddenly come to fruition, and enduring an illegitimate jail sentence quickly becomes the least of her troubles.
Regardless of her less-than-charismatic way of conducting herself, Jolyne finds truly loyal allies in Ermes Costello, Gwess, and Foo Fighters (inhabiting a female host body), who each go through a significant amount of individual character development amidst all the Cujoh chaos.
5 Chainsaw Man
Although the term "Man" is chosen to headline this unique show, is the ladies who get all the heads turning (and not just because of their alluring waifu factor!) While Makima is gunning for the title of "Best Shonen Villain Ever" and making a substantial claim, her subordinate, Kobeni, has some game-changing tricks up her sleeve, whereas Power brings her own unforgettable flair to the table.
There is no denying that the story revolves around Denji; nevertheless, his female co-stars are not helpless damsels only inserted for plot development but all have their own part to play while adding an aspect of relatability to the narrative. Real (dark and twisty) people grappling with supernatural issues is the general impression that Chainsaw Man fans are left with.
4 My Dress-Up Darling
While this particular harem delivers a substantial amount of fan service with their contributions to My Dress-Up Darling, Marin Kitagawa, Sajuna, and Shinju Inui are each given an intriguing backstory, relevant issues to work with, and lovable personality traits to boot.
All drawn to the world of cosplay (and subsequently, the dashing Wakana Gojo), these three couldn't be more different, each adding a riveting element to the overall storyline. Marin, Juju, and her "big" little sister are far from being standard anime girls, as they all rebel against gender stereotypes in some way while simultaneously addressing mental health issues and inspiring a giggle or three along the way.
3 The Kakegurui Franchise
The Hyakkaou Private Academy Girls have it all: drop-dead gorgeous designs, incredible intellectual capacities, undeniable passion, and enough fearless audacity to back it all up! There is unlikely a single young lady that fans wouldn't love to get to know better, which has inspired the production of several spin-offs to focus on the Compulsive Gambler's "side" characters such as Mary Saotome and Midari Ikishima.
Yumeko Jabami and Kirari Momobami have a fascinating and spellbinding chemistry that keeps viewers begging for more; while that offensive ditzy airhead trope is left out in the cold. When life revolves entirely around gambling and absolutely everything is at stake, bringing out the brainy big guns is the only chance of survival.
2 Rascal Does Not Dream Of Bunny Girl Senpai
Mai Sakurajima's story is arguably one of the most underrated anime of the 2018 Fall period, as many viewers came for the Bunny Girl sex appeal but sadly let the thought-provoking plot slip through their fingers. Mai is much more than a pretty face and is dealing with a severe case of Puberty Syndrome, which has rendered her invisible to everyone, besides Sakuta Azusagawa that is.
With the help of the incredibly intelligent Rio Futaba, Sakuta helps Mai to work through her issues, along with several other strong, yet struggling young women along the way. Kaede, Shoko, and Tomoe's characters are all fleshed out eloquently, adding more to the narrative than simple plot points to assist with the underlying romantic developments.
1 Anything By Studio Ghibli
Nobody quite handles strong independent women in anime quite as well as Studio Ghibli, whose content always makes a point of highlighting its fascinating female leads in a relatable manner, while the uniquely designed villainesses are as equally provocative and stimulating.
From Satsuki and Mei's heartwarming adventures with Totoro to Nausicaa and Princess Mononoke's selfless acts of bravery, and not forgetting Chihiro's inspiring otherworldly adventures or Sophie and Kiki's bewitching escapades; the Ghibli girls have yet to disappoint! These family-friendly female-orientated films are cute enough for kids while introducing engrossing narratives for all ages to enjoy; arguably producing some of the most influential anime content in history.