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Fighting Spirit poster

Shows that feel likeFighting Spirit (2000–2014)

Makunouchi Ippo is an ordinary high school student in Japan. Since he spends most of his time away from school helping his mother run the family business, he doesn't get to enjoy his younger years like most teenagers. Always a target for bullying at school (the family fishing business grants him a distinct odor), Ippo's life is one of hardship. One of these after-school bullying sessions turns Ippo's life around for the better, as he is saved by a boxer named Takamura. He decides to follow in Takamura's footsteps and train to become a boxer, giving his life direction and purpose. Ippo's path to perfecting his pugilistic prowess is just beginning...

If you loved Fighting Spirit, the closest series we have are Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (2000), Slam Dunk (1993) and One Piece (1999). All three share Fighting Spirit's warm feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Cardcaptor Sakura (1998).

11 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · HBO Max · Amazon Prime Video
Stream it:Netflix ↗

If Fighting Spirit hit the spot, these will too

Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters poster
Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters
2000–2004 · 1 season · TV Tokyo
★ 8.2animation · action & adventurePrime VideoDisney+

The same preoccupation in both: friendship

The difference: Trades the wit of Fighting Spirit for an angle of its own

Bullies often target someone frail and weak—someone exactly like Yûgi Muto. He treasures his Millennium Puzzle, an ancient Egyptian artifact that was brought into his grandfather's game shop. Believing that solving the puzzle will grant him his wish, he completes the puzzle, unleashing a new personality within him, the soul of the "King of Games." The new personality named Yami Yûgi is the exact opposite of Yûgi. Upon any injustice toward him, Yami Yûgi takes over Yûgi's body and forces the opponent into a "Shadow Game".

Slam Dunk poster
Slam Dunk
1993–1996 · 1 season · tv asahi
★ 8.7animation · comedyNetflix

The same two preoccupations: sports, and based on manga

The difference: Easier on the stillness than Fighting Spirit

Sakuragi Hanamichi is a junior high punk used to getting into fights and being rejected by girls but upon entering high school he meets the girl of his dreams, Haruko Akagi. He will do anything in order to win her heart including joining the school basketball team that is aiming to conquer the nation lead by Haruko's brother. The problem is that Sakuragi has never played basketball before and a freshman sensation is stealing the spotlight and Haruko's affection from him.

One Piece poster
One Piece
1999– · 23 seasons · Fuji TV
★ 9action & adventure · comedy · animationNetflixHulu

Both keep coming back to the same thing: friendship

Years ago, the fearsome Pirate King, Gol D. Roger was executed leaving a huge pile of treasure and the famous "One Piece" behind. Whoever claims the "One Piece" will be named the new King of the Pirates. Monkey D. Luffy, a boy who consumed a "Devil Fruit," decides to follow in the footsteps of his idol, the pirate Shanks, and find the One Piece. It helps, of course, that his body has the properties of rubber and that he's surrounded by a bevy of skilled fighters and thieves to help him along the way. Luffy will do anything to get the One Piece and become King of the Pirates!

Cardcaptor Sakura poster
Cardcaptor Sakura
1998–2018 · 4 seasons · NHK BS2
★ 8animation · sci-fi & fantasy · action & adventure

One thread runs through both: anime

The difference: Leans harder into sci-fi & fantasy than Fighting Spirit does

Sakura Kinomoto, an elementary school student who discovers that she possesses magical powers after accidentally freeing a set of magical cards from the book they had been sealed in for years. She is then tasked with retrieving those cards in order to avoid an unknown catastrophe from befalling the world.

Dragon Ball Z Kai poster
Dragon Ball Z Kai
2009–2015 · 6 seasons · Fuji TV
★ 8.3sci-fi & fantasy · animation · action & adventureHulu

Common ground: tournament

Rejoin Goku and his friends in a series of cosmic battles! Toei has redubbed, recut, and cleaned up the animation of the original 1989 animated series. The show's story arc has been refined to better follow the comic book series on which it is based. The show also features a new opening and ending. In the series, martial artist Goku, and his various friends, battle increasingly powerful enemies to defend the world against evil. Can Earth's defender defeat demons, aliens, and other villains?

Saint Seiya poster
Saint Seiya
1986–1989 · 1 season · tv asahi
★ 8.4animation · drama · action & adventure

Both are built on the same subject: shounen

Ages ago, the goddess Athena was served by fighters called Saints who channeled the power of the Cosmos within them. Now a youth named Seiya has trained to become a Saint himself by earning the mystical Cloth of Pegasus. He is joined by other Saints with Cloths of their own to fight for Athena.

Fairy Tail poster
Fairy Tail
2009–2019 · 8 seasons · TV Tokyo
★ 7.8animation · action & adventure · comedy

Both keep coming back to the same thing: based on manga

Lucy is a 17-year-old girl, who wants to be a full-fledged mage. One day when visiting Harujion Town, she meets Natsu, a young man who gets sick easily by any type of transportation. But Natsu isn't just any ordinary kid, he's a member of one of the world's most infamous mage guilds: Fairy Tail.

Rurouni Kenshin poster
Rurouni Kenshin
1996–1998 · 3 seasons · Fuji TV
★ 8.5action & adventure · animation · comedy

One thread runs through both: shounen

The Meiji Era was one of great renewal for Japan, where swords and killing were outlawed. However, many survivors from the time of Revolution still live, lurking in the shadows and waiting for a chance to use their killing blades again. Only Kenshin Himura, formerly one of the most brutal of killers, hopes to keep his swordsman's honor and still live in the new era.

iCarly poster
iCarly
2007–2012 · 6 seasons · Nickelodeon
★ 6.8comedyNetflixParamount+

Both land wit and play at once

Watch Carly, Sam, and Freddie, as they try to balance their everyday 8th grade lives with their newfound fame managing and starring in the most awesome show on the web.

Ranma ½ poster
Ranma ½
1989–1992 · 1 season · Fuji TV
★ 7.9comedy · action & adventure · animationHulu

The same preoccupation in both: anime

Ranma Saotome, a teenage martial artist, and his father Genma travel to the 'cursed training ground' of Jusenkyo in China. There, despite the warnings of the Chinese guard, they fall into the cursed springs. From now on, whenever Ranma is doused in cold water, he turns into a girl and a cute, well-built redhead at that. Hot water changes him back into a man again, but only until the next time. To make matters worse, his father engages him to Akane Tendo, a girl who hates boys.

Bleach poster
Bleach
2004– · 2 seasons · TV Tokyo
★ 8.3action & adventure · animation · sci-fi & fantasyHulu

Kinetic where it counts, epic underneath

For as long as he can remember, Ichigo Kurosaki has been able to see ghosts. But when he meets Rukia, a Soul Reaper who battles evil spirits known as Hollows, he finds his life is changed forever. Now, with a newfound wealth of spiritual energy, Ichigo discovers his true calling: to protect the living and the dead from evil.

The Office poster
The Office
2001–2002 · 2 seasons · BBC Two
★ 8.5comedyMaxHulu

Warm comedy in both cases

Nightmare boss. Tedious colleagues. Pointless tasks. Welcome to Wernham Hogg.

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The best-reviewed series that share Fighting Spirit’s defining feeling.