5 Best Anime That Flew Under the Radar in 2020

While 2020 may have been a pretty rough year in the outside world, it was at least great for debut anime. So many great new anime came out this year, that it is entirely possible to miss out on most of them.

To make sure you got your fill of all of them, we’ve compiled a list of five anime that may have flown under your radar in 2020. Don’t forget to leave a comment below if there are any other anime that came out in 2020 that you want to show some love to as well.

Rent a Girlfriend

5 Anime That Flew Under the Radar in 2020

After getting dumped by his first girlfriend ever, 20-year-old college student Kazuya Kinoshita is desperate to feel loved. To cope with his loneliness, he decides to use an app that lets people rent others out for dates. 

It isn’t long before Kazuya regrets the decision, as every interaction he has with his date feels hollow. He takes out his frustrations on the rented girlfriend, Chizuru Mizuhara, berating her for acting fake and leaving a low score on the app. 

Despite coming off as nice and meager, Chizuru responds in turn, reprimanding Kazuya for renting her in the first place, letting him know that he’s the one who rented her. While they eventually go their separate ways, it wouldn’t be an anime if that first date was the last time these two met, would it? 

Kazuya and Chizuru soon find their fates intertwined in an elaborate mess that always pushes them toward one another. As a result, their relationship continues to develop as they learn more about each other and the unique circumstances that lead each of them to where they are today. 

Akudama Drive

In the not too distant future, Japan’s Kansai region is so overrun with crime that its biggest criminals are actually treated like celebrities. Known as Akudama, these lawbreakers are highly skilled, containing talents such as hacking, strength, speed, and many more useful abilities that allow them to terrorize the entire city without any repercussions.

Akudama Drive’s story centers around these dangerous characters, as they must work together in a Suicide Squad-like plotline to finish a huge job that’ll earn them a large payday. The hook of this anime is that the group also features an ordinary girl who gets caught up with the Akudama due to an unfortunate misunderstanding. 

To survive amongst the most dangerous people in all of Kansai, the ordinary girl must act like a criminal named Swinder. The resulting dynamic results in some hilarious interactions, as the girl with a pure heart tries to reason with a bunch of seemingly criminally insane thugs. 

Deca-Dance

5 Anime That Flew Under the Radar in 2020

In the late 2400s, air pollution has finally reached lethal levels, hurling humanity towards the brink of extinction. If the rank air weren’t bad enough, life forms known as Gadoll have also destroyed 90 percent of the world’s population. 

For the final 10 percent of humanity, the only thing standing between them and certain death is the colossal corporate entertainment facility known as Deca-dence. Life amidst this mobile fortress isn’t an easy one, as you’re either a warrior tasked with defending it or a mechanic who has to keep it from falling apart. 

The show’s teenage protagonist, Natsume, falls into the second of those two categories, working on the coliseum as a Tanker girl, though she hopes to join the warriors to avenger her father’s death one day. 

It doesn’t take too long before Natsume gets that chance, as she is assigned to a maintenance team that also has a secret role in eliminating those who would threaten the solidarity of Deca-dance. What follows is a layered story of humor and growth, as the young protagonist must find her place in this crazy, dystopian world. 

BNA: Brand New Animal

In BNA: Brand New Animal, the tension between humans and humanoid animals (known as beastman) is at an all-time high, escalating into fights fueled by discrimination and racism. To avoid further strife between the two species, an entire city is created where the beastman can live peacefully, called Animal City.  

It’s that city where newly turned tanuki beastman, Michiru Kagemon, runs to in order to find out why her once quiet life as a human has now been flipped on its head. Her quest to find the answer to these mysteries results in plenty of comedy and vivid animations, as there are a lot of colorful characters that make up Animal City. 

While this premise might sound like another 2020 anime darling, Beastars, as they both tackle serious themes by using animals as a parallel, BNA is plenty unique. This anime’s choice to interweave those subject matters into the show while also focusing primarily on its investigative elements is more than enough to set it apart. 

ID: Invaded

5 Anime That Flew Under the Radar in 2020

Once a renowned detective heralded for his brilliance and acumen, known by the name Sakaido, ID: Invaded introduces its protagonist Akihito Narihisago at his lowest point. The detective has fallen from grace, now wasting away his years in a prison cell after he murdered the serial killer responsible for killing his daughter, Muku. 

After two years in prison, Narihisago is approached with an offer to help track down serial killers using a new technology called the Mizuhanome System. This technology grants certain people the ability to enter into a human’s subconscious via “id wells.”

Once inside the subconscious of these serial killers, Sakaido can break down their thoughts and patterns to form clues about each case and eventually track them down.