The mafia anime is a controversial subject and full of interpretations, where everyone makes positive or negative judgments about its operations and organization. Without a doubt, a concept as complex as this is capable of giving rise to endless interesting, attractive, and mysterious plots, which give us an idea of what is lived in the hostile mafia environment.
Since we are sure that you enjoy this type of story, we decided to bring you the 10 best mafia anime, those that will give you goosebumps with their memorable confrontations.
10. Jormungand
- Episodes: 12
- Issue: April 2012 to June 2012
Koko Hekmatyar is a young arms dealer who leads a group made up of former soldiers and heartless mercenaries. Jourmungand focuses mainly on the dangerous transactions and companies carried out by this special group of professionals in the use of weapons. We start with the inclusion of a new recruit named Jonah, a boy with excellent command of weapons but who also has a dark past that has marked his relationship with weapons forever.
We have a plot that dives deep into the smuggling world, explaining the operation of the most skilled black market groups in the sale of weapons and other illegal products. Jormungand is a very enjoyable anime if you can keep the flow of the story going, without missing a beat on significant situations and action.
9. The story of the Arcana Family
- Episodes: 12
- Issue: July 2012 to September 2012
The Arcana Famiglia is a mafia organization whose most active and powerful participants are also holders of one of the 22 cards of the Tarocco, a derivative of the Tarot. Papa Mondo, the head of the family that bears the stigma of Le Monde, has decided that it is time for him and his wife De he Sumire to retire and leave the running of the family to others.
Thinking about the possible internal disputes that can arise between the members of the clan, Papa Mondo inaugurates an event called Arcana Duello, in which the most capable members of the family will fight among themselves to win the position… and the possibility of marrying Felicita Mondo’s daughter.
Throughout this anime, the inclusion of everyday elements of the Italian mafia is notorious; even the names of the characters, the weapons, the clothing, and the expressions of several of the members of the family bear extraordinary resemblances to the most famous films and books based on the Sicilian mafia. Although much of the plot focuses on Felicita’s rebellion, the entire mafia context is enjoyable for lovers of classic scenes and “honorable” confrontations, but there are elements such as Nova’s katana that, although completely far from what expected, they don’t clash at all.
8. Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom
- Episodes: 26
- Broadcast: April 2009 to September 2009
The story focuses on Agatsuma Reiji, a young man who is in the United States to visit a relative until, unfortunately, his life changes drastically when he witnesses the murder carried out by a member of the American mafia known as INFERNO. After INFERNO analyzes his situation, Reiji is kidnapped by Ein, one of the best assassins of that criminal organization, and is taken to his medical facility. When Reiji wakes up he realizes that he has no memory of his past and that he also appears to have a number of superhuman abilities.
What stands out in Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom is the development of its characters and the complex relationships that seem to prevail against the aggressive actions of the mafia. If what you are looking for are characters that surpass their plot, this is an excellent option! Without forgetting that the context of the American mafia is always loaded with technological assumptions rather than classic codes of honor.
7. Bungou Stray Dogs
- Episodes: 12
- Issue: April 2016 to June 2016
After being kicked out of his orphanage, Atsushi Nakajima ends up wandering without food, money, or direction. After a couple of days, the hunger and exhaustion become unbearable, forcing Atsushi to lie down by a river awaiting his death, but his plans are interrupted when he is morally obliged to save a man who seemed to be drowning. in the river. Osamu Dazai, the man who was in danger, turns out to be a strange guy who continually tries to commit suicide and is also a member of a detective agency with powers, taking on impossible cases for the police.
The case that Dazai and his partner Kunikida are currently working on involves the appearance of a tiger that leaves everything in its path destroyed, and that arrived in the area at the same time as Atsushi. The fight between the mafia and the police entities is not something new, which is why this type of “special powers agency” is somewhat refreshing in a way. In addition, the plans of the mafias present in Bungou Stray Dogs are something different from what would be expected of a criminal organization of this type.
6. 91 days
- Episodes: 12
- Issue: July 2016 to October 2016
Fear is the only feeling that Angelo Lagusa harbors after witnessing the murder of his entire family at the hands of members of the Vanetti family. Initially, Angelo moves as far away as he can from Lawless, the town where he used to live as a child, and changes his name to Avilio Bruno in an effort to forget his past. However, he gets his hands on a letter in which an anonymous character lists the alleged culprits behind the plot that resulted in the murder of his family.
Driven by an insatiable thirst for revenge, Angelo throws himself into the fray to murder everyone involved in his tragic family past, and as Avilio Bruno begins to climb the ranks and associate with Nero Vanetti, making contacts and calling in favors as he makes his way to your ultimate goal.
91 Days is perfectly set in the time of Prohibition in the United States, and its settings are very well done. There are even nods to classic movies about the Italian mafia, now transplanted to American soil.
5. Katekyo Hitman Reborn!
[English: Home Tutor Hitman Reborn!]
- Episodes: 203
- Broadcast: October 2006 to September 2010
Tsunayoshi Sawada is an ordinary boy, who only stands out for being more cowardly and shy than the average student of his age. His life takes a 180-degree turn with the appearance of a curious baby named Reborn, who becomes his private tutor by informing him that he will be the tenth head of the Vongola family.
At first, Tsunayoshi flatly refuses the possibility of being a mafia boss, even more so when he himself makes his lack of skills and his great cowardice evident when facing any challenge in his life. As the days go by, however, Reborn’s “special” bullets make Tsunayoshi fill in his lack of skills and courage with friends whom he must later take on as members of his family.
Katekyo Hitman Reborn! is probably the best-known anime with a mafia-centric theme, and the truth is that it is a series that has a bit of everything: comedy, slight touches of romance, and high doses of companionship. Although the vision of the mafia is usually rather childish, it is an unmissable work for fans of the underworld.
4. It will last!!
- Episodes: 24
- Issue: January 2010 to June 2010
In search of an emotionally charged life, Mikado Ryuugamine decides to leave his hometown and start a new chapter by moving to Tokyo, the busy capital of Japan. Mikado receives unconditional support from an old friend of his named Masaomi Kida, who, having lived in the big city for longer, takes on the task of giving advice to his inexperienced friend.
As both of them will now be living in Ikebukuro, Kida gives Mikado a tour of the most famous and popular places in the area, with details and suggestions on what not to do if he doesn’t want to end up sleeping with the fish. Kida makes a special point of not relating to Izaya Orihara or Shizuo Heiwajima, as both of them tend to be central points of dispute and disaster.
Throughout the chapters, the plot will envelop you as much as Mikado, filling you with questions about the events, the mafia organizations that seem to act so differently from an honorable code, and characters from fiction, such as the motorcyclist Celty, all this from an inexperienced point of view on the subject.
3. Black Lagoon
- Episodes: 12
- Broadcast: April 2006 to June 2006
Rokuro Okajima lived his days as an executive in a random Japanese company, but his life is thrown into chaos when he is kidnapped by an organization called the Lagoon Company. Despite having been a victim of said organization, Rokuro soon analyzes all those mistreatments that his bosses had had towards him, concluding that the main reason for these attitudes was the system that governs Roanapur society.
Rokuro sympathizes with the ideals of his kidnappers and ends up joining targets with them, thus joining the organization. As a member, Rokuro strikes up a “friendship” with the boss Dutch, a laid-back IT guy named Benny, and a gun geek everyone calls Revy.
Hand in hand with his companions, Rokuro will embark on a journey to change the system. Naturally, along the way, they will encounter unforeseen events, obstacles, enemies, allies and other organizations with a mafia air. The appearance of an Italian mafia based in Thailand is also not long in coming… There will always be one surprise after another in this classic Seinen!
2. Baccano!
- Episodes: 13
- Broadcast: July 2007 to November 2007
The main plot seems to relate to a series of situations that took place in 1711 on a ship of alchemists who were looking for the elixir for eternal life. Subsequently, the consequences of the results of the said investigation and its relationship with the events that occurred on the Flying Pussyfoot transcontinental train in 1931 are mentioned; On the other hand, on those same dates and later, a series of fights between mafia families, brawlers, inferior gangs and swindlers take place during the Prohibition in the United States.
The story that Baccano! tells us is comprised between the years 1711 and 2002, but both the events that are told to us as well as the times and its protagonists are presented in apparent disorder, jumping years left and right between chapters. Each and every one of these incidents seems to hold more than just a good day for the press, as the characters play roles that are as specific as they are self-deprecating. To top it off, the way the mob clashes play out is exceptionally realistic and highly enjoyable.
1. gangster
- Episodes: 12
- Issue: July 2015 to September 2015
Gangsta stars Nicolas Brown, Worick Arcangelo, and Alex Benedetto, members of the team known as Benriya and in charge of carrying out jobs —mostly murders— that no one else would accept due to their complexity, illegality, or cruel nature. The plot itself takes place in the inhospitable and dangerous streets of the eighth district of Ergastulum, where the wretched and the victims will continue to suffer unless they switch to the side of the perpetrators.
Gangsta tends to lean towards showing that the human being is made evil by society, which treats him with disdain due to the lack of remarkable abilities or monetary capital; even in the event of possessing both qualities, it is more than likely that by that time the person in question is already another type of “garbage” before his fellow citizens. It is definitely an anime that offers a lot in a few chapters and that quality may also be its own downfall since it is sometimes difficult to connect the dots. Even so, from the point of view of a mafia subgenre, it is quite a masterpiece.
Currently, there are excellent representatives of the mafia adapted to anime, with plots that usually stick to an initial ideal taken from specialized books and movies, but that never forget to offer “something more” to viewers. There’s always talk of “an offer you can’t refuse”, but now we’ve given you 10!
If you think there are more series focused on the mafia that is worth watching, do not forget to leave them in the comments section. See you in the next article!
