Welcome! Many different bloggers have done posts before with lists of educational anime, and now it’s my turn. A few of the entries here are the ones you’d see in any typical list, but I also endeavored to add a few that I’ve never seen mentioned in the context of being educational. Please note that not all of these series are strictly educational; that is, they may not spend time explaining things. However, they are all anime with high education value, meaning that with a little research inspired by the show, you can learn a great amount. Here goes!
1. Ascendance of a Bookworm
Ascendance of a Bookworm is a new (2020) series about a girl who is reincarnated into a medieval fantasy world following her death. This girl, Main, is completely obsessed with books. Ironically, the show isn’t always educational about books, but rather, about the vast knowledge that Main acquired from so many books. Paper-making. Trading business. Production of materials business. Etiquette. Book-binding. Crafting accessories. All these are topics that Bookworm teaches about. In addition, as we learn about Main’s new world, we are inadvertantly taught some aspects about life in medieval times. Clearly, there’s much to be learned!
2. Bungou Stray Dogs
Bungou Stray Dogs (Literary Stray Dogs in English) is one of the shows that isn’t directly educational; but any research inspired by the show will lead to valuable knowledge. That’s because every character is named after a famous author from literature around the word. Some of these characters have traits, items, or backstories that are references to what is known about the author or their most famous work.
For example, one of the leading characters is Osamu Dazai. The real Dazai wrote a famous Japanese story called No Longer Human, about a man who struggles with addiction, depression, and suicide. The Dazai character in Bungou Stray Dogs also has suicidal ideation. Other authors include Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Nathaniel Hawthorn, and several famous Japanese authors.
3. Dr. Stone
Dr. Stone is a show about a young man named Senku, who has tasked himself with reversing the disaster than destroyed mankind. Everyone was turned to stone suddenly, worldwide. Humanity ceased to exist for almost 4000 years, until Senku, the child genius, awoke from his petrification. He swears to revert every human back to their previous states and restart society in the name of humanity and science. Dr. Stone is highly educational about a variety of scientific and other topics, such as chemistry, eletricrity, survival skills, energy, antibiotic medication, and the art of crafting items. I learned a lot from this anime and recommend it for its educational value and positive portrayal of science.
4. Food Wars
To be honest, I have not seen more than four or five episodes of Food Wars, as it’s not exactly my cup of tea. However, even in those few episodes, it was clear that the show has a lot to teach about culinary arts. The story is about Souma, a boy of humble origins who manages to get into a prestigious culinary arts class which fails 90% of its students. Souma will have to become a masterful chef in order to graduate. Food Wars is a bit weird, but it can be a lot of fun if you’re interested in cooking and fine foods.
5. Mouryou no Hako
I have yet to meet a fellow fan of Mouryou no Hako. It’s a very obscure and underrated series. The title can be translated to “The Demon’s Box” or “The Demon of The Box.” The show focuses on quite a few parallel stories, but it’s mostly a murder mystery. It’s a bit strange in storytelling and plot progression, but if you like thought-provoking stuff then it will be enjoyable. For educational content, Mouryou no Hako has two main topics: the history/culture of Japan in the 1950s, and the Oriental mythology about various types of demons and monsters. Check it out if you can!
6. Moyashimon
The main education topic in Moyashimon is microbiology, with a little bit of biological chemistry, alcohol fermentation, and agriculture. Specifically, the show focuses on types of bacteria and what they are like. The story is about Sawaki and his time at an agricultural university with his best friend and his professors. Sawaki has a supernatural talent of being able to see bacteria with his naked eye and recognize their type just by looking. Moyashimon a very obscure anime. I definitely say try it if you like science.
7. Spice and Wolf
Spice and Wolf is on everybody’s list of educational anime, and for good reason. It’s about a traveling merchant named Lawrence who encounters Holo, a harvest spirit and wolf god. She accompanies him and we get to see the two of them on their travels an adventures. Spice and Wolf makes a point of teaching the basics of economics and business. In season two, more advanced economics are also explored. This anime is based on Europe in medieval ages, when the Christian Church was becoming big and replacing local Paganism. This is a good chance to learn about that period of history and see an example of a Pagan nature god (Holo).
Thanks so much for reading and visiting Anime Rants today. I hope you check out one of these shows and see what you can learn from it! Sayonara until next time!
Anime Rants 
Cells at Work, right? That’s its hook!
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So I’ve heard, but I have yet to see it. I wanted to make sure I knew what I was talking about, so i only wrote about the series I have watched.
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Great list. I had to add Mouryou no Hako. to my binge list. I loved Moyashimon. I was also beginning to think I was the only person in the world who watched it. Silver Spoon is kind of educational, too, if you don’t know much about agriculture. I was surprised Cells at Work isn’t here, but your reasoning makes perfect sense. It’s also a really fun little series as well as educational. There’s a series on YouTube where a real doctor watches Cells at Work and comments that is fun, too.
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