Apr 21, 2009Home :: Anime & Manga, tobeAsian article

TBA’s Top 10 Coolest Men of Anime

Being cool for these guys comes naturally. It is undoubtable that these men are the pivotal forces that pushes a good anime into the realm of the greats. Don’t get me wrong, characters like Goku may be considered a hero, but you would never picture him as the pinnacle of ‘cool’ or even ‘badass’. This list only holds those that are nothing short of pure manliness.

They are the faces that come to mind when we think of ‘bad-ass’. They are those who we look up to – aspire to be. They are the men that we ask, “what will they do?” when we’re in a tight spot. These are TBA’s Top 10 Coolest Men of Anime!

Oh, and to all the ladies out there – don’t worry, you’re next.

NUMBER 10: Corporal. Giroro of the Sergeant Keroro series

Why he’s cool:
It’s not every day that you’ll meet a walking, talking alien frog, and it’s even more uncommon to find one that is gun-trotting. Yes, cool things does come in small packages, this little red devil fought a war, walks around with only a hat and belt, and is currently on a mission to conquer our beloved Earth. But how can we hate something so cool and cute?

Nevertheless he’s ranked 10 on our list because, after all, he is still an alien frog, and no one really aspires to be frogs… even if it does have a badass scar over his left eye that put Solid Snake to shame.

NUMBER 9: Mr.Chang of the Black Lagoon series

Why he’s cool:
Not many of you would have expected this dark horse to be on the list. But, trust me, you’ll love him. How can you not? He’s a dual-gun wielding, triad boss with gangsta-sunglasses and hundreds of subordinates under his wing. Oh, did I mention he wears gangsta-sunglasses?

The character himself was based on the Chinese superstar, Chow Yun Fat and John Woo’s gun-fu style of films. Although he’s not the main character of the series, I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets he’s own spin-off series in the future.

NUMBER 8: Roy Mustang of the Full Metal Alchemist series

Why he’s cool:
Maybe I’m just caught up in the Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood hype for picking Mustang, but one thing is for sure, it was a tough call picking the Fuhrer-to-be over a much under-appreciated emotional muscle-head as Armstrong. They both don’t fall short on the looks department, neither in their alchemic skills department - one is passed down through generations of fine-tuning and the other… well, its flames (enough said).

It’s the flame alchemist’s grand ambitions and his cool calculative nature that separated him from the crowd. In the end, it is men with majestic desires that truly shine above the rest, and if you add in a firestorm at the snap of your fingers, you get Colonel Roy Mustang, ‘coolness’ in the flesh.

NUMBER 7: Uchiha Itachi of the Naruto and Naruto Shippuuden series

Why he’s cool:
I’m usually very sceptical towards all over-hyped anime and manga and the characters in it, but when it came down to Uchiha Itachi, there was something which was very genuine, something that I can admire towards and shed a tear to as he breathed his last breath (opps, spoiler hehe). I can’t quite put my finger on it, but for a man that was able to join ANBU at the age of thirteen and was willing to sacrifice his honour, family and whole life for an era of peace and for his little brother might have something to do with it.

Of course, having an emo little brother did make him the more likable one, especially when you’re as mysterious as the night sky.

I shall end by borrowing the wise words of someone who knew him a lot better than I did: “Even in death he never ceases to amaze me”.

NUMBER 6: Vash the Stampede of the Trigun series

Why he’s cool:
If a man’s bounty is a measure of their coolness then Vash the Stampede would most certainly take the cake with his 60 billion dollar bounty. But then again, if you include inflation and other economic shenanigans, I could be wrong…

Armed with his revolver and pacifist attitude, he’s labelled as a ‘natural disaster’ that can destroy cities, which is pretty darn cool, as long as he doesn’t come to my town. Of course, we’ll also have to mention his friend, Nicholas D. Wolfwood, the awesome gunslinger priest.

NUMBER 5: Yagami Raito (Light) of the Death Note series

Why he’s cool:
Yagami Raito can be defined in a few words as intelligent, decisive, ambitious, sociable and arrogant; you can’t get any more perfect than that! For that reason, he takes the number 5 spot on our list. Indeed, having brains is another dimension of coolness, and not many are smarter than Light himself (not even L)!

It’s this unique aura that mixes intelligence with deviousness that has led so many readers and viewers of Death Note to root for Light in his quest for ‘god-status’, even when they disagree of his methods to achieve ‘justice’. And that defines coolness perfectly – an uncontrollable attraction towards someone against your own will.

NUMBER 4: Lupin the III of the Lupin the III series

Why he’s cool:
Coming in as number 4 is Arsène Lupin the 3rd. You can’t get much cooler than an internationally most wanted and renowned thief that has the classiness of James Bond and womanising qualities of, well, James Bond.

It doesn’t matter if he’s stealing crown jewels or women’s hearts in his iconic Fiat 500, he’s always calm and collected; ready for any heist and always able to get out of tight situations. With a masterful swordsman and ace marksman as partners, and an Interpol inspector that’s constantly at his tail, this life-taker and heart-breaker is indeed one hell of a cool cat!

NUMBER 3: Kamina of the Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann series

Why he’s cool:
A dramatic speech-making machine and the leader of the Dai-Gurren brigade – Kamina of the Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann series firmly holds third place. Heroes are the shortest-lived profession, abiding this is Kamina who bite the dust after a mere 7 episodes, but his distinct blue hair, retro glasses and red cape will forever be remembered!

Unlike most idolised men, Kamina displays an uncannily talent that demonstrates, it’s not what you say that matters, it’s how you say it, even if what you say makes no sense! With his dazzling yet terrifying gallantry (stupidity? Seriously, who shoves a ganman on his own head?), you have a true man with qualities that attracts those around to follow him to even the depth of hell.

NUMBER 2: Kenshiro Kasumi of the Fist of the North Star series

Why he’s almost the coolest:
Here’s a man that destroys tanks with his bare arm and legs, and you thought Chuck Norris was good? Coming in at number two is the 64th successor to the Hokuto Shinken, Kenshiro Kasumi, and don’t you forget it. Because he’ll make your body implode with just one touch while doing his trademark “wah-tatatatata” battle cry!

With the looks of Bruce Lee and muscles that makes Street Fighters look like pre-schoolers, you can certainly count on his name when writing up your thesis on manliness.

NUMBER 1: Spike Spiegel of the Cowboy Bebop series

Why he’s the coolest:
Spike Spiegel is the coolest man in anime, how can he not be? He’s a quick-thinker with a dark history. The man fights like Bruce Lee, flies a spacecraft called the Swordfish II, a Martian-war veteran and a space bounty hunter! In fact, he’s so cool that he makes other men question their own gender.

He’s laid-back attitude, no-fear-of-death outlook on life, good-looks, suave demeanour and dressed-like-Lupin qualities just add to his coolness. Not to forget his skills as a marksman is comparable to those of city hunter himself! And just like all admired men, he died an untimely, yet beautiful death… or did he actually die…?

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46 Comments

sean, April 21, 2009:

Completely agree. Itachi is one of those characters who everybody fawns over for being awesome, but don’t really understand. He’s got a lot more depth to him than a lot of the Naruto characters, I’ll say that much.

I was glad to see Spike at number one, he’ll always be my favourite.

jim, April 21, 2009:

u forgot Guts from bersker. he should be in the top 5 at lest. the one man killing machine, who carries a sword bigger then most men!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guts_(Berserk)

Sile, April 21, 2009:

Spike has high water pants…that should take-away some of his cool points. As cool as he is, always being ready for a flood, not cool. Also agree with the Guts thing. Very sad to not see any One Piece on this list, it’s 100x cooler then most of the animes on here especially naruto.

sirhc, April 21, 2009:

most bad guys are way cooler than their hero counter part. vicious is much better than spike. kudos to having mr chang on that list though.

also no naruto character should ever be on this list.

sir jorge, April 21, 2009:

I like Spike Spiegel

king steve, April 21, 2009:

this list is displeasing.

you can’t rank the coolest. vash and itachi are emo, any way you look at it. spike is overrated. other than that, guts and roronoa zoro are missing.

trent, April 21, 2009:

CHAMPLOO!!!!!!!!

Sukai, April 21, 2009:

@ Sean
Thanks for agreeing with me. At least now I don’t look like the only Narutard here haha.

@ Sile
I’m a big One Piece fan myself, but I refrained from including any of them (as much as I wanted to put Zoro in there), ’cause, for some reason, I just couldn’t take them seriously for some reason. It might be due to the atmosphere of the anime itself, who knows haha.

@ sirhc
Yea, Mr. Chang deserves more publicity I’d say XD.

@ All the Gut fans
Ah, that’s why I kept feeling the list was incomplete. It’s been a long time, forgot all about his crew-cut hehe…

@ king steve
I’d like to hear about who’s in your list of the coolest men of anime then haha.

Soulboy, April 21, 2009:

Wow! Nice list. Can’t wait for the top ten coolest ladies:D

butthe4d, April 22, 2009:

Nice list but i miss the berserk guy and vegeta.

But when i think about it the most evil person i ever saw in an Anime was Johann from Moster

marcelo, April 24, 2009:

Doesnt anybody remembers Super Agent Cobra???

Spectre, April 24, 2009:

Himura Kenshin could have so been on this list :

Saand, April 24, 2009:

Spike is definitely a badass. I think you forgot alucard though from hellsing. Guy is crazy!

tocali, April 24, 2009:

Lelouch Lamperouge - Code Geass
Kenshin Himura - Samurai X
Ichigo Kurosaki - Bleach
Stein - Soul Eater

Rad, April 24, 2009:

I like how the spoiler tag came after the spoiler. Thanks.

Jenn, April 24, 2009:

I was a little horrified that Kamina was number 3 (I mean hello? He’s KAMINA!) but I can agree with Spike as number 1.

baku, April 24, 2009:

that’s $$60 billion (double dollars)

pan, April 24, 2009:

Where are Captain Harlock and Hayato (getter robot)?

dd, April 24, 2009:

Oh man, you can argue about all of the others, but spike will always be the the very best character in any anime ever.

boobies, April 24, 2009:

Michiko (of Michiko to Hatchin) isn’t male, but she’s “man” enough to be on this list, I think. A real bad-ass with a nice ass. And she’s almost as cool as Spike.

boobies, April 24, 2009:

“Oh, and to all the ladies out there – don’t worry, you’re next.”

Sorry, missed that part. So…don’t forget Michiko!

Kenshin, April 24, 2009:

Where is Rurouni Kenshin? Are you serious? I completely agree with this list except that Kenshin is not here.

Props on including Mustang he would probably be one of my favorites.

flapjack, April 24, 2009:

If anyone in here has ever seen history’s strongest disciple kenichi, then you might think about including Akisame Koetsuji in there.

Duuuude, the, April 24, 2009:

Duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuude..u put a frog in there and not Rurouni Kenshin, Alucard or D! Have you seen the ovas? Best shit ever. Alucard…i agree with Saand…dude’s crazy..in a way that defies the bad\good shit. And D..well.. hes Dracula’s(Alucard) son in a post apocaliptic universe filled with bad-ass mutants..and he is silent too..and etc etc etc. So in conclusion… WHY DUDE WHY? btw..the frogs qewl..but not as qewl

mat, April 24, 2009:

Kenshin Himura - Samurai X

seriously how the heck could you have forgotten/neglected him??
that is an epic fail of the coolest men in Anime.

I will give Ichigo a little bump too but really, a list without Kenshin is not a list to show people

Sukai, April 24, 2009:

Alucard was considered, but he just appeared to be too much of a scary, crazy nutso to be added on the list.

Alvin Jarvenpaa, April 25, 2009:

Arucard from Hellsing is one bad mutha, think he should make at least an honorable mention.

Ian Jade, April 26, 2009:

Good choices. Vash the Stampede and Spike Spiegel is definitely my favourite characters in anime.

SpeedStriker, May 5, 2009:

Where’s Master Asia?

Sukai, May 5, 2009:

Sadly, he never entered my mind when I was writing this.

daz, May 6, 2009:

Yikes, too many omissions for this list to be worthy. There’s no way that Kenshin Himura, Lelouche Lamperouge and Takamura Mamoru (Hajime no Ippo) do not get onto any coolest guys in anime list. Personally, I’d also add Saitou from NHK ni Youkoso as well….otaku need representation on the list too! Hard not to put Shinichi Chiaki from Nodame Cantabile on their as well since he’s a very rare thing in anime….a male tsundere who beats up his female co-star (instead of the usual other way around).

AfroSamurai, May 21, 2009:

Afro Samurai all the way.
Samuel L. Jackson as a voice actor for an anime character makes Afro at least top 10 material.

scoobyroo9001, June 1, 2009:

I agree with all of this list with one exception. I think the Light should have a higher number on the list (somewhere like 8). For the majority of Death Note he is a great character and would deserve the number 5 spot. But when he is caught he goes out like a complete bitch. He does a bad guy rant, then goes crazy when “shockingly” things don’t go his way. Light’s death obliterated a lot of the badass points he accumulated throughout the rest of the series.

Kurisu89, June 2, 2009:

Lelouch Lamperouge probably deserved a spot on here. All of his actions and steps in order to carry out his overarching main plan just makes him so awesome!

Just_Ice, June 2, 2009:

Lelouch is faaabulous!

Yosh77, June 2, 2009:

where is HIBARI KYOYA!!!!!!!!!!! of KATEKYO HITMAN REBORN!!!!!!!

Anonymous, June 3, 2009:

Gene Starwind. Seriously. I admit, he is a pansy at the beginning of Outlaw Star, but by the end of the series he brings it all together to erupt coolness.

efrherher, June 29, 2009:

L from Death note.

YamiLink03, July 5, 2009:

VOTE FOR SHINJI!

lelouch, July 7, 2009:

all hail lelouch, lelouch is no 1 always

DanesKaine, July 11, 2009:

Oh come on, no love for Scar from Fullmetal Alchemist? When it comes to power, he can take 3 state alchemists at once (ok, it was raining so Mustang may not count). Even without alchemy, he can dodge bullets and such with skill that makes nins from Naruto shiver and probably has the best melee skill in the anime. WITH alchemy, well, he can do what fps doug does the best, only with really calm demeanor.
Also personality-wise, even though it was completely fucked up anime (mind you, I am not telling it that it was bad, just saying it was really, REALLY different from the source material and when it comes to Scar’s character development, it was really screwed), he goes through one of the most dramatic personality change in the history of all manga, WITH not losing any of his badassery at all. Sure, I absolutely agree that the definition of ‘cool’ is very subjective, but I think he deserves at least a mention.

Lynsea, July 21, 2009:

okay, all u Lelouch fans. he’s a good character, but he doesn’t carry that suave demeanor that someone like Spike Spiegel or Lupin carries. and that’s what this list is aiming for. seriously. so look up the definition of ‘cool’ before yo go blabbing on about your opinion of the ‘best’ character rather than ‘coolest.’ (i love Kenshin, too…but same applies for him.)
i agree with all you Spike fans. SPIKE is the COOLEST character EVER!! his character says it all. for Christ sakes, he’s a sex symbol in the animeverse. on top of that he’s from the coolest anime ever. look at how many people still hang on to it and love it.
SPIKE FTW!! HE’S NUMBER ONE FOREVEH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Nick, September 4, 2009:

Spike easily takes 1st in being the coolest anime character ever! I’m glad you didn’t pick someone else because i would have had to write lots of hate mail. I understand that you have already put an FMA character up there but i think that Maes Hughes deserves to be up there too Mustang was an overall cooler character so i understand the choice, but
Hughes is definitely a cooler character on the one episode where he dies.

Sukai, September 4, 2009:

@ Nick:
I agree with you, he died a spectacular death. But I wanted to share the love, so I chose not to be tempted to include more than 1 character from a series.

darkguy5, September 20, 2009:

i agree but you should have added alucard from hellsing, he cariied a gun that it so unbalanced for men, cannot die, and kills a god just to name a few

Mik, September 29, 2009:

I agree, Gutz and Zoro are missing…otherwise, decent list…

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TBA’s Top 10 Coolest Men of Anime

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