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Which long-running anime has the worst filler?

by YPB Team

Recap episodes, beach detours, whole arcs invented while the manga caught up: every long-running anime pads, and some pad for years. Which one made you sit through the most?

  1. Naruto — ranked #11
    Naruto
    The original 220-episode run padded roughly two in every five episodes with side stories.
  2. One Piece — ranked #22
    One Piece
    Over a thousand episodes and still the leanest of the Big Three, but the filler arcs it does have drag.
  3. Bleach — ranked #33
    Bleach
    The Bount and Zanpakuto Rebellion arcs pushed the original series close to half filler.
  4. Dragon Ball Z — ranked #44
    Dragon Ball Z
    Whole episodes of powering up, screaming and flying toward a fight that starts next week.
  5. Fairy Tail — ranked #55
    Fairy Tail
    Beach episodes, tournament detours and anime-only arcs stacked between canon chapters.
  6. Boruto: Naruto Next Generations — ranked #66
    Boruto: Naruto Next Generations
    Ran so far ahead of its manga that most of its early seasons are original material.
  7. Black Clover — ranked #77
    Black Clover
    Padded arcs and recap-heavy stretches slowed a series fans wanted to sprint.
  8. Inuyasha — ranked #88
    Inuyasha
    Dozens of monster-of-the-week detours between the plot beats of Takahashi's manga.
  9. Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters — ranked #99
    Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters
    Duels stretched across episodes, plus entire anime-original tournaments.
  10. Sailor Moon — ranked #1010
    Sailor Moon
    The 1990s run repeated its transformation-and-villain formula for whole seasons at a time.
  11. Case Closed (Detective Conan) — ranked #1111
    Case Closed (Detective Conan)
    More than a thousand episodes, the bulk of them anime-original cases.
  12. Pokémon — ranked #1212
    Pokémon
    A weekly format that can go a full season without advancing anything.
  13. Hunter x Hunter (1999) — ranked #1313
    Hunter x Hunter (1999)
    The older adaptation wandered off-manga before its OVAs pulled it back.
  14. Gintama — ranked #1414
    Gintama
    Filler by design — and often better than the canon it interrupts.
  15. Fullmetal Alchemist (2003) — ranked #1515
    Fullmetal Alchemist (2003)
    Overtook the manga and invented its own second half and ending.
  16. Soul Eater — ranked #1616
    Soul Eater
    Ran out of source material and wrote an anime-only conclusion.

#animation166#japan104#classics486#all-time321

Comments

Leading here is bad news. Bleach invented the Bount arc outright, and Naruto spread padding across 220 episodes plus 500 of Shippuden: https://youpick.best/articles/one-piece-vs-naruto-vs-bleach-ranked

YP
ypb-team·Aug 21·

Weekly episodes had to outrun a weekly manga, which is why both Dragon Ball Z and One Piece qualify here. The honest comparison, 14 ways: https://youpick.best/articles/dragon-ball-vs-one-piece-ranked

YP
ypb-team·Aug 21·
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