Anime Series Like D. Gray Man

After three years training with one of their prestigious
Generals that saved him as a kid, Allen Walker is finally ready to join the
Black Order, an organization of exorcists that fight Akuma and their leader,
the Millennium Earl. With their Innocence weapons, Allen and his fellow
exorcist embark on a journey to stop the Earl’s plot of ultimate destruction.

D. Gray Man never quite took off as a staple shounen show, but for those who gave it a chance, there is a unique tale to fall in love with full of macabre stories and unique powers. If you are looking for something similar, then check out these D. Gray Man anime recommendations.

For Fans of Dark Shounen

Blue Exorcist

Humans and demons have always been separated by two
different worlds, humans in Assiah and demons in Gehenna. The only way to
travel between the worlds is by possession, which is how Satan, the ruler of
Gehenna, wages his war. Blue Exorcist follows Rin Okumura, a somewhat trouble
teen and son of Satan. However, while his father wants him to help conquer the
human world, Rin decides to become an exorcist to fight him instead.

Both shows are very much shounen battle shows where they are always progressing towards the next battle between the characters and next new baddie, but they also have a more macabre tone to then. They deal with a little more dark subject matter than your standard shounen show.

Soul Eater

Death City is home to a famous technical academy and ran by
Lord Death himself. At this academy, meisters train with their human weapons in
order to evolve them into Death Scythes to be wielded by the Grim Reaper, Lord
Death. Only by consuming 99 evils souls and the soul of one witch will a weapon
be able to evolve. This is the story of several students of the academy as they
try to grow stronger and protect Death City in the process.

Both shows are like the goth version of shounen. They have this sort of dark style to them that works really well. They both have moments where they have their fun, but the characters themselves aren’t particularly bubbly all the time.

Hunter x Hunter

Twelve-year-old Gon Freecss is determined to become a
world-class Hunter, a skilled individual that perform all manner of dangerous
tasks, in order to find out what happened to his father.  However, Gon
finds that the path to achieving his goals is more challenging than he could
have ever imagined, but in order to overcome it, Gon recruits some powerful
friends.

While you can tell that D. Gray Man is going to be a darker show from the get-go, Hunter x Hunter hides its hand for awhile. It is presented like a standard shounen, but when it gets dark, man, it does not pull any punches.

For Fans of Unique Powers

Fairy Tail

After meeting a powerful fire mage named Natsu Dragneel by
chance, celestial mage Lucy Heartfilia discovers he is part of the famous Fairy
Tail wizarding guild. Returning home with him, she decides to join, a decision
that will take her and Natsu on a series of life-changing adventures.

If you enjoyed how every character basically came with a new style of fighting, then Fairy Tail is for you. Every character uses magic in a different sort of way which keeps fights from becoming boring or repetitive.

Bleach

Ichigo Kurosaki is an average high schooler, except for the
ability to see ghosts. One night, his family is attacked by a Hollow, a corrupt
spirit that devours souls, and he a Soul Reaper named Rukia fights it.
However, in the process, Rukia is injured, forcing her to share her powers with
Ichigo in order to survive. From there Ichigo must face down with Hollows and
other Soul Reapers alike, not yet knowing what powerful enemies lurk out in the
universe and what devastating powers lie within himself.

In D. Gray Man, every innocence presents itself in different forms. In Bleach, it is the same for soul reapers and their swords. They can take the form of different weapons, which makes their fighting styles unique. Furthermore, both shows have a lot of unique character designs.

Fullmetal Alchemist

After their attempt to bring their mother back from the dead
goes horribly wrong, Edward is left without an arm and leg while his brother
Al’s soul is only bound to this world by a suit of armor. The two brothers
journey to look for a way to bring Al’s body back, in the process joining the
military as alchemists. However, the object that could bring back Al’s body is
not the only problem they encounter.

As you are introduced to different characters in both shows, you learn their different specialties. Not everyone is a fighter, but everyone has a talent. Furthermore, as Fullmetal Alchemist goes on, it gets really quite dark.

For Fans of Monster Hunters

Claymore

In the world of Claymore, humans coexists with demons called
Youma. In order to combat these violent creatures, human / Youma hybrids called
Claymores were made. The story begins with Raki, a young boy who lost his
family to a Youma attack meeting the Claymore Claire. Though detested by
society, Raki begins to bond with the Claymore, and as they journey, they come
to understand each other better.

Both series are about organizations that hunt down monsters that plague humanity. The difference is that Claymores don’t really hide in the shadows, but they are greatly disdained by humanity. Exorcists, however, fly widely under the radar.

Seraph of the End

After a mysterious virus killed every human over 13 years
old, the vampires rose up with a promise to protect the survivors. The only
thing they asked in return is donations of blood. For Yuuichirou and Mikaela,
they have grown tired of being livestock and pose a daring escape plan. It
ultimately fails with only Yuuichirou left alive. However, after joining up
with a mercenary company, he swears vengeance on the vampires, no matter the
cost.

Both series follow rather formal, almost militaristic organizations that fight monsters that feed on humanity in various ways. They also focus on characters who can develop unique powers from their weapons.

Attack on Titan

Facing imminent extinction, humanity retreated behind a
series of tall, thick walls to escape their most dangerous threat – massive
human-like Titans with a taste for human flesh. With an enemy that eats
humanity for fun rather than food, they are at constant threat. As such, it is
the duty of every human to defend the species. Enter Eren Yegaer, after his
village was destroyed by a Titan breach, Eren and his adopted sister Mikasa
join the Survey Corps, a faction of the military that scouts and combats Titans
outside the walls. After joining in the brutal war, Eren discovers a brutal
secret about himself that could unravel what the world thinks they know about
Titans.

Humanity in both series lives in fear of titans and akuma. As such, there are organizations in place that are trained to fight them. Furthermore, both series are set in kind of a historical setting, but not really, as they have some non-historical conveniences.

Do you have more anime recommendations like D. Gray Man? Let
fans know in the comments section below.