Everyone loves the comedy relief character, the ones that are there to pick us up with a laugh when we’re down or just lighten the mood in a grim episode. Picking through anime from the last few decades, we’ve assembled a list of the top 10 funniest anime characters that will make sure to keep you laughing.
10. Alphonse Elric
- Series: Fullmetal Alchemist
- Humor: Optimistic, yet grim.
- Best Running Joke: People think Al is the Fullmetal Alchemist instead of Ed.
Alphonse is a good kid, and nobody can blame him for the overly dark sense of humor he has about things going on. A lot of times he’s just trying to provide a balance to Ed, giving his best effort to be optimistic but coming off a little too dark for most. Adding in the running gag of everyone mistaking him for the Fullmetal Alchemist just makes Al even more likable as he tries to redirect them.
Alphonse is the more level headed of the brothers a lot of the time, more prone to profuse apologizing even if he isn’t at fault, unlike Ed who tries to immediately kill anyone who calls him short. Ed being restrained by Al because some comment or another set him off was a long running joke through the series.
9. Koro-Sensei
- Series: Assassination Classroom
- Humor: Wholesome and encouraging, but also a little violent. Massive perv.
- Best Running Joke: The constant fourth wall breaks about other manga/anime.
A tentacled alien that can move faster than sound, a classroom of rejects and failures, and one year for the students to kill him. As violent and deranged as it sounds, Assassination Classroom is one of the most all-around wholesome and heartfelt anime out there. Many of his traits stem from trying to be both a good teacher as well as a good example to his students, who through their studies learn his strange quirks.
There are a lot to learn too, with Koro being a constant glutton, fast learner, clumsy despite his powers, and a complete, unrepentant pervert. They together learn to exploit these weaknesses to complete their mission while he cheers for them the whole way.
8. Satoru Gojo
- Series: Jujutsu Kaisen
- Humor: Aloof and carefree
- Best Running Joke: His unorthodox ways of teaching (Being a jackass to everyone).
Oh, Gojo. The latest to fill the critical anime archetype of the aloof, carefree teacher character that could wreck a city in moments. Gojo grew up knowing he was a child of prophecy that would become the most powerful Jujutsu Sorcerer alive, and it definitely gave him an inflated ego as he got older. He rarely steps in to fight unless necessary, preferring to cheer on his students or just make joking commentary. When he does fight, most time is spent mocking his enemy if he’s not pissed off.
Despite all his hubris and seeming carelessness, Gojo really does care about those he protects and will stop any present in order to prevent loss of life. He might make a big deal out of it and tease everyone afterward, but he will get the job done.
7. Kisuke Urahara
- Series: Bleach
- Humor: Carefree and teasing
- Best Running Joke: Keeps inventing things everyone needs, but is still a businessman.
Kisuke was an early fan favorite in Bleach, coming in as the mysterious shop owner that knew far more about the world of Soul Reapers and Hollows. The typical carefree attitude with massive underlying power always provided some great comedy with other characters, but his interactions with Yoruichi always brought out the best in the character, balancing his zaniness with her serious, no-nonsense nature.
Most of his fun as a character comes from his secrecy, with knowledge about many things after his time as captain in the Soul Society and involvement with Aizen/Vizards that he could have shared with Ichigo to prepare him, but instead decided to wave it off with giggles.
6. Gintoki
- Series: Gintama
- Humor: Quirky, meta, and often crass.
- Best Running Joke: Breaking down the tropes of other Shonen titles and using popular series as jokes.
Gin is just one of the components that keep Gintama together, with the long-running samurai series evolving through the years to become a pivotal piece of comedy anime. Nobody is off limits in Gintama, with everything being made the butt of irreverent jokes from multiple members of the Joestar family to real-life celebrities.
Strange to think that a series like Gintama would become such an icon of comedy anime, starting out as a typical Shonen anime grounded in Samurai tales. After a few episodes everyone began to catch on, letting the comedy become the defining characteristic of the wandering samurai.
5. Power
- Series: Chainsaw Man
- HumorDegenerate, no manners, creator Tatsuki Fujimoto has said she is based on Eric Cartman from South Park.
- Best Joke: Her constant threats against the humans around her, despite her inability to act on them.
Power fits the niche that for some reason people go wild over, which is an attractive female with the personality of a gremlin. She’s rude, she’s inconsiderate, she’s messy, and according to multiple other characters, smells terrible. Yet her status as half of the idiot devil duo with Denji makes her one of the funniest characters, with her arrogant boasting often leading to ridiculous (false) achievements.
Even worse, she’s manipulative and knows just how to make Denji do what she wants, offering the boob grab in exchange for rescuing Meowy, exploiting Denji’s greatest weakness. Hey, he’s a little more resilient at least.
4. Ryuk
- Series: Death Note
- Humor: Dark, but he is a Shinigami. Usually makes dry jokes while human-watching
- Best Joke: His affinity for apples with apathy toward humanity.
While Light may have become a genocidal villain with a god complex, Ryuk the god of death remains one of the most relatable characters in anime. After all, he’s just bored and wants something to do, so why not stir up a little trouble with the humans? We do it to ourselves every day, after all. The best part of Ryuk though is that Light can bribe this legendary reaper of death with a simple basket of apples.
Ryuk is such an easygoing character it’s easy to forget he’s a god who’s been doing this for hundreds, if not thousands of years. The laid back and lackadaisical nature makes him a great comedic foil for the deadly serious Light as he watches the cat and mouse game with no stakes for himself.
3. Hatake Kakashi
- Series: Naruto
- Humor: Nonchalant, but encouraging. Also a massive perv.
- Best Joke: His obsession with Make-Out Paradise, coincidentally written by Jiraiya.
Kakashi was one of the first aloof, quiet badasses of anime. While he came into Naruto first appearing as lazy and uncaring, Kakashi quickly proved his battle prowess by beating down recruits while still reading some rather adult books. While he tries his best to encourage his team, a lot of times his words of encouragement can come off as incredibly sarcastic.
He even evolves past the serious teacher role, taking on more comedic ability as we see his interactions with fellow shinobi like his “sworn rival” Might Guy. Despite their obvious gap in power, Guy always manages to bring out the best of his friend during their fights with some amazing trash talk.
2. Buggy the Clown/Nico Robin TIE
- Series: One Piece
- Humor: Buggy is funny because of his constant failing upward, while Robin usually says the darkest possible outcome for whatever current situation the crew is in.
- Best Joke: Buggy becoming Emperor (while doing next to nothing). Robin’s recurring jokes about mass death.
Buggy and Robin were both too funny to pass up, but we tried to keep a one-series per-entry limit. Buggy has been somewhat of a joke from the beginning with his bad luck often leading him astray in the first half of the story. Move to the New World and he’s miraculously failed upwards into the position of an Emperor of the Sea. Robin meanwhile, being a survivor of an imposed genocide before going on the run her entire life, has learned to deal with things in a much more grim fashion. When there’s any question about how things could have gone wrong, Robin is always there to offer the worst possibility in glaring detail.
Buggy will always be the king of One Piece comedy though, with the clown taking every bit of bad luck turned at him and somehow making it work in his favor, though he may take a heavy beating in the process. It’s almost like his Devil Fruit could be the Luck-Luck Fruit instead of Chop-Chop Fruit.
1. The Entire Cast of Ghost Stories
- Series: Ghost Stories
- Humor: Some of the most out-of-pocket, meta, crass, and purely dumb jokes ever made.
- Best Joke: Momoko is a hardcore evangelist.
Is there much to be said about Ghost Stories? Of course, this only counts for the English dub, which was already considered a loss when the studio began working on it. The English cast and production crew jumped on this opportunity, doing a massive amount of adlibbing that created entirely new characters and plots, as well as infinitely hilarious scenes that have to be seen to be believed. “Go fill your hole, hole filler!”
Everyone in the show has some distinguishing comedic trait too which elevates it all. Momoko is a devout Christian evangelist, frequently preaching to the other characters that are more than fed up with her. Instant sermons. Even better are the side characters, who usually meet terrible fates but manage to do it in the most hilarious way possible, whether it be by demons that become bound to a cat or ghosts camping out in a toilet.
Okay, this may not be a top ten list but a few extra never hurt, right? These characters are all sure to bring a laugh, no matter your sense of humor, and most will bring some good action while doing it.
