Did you like the first season of The Promised Neverland (Yakusoku no Neverland)? If so, you were probably immensely disappointed by the second one — or heard about how bad it is from other anime fans.
And while it deserves the hate it gets, the first season is still worth it. Just read the manga for the series — or, if you want to find something similar in anime, watch one of these!
Made in Abyss is probably about as close to The Promised Neverland. It follows a group of kids trying to figure out the grand mystery behind something.
The goals are directly opposite, however: in Neverland, the characters are trying to escape from somewhere, while in Made in Abyss, they’re trying to get there. Both also have large worlds full of mystery and uncertainty, and both can be surprisingly gruesome.
Shadows House
Similarly to Neverland, Shadows House is a mystery series which features a group of kids being raised in a closed-off facility for an unknown purpose.
The mystery behind the things that happen there is one of the main selling points of Shadows House, and while it’s more focused on character drama, it is still similar at many points.
Another aspect of Neverland is survival. One of the best anime that focus on humanity just trying to survive against threatening monsters is Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin). Just that wouldn’t make it similar to The Promised Neverland, though.
Thankfully, the world is also more complicated than it looks like at first in AoT. Both series rely heavily on shock value and plot twists.
While it is commonly criticized for weak last episodes, it doesn’t make it any less spectacular. Watching genius characters is absolutely awesome.
Seraph of the End
Seraph of the End: Vampire Reign (Owari no Seraph) is also focused on children being raised as livestock for monsters. In Seraph of the End, it’s vampires, though — and the anime is not as brutal as The Promised Neverland.
That said, it’s still very fun to follow, being yet another series where humanity has to survive and overthrow their supernatural enemies.
Astra Lost in Space
Group of kids being kept away from society, with the true purpose of this setup being kept away from that. This is something that can be said about The Promised Neverland, but it also works as a description for Astra Lost in Space (Kanata no Astra).
Despite belonging to completely different genres, these two anime have somewhat similar initial setups — and both have many plot twists that’ll leave you speechless.
Just like The Promised Neverland and the aforementioned Death Note, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion (Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch) is an anime that heavily relies on its protagonist’s genius plans. It’s similar to Neverland in other ways as well, though.
A lot of elements of the series are a mystery, and their true nature is kept hidden for a while. Also, it deals with overthrowing the existing system — which is something that the Neverland cast wanted to do.
A mystery thriller with psychological elements set in a post-apocalyptic world, Heavenly Delusion (Tengoku Daimakyou) is a great recommendation if you liked The Promised Neverland.
The anime opens with orphans being raised in an experimental facility — and while the main plot doesn’t follow from there, that’s still a major plot point in the series.
From the New World (Shinsekai yori) is actually very similar to The Promised Neverland in setup, despite being completely different in execution. It’s a post-apocalyptic dystopia disguised to look normal, where children are raised for an unknown purpose.
That said, while The Promised Neverland is a high-paced thriller revolving around ways to outsmart the enemies, From the New World is a slow-burn psychological horror. Things seem to be mostly fine at first, only to get worse and worse later on.
Both The Promised Neverland and Hunter x Hunter are shounen series, but that’s not the only similarity. They both have unique worlds with magical/supernatural elements, but are very grounded in their tone — and, occasionally, very gruesome.
Both have very young protagonists, whose abilities — physical and mental — are bordering on superhuman for their age.
Children of the Whales
Children of the Whales (Kujira no Kora wa Sajou ni Utau) is another series with a huge cast of characters living a lie in a world where they have to escape and find the truth.
That alone makes it similar to The Promised Neverland, and, of course, nothing is as easy as it seems to be. The series was praised a lot for its unique art style.
Instead of watching Season 2, how about these?
Did you like the first season of The Promised Neverland (Yakusoku no Neverland)? If so, you were probably immensely disappointed by the second one — or heard about how bad it is from other anime fans.
And while it deserves the hate it gets, the first season is still worth it. Just read the manga for the series — or, if you want to find something similar in anime, watch one of these!
Made in Abyss is probably about as close to The Promised Neverland. It follows a group of kids trying to figure out the grand mystery behind something.
The goals are directly opposite, however: in Neverland, the characters are trying to escape from somewhere, while in Made in Abyss, they’re trying to get there. Both also have large worlds full of mystery and uncertainty, and both can be surprisingly gruesome.
Shadows House
Similarly to Neverland, Shadows House is a mystery series which features a group of kids being raised in a closed-off facility for an unknown purpose.
The mystery behind the things that happen there is one of the main selling points of Shadows House, and while it’s more focused on character drama, it is still similar at many points.
Another aspect of Neverland is survival. One of the best anime that focus on humanity just trying to survive against threatening monsters is Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin). Just that wouldn’t make it similar to The Promised Neverland, though.
Thankfully, the world is also more complicated than it looks like at first in AoT. Both series rely heavily on shock value and plot twists.
While it is commonly criticized for weak last episodes, it doesn’t make it any less spectacular. Watching genius characters is absolutely awesome.
Seraph of the End
Seraph of the End: Vampire Reign (Owari no Seraph) is also focused on children being raised as livestock for monsters. In Seraph of the End, it’s vampires, though — and the anime is not as brutal as The Promised Neverland.
That said, it’s still very fun to follow, being yet another series where humanity has to survive and overthrow their supernatural enemies.
Astra Lost in Space
Group of kids being kept away from society, with the true purpose of this setup being kept away from that. This is something that can be said about The Promised Neverland, but it also works as a description for Astra Lost in Space (Kanata no Astra).
Despite belonging to completely different genres, these two anime have somewhat similar initial setups — and both have many plot twists that’ll leave you speechless.
Just like The Promised Neverland and the aforementioned Death Note, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion (Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch) is an anime that heavily relies on its protagonist’s genius plans. It’s similar to Neverland in other ways as well, though.
A lot of elements of the series are a mystery, and their true nature is kept hidden for a while. Also, it deals with overthrowing the existing system — which is something that the Neverland cast wanted to do.
A mystery thriller with psychological elements set in a post-apocalyptic world, Heavenly Delusion (Tengoku Daimakyou) is a great recommendation if you liked The Promised Neverland.
The anime opens with orphans being raised in an experimental facility — and while the main plot doesn’t follow from there, that’s still a major plot point in the series.
From the New World (Shinsekai yori) is actually very similar to The Promised Neverland in setup, despite being completely different in execution. It’s a post-apocalyptic dystopia disguised to look normal, where children are raised for an unknown purpose.
That said, while The Promised Neverland is a high-paced thriller revolving around ways to outsmart the enemies, From the New World is a slow-burn psychological horror. Things seem to be mostly fine at first, only to get worse and worse later on.
Both The Promised Neverland and Hunter x Hunter are shounen series, but that’s not the only similarity. They both have unique worlds with magical/supernatural elements, but are very grounded in their tone — and, occasionally, very gruesome.
Both have very young protagonists, whose abilities — physical and mental — are bordering on superhuman for their age.
Children of the Whales
Children of the Whales (Kujira no Kora wa Sajou ni Utau) is another series with a huge cast of characters living a lie in a world where they have to escape and find the truth.
That alone makes it similar to The Promised Neverland, and, of course, nothing is as easy as it seems to be. The series was praised a lot for its unique art style.
