Donghua, sometimes known as “Chinese anime,” has grown in popularity in recent years and is on its way to become the next great thing in animation. Although many anime lovers are unfamiliar with Donghua, these Chinese animation works have a lot to offer.
Chinese anime, as the name implies, refers to animations developed in China or Chinese adaptations of Manhua, or Chinese manga, and is often referred to as Donghua. With several manhuas gaining popularity both domestically and internationally, Chinese anime is seeing a large surge in audience as well as a significant improvement in animation quality.
Initially, donghua were solely available for consumption by Chinese audiences. With the growing popularity of some donghua in overseas markets, more shows began to get English subtitles.
Many donghua may be found on YouTube, where fans have subtitled them. For those who are new to the world of donghua, here are some must-see titles that will undoubtedly increase the number of donghua lovers.
Japan is no longer the only country where anime-style works are produced. In addition to genre-inspired shows produced in the United States, China has its own style. In fact, the country’s government has fostered the creation of donghua in order to establish a national identity since 2006.
1. Mo Dao Zu Shi (Grandmaster Of Demonic Cultivation)
Xian: the immortal condition sought by all cultivators. However, beneath the surface, dark energy exists—the forbidden Mo Dao or demonic path. Due to a horrific series of disasters, cultivator Wei Wuxian experiments with this approach during his lessons.
His rise to power is characterized by chaos and destruction, but his reign of terror is cut short when the cultivation clans topple him, and he is assassinated by his closest ally.
Wei Wuxian is reborn thirteen years later in the body of a lunatic and reunited with an old classmate, Lan Wangji. This is the beginning of a supernatural mystery that has engulfed the clans and threatens to disrupt their daily lives.
Mo Dao Zu Shi follows these two individuals on their quest to solve the spiritual world’s secrets. The two fight demons, ghosts, and even other cultivators and end up developing an unexpected relationship.
Wei Wuxian is a really entertaining protagonist to watch—he’s a troublemaker who enjoys teasing and isn’t scared to speak his thoughts.
2. Quanzhi Gaoshou (The King’s Avatar)
Ye Xiu is widely regarded as a pioneer and top-tier professional player in the online multiplayer game Glory, earning the nickname “Battle God” for his abilities and contributions to the game over the years.
After being forced to leave the team and his gaming career, he seeks employment at a nearby internet café. When Glory’s tenth server goes live, he returns to the game as “Lord Grim.” a new character.
Many players, as well as huge guilds, are interested in Ye Xiu’s early achievements on the new server, prompting them to speculate about his identity.
Despite his ten years of experience and in-depth knowledge, starting from scratch with no sponsors or team in a game that has evolved over time presents various hurdles. Ye Xiu recommits himself to ascending the path to Glory’s summit with his talented new comrades!
Overall, this is an excellent series about expert video game players. It employs a logical framework, intriguing and developed characters, and well done yet easy to overlook symbolism and character development, all while not slacking on action and animation in the least, to present a terrific story about grownups who love gaming.
3. Douluo Dalu (Soul Land)
Tang San is a prominent Tang Sect martial art clan disciple who excels at using hidden weapons. Tang’s future is bright in the eyes of the sect’s leaders, but he chooses to forego this life in order to attain the sect’s forbidden lore—an action that is punishable by death.
Tang, satisfied with his newfound knowledge, feels no reason to live any longer and jumps from Hell’s Peak, unaware that this is not the end of his story.
The Douluo Continent is ruled by the strong, while the weak perish. Everyone has an innate spirit that may be fostered and strengthened to provide numerous benefits to the user. Spirit Masters are born with such spirits and are regarded as one of the continent’s most honorable professions.
Since his rebirth into this alien realm, Tang has only known the life of a blacksmith’s son. When he’s six years old, he takes part in the Spirit Master ceremony and discovers that his spirit is Blue Silver Grass, the most useless spirit in the world. He does, however, have a high level of spiritual power. Tang’s prospects as a Spirit Master have improved thanks to his recollections from a past life.
4. Zhen Hun Jie (Rakshasa Street)
Requiem Street attracts evil spirits in order to destroy them. Spirits and humans coexist on Requiem Street, but not all humans are permitted to enter.
The only humans permitted to enter are rare-soul users with guardian spirits. Xia Ling was an ordinary university intern until a chance meeting changed her life. Can you work cooperatively with your guardian spirit to live in this world teeming with evil spirits?
The show is divided into two parts: Yin and Yang. Yang chronicles the adventure of the female protagonist Xia Ling as she discovers Rakshasa Street and searches for her spirit guardian with the assistance of present General Cao Yanbing. The Yin section depicts the Cao brothers’ history. The two sections alternate one another.
The basic plot is very typical in comparison to other action/supernatural Japanese animations, but the execution is excellent, and it remembers its place in terms of how powerful a character is and the boundaries of what can be done in terms of malicious scheming. There are no superpowers that are not properly explained, and nothing genuinely breaches the “laws of the story world.”
5. Xian Wang de Richang Shenghuo (The Daily Life of the Immortal King)
Wang Ling, the cultivation genius who has advanced to a new realm every two years since he was a year old, is nearly unbeatable and possesses skills well beyond his control. However, now that he is sixteen, he will face his most challenging obstacle yet: Senior High School. His intentions for a low-key high school life appear to be unraveling as one hurdle after another surface.
This is a fun series about an odd boy navigating the problems of his new magical high school while trying to keep his hidden identity secure. However, there are some very emotional moments interspersed throughout this frequently hilarious story.
Ling has always maintained a safe distance from others in order to keep his unfathomable power hidden, and whenever he is called upon to utilize it, he dampens his vast power. Throughout the series, his attempts to diminish himself socially and magically are the most amusing. Despite the fact that Ling has spent his entire life doing both, he continues to fail at both.
To summarize, this anime has an excellent combination of magical school life, comedy, and action.
6. Ling Qi (Spiritpact)
You Keika has to work part-time to try to get out of poverty after a string of unfortunate events. Following a strange encounter with a white-haired man, You wake up in a junkyard, only to realize that he was murdered in a horrific accident and has become a spirit.
Tanmoku Ki, the man he met, turns out to be the 13th Youmeshi of the Tanmoki, China’s most powerful exorcist family. When he takes to notice the wandering spirit, he offers You a deal: he will safeguard You from humans in return for You becoming his spirit shadow, which will keep him safe and protected at all times.
Since then, the two have faced numerous trials in the spiritual world, all while attempting to keep those around them safe from evil spirits. Along the journey, their pact evolves into something more; a friendship that none of them expected. A lingering admiration begins to form behind their positions as master and servant.
Ling Qi is a wonderful anime with a more complicated story than you might imagine. The viewer is lured in from the very first episode.
7. Da Yu Hai Tang (Big Fish & Begonia)
In an ancient mythological world, spirit-like beings oversee the natural order of the mortal realm. Chun, a young girl, has just come of age and must fulfill her rite of passage by seeing the human world for herself. She becomes entangled in a fishing net and is freed by a human boy during her stay.
However, the boy drowns during the encounter, and Chun returns to her realm filled with remorse. She then meets the Soul Keeper and decides to resurrect the boy in exchange for a portion of her life. She has no idea that interfering with the natural order of the planet has serious implications.
Da Yu Hai Tang tells a story about sacrifice and redemption as Chun confronts her power boundaries and deals with death, love, and her own emotions. She must decide whether to sacrifice all to save the human boy or to forego her moral commitment for the sake of world order.
Deep storyline, a lovely message, and plenty of much-appreciated pleasant sentiments.
8. Quanzhi Fashi (Full-Time Magister)
Mo Fan, an aloof high schooler, has found himself in a universe that’s similar to but still different from his own mundane one; it’s a place where magic has replaced the essence of science. The most skilled pupils are educated here to master the wonders of spell working in order to defend the city from big destructive beasts lurking in the nearby forests.
Mo Fan, like in his former existence, is the son of an impoverished laborer and the older step-brother of a disabled sister. Despite these limitations, he aspires to attend a magic school and become a magician—a highly renowned and wealthy trade—to repay his father for his efforts.
Mo Fan has been accepted to a renowned magic school. However, rumors spread about his poverty and lack of magical skill, making him the school’s laughingstock. Mo Fan, however, manages to harness not only the formidable fire element but also the rare lightning element! What frightening encounters will the versatile mage confront now that he is armed with two abilities?
This is a highly enjoyable short magic animation featuring a strong and determined hero who wants to transform his and the people around him’s lives.
9. Shuangsheng Lingtan (Twins Spirit Investigators)
The world is always more than meets the eye. This is the motto that Sun Xiaotu and Sun Xiaohu live by as paranormal investigators, where what may be frightening to some is merely another day at work.
Normally, they can easily separate their personal lives from their work, but when they travel to investigate an apparently ordinary haunting of a set of twins, a series of unusual events call their understanding of the supernatural world into question, as they become a target of the hauntings themselves.
The more the brothers investigate the paranormal mysteries presented to them, the blurrier the borders between truth and fiction become. A question remains as they embark on the tough and sometimes hazardous journeys ahead: what type of secrets are the ghosts attempting to keep from them, and are they already more connected to the spirits than they first thought?
The plot is detailed, and the plot twists, while not very memorable, build up to make the pacing fascinating and unexpected. The characters aren’t especially unique, but they don’t lack character development. They’re straightforward, likable, and pleasant.
10. Huyao Xiao Hongniang (Fox Spirit Matchmaker)
True love never dies, even between humans and near-immortal youkai. Thankfully, fox spirit youkai have discovered a remedy that allows a human to be reincarnated and gradually retrieve memories of their previous life with the help of a Fox Spirit Matchmaker, allowing them to begin anew with their beloved youkai.
Bai Yuechu, a powerful human Taoist, enters, wanting independence from the ruling Yi Qi Dao League, as well as Tushan Susu, a small and innocent fox spirit who wishes to be a renowned matchmaker even though she has a reputation as a colossal blunder.
Susu literally crashes through the roof and into his life, and Yuechu is pulled into helping her reunite two estranged lovers: prince Fan Yun Fei and Li Xueyang, his reincarnated lover. However, not everyone wishes for their reunion, even Xueyang. Yuechu and Susu, brought together by chance, will discover who they truly are and who they once were.
Each character is fully developed through numerous scenes and flashbacks, making them feel authentic. This includes love. You’re never merely told that two characters adore one other: you get the complete tale and grow to care about them.