10 most hilarious slapstick comedy anime of all time

These three are among the 10 most hilarious anime (Image via Sportskeeda)
These three are among the 10 most hilarious anime (Image via Sportskeeda)

Slapstick humor has always been an integral part of comedy anime and uses exaggerated physical comedy. Slapstick comedy's popularity skyrocketed after it came into existence in the 16th century; however, over the course of decades, it somehow lost its charm.

That said, there are some comedy anime that have managed to revive slapstick humor and garnered a lot of praise from both anime and non-anime enthusiasts around the world. This article will list some of the most hilarious anime that can make anyone fall to the ground laughing through amusing facial expressions, creating absurd situations, or having someone get knocked out.


Shimoneta and 9 other anime that are known to be pure slapstick gems

1) Gintama

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From surreal slapstick humor to bewitching action sequences, Gintama has won the hearts of many fans. The world of Gintama takes place in a dystopian Edo period in Japan, where Earth got invaded by aliens called Amanto. After the invasion, the newly formed government forbade anyone from carrying swords.

However, the protagonist Sakata Gintoki disregarded the rule by sticking to his “way of the samurai,” and still carries a wooden katana. Doing odd jobs alongside his two subordinates, Kagura and Shinpachi — as well as a giant pet dog named Sadaharu — Gintoki is trying to make a living. But he, along with his gang, always runs into trouble.

With an ocean of hilarious characters and rib-tickling parodies, Gintama is truly the best of the best anime that has all the elements of the comedy genre.


2) Daily Life of Highschool Boys

Daily Life of Highschool Boys revolves around Tadakuni, Hidenori, and Yoshitake of the Sanada North High School. These three boys might not be good at academics, but their hyperactive imagination sets them apart from the rest of the world.

Dealing with intense romantic situations or fighting with humongous otherworldly robots, Tadakuni, Hidenori, and Yoshitake will do anything for the sake of humanity — in their colorful imaginations, at least. For these boys, even an ordinary stick lying on the sidewalk could seem like an Excalibur sword.

Daily Life of Highschool Boys is loved for its witty plotline and its absurd comedy, making it one of the must-watch anime on this list.


3) SHIMONETA: A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn't Exist

Main characters of SHIMONETA: A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn't Exist (Image via J.C.Staff/ Funimation)
Main characters of SHIMONETA: A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn't Exist (Image via J.C.Staff/ Funimation)

In the dystopian future of 2030, the government of Japan has officially banned everything that is obscene or immoral in society, be it jokes, distributing lewd material, or explicit language. However, a masked vigilante named Blue Snow is rebelling against the government for stealing free will from the citizens of Japan.

Tanukichi Ohma joins Japan’s leading elite school to reunite with his childhood friend and crush Anna Nishikinomiya; however, much to the former’s surprise, the latter turns out to be the infamous masked rebel.

Shimoneta has a fascinating cast of characters, with all those usual character tropes blending in, making it one of the best slapstick and lecherous comedy anime.


4) Asobi Asobase: Workshop of Fun

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Asobi Asobase: Workshop of Fun centers around the loudmouthed airhead Hanako Honda, the poker-faced introvert Kasumi Nomura, and a foreign student named Olivia who can’t speak English despite having English parents. These three friends have formed a coalition by introducing a club named Past Timers Club, where they can beat their boredom with their daily hijinks.

Be it playing an extremely violent version of Look-The-Other-Way or winning a race by throwing a shoe, Asobi Asobase: Workshop of Fun has everything at its disposal to turn a bad day around.


5) AHO-GIRL

Yoshiko Hanabatake is the titular AHO-GIRL, which literally translates to "Idiot Girl." Yoshiko is a natural-born fool, whose stupidity can surpass everyone’s expectations. Moreover, her mother lost hope in her only daughter. Yoshiko has an uncanny obsession with bananas, the only fruit she can’t stay without thinking about 24x7.

The only person who took up the job of keeping Yoshiko’s foolishness in check was her childhood best friend Akuru "A-kun" Akutsu, who doesn’t hold back from punching the character with tremendous force to knock some sense into her.

No matter how hard A-kun tries to make Yoshiko act sane, the latter bounces right back to her usual shenanigans. AHO-GIRL is one of the most underrated slapstick comedy anime that one shouldn’t miss out on.


6) Azumanga Daioh

All characters of the anime Azumanga Daioh (Image via Lerche/ Kadokawa/ Hakusensha)
All characters of the anime Azumanga Daioh (Image via Lerche/ Kadokawa/ Hakusensha)

Azumanga Daioh is praised for focusing on all the characters of the show, instead of focusing on just one. The series chronicles the lives of six girls: the 10-year-old academic prodigy Chiho Mahima, the short-tempered Kohomi Mizuhara, the optimistic tomboy Tomo Takino, the airhead Ayumu Kasuga, the tall and pretty Sakaki, and her rival Kagura.

These characters may seem hilarious, but no one comes closer to their homeroom teacher Yukari Tanizaki, who has a tendency not to give her actions any thought. Yukari would even hijack her student’s bike to avoid being late.

Azumanga Daioh is a not-so-typical high school anime that is filled with surreal slapstick-comedy elements.


7) Nichijou

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Nichijou is a slice-of-life anime with a blend of surreal comedies. The translation of Nichijou is "My Ordinary Life," which is exactly the opposite of what the series is all about. Mio Naganohara, Yuuko Aioi, and Mai Minakami are three childhood friends who might think their life is ordinary, but it isn’t.

The trio’s story intertwines with the 8-year-old scientist Hakase Shinonome, her robot caretaker Nano, and their talking cat Sakamoto. Nichijou emphasizes what seems to be the essence of slapstick comedy and induces lighthearted scenarios all within the same episode.

Nichijou is a series that moves one skit at a time and comprises a whole day filled with situations that aren’t ordinary. For instance, how often does one see their school principal suplexing a deer?


8) Prison School

Hachimatsu Private School, being an all-girl academy, has refurbished its policy, and now it welcomes boys, too. However, only five boys named Kiyoshi, Gakuto, Shingo, Andre, and Jo managed to get selected for the program, and they found that they were surrounded by thousands of girls.

These boys can’t suppress their eagerness to talk to their fellow female classmates, but their shy and lewd nature is becoming a hindrance. An indecent act lands these boys behind bars in the school prison by the Underground Student Council.

From this moment on, the tale of the boys' harsh lives in Prison School kicks off, where they have to maintain their composure and strengthen their brotherhood to overcome this nightmare. Prison School is one of the most underrated comedy anime, filled with melodramatic dialogs, bizarre facial expressions, and offbeat hilarious characters.


9) Haven't You Heard? I'm Sakamoto

Sakamoto as seen in the anime Haven't You Heard? I'm Sakamoto (Image via Sentai Filmworks/Studio Deen)
Sakamoto as seen in the anime Haven't You Heard? I'm Sakamoto (Image via Sentai Filmworks/Studio Deen)

The only word that is impossible to find in Sakamoto’s dictionary is the word “impossible” itself. Sakamoto is not just good at everything; he is flawless. Being the handsome perfectionist of his school, his male peers have become jealous of him. No matter how hard someone tries to pull pranks on Sakamoto, it always ends up making him look like the coolest guy on the face of the Earth.

Sakamoto has a range of bizarre secret techniques up his sleeve as well, like catching a bug with a compass, jumping from the school building with a makeshift parachute, and tricking people for their own benefit.


10) The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.

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Saiki Kusuo is blessed with supernatural psychic abilities from birth, where he can do anything in the world, like telekinesis, hypnosis, mind control, memory alteration, size augmentation, and more. Despite being the most powerful being beside his only brother Saiki Kusuke, he just wants to live an ordinary life without anyone’s interference.

Saiki Kusuo wants to keep his powers a secret from others, but the people around him, especially his peers, always try to test his patience, and he eventually gets dragged into a situation where he is forced to use his powers. The Disastrous Life of Saiki K is loved for its hilarious characters, who are regarded as the essence of the anime series.