Inspired by Cactus Matt’s list.

These are ranked by likelihood of happening (as of their stats as I type this post, so the 6th of July 2019 in my timezone) and personal preference for what I want adapted as a tiebreaker. If I haven’t stated in the discussion where it’s available from, you’ll see that in square brackets.

Factors I took into consideration:

• Does it have enough chapters for adaption, or does it need to rely on filler in its hypothetical anime adaption? Normally 100 chapters is a safe amount for an ongoing series before an anime is announced – 5 volumes normally means the number of chapters is in the 20s.
• Has it been licensed in print and/or digital formats? Being licensed in print means more awareness for the series than a digital licence and a current licence means more than one that’s fallen through.
• Does it have something else to promote it, such as a previous work by the same author that had some level of success? This includes whether it is attached to an existing franchise, but with the storylines of the main story and the manga in question being independent (but you would enjoy the manga more if you’re aware of the main storyline).
• Is it on hiatus/finished?
• Is there something similar out there that it can be compared to, for better or for worse? (I say “for worse” because Houseki no Kuni is being touted as “for fans of Steven Universe” as I type this…and it’s arguable – and has been argued by fans of both series – as to whether that association works.)

Now to the real content…

10. +Anima (5%)

This manga – or what I remember of it, since it’s out of print now (to the point where I had to chase down vol. 5 by less scrupulous methods) – is nice and sweet. However, it’s ended with 10 volumes and was originally licensed by Tokyopop, so there’s basically no saving it.

9. Moon Land (25% normally, 45% considering the 2020 Olympics)

[Available via Manga Plus]

It’s…about gymnastics. Yep, I didn’t expect to like this one either going into it, but here we are.

Sports manga aren’t known to do particularly well traditionally, so the fact Kuroko no Basuke and Haikyuu! got picked up by the Shonen Jump imprint means there is some hope of other sports manga…and by extension, sports anime…succeeding.

8. The Sign of Abyss (Yoru no Kagi) (while on hiatus 3%, while it’s not 30%)

It’s a fighting shonen with a cool central concept…with hard-to-adapt art, it’s currently got less than 100 chapters, it’s on Manga Plus via Media Do (meaning it’s not particularly well-known yet)...and it’s on hiatus.

…Ouch.

7. Abyss Rage (45%)

[Available via Manga Plus]

The stats on this one are probably better than some of the others on this list, considering it’s an action manga with fairly simple designs that would be easy to animate, plus the fact I can see it working on Netflix due to Baki the Grappler being there already. However, it’s for those reason I don’t particularly feel attached to it either.

6. Jigokuraku (Hell’s Paradise) (45%)

I fully expect the score to skyrocket after spring 2020. However, since this is 2019 still, I’ll keep my expectations low with the fact it’s available digitally via the Viz Media website (with an 18+ restriction for implied sexual intercourse and lotsa gore).

Cross my fingers and hope for a Netflix adaption, maybe…?

5. Black Torch (50%)

It’s complete at 5 volumes, but it holds all the tropes to make it a success…at least, Viz Media hopes for that enough to put out print volumes of it. Plus, if it succeeds, we can look forward to an adaption of Heart Gear as well!

(You can tell I just want Heart Gear but wouldn’t mind Black Torch as a stepping stone along the way, right…? Hehe…that’s so me.)

4. Clover (already has a music video, 10% otherwise)

[Available via Dark Horse Comics]

This CLAMP manga is, again, short and sweet…but it’s considered complete at 4 volumes, so it’s going to need filler to work. Then again, if Mahou Shoujo Ore can get an adaption with 2 volumes and Astra: Lost in Space and Angelic Layer can both get one with 5, I don’t see why not.

3. Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service (55%)

[Available via Dark Horse Comics]

Again, I’ll keep the score low for the sake of the metric tonnes of gore within its pages, but rumour has it…about 10 years ago…there was going to be a live-action for this, plus it currently has 14 volumes (not counting the omnibuses, of course).

2. Fushigi Yuugi: Genbu Kaiden (70%)

[Available via Viz Media and Chuang Yi, out of print from the latter]

With 12 volumes and being attached to an existing franchise without needing to know too much about one to get into the other, this would’ve made a perfect anime to follow up on the original series. However, its heyday passed as soon as it was finished and now even Byakko Ibun has come and gone, albeit as a one-shot.

Honorable mentions

• Heart Gear…Aside from what I said about Black Torch earlier, it’s got less than 10 chapters as I type this, so obviously it’s not going to get one any time soon.
• The Villainess Wants to Marry a Commoner!! – I only just discovered this series recently (it’s Japanese-only so far and some of the backlog on the website I found it on is only accessible to those who pay), but because it’s one of those otome isekai that have popped up as of late, I think it has a fighting chance in 2020 or beyond. It has 11 chapters but each of its chapters are split into smaller ones (e.g. 1 – 1), so it’s hard to determine an exact chapter count.

1. Boku no Hero Academia: Vigilantes (85%)

[Available via Viz Media]

It’s got less than 100 chapters, sure, but it’s being released in tandem with its existing franchise – give it the Sword Oratoria treatment but make it work. It’ll become absolutely stellar in its own right, I think.

All the scores are less than 90% because there’s clearly things holding them back from being adapted and you can never be too sure what the factors are for greenlighting an anime until you’re behind the scenes.

Anyways, enough from me. What manga do you think should have an anime? (I know for sure I haven’t even started on the manga I want anime for from Seven Seas and Kodansha USA/Del Rey/Yen Press, plus I haven’t gone in depth about the manga from Tokyopop…)