Any anime have Black characters?

[I_SO_TIRED]

Exactly what the title says, since I'm starting to get into anime now I was wondering if any of them had characters that were African American.

[GameGeeks]

Yes, but mostly anime characters are white since it's closer to the Asian skin tone and the Japanese viewers they're originally made for can relate to them better.

[-GAZKUL-]

i think Baccano!! has one, so does Eyeshield 21. off the top of my head i can't remember any others.

[I_SO_TIRED]

Alright thanks, I figured there wouldn't be much African Americans, yet I can't possibly feel discriminated against since anime is so... interesting. Whatever ya know? a shows a show.

[-GAZKUL-]

There are waaay too few at the moment, but like GG said the thing about the skin tone and the japaneese is a reason for it.

[I_SO_TIRED]

Guess I have to explore a bit if I wanna find more...

[Lord]

Afro Samurai
Bleach (though he isn't the main character)
Pokemon

[Nanobyte]

I've always wondered this...
There should be more races in anime, not just asian people.
I don't find anime discriminating, but some Black characters wouldn't hurt at all. o.o

[The_Angry_Princess]

Bleach has Kaname Tousen

[Princely Dreaming Doll]

Tenjou Tenge also has a black character, though he isn't the main character.

Air Gear too, but he isn't the main character.

[Shini]

Killer Bee.

From Naruto. Dare someone to find a more powerful Black character.

[wolfgirl90]

Exactly what the title says, since I'm starting to get into anime now I was wondering if any of them had characters that were African American.

That honestly depends on what you mean by "African American". If you simply mean characters with dark skin (regardless of origin), there are plenty of those:

Afro Samurai
Bobobo-bo-Bo-bobo (if one wants to count him as such)
Outlaw Star
Shaman King
Revolutionary Girl Utena
Tenchi Muyo
Cowboy Bebop
Escaflowne
Battle Athletes Victory
Bleach
Fullmetal Alchemist
Hellsing
Pokemon
Robotech
Slam Dunk
Nadia: Secret of the Blue Water
Eyeshield 21
Bubblegum Crisis
RahXephon
Oh! My Goddess
Air Gear
Soul Eater
Vandread
Love Hina
Full Metal Panic Second Raid
Wolf's Rain
Gundam Seed
Samurai 7
Ragnarok
Darker Than Black
Gankutsuou
Ergo Proxy
S-cry-ed

I have more (those the ones that came to my head). Now, if you are looking for anime that specifically have characters with African decent (you will be hard pressed to find ANY anime with characters who are African-"American"), I have included those in the list above.

I've always wondered this...
There should be more races in anime, not just asian people.
I don't find anime discriminating, but some Black characters wouldn't hurt at all. o.o

Keep in mind that Japan is relatively homogeneous culturally, linguistically and ethnically. Basically, everyone has the same culture, everyone speaks the same language (with different dialects for different regions) and almost everyone is of the same ethnic group.

The dominant ethnic group in Japan is the Yamato people. The minorities are the Ainu, the Ryukyuans, and then the various foreign ethnic groups. With this in mind, most Japanese will barely encounter a person of a different ethnic group of their OWN COUNTRY on a daily basis (because when I say that the Yamato people are dominant, I mean DOMINANT), let alone encounter someone of a foreign ethnicity.

This is reflected in anime. Your average Japanese doesn't have a lot of experience with foreign ethic groups, so obviously those foreign groups are not present in A LOT of anime (and one shouldn't expect see them there).

[.Sev]

Killer Bee.

From Naruto. Dare someone to find a more powerful Black character.

I was gonna say that... >.>

[Doom85]

In terms of characters that definitely seem black and not merely "dark-skinned":

Afro Samurai
Baccano!
Basquash
Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad
Black Lagoon
Bleach
Cowboy Bebop
Darker than Black
Eureka Seven
Full Metal Panic
Gankutsuou
Gundam 00
Naruto
Tenjho Tenge
Texhnolyze

[I_SO_TIRED]

Wow seems like there are actually a lot of Black characters...

Yay I have shows that have people that I can relate too! (Well at least feel a connection to)

Thanks a bunch, time to add those anime to my list of shows to watch!


And I would love to see more shows that have African-American characters, but dark skin is close enough I guess, it's good enough for me!

I wonder how much of us moving to locations where major anime companies reside it would take to get them to be inspired to make more...

[The Butcher]

Very few in number,but they are in anime.

[Ultimate_Go_Nagai_Fan]

Bleach, Battle B-Daman, Kenichi, G Gundam, Gundam SEED, Macross 7, Zoids Fuzors, Zoids Chaotic Century/Guardian Force, and, uhh, that's all I can think of right now. OH! And Bo-BoBo. Or at least I think. It's Bo-BoBo, so I'm not sure.

[Nyuuraku]

Durarara has one, a strong one... it was great anime so you should watch it

[Capernicus]

... I would just like to point out that, since most anime take place in Japan, there are unlikely to be African AMERICANS. But if you're simply looking for dark skin, there are quite a few as originally stated.

 

When I saw this thread I had Mavericker flashbacks...

[.Tatty.]

[spoiler]When I saw this thread I had Mavericker flashbacks...[/spoiler/\]

^this

[John Watson]

Blood+ has one black character. His name is James Ironside. I like him~<33

But my favorite black dude from anime would have to be Kaname Tousen...why does he have to be so god-damn epic and gorgeous?! ♥ ♥

[FluffyDango]

Ikkitousen.
Bleach also has Chad.
Highschool of the Dead
One Piece, very few though.
I think I`ve seen some in Sekirei.
Air Gear
Durarara!!
Eureka Seven
Samurai Champloo, probably :P
Soul Eater has one at least.

[thcuteness]

Michiko to Hatchin, i cant really think of any others.

[Jezus]

Since nobody mentioned this Anime I'll refresh your mind
I do remember seeing at least 1 black guy in this Anime
Lupin III

[fijtz]

BECK has an African American villian.
Here's the plot taken from Onemanga.com:
For the first 14 years of his life, Yukio Tanaka has been one heck of a boring guy. He has no hobbies, weak taste in music, and only a small vestige of a personality. He yearns for an exciting life, but his shy, and somewhat neurotic personality make him his own worst enemy. Little does he know that his life will be forever changed when he meets Ryusuke Minami, a wild and unpredictable 16-year old fresh from America, who happens to be in a rock-and-roll band named after his Frankenstein-like patched dog--Beck.
But they took it off of one manga so you'll have to find it elsewhere. It's about the Japanese American music scene in Detroit and other big cities.