The Best Anime-Inspired Sneakers of All Time

We are certain that many have resorted to binge watching their favourite series in their closed-curtain bedrooms ever since the pandemic hit. And if you dive further into Netflix, you'll find that there's so much more than just your classic comedies, sci-fi, thrillers, you'll eventually discover the world of anime. That being said, many of us grew up seeing anime on TV, and of course, some have become anime geeks during the lockdown while your stash of deadstock sneakers continued to pile up on the sides.

From Slam Dunk to Dragon Ball Z, Pokemon to One Piece, there are tons of animes that have featured on iconic silhouettes before that you might not have expected, and the creativity on these colourways have certainly exploded larger than Naruto's Rasengan. So regardless of which version you watch, English-subtitled or English-dubbed, you're in for a ride as we proudly present to you the best anime-inspired sneakers of all time!

Let's kick things off with a classic, one that we have no doubts everyone is somehow familiar with, Dragon Ball Z. In 2018, the Three Stripes family showed loved to the Toei Animation-produced franchise by releasing the Dragon Ball Z x adidas collaboration which consisted of seven adidas models flaunting signature colours of fan-favourite DBZ characters: the adidas Ultra Tech "Vegeta", adidas Kamanda "Majin Buu", adidas Prophere "Cell", adidas Deerupt Runner "Son Gohan", adidas EQT Support Mid ADV "Shenron", adidas Yung-1 "Frieza", and last but not least, the legendary Saiyan, adidas ZX 500 RM "Goku".

All pairs came with respective themed shoe boxes, which reveals a graphic illustration of the manga when you've got your hands on all seven pairs. Naturally, an avid Dragon Ball fan would do whatever it takes to get their hands on all of them. "The Seven Dragon Balls", if you know, you know.

If you've been sailing with Luffy and his Straw Hat crew aboard the Thousand Sunny pirate ship in search of the legendary One Piece treasure, then we have no doubts that you must have at least one pair from this collection. In 2019, California-based footwear company Vans joined forces with famed Japanese manga illustrator Eiichiro Oda to grace their 2007 classic lightweight running shoes, the Skechers D'Lites, with themed pirate uniform designs.

Sneakerheads are no stranger to unexpected collabs from Vans, we even saw a SpongeBob Square Pants collection just recently. With that said, the California skate imprint is also a fan of Hirohiko Araki's 1987' manga series Jojo's Bizarre Adventure.

The capsule was composed of two trainers, the Vans Era Pro and Vans Slip-On, both boasting accents that pay homage to characters Giorno Giovanna and Bruno Bucciarati, and the "Golden Wind" (the fifth story arc of the series).

In 2018, Nike rebooted their Nike Air Max 98 "Gundam" from 1998 and if you're wondering what on earth is"Gundam", it's an anime and manga line introduced by Yoshiyuki Tomino in 1979 which featured giant robots called "Gundam". While all that sounds pretty cool, it's sad to say that this Nike Air Max 98 variant wasn't an official collaboration, and only resonated with the ZGMF-X42S Destiny Gundam robot clad with bold red, blue, yellow and black tones.

Someone working at Nike is either a complete anime nerd or possibly Japanese, but whoever it is, we want to thank the label's skateboarding division for the Nike SB Dunk High "Doraemon" as these shoes are done up in Doraemon's colours: blue, red and white. Though we won't be surprised if not many are familiar with the animation as it made its debut all the way back in the '70s, more than a decade before Peter Moore introduced the highly sought-after kicks.

Slam Dunk is an absolute banger, no cap. Most old-gen anime fans would have already seen this show, whereas the new wave of anime lovers probably have only seen "Kuroko's Basketball".

Takehiko Inoue, a Japanese manga artist renowned for the Slam Dunk basketball franchise, is a huge Michael Jordan fan. In the anime, fictional character Hanamichi Sakuragi and the rest of his team were often seen playing ball in numerous Jordan models, so what could possibly be better than a crossover of the two? The Air Jordan 6 "Slam Dunk" is outfitted with a red colourway, slammed with a plethora of reflective 3M illustrations pulled from the anime, and stamped with the number 10 as a nod to Sakuragi’s player number discarding MJ's 23.

When you read the phrase "Autobots, roll out!", you would most likely say this in your head with a deep voice, just like how fictional robot character Optimus Prime does. Although the vast majority have indeed only seen Michael Bay's 2007 version, many are unaware that the Transformer movies were in fact based on the Transformer 1984 toyline produced by American entertainment corporation Hasbro and Japanese toy company Takara. A comic book series by Marvel Comics then followed joined with an animated series launched through a triple-threat collab by Sunbow Entertainment, Marvel Productions, and renowned Japanese animation studio Toei Animation.

The Transformers x Nike Air Trainer 3 Premium "Optimus Prime" arrived in a themed collection, also in 2007, that also rolled out the Nike Air Trainer Huarache and Nike Air Max 90 Boot, both bearing an uncanny resemblance to Decepticons' Megatron and Star Scream.

Japan is guaranteed on the top of the list of many holidaymaker's must-visit destinations. Lucky for London-based sneaker boutique Footpatrol, their team has already travelled to Tokyo in 2018 and brought ASICS' legendary 1991' Gel-Saga trainers with them for a joint effort with Yoshiyuki Tomino for a Gundam Wing-themed release. The mesh and suede-crafted Footpatrol x ASICS Gel-Saga "Anime" were arranged in hues of white, grey, blue, and pink, similar to a Gundam mobile suit’s colour scheme.

If you kept up with Naruto's journey, you'd know that he wouldn't be the hero of the Hidden Leaf village if it wasn't for the help and support of his friends and teachers, most especially Kakashi Hatake. After the 4th Great Ninja War ended in 2019, Tsunade Senju (the fifth Hokage) passed on her throne to Kakashi making him the sixth Hokage of the village.

To commemorate this, adidas summoned the Naruto x adidas Copa Ultra Boost "Kakashi", and of course, it was influenced by the Copy Ninja himself. The suede uppers mimic Kakashi's mask and attire joined with hairy grey suede side branding and tongue to represent his signature spiky hairstyle. A green TPU heel clip then resembles his utility vest, and rounded off with traditional Ultra Boost branding, and most importantly, the Japanese characters imprinted across the Boost midsole that reads the ninja's full name.

Finally yet importantly, a collaborative capsule by renowned Korean footwear label Fila and Pokémon. Let's be honest, who doesn't even know what Pokémon is? The franchise might just be the greatest of all, and what started as a video game in the early 80s eventually led to an anime series, clothing, comics, toys, housewares, and of course, trading cards which is all the rage these days.

If you're trying to catch them all, make sure the Pokémon x Fila Court Deluxe is listed on your Pokédex as they already launched to the masses in 2018, not only that but they were also a Korea exclusive release only making them truly legendary and hard to catch, so you'll definitely need a Master Ball to get your hands on these. The Fila Court Deluxe came in five different colourways that nod to famous Pokemon characters: Pikachu, Squirtle, Jigglypuff, Bulbasaur, and Charmander. A Pokéball symbol marked the tongue to round off the collaboration.