In 2005, Japanese studio J.C. Staff aired the first season of Shakugan No Shana. The hit anime series took fandom past storm, and slowly gained popularity beyond Asia. Through Animax Asia channel, viewers from neighboring Asian countries were able to stream the bear witness in real-time.

Shakugan No Shana is a three-part series. Its last season aired in 2012. The story follows the ordinary life of Yuji Sakai, a normal high schoolhouse pupil living his mundane being until he met a Flame Haze named Shana. For dice-hard fans of the show, Shakugan No Shana delivers an splendid plot total of twists so we compiled a list of reasons why it's the best anime series of the last decade!

10 Original Plot

It's not every twenty-four hour period that we come up beyond a show that's a mixture of slice of life, shoujo and the fantasy genre. Shakugan No Shana's storyline extends an ordinary life into worlds beyond his understanding. It's also a polytheistic setting, referencing many gods and their respective servants.

Aside from the otherworldly creatures featured in the show, the series too has its own terminologies that are unique to the show. The roster of characters is diverse and complicated, and the franchise has its own universe.

ix Romantic Dearest Triangle

Romance rivalries are a common theme for anime shows. What sets Shakugan No Shana apart from the rest is its complexity. Kasumi is a student from Yuji'southward high school and she is plainly in love with him. Shana, on the other hand, refuses to acknowledge her feelings towards him. That leaves Yuji circling in confusion.

It'southward obvious that Yuji has feelings for both of them but he is not ordinary anymore and he needs the kind of protection only a Flame Brume can give.

8 Shana As Tsundere

A tsundere is a character who starts off as cold and complicated in the beginning of a series. This grapheme, as her story begins to unfold towards the end of the show, reveals her soft spot.

Shana is the perfect example of a tsundere. When she met Yuji, she ever rants nearly how useless and stupid he is. She doesn't like it when he speaks too much. At the finish of the prove, extending to the 2nd season, Shana became more concerned with Yuji, just as she was supposed to protect him from damage.

7 Badass Official Soundtracks

The official soundtracks used in Shakugan No Shana offer no less than stellar performances. Japanese artists like Mami Kawada and Kotoko lent their talents to accompany the anime's opening and closing credits. Powerful jams like "JOINT", "Hishoku No Sora" and "Being" are some of the major fan favorites.

The songs are major headbangers and will rock y'all to your bones. Virtually of the songs used are from Mami Kawada'southward albums while some were originally composed for the series. If you're looking for something new to mind to, get a re-create of the whole show's official soundtrack!

6 Flaming Katana Wielder

We have seen a lot of sword users in various anime shows but what sets Shana's katana, chosen Nietono No Shana, apart from the rest is its sentimental value. Shana used to be nameless but after she introduced the sword to Yuji, he named her after the sword.

The katana was forged and crafted by a blacksmith who was reborn as Tenmoku Ikko, its previous wielder and also a Mystes like Yuji. He has been obsessed with finding the strong one, a successor who is worthy of wielding the katana.

5 Female-Led Series

In that location are quite a lot of female-led anime shows in the market boasting about women empowerment and gender equality. While most shows feature men as protagonists, Shakugan No Shana tells the tale of a young girl who tin boot ass and save the world, one swing of a sword at a fourth dimension.

Shana is characterized every bit the stereotypical woman warrior and at the aforementioned time exudes innocence and sophistication. She is also portrayed more of the story's heroine than an object of the male gaze, which is a positive decision.

4 Huge Fan Base

With so much merchandise released after each and in-betwixt seasons, Shakugan No Shana became a successful franchise. Bated from securing a iii-season deal and an original video blitheness, its last season was also simultaneously aired on Animax Asia. The show hit a glorious rating, ending the television franchise on a high note.

Aside from toys, collectibles, and games, Shakugan No Shana too became a favorite source for cosplay characters. Lots of cosplay convention-goers dressed upwards as Shana, consummate with her signature sword, Nietono No Shana, and melon breadstuff, her favorite food of all fourth dimension.

iii Full-Diddled Series

Shakugan No Shana received an lodge of 24 episodes per season, making it a full series. The show is lucky to have been granted a whole season because other anime series only last for 10 to 15 episodes per season. This is also due to public demand and the range of its fan base.

Each episode of the OVA lasts for about 24 minutes, enough to embrace of import scenes from the script and not too long to bore the audition. The airplane pilot episode received high praise and the succeeding episodes continued diggings off the ratings.

2 Summer Slam Show

Usually, summer shows tend to become the most hyped in tv, mainly because information technology'south the season when it attracts more viewers. Shakugan No Shana premiered as a summer evidence and the studio definitely knew how to take reward of its circumstances.

The anime series has an English version dubbed by American vox actors. It besides has a movie version that was released in 2007. The studio claimed that information technology is not a sequel to the anime series but an accommodation of the events from the first volume of the novel.

1 Based On A Light Novel Series

Since most anime shows nowadays are adapted from their manga counterparts, Shakugan No Shana was also based off its Japanese lite novel series written by Yashichiro Takahashi and illustrated past Noizi Ito.

Currently, there are 26 novels published between Nov 2002 and 2012. The first ii volumes were translated into English only the residue were left out of print. While both the anime show and movie were based on the novel, some parts in the film were non present in the serial. Despite this, both of them covered most of the important parts of the books.

Adjacent: v Anime That Ended Before The Manga (& v That Outlived The Manga)