My Top Five Autistic-Coded Characters in Anime (As Ranked By An Autistic Girl)

Written by Maria Maroko (guest writer) 10/15/24

To say being autistic and an anime fan go hand-in-hand would be a gross understatement - they’re basically cosmically intertwined. You couldn't swing a dead cat at an anime convention without hitting someone neuroatypical (or without being forcefully escorted from the premises, but that goes without saying). As an autistic anime fan, I turned towards animated characters who shared my struggles, ones I believed were more compelling than the “Sheldon Cooper” subgenre of autistic characters that oversaturated American television (not to paint all American autistic representation - while I haven’t had the pleasure of watching Community yet, I’ve heard Abed is a delightful character). While anime is woefully bereft of explicitly autistic characters, there are many characters written in such a way that can cause autistic anime fans to point at the screen and shout “hey, that’s literally me!” 

Since autism is on a spectrum, there is no one way to be autistic - as such, many of the examples on this list are open to interpretation. That forewarning aside, here is a curated list of some anime characters who I, alongside many other autistic fans, can see our circumstances reflected in.

5) Tomoko Kuroki (Watamote)

Ah, Watamote. It’s like if someone drew your cringiest childhood memories painstakingly frame by frame. High school freshman Tomoko Kuroki is a young girl who suffers from social anxiety. Overcomplicating every interaction, Tomoko spends the span of this show trying (and failing) to achieve popularity through the social equivalent of “get rich quick” schemes. Whether it’s giving herself a botched makeover or pressing a vacuum to her neck to create fake hickeys, Tomoko’s failed attempts to become popular with those around her are both comical and more than a little sad.

For people with autism, connecting with others can be a challenge. Autism complicates understanding social cues that come naturally to others, so it’s not uncommon for people with the condition to develop a sense of anxiety around social interactions. As such, autistic people are often more lonely and unsatisfied with their social life than their neurotypical peers. Autistic people who struggle to navigate the nuances of interpersonal interactions can identify with Tomoko’s situation, leading some fans to interpret her as autistic.

The reason why I’ve placed her at the bottom list is that while Watamote features a heroine with traits shared with many an autistic adolescent, Watamote is, at the end of the day, a cringe comedy. The joke is always at Tomoko’s expense, and the way the narrative treats her can be cruel at times. While many autistic anime fans can see glimpses of themselves in Tomoko’s attempts to overcome her sense of alienation, harboring such empathy makes the show difficult to sit through.

4) Jotaro Kujo (Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure)

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure is, as the title would suggest, famous for its wacky cast of characters. While many of the characters, such as the main villain DIO, are so exaggerated that they seem difficult to picture in reality, there are other characters whose idiosyncrasies are more easy to identify with. One of these characters is Jotaro Cujoh.

First introduced as an edgy teenager, Jotaro’s rough edges are smoothed out somewhat as the story progresses. However, his straightforward, sometimes overly blunt manner of speaking is seen as relatable to many autistic people. While it is often joked that Jotaro is misogynistic for yelling at a group of chattering girls to “shut up”, this scene takes on a different context for autistic people, some of whom interpret Jotaro’s sudden outburst as an understandable reaction to sensory overload. His later discovered passion for marine biology is also relatable to many autistic people, with biology being a popular special interest within the community.

I’ve placed him at number 4 in this list for the very self-centered reason that I, personally, just don’t relate to him that much (surprise surprise, I am not a 6 foot 5 man with huge muscles). However, like I said before, autism is a spectrum, and there are many autistic fans whose experiences may closely align with that of Jotaro. A kind man at heart, Jotaro is often misinterpreted due to his struggles to effectively communicate his thoughts and feelings to others - a problem that I think any autistic person can relate to.

3) Futaba Sakura (Persona 5 The Animation)

“Wow, she’s literally you.” - My Boyfriend

Okay, this one might be cheating - while it did receive an admittedly lackluster anime adaptation, Persona is first and foremost a video game. The fifth installment in Atlus’s Persona series, Persona 5 is a role-playing game widely acclaimed for the unmistakable sense of style that secretes from every aspect, from the music to the gameplay. With villains ranging from a predatory gym teacher to a literal god, Persona 5 features a high school group of friends, The Phantom Thieves who use their unique powers to bring society’s malevolent “untouchables” to justice. 

Among the protagonists’ allies is Futaba Sakura, a talented hacker who overcomes her personal traumas to fight alongside the hero in his quest for justice. Starting as a depressed hikikomori and growing into an indispensable part of the hero’s posse, Futaba’s endearingly awkward personality has managed to capture the hearts of many Persona 5 fans. She is especially popular among autistic fans of the series, who find her with her English voice actress even saying herself that she interprets the geeky girl genius as being on the spectrum. 

I’ve placed her smack dab in the middle because, as much as I love and relate to Futaba, she lacks the coveted “protagonist” position held by all the others on this entry. And with that, let me introduce the runner up.

2) Asa Mitaka (Chainsaw Man)

“Wow, she’s literally you.” - My Boyfriend, Again

This one, again, might be cheating - while the Chainsaw Man manga has received a widely acclaimed anime adaptation, it will be quite a while before MAPPA is able to animate up to the part in the story where the heroine of Chainsaw Man’s second part takes center stage. However, Asa’s character is simply too important to autistic fans to leave out from a list such as this. 

It might also be cheating because I included a quote from my boyfriend, and, as some people would be quick to point out, you cannot be a true Asa imitator without being laughably terrible with men.

Lonely and somewhat socially awkward, Asa’s struggles to make meaningful platonic and romantic connections have led some fans to lightheartedly refer to her as a “femcel” (female incel). The normal teenage angst is only amplified by the fact that she has to share her body with the War Devil itself, who enlists Asa as their confidant during their mission to find and kill Chainsaw Man. 

It is common for fans of Asa to joke about her possible neurodivergent status, with Asa being the Chainsaw Man character most commonly headcanoned as being autistic. Such theories are only reinforced by certain scenes, such as an aquarium date where she spends the entire date infodumping starfish facts in a way that will seem all too familiar to any autistic person with a special interest.

Since Chainsaw Man is still ongoing, we’re yet to see how Asa’s character arc ends. However, as an autistic girl who was terminally boyfriendless in high school herself, I currently give Asa an A+. That being said, she still can’t hold up the gold standard of autistic anime rep that is #1 on my list.

1) Shigeo Kageyama (Mob Psycho 100)

Any list of autism-coded anime characters without a mention of the protagonist of Mob Psycho 100 is a list that isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on - and since this listicle is published electronically, you can only imagine how infinitesimal a Mob Psycho-less version of this list would be. Middle schooler Shigeo Kageyama (also called “Mob”) is a middle schooler with extremely powerful psychic abilities powered by his emotional state. However, this gift is a double-edged sword, as Mob can lose control of his own abilities if he lets his feelings get the better of him.

There are a lot of qualities Mob possesses that are relatable to autistic people. One is his inability to pick up on social cues. For example, in an episode where he sneaks into a girls’ school to exorcise a spirit, the girls sarcastically remark that he seems like a “reliable gentleman”. Mob, unable to pick up on their sarcasm, thanks them. He also has a tendency to take things literally, taking his master’s advice to not hit women as a sign that he cannot attack a woman even in self-defense.

In another episode, an antagonist-turned-ally spirit named Dimple berates Mob for his inability to “get a clue”, cueing a flashback that shows Mob has struggled to understand social nuances since early childhood. Mob’s default voice is often quite monotone, and his expressions are often far more subtle than that of the other characters. These are things that are quite common among people on the spectrum (I’m not gonna lie, I teared up a little bit at that episode - I’m not as stoic as the show’s protagonist).

Anyways, if you haven’t already, please watch Mob Psycho 100. 

Conclusion

In our world, autism is often regarded as either a source of shame or subject of ridicule. Growing up with autism can be a very alienating experience, with both autistic children and adults often struggling to feel accepted within the greater fabric of society. For this reason, it is comforting for autistic anime fans to see our unique struggles reflected in one of our favorite mediums. While this is by no means an exhaustive list of every possibly autistic character in anime, I feel this list could serve as a starting point for autistic anime fans looking for relatable characters. If there are any autistic-coded anime characters you feel deserve a special mention, please feel free to mention them in the comments.

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