Top 10 anime about working life to watch on the Labor Day weekend
In the United States and Canada, the first Monday of September is observed as Labor Day (spelled Labour in Canada). The day is intended to celebrate and commemorate the growth the labor movement and the contributions of the movement to workers' rights and safety. As a federal holiday in both countries, most people get the day off and a long weekend at the start of September.
What better way to spend a long weekend that with some anime? To celebrate Labor Day and to help fans make the most of their well-earned long weekend, here's a list of the top anime celebrating working protagonists.
1. Aggretsuko
Where to watch: Netflix
Despite being from the same production company that gave us Hello Kitty, Aggretsuko is a very mature and insightful series about the life of a young professional that most millennials will probably find incredibly relatable. Retsuko is stuck working in a terrible environment that's both professionally and emotionally stifling. Luckily, she has a support network of friends, including several more experienced co-workers to help her navigate the professional world as a young working woman.
Fundamentally, Aggretsuko is a show about work-life balance. In her free time, Retsuko sings heavy metal karaoke to de-stress from her work day. Aggretsuko also demonstrates how important a network of like-minded friends is, since Retsuko's friend group is the other major factor in Retsuko being able to keep her spirits up.
2. Bartender
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Following the genius bartender Ryu Sasakura, Bartender treats the title profession with the upmost respect. Not only is Ryu is a master of his trade who honed his skills in some of the most prestigious bars in the world, he also has a Batman-like ability to instantly read people. Ryu uses his uncanny perception to help the patrons how come to his bar with various problems to relax with the perfectlytailored drink. Based on the original manga by Araki Joh, Bartender has been adapted into an anime series twice, first in 2006 and then rebooted in spring 2024.
It's not exactly surprising that Bartender really takes the art and science of mixing cocktails very seriously. The series will probably leave most viewers with a new appreciation for how much work bartenders actually put into their drinks. In addition to Ryu explaining the meticulous process behind his drinks — up to and including the ideal way to freeze the ice to put in them — each episode of the 2006 series ends by providing a cocktail recipe then showing a clip of a live-action bartender preparing the drink.
Both the 2006 Bartender and the 2024 remake Bartender: Glass of God are available to stream on Crunchyroll.
3. Cells at Work
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Using a city as a metaphor for the functions of the human body is a pretty common teaching device. Cells at Work fully embraces the metaphor and runs with it. Cells at Work a cast of anthropomorphized cells depicted as carrying out specific real-world jobs. Red blood cells are couriers, white blood cells are police and security guards. Foreign bodies like bacteria and viruses are depicted as aliens and cancer is basically a serial killer disguised as a regular cell.
It's a novel spin on a slice of life premise about people really just doing their jobs. On top of that, even though the cells' functions are stylized and depicted metaphorically, Cells at Work is scientifically accurate about the internal workings of the human body at the most fundamental level. The combination of cute characters and a solid scientific, educational grounding makes Cells at Work a genuinely fascinating series.
4. The Dungeon of Black Company
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Kinji Ninomiya, a man who has vowed to do as little work as possible in his life, is suddenly transported into a fantasy world. He promptly finds himself conscripted into backbreaking manual labor in a mine. Naturally, Kinji finds this unbearable, so he devotes himself to escaping his new life of forced labor and becoming the richest man in his new world through his knowledge of economics and his unscrupulous business practices.
Much like Spice and Wolf — featured several entries down on this list — The Dungeon of Black Company is an excellently thought-out examination of how the economy in a more or less medieval fantasy world. The Dungeon of Black Company has the added twist that Kenji's knowledge of how the present-day economy works, coupled with his desire to do as little as possible himself, allows him to manipulate the setting's other characters to single-handedly take over the economy.
5. The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Despite being a reverse isekai series with a stereotypical fantasy villain as its main heroine, The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated actually manages to be one of the most relatable slice of life anime series out there. Thrust from her previous position as the second-in-command of the Dark Realm, Jahy now finds herself trapped in more ways than one. Having lost her powers, she is stuck in a small, child-like form. Since she has limited power available, she only returns to her true form to work as a waitress, which only pays well enough for her to afford a small, run-down apartment.
On the one hand, The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated is hilarious because of how relentlessly bad Jahy's luck is. She's stuck in a dead-end job and living in a dump of an apartment. She's constantly broke. She's surrounded by people who are constantly having more success and better luck than she is. Poor Jahy just can't catch a break. On the other hand, it's also a legitimately heartwarming series both because Jahy doesn't give up and because she has friends who genuinely care about and constantly help and support her.
6. Oshi no Ko
Where to watch: HIDIVE
Despite having several supernatural and mystery elements, Oshi no Ko is fundamentally a deep dive into the Japanese entertainment industry. It is, however, not a particularly flattering depiction. Oshi no Ko doesn't pull any punches in portraying the industry as cut-throat, demanding and even exploitative.
The supernatural and mystery elements of the show do undeniably drive the overall story arc. Even without those elements, Oshi no Ko's examination of the Japanese entertainment industry is a fascinating look that the industry's darker sides. This is especially for non-Japanese fans who have probably never given it much thought.
Be aware that Oshi no Ko contains violence, frightening images, mature subject matter and discussion of suicide that some viewers may find disturbing.
7. Pokémon Concierge
Where to watch: Netflix
The fact that Pokémon Concierge is a work-centric show about a character who actually likes her job helps to establish the kind of show Pokémon Concierge. It's a ceaselessly feel-good show following Pokémon Trainers when they're taking a breaking from trying to be the very best.
Following Haru after the wheels fall off both her professional and personal life, Pokémon Concierge takes place at the Pokémon Resort. Haru takes a new job helping the visiting Pokémon have the best vacation possible. This leads to cute, heartwarming moments in abundance — Haru helping a socially anxious Pikachu literally find his voice is a standout — amplified by the series's adorable stop-motion animation and art direction.
Currently, the Netflix original series only has four episodes that can easily be binged in the span of a couple hours. Luckily for fans, the production of new episodes has been announced, though the release date for those episodes is currently unknown.
8. Spice and Wolf
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
When the wolf goddess decides to joint the merchant Lawrence on his travels, the two begin to journey through a world of political intrigue, competing factions and religious tension between old and new traditions. However, because Lawrence is a merchant by trade, those things often take a backseat to Lawrence navigating the economic and commercial landscapes of the setting's medieval fantasy world. The author of the original light novel series, Isuna Hasekura clearly enjoys writing about economics — Spice and Wolf isn't even his only published work that's primarily about economics.
In addition to his grasp of present-day economics, Hasekura clearly also did his homework. Spice and Wolf examines how the economy of a medieval setting actually functions, particularly in regards to the goods, technologies and kinds of food that were actually available to people in medieval Europe and how an economic based on those things worked and developed. Most impressively, Hasekura manages to make his explanations remain interesting. As detailed as a lot of Lawrence's explanations of his commercial strategy are, the medieval economic systems are difference enough and the writing is good enough that they never feel boring.
Both the original 2008 original Spice and Wolf anime series and the ongoing 2024 remake Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets the Wise Wolf are available to stream on Crunchyroll.
9. Spirited Away
Where to watch: Max (US), Netflix (worldwide except the US and Japan)
Regarded not only as one of Ghibli's best movies, but one of the best animated movies of all time, Spirited Away is one my several movies initially intended to be Hayao Miyazaki's last. Following Chihiro as she is conscripted into working at a bathhouse in the spirit world, Spirited Away has a lot to say about Japanese society. Even if Spirited Away weren't such an intelligent movie, it probably still would have gone down as a classic on the sole merit of its phenomenal art style.
The depiction conditions and demanding work at the bathhouse are a clear symbolic indictment of how the modern Japanese economy overworks and exploits workers. There are also plenty of statements being made of the loss of Japanese culture identity in the face of Western consumerism, capitalist economic principles and modernity subsuming traditional Japanese culture. There's also the overarching metaphor of Chihrio's time at the bathhouse representing both the independence and difficulties that come with growing up and starting a career.
10. Way of the Househusband
Where to watch: Netflix
Full-time homemaker isn't usually considered a proper job. However, that attitude seems to be changing in recent years. Most people who devote themselves full-time to family life would probably argue that there's no job more demanding — or rewarding. Such is the case for Tatsu Kuroda, a former Yakuza enforcer who has since abandoned his previous life of crime to keep house while his wife Miku works full time as a designer. Such an impressive character in such a mundane situation creates some brilliant comedic moments in Way of the Househusband.
While Way of the Househusband may not be the best adaptation of the source material, the anime still has merits of its own. Most of the humor in the series comes from the fact that Tatsu approaches family life with exactly the same grim commitment and self-seriousness he used as a Yakuza enforcer, further supplemented by the series's clever use of overly dramatic music at exactly the right moment.
There you have it: the 10 best anime about working characters to binge this Labor Day long weekend. Keep following Anime Away for more anime lists, plus all the latest news about your favorite anime shows and movies, including new releases and announcements.