Digimon Data Squad (2006) follows a street-tough teen who joins a government task force and fights alongside his Digimon partner. The series stands out for its DNA-Charge power system, scrappy underdog cast and frequent plot swerves that overturn “monster-of-the-week” expectations.
The 15 titles below echo those strengths—tight power mechanics, protagonists who claw their way up, or narratives that zig when you expect them to zag—yet remain quietly overlooked. They deserve a spot on any Data Squad fan’s watch-list.
1. World Trigger (2014)
- Stream: Crunchyroll
- MAL Score / Eps: 7.6 / 99
- Studio / Key Staff: Toei Animation – Series Dir. Mitsuru Hongo
- Awards / Notes: 3rd place, Tokyo Anime Award Festival 2016 TV division
- Plot: A mysterious gate opens; a Border Defense agency arms teenagers with “Triggers” to repel alien Neighbors.
- Why it clicks: Government-run squad, partner-style weapons and a rank-up system mirror DATS, while Osamu’s “weak kid in a power suit” arc scratches the same underdog itch.
2. The Law of Ueki (2005)
- Stream: HIDIVE
- MAL Score / Eps: 7.6 / 51
- Studio / Key Staff: Studio Deen – Dir. Hiroshi Watanabe
- Awards / Notes: Jury recommendation, Japan Media Arts Festival 2006
- Plot: Junior-high slacker Ueki can turn trash into trees in a tournament where students wield one oddly specific power each.
- Why it clicks: An inventive rules-based system and a hero who makes “worthless” abilities lethal echo Agumon’s humble punches evolving into world-breaking blows.
3. Deca-Dence (2020)
- Stream: Hulu / Funimation
- MAL Score / Eps: 7.4 / 12
- Studio / Key Staff: NUT – Director Yuzuru Tachikawa
- Awards / Notes: Crunchyroll Awards 2021 nominee (Best Protagonist)
- Plot: A mobile fortress houses humanity’s remnants—unaware they’re NPCs inside an alien entertainment sim.
- Why it clicks: Combines secret-agency hierarchy, gear-based combat and a reality-shattering twist worthy of Data Squad’s late-game swerve.
4. Astra Lost in Space (2019)
- Stream: Hulu / Funimation
- MAL Score / Eps: 8.1 / 12
- Studio / Key Staff: Lerche – Dir. Masaomi Andō
- Awards / Notes: Seiun Award nominee 2020 (Media Category)
- Plot: Nine teens are warped 5 000 light-years away and must pilot a derelict ship home.
- Why it clicks: Team-first strategy, layer-by-layer mysteries and found-family dynamics parallel DATS’ core—even down to the shocking parent subplot.
5. Shadows House (2021)
- Stream: Crunchyroll
- MAL Score / Eps: 7.8 / 25
- Studio / Key Staff: CloverWorks – Chief Dir. Kazuki Ōhashi
- Awards / Notes: Jury selection, Japan Media Arts Festival 2022 (Animation)
- Plot: Living dolls serve soot-spewing nobles who share their silhouette and, perhaps, their soul.
- Why it clicks: A literal “partner” concept, class-based power politics and frequent reversals of what the audience thinks it knows.
6. Odd Taxi (2021)
- Stream: Crunchyroll
- MAL Score / Eps: 8.7 / 13
- Studio / Key Staff: OLM/P.I.C.S – Writer Kazuya Konomoto
- Awards / Notes: Tokyo Anime Award 2022 “Anime of the Year” (TV)
- Plot: A walrus cabbie ferries eccentric animals through a citywide conspiracy after a missing-girl case.
- Why it clicks: Like Data Squad it hides a darker reality beneath a cartoony surface and lets every minor character’s goal collide in a satisfying payoff.
7. ID: Invaded (2020)
- Stream: Funimation
- MAL Score / Eps: 7.8 / 13
- Studio / Key Staff: NAZ – Dir. Ei Aoki (Fate/Zero)
- Awards / Notes: Jury recommendation, Japan Media Arts Festival 2021
- Plot: Detectives dive into killers’ subconscious “id wells” to crack impossible cases.
- Why it clicks: Tech-supported partner work, strict mental-space rules and moral gray areas evoke Kurata’s digital tampering themes.
8. Dorohedoro (2020)
- Stream: Netflix
- MAL Score / Eps: 8.0 / 12
- Studio / Key Staff: MAPPA – Art Dir. Shinji Kimura
- Awards / Notes: Crunchyroll Awards 2021 nominee (Best Animation)
- Plot: A lizard-headed amnesiac hunts sorcerers in a grimy dimension while gyoza-chef Nikaidō hides her own power.
- Why it clicks: Equal parts buddy action and grotesque monster bouts, with fast power creep and partner loyalty reminiscent of Marcus & Agumon.
9. Space Dandy (2014)
- Stream: Funimation
- MAL Score / Eps: 7.8 / 26
- Studio / Key Staff: Bones – Chief Dir. Shinichirō Watanabe
- Awards / Notes: Seiun Award 2016 (Media)
- Plot: A pompadoured alien hunter, his cat-like Betel partner and a vacuum robot bumble through multiverse-resetting quests.
- Why it clicks: Monster-catalog premise, irreverent tone shifts and surprise continuity resets echo Data Squad’s bold genre mixing.
10. Golden Kamuy (2018)
- Stream: Crunchyroll / Hulu
- MAL Score / Eps: 8.3 / 49 (S1–4)
- Studio / Key Staff: Geno Studio – Historical Supervision by Hiroshi Nakagawa
- Awards / Notes: Manga Taishō Grand Prize; Anime Award of Excellence 2020
- Plot: A Russo-Japanese War veteran and an Ainu girl race for tattooed map pieces that lead to buried gold.
- Why it clicks: Rugged duo dynamic, steadily evolving alliances and a grounded yet rule-heavy “treasure hunt” system mirror Digimon tamers’ quest structure.
11. Ranking of Kings (2021)
- Stream: Crunchyroll
- MAL Score / Eps: 8.7 / 23
- Studio / Key Staff: Wit Studio – Dir. Yōsuke Hatta
- Awards / Notes: Crunchyroll Awards 2022 “Anime of the Year” nominee
- Plot: Deaf prince Bojji, scorned for his frailty, partners with a living shadow to claim the throne.
- Why it clicks: Classic underdog grit, heartfelt monster-boy bond and late-series twists about destiny vs. choice channel Data Squad’s spirit.
12. Akudama Drive (2020)
- Stream: Hulu / Funimation
- MAL Score / Eps: 7.5 / 12
- Studio / Key Staff: Studio Pierrot – Original creator Kazutaka Kodaka (Danganronpa)
- Awards / Notes: Selections, Annecy Festival 2021 (TV Competition)
- Plot: A nameless courier, hacker and runaway civilian pull a heist in neon cyber-Kansai governed by drones.
- Why it clicks: Criminal squad vs. authoritarian system reflects DATS vs. Kurata, with color-coded powers and constant betrayal subverting viewer expectations.
13. Meikyuu Black Company (2021)
- Stream: Crunchyroll
- MAL Score / Eps: 7.1 / 12
- Studio / Key Staff: Silver Link – Dir. Yū Kuroki
- Awards / Notes: Nominated, 8th Anime Trending Awards (Comedy)
- Plot: A real-world slacker is isekai’d into a mining firm exploiting monster labor and vows to game the system.
- Why it clicks: Satirizes power scaling and hierarchy while keeping a partner-monster crew that evolves much like Digimon companions.
14. Under Ninja (2023)
- Stream: Crunchyroll
- MAL Score / Eps: 7.0 / 12
- Studio / Key Staff: Tezuka Productions – Writer Kenta Ihara (Cautious Hero)
- Awards / Notes: Featured, New Chitose Airport Animation Festival 2024 showcase
- Plot: A 17-year-old “freeter” secretly belongs to Japan’s subterranean ninja network and receives a sudden high-stakes hit order.
- Why it clicks: Hidden agency, gadgets-as-power-ups and a nobody protagonist punching above his weight recall Masaru’s leap from street fighter to world saver.
15. Vampire in the Garden (2022)
- Stream: Netflix
- MAL Score / Eps: 7.0 / 5
- Studio / Key Staff: Wit Studio – Dir. Ryōtarō Makihara
- Awards / Notes: Official selection, Annecy Festival 2022 (TV)
- Plot: A human soldier and vampire queen flee a perpetual war, dreaming of a land where both species can share music.
- Why it clicks: Unlikely human-monster alliance, evolving power balance and bittersweet twists mirror Data Squad’s later themes of coexistence.
Why These Anime Work for Mentioned Anime Fans
Each series marries a rule-driven power system, a lead who starts at the bottom, or a narrative that flips genre expectations—the very elements that make Digimon Data Squad memorable. Whether it’s agency warfare in World Trigger, biological data hacks in Deca-Dence, or soul-linked duos in Ranking of Kings, these underrated gems scratch the same itch while offering fresh worlds to explore.
