Though they may not always be as analytical as they look, the way they work wonders with data systems defines their very nature. To celebrate this hacker culture in anime I’ve organized this list ranking the best of all time. Just note that as usual, I’ll have some rules for my rankings:
No two characters from the same series (but same franchise can, Gundam for example) Hacking skills may not be central, but should at least be fairly important to each character Hacking skills should have a considerable impact on the main story The higher the definitive hacking ‘range’, the better
Now let’s get into it!
25. Nagato Yuuki
Anime: Suzumiya Haruhi series Softspoken, but very calm and direct. The unassuming form of this higher dimensional entity looks like that of a silent, bookworm girl. Undeniably the perfect disguise to hide the fact that she can basically hack the very fabric of reality itself. Thankfully her actual digital data manipulating prowess is only ever abused negatively during a rather peaceful PC gaming session.
24. Anonydeath
Anime: Hyperdimension Neptunia series If the title “genius hacker” doesn’t convince you of his (umm yes, his) professional caliber, then perhaps his drive to gather information for his group will. I suppose nobody is going to be fooled by his sweet talk and okama pure maiden attitude. But when dealing with objects of his obsessive interest, you can be absolutely sure that no digital barrier is strong enough to hold him down.
23. Matsu
Anime: Sekirei Being a technopath is kind of a cheat when it comes to hacking. I mean come on, that’s almost at the same level of cheating as the beloved roommate of Uiharu’s teleporting partner in Judgment HQ branch 177. You don’t even need to stereotypically type random stuff like Hollywood hackers! But, a hacker is a hacker. And Matsu still does her fair share of data manipulation and infiltration like others on this list.
22. Manami Aiba / La Brava
Anime: My Hero Academia The sweet and passionate accomplice of Gentle Criminal, willing to do whatever it takes for her beloved. While the full extent of her hacking abilities was not really shown with her initial appearance, characters from the same universe have assessed her abilities and rated it highly. Even to the point of considering both her and Gentle Criminal as potential valuable assets to the Heroes Association.
21. Jun Lee
Anime: Genesis of Aquarion Officially he is considered as one of the switch pilots of the Aquarion unit. But for the most part, he simply operates and maintains computers, fulfilling his specific geek specialty. He doesn’t regularly operate as a hacker. But he has at least one very notable accomplishment for the profession. And he was able to break DEAVA’s main security system and access its classified data. Oh, and did I say that he’s an otaku? Perfect.
20. Jun’ichirou Kagami
Anime: Denpa Kyoushi The profile of this supposedly unplanned class teacher as a hacker is quite subtle from a professional perspective. Well, it’s very obvious that he often does his fair share of hacking. But it is usually only for his convenient and selfish benefit. But he is still technically more of an otaku than a professional hacker, after all. Yet this particular data access portfolio gives him enough merit to hop onto on this list.
19. Izumi Koushirou
Anime: Digimon Adventure 02 The definitive computer geek, Koushirou acts as the advisory brains of the Digidestined. While his hacking skills are relatively tame in comparison to the rest of the other overpowered hackers in this list, his hacking feats are always significantly impactful to the overall objective of the group. Granted, it gets somewhat hand-wavy when he and Tentomon directly access the Digital World. But his knowledge in computers makes him a bona fide hacker nonetheless.
18. Christina Sierra
Anime: Gundam 00 series The primary comms officer and data analyst of Celestial Being. Naturally with her skillset, hacking into other computer systems becomes quite the norm. It’s especially important for the organization, due to her clean unauthorized access methods that typically leaves no trace that she ever hacked the database in the first place. Unfortunately, certain mitigating circumstances (to her story) prevent her from being higher on this list.
17. Shinomiya Himawari
Anime: Vivid Red Operation Simply being a hikikomori doesn’t directly mean that you can be a good hacker. However, the immediate environment of digital information access (whether legit or not) could foster the right mindset for it. Coupled with natural talents for computers and machines, like Himawari’s, and you get the primary data infiltration specialist and manager of the entire Vivid team.
16. Tsugumi
Anime: Guilty Crown Intel may not just be about relaying information as detailed and accurate as possible. A little data sabotage, and a bit tweaking here and there on the enemies’ side could help turn the tide of the battle as well. Just as how Tsugumi had always done it for her crush and the organization. Up until Funeral Parlor got unofficially disbanded with its “restructuring” anyway.
15. Takeyama
Anime: Angel Beats! Technically the comms specialist of the SSS, Takeyama is completely outside the organization’s main combat operations. To be fair though, within the secluded space that they reside, there really isn’t much to show off one’s hacking skills for. In fact, his title is pretty much by name only at this point. Nevertheless, extracting information wherever and whenever is something that he can still consistently accomplish.
14. Akira Renbokoji
Anime: Valvrave the Liberator Now we go to hikikomori number two. Oftentimes we see hackers manifest their skills via unauthorized access to areas that supposedly have very high level security. Akira, while not the first on this list, was specifically shown to have introduced a security system. So not only can she freely go in and out of databases as she please, but with WIRED, she also developed a security system that(at least by principle) is tough to crack.
13. Benny
Anime: Black Lagoon You just know that you’re one of the main players of the team when you’re in charge of the main transportation medium, business intel, plus any and all data related stuff. Your buddies might be holding all the guns n’ crates for you. But if you’re a specialist like Benny, all you need to do is influence and redirect. His carefree youth is way beyond him now at this point anyway.
12. Chihiro Fujisaki
Anime: Danganronpa series He (yes he) is yet another eventual hikikomori, with a more focus this time on honing his computer skills with the secluded environment that he created for himself. Well, I guess being the son of a software developer counts as the natural talent for this part. But overall this point is just supplementary. Chihiro is not the straightforward hacker, but he will not hesitate to use his skills if he deems that it is necessary to achieve an objective.
11. Kazari Uiharu
Anime: To Aru series At a glance, she seems like just another scatter-brained, absent-minded middle school student. Well, she actually is. But beneath that cute exterior lies the super tech-savvy database access expert of Judgement HQ branch 177. It immediately tells something of her hacking skills if even the Academy City’s cutting-edge computers are no match for her. Additionally she also has another less useful ability as an esper, but that’s for another time.
10. Edward Wong
Anime: Cowboy Bebop Girl? Boy? Bah, who cares. So long as he can digitally sneak into a control system or database, then all the day’s work has been worth it. Yet Ed’s obviously eccentric qualities are not really directly related to his hacking skills. It’s more of an inherited thing, and is as tasty and useful as all the boiled eggs Spike and Jeff are ever going to eat.
9. Kona Furugoori / Frau Koujiro
Anime: Robotics;Notes As a self-proclaimed pervert, this super antisocial girl is incapable of even holding a regular conversation with all the net lingo terms that she constantly speaks out loud. However she makes up for her characteristic flaws with her sheer brilliance in computer programming. For one thing, she designed one of the most popular games within that series’ universe. As a hacker her specialty mostly involves invading private network systems, simply in order to fish out any necessary information.
8. Yuusaku Fujiki / Playmaker
Anime: Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS The stalwart, even-more-serious-than-Yuusei genius hacker. Yuusaku’s data infiltration skills as Playmaker are an outlet for him to dive into the depths of his modern world of projected data, corporate information control, and augmented reality. There is actually an even more serious cause for his hacking crusade. But he is fated to run the entire series before he could make progress on this specific objective.
7. Yuuko Shionji / Alice
Anime: Kami-sama no Memochou Secluded in an air-conditioned room that would probably freeze to death any Okinawan within minutes, this Dr. Pepper-powered cute critter solves disputes, settlements, investigations, and even crimes… all within her screen-filled room. Remotely accessing any screen or visual device within the city is a breeze, and accessing any digital records is always just a matter of (short) time for her. On the flip side though, she may have a bit of an attitude when it comes to any kind of physically-required regular maintenance.
6. Akira Shirase
Anime: Battle Programmer Shirase Strangely enough, Akira is probably the only one in this list who had a progression style that resembles a shounen manga hero. Only this time, all of the feats accomplished were in one form or another some method of hacking. In this regard he is probably the most developed character for this specific list. Heck, he even has at least two signature “finishing moves” that are somehow still related to hacking.
5. Lain Iwakura
Anime: Serial Experiments Lain The eponymous heroine of her own series. The basic framework of being a hacker is the desire for information. Lain is perhaps one of the most information-obsessed characters in this list, to the point of almost being a monster at processing whatever she learns. Because of this, her hacking skills might be just part of her overall data processing skill set. Nevertheless, she is still technically considered as a hacker for our purposes as she is capable of doing it as necessary with professional efficiency.
4. Sakura Futaba
Anime: Persona 5 Most hackers in this list showcase their hacking skills as a sideline to their overall general computer related talents . However Futaba, like a few ones on this list, is a dedicated hacker. Her hacking skills were so top notch to the point that people thought she was a group of hackers. She was also able to effortlessly unveil the identities of the Phantom Thieves using the same set of skills, albeit with a little stroke of luck, and much to the distress of the group.
3. Noiz
Anime: DRAMAtical Murder The renowned information broker within the digital confines of Rhyme. His upbringing certainly had an effect on his preference for knowledge, information, and logic. This basically drives his skill set as hacker, used to great effect both for his own personal goals, and for his method of living. As with many other hackers, his skills extend to almost any electronic device; the hallmark of their genius and affinity for modern technology.
2. Hashida Itaru
Anime: Steins;Gate The one and only Super Hacker Daru. His ability to hack into SERN may be played off as a plot device, but it’s important enough that it drives the entire story of the series. His hacking abilities, while amazing to regular folk, are shown as realistic pretty tame and ordinary compared to other hackers listed earlier. Don’t underplay it too much though. It’s safe to assume that without him, Okabe would never have been able to accomplish the feats that he did. And that makes Hashida pretty darn important!
1. Laughing Man
Anime: Ghost in the Shell Let’s face it: in the futuristic world of Motoko and her gang, being a hacker is probably just another side activity for just about anyone. However no one can still match the skill level, pervasiveness, and thoroughness of the Laughing Man. I mean, if you can directly hack into the cybernetic brain of another individual, then hacking multiple camera feeds or any high security government database would feel like accessing your laptop with a password of 1234. This guy feels like the OG hacker that we can never forget.
