Warning: This article contains heavy spoilers for Tokyo Revengers manga and anime series
If you haven’t yet ventured into the time-traveling story of Tokyo Revengers, you’re missing out. The impactful, coming-of-age story is a profound exploration of the human condition, wrapped in layers of suspense, emotion, and animated brilliance.
The original Tokyo Revengers manga series was written and illustrated by Ken Wakui from March 2017 to Nov. 2022. By December, the manga had over 70 million copies in circulation, making it one of the best-selling manga series ever. It then spawned an anime adaptation in 2021, going as strong as the manga, and gaining worldwide acclaim.
The series’ plot revolves around the 26-year-old Takemichi Hanagaki, who gains the power to time travel 12 years into the past after he learns that his middle school girlfriend has died during a gang conflict. He then finds himself put into an intricate web of dangerous gang conflicts, complex relationships, and a web of conspiracies set in the gritty backdrop of Tokyo’s underworld.
The original manga series consists of a total of 278 chapters collected in 31 volumes. The story of Tokyo Revengers is divided into 7 main arcs in the manga, with the last arc further divided into two sub-arcs. Here are all of them, ranked by least to most intriguing and entertaining.
7. Bonten Arc
Bonten arc is the 6th story arc in Tokyo Revengers in chronological order, which starts with chapter 186 of the manga till 206, spanning a total of 21 chapters. It takes place after the events of the Kanto Incident following Takemichi’s triumph against Kisaki and the disbandment of the Tokyo Manji Gang. Afterwards, Takemichi returns to the future to confirm whether or not everything is finally in order. Though Hinata is alive this time in the present, Takemichi soon learns that Mikey is now the leader of Japan’s largest crime syndicate, Bonten.
The Bonten arc has quite a minimal impact on the overall storyline and is more of a setting of the stage for the final arc. Though it has dark tones with Mikey in the villain suit, the rise of a new evil gang doesn’t seem like much of a shock at this point.
6. Final Arc
The Final Arc of Tokyo Revengers is divided into two sub-arcs: the Three Deities arc, and the Kanto Manji arc, lasting from chapters 207 to 235 and 236 to 278, respectively. For ranking, the Three Deities arc is put before the Kanto Manji arc here.
- Kanto Manji arc
The last battle between the Kanto Manji gang and the second-generation Tokyo Manji gang concludes the story. Following the battle of Three Deities, the beaten and broken Takemichi decides to give a last go at trying to save Mikey from his dark impulses. He rebuilds Toman and declares war against Mikey. The Kanto Manji arc also sees Hanma’s re-entry into the story and answers many mysteries of the franchise, like the origin of Takemichi’s time leap powers.
The developments and out-of-character moments with Mitsuya, Chifuyu, and Takemichi seemed to be a little off the story’s original nature. Though the arc is pretty enjoyable on the surface level, the missing details make it kind of lackluster as an ending.
- Three Deities arc
With the disbandment of the Tokyo Manji gang after the Kanto Incident, a massive civil war between the remaining gangs break out, and three gangs rise to power during this period. They become the three deities among the gangs, thus the arc’s name. It starts after Takemichi time travels back to 2008 triggered by his meeting with Mikey. He reaches 10 years into the past, before the events that led Mikey to create Bonten.
Though the Three Deities arc is a justifiable development story-wise, it saw the death of an important and beloved Toman member (which we won’t reveal in case you decided to ignore the warning), changing the whole course of the story. It is in no way a poorly-written arc, just not better than other ones.
5. Intro Arc/Toman Arc
The first arc in the story, the Toman arc explains the basic premise of the story. It runs from chapters 1 to 12 of the manga and episodes 1 to 5 of the anime series. The story begins when Takemichi learns about the death of his middle school girlfriend and is pushed onto the train tracks in the following events. He miraculously survives and finds himself transported back to his middle school days in 2005. It primarily focuses on Takemichi’s attempts to reconnect with his middle school friends and the introduction of the Tokyo Manji gang.
While the Intro Arc sets the stage for the overarching storyline and introduces key characters and concepts, the pacing comes off as a bit slow. It is also quite complex for an introductory arc and things only become clearer with the subsequent arcs. But despite this, the arc manages to capture the attention and keep readers/viewers hooked to it.
4. Moebius Arc
The Moebius arc is the second in chronological order and introduces the first villains to the story, the Moebius gang. It covers chapters 13 to 33 of the manga and episodes 6 to 12 of the anime. It focuses on Takemichi’s attempt to prevent the death of Draken in the August 3rd battle between Toman and the Shinjuku biker gang Moebius. It also introduces one of the important antagonists of the series, Shuji Hanma, who announces the arrival of Valhalla.
The Moebius Arc is crucial in expanding the Tokyo Revengers universe, introducing new characters, and adding complexity to the overarching narrative. It marks the first successful mission of Takemichi and his formal entry into Toman after receiving Mikey’s uniform. It is fairly satisfactory due to Takemichi’s inspiring character development.
3. Valhalla/ Bloody Halloween Arc
The Valhalla arc is one of the most important and thrilling arcs, taking place from chapters 34 to 77 in the manga and episodes 13 to 25 in the anime. After coming back to the present following his success in saving Draken, Takemichi finds out that Akkun and Hinata are still dead in the present timeline and Draken is in jail. This arc introduces the story’s most formidable villain, Tetta Kisaki into the Toman gang.
With the revelation of Toman’s backstory, Kazutora’s incarceration, and Baji’s death, the Valhalla arc acts as a turning point in the story as Mikey’s slow descent into darkness begins after Baji’s death. It also sees the rise of Chifuyu as a main character and the turning of the gang wars into a deadly game. The arc’s excellence lies in its handling of every character in great emotional depth.
2. Black Dragon/ Christmas Showdown Arc
The 4th arc in chronological order, the Black Dragon arc takes place upon Takemichi’s 12th time leap and covers chapters 78 to 121 in the manga and episodes 26 to 37 in the anime. This future of the Toman is darker than ever with Kisaki commanding Toman to do evil and Mikey missing. Takemichi then travels back and we see the entry of more villains from the Black Dragon gang, including Kokonoi, Inui, and Taiju Shiba. Black Dragon is arguably the best-written arc, touching on topics like abuse, loneliness, and depression, using the Shiba family as an instrument.
The Black Dragon arc is exceptional in terms of its fights, unexpected twists, brilliant dialogues, and well-written villains. Takemichi also emerges as a dedicated fighter and friend after the Christmas showdown, changing his whole personality going forward. The arc is also animated exceptionally, not leaving any detail out.
1. Tenjiku Arc
The 5th chronological arc of Tokyo Revengers takes place from manga chapters 122 to 185 and is currently being adapted into anime in Tokyo Revengers season 3. After Takemichi eliminates the previous future in the Black Dragon arc, he returns to the future only to find a corrupt Toman being run by an evil Mikey now.
Takemichi then goes to meet Mikey but Naoto, upon seeing the two fight, shoots Mikey dead. Distraught, Takemichi again returns to the past to prevent this future and finds a new emerging threat from a mysterious gang called Tenjiku, led and founded by Izana Kurokawa with the help of Tetta Kisaki.
This arc explores an important link between the Sano family and Izana and is the most challenging time for Takemichi as Naoto dies in the future, leaving Takemichi stranded in the past. It is the longest arc and ties various loose ends together. The vice-captains of Toman finally get the spotlight and every character explored in the arc, be it Koko, Inupi, or Izana gets emotions out of the readers. Tokyo Revengers undoubtedly peaked at this point.