Cartoon wolf characters

The Big Bad Wolf is male wolf, who appears in a number of traditional folk tales, including Little Red Riding Hood, The Three Little Pigs and The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids.

The Big Bad Wolf is shamelessly after a satisfying meal, and will trick and decieve to make it happen. Though he has been known to swallow adults as large as him, his favorite thing to gobble up are small children.

In Little Red Riding Hood, the wolf first decieves and swallows a frail grandmother, before stealing and wearing her clothes to decieve her granddaughter Little Red into the house, before gobbling her up too. In most depictions of the story, he is then discovered by a woodcutter, and his stomach sliced open to free his prey.

In some versions of The Three Little Pigs, the wolf swallows the first two pigs he encounters in his travels.

In The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids, the wolf breaks into a large family home by posing as the childrens mother. He then binges on six of the seven kids, failing to find the last. In most versions of the story, he then leaves the house and finds a quiet part in the woods to sleep, while the restless children scream and cry inside him. The seventh kid and his mother soon find him in the woods, and cut his stomach open to free the children.

Wolves are often portrayed in media as feral, pack-driven creatures that embody the spirit of nature in a world that is gradually being tamed by mankind. However, they usually have many different depictions in the scope of anime, whether as badass protectors, warriors that uphold a code of nobility and honor, or savage and relentless predators that will consume everything they can get their fangs on.

This list will showcase 15 different anime wolf characters that include werewolves (humans that turn into wolves or half-wolves), wolfweres (wolves that turn into humans or half-wolves), sapient wolves (wolves with human-level intelligence or higher), supernatural wolves (demons, gods, and spirits), and just canines that you can’t confuse for an adorable puppy.

Sajin Komamura

From: Bleach

Sajin Komamura is the Captain of the 7th Division within the 13 Court Guards, a military force in Bleach that protects the Soul Society and the innocent souls within it. He is the sole anime wolf-man within their forces, and often keeps his face covered early on to hide his appearance out of shame, though he gradually becomes more comfortable with walking around without a mask. A loyal and dutiful Soul Reaper, he possesses a supernatural sword called a Zanpakuto, which allows him to summon an armored giant to attack all those who threaten the peace.

Tsume

From: Wolf’s Rain

Tsume is one of the anime wolves that seek out paradise in the dying world of Wolf’s Rain. While he doesn’t particularly believe in it to begin with, he does accompany the others in their search in order to keep them safe from wolf hunters that slay their kind. Like most of the anime wolves in the setting, he can telepathically mask himself as a human, during which time he fights skillfully using a dagger.

Terry Cloth

From: Toriko

Terry Cloth is a Battle Wolf and loyal companion to the titular character of Toriko. Adopted as a pup by Toriko, Terry is an outlier for his species for being attached to the latter. Fearless and cunning, this huge anime wolf is capable of facing down just about anything to protect those he knows.

Akira Kaburagi Regendorf

From: Dance in the Vampire Bund

Akira is the bodyguard and love interest of Mina Tepes, the current queen of the vampires. Trained from a young age to fill the role, he is skilled in a number of different methods of combat and is the first to her defense should the need arise. His anime werewolf form bolsters his abilities, giving him an enhanced healing factor in addition to inhuman strength, claws, and fangs needed to deal with any threat to his queen.

Ginei Morioka

From: Rosario to Vampire & Rosario to Vampire Capu2

Ginei is a fellow student and member of the Newspaper Club, being the only other male besides Tsukune. While initially hostile, he warms up to the new arrivals and becomes a loyal companion to the group. He is an anime werewolf, one of the strongest races of youkai, and possesses speed that grows greater in correlation to the phase of the moon.

Rygar

From: Monster Farm: Enbanseki no Himitsu (Monster Rancher) & Monster Farm: Legend e no Michi (Monster Rancher 2000)

Rygar (also known as Tiger) is a fearsome, prideful anime wolf monster that leads a pack of mixed-breeds like him that were ostracized and turned to banditry to survive. However, when his pack is killed by monsters working under Moo, he joins with Genki’s band to find Moo and seek revenge, slowly warming up to the group. He’s fast, is capable of shooting lightning from his horns, and can breathe out ice from his mouth to freeze his enemies.

Free

From: Soul Eater

Free is the only werewolf seen in the Soul Eater franchise and serves as a minor antagonist for the heroes. The werewolf had been imprisoned for stealing the eye of Mabaa, one of the oldest and most powerful witches alive, until he was freed to assist Medusa. Free is strong and fast, as befitting an anime wolf, but is also capable of ice magic, illusion magic, and is immortal.

Moro

From: Mononoke Hime (Princess Mononoke)

Moro is the adoptive mother of San and a spirit of the forest that lives on the mountain boarding Iron Town. She has no particular love for humans, especially since San’s parents abandoned her when they came across Moro. In fact, she actually loathes one human, Eboshi, and wishes for nothing more than to bite her to death. She is a wise, long-lived, and powerful anime wolf that easily dwarfs just about everything else living in the forest.

Fenrir

From: Matantei Loki Ragnarok (Mythical Detective Loki Ragnarok)

Fenrir (or Fenrisulfr) is the son of Loki and brother of Yamino Ryuusuke in Mythical Detective Loki Ragnarok. Though he looks and pretends to be a cute puppy in the presence of his father, he is actually quite vicious and bloodthirsty to all those that threaten him. Similar to Norse Mythology, he can take the form of a giant anime wolf should the need arise.

Holo

From: Ookami to Koushinryou (Spice and Wolf) & Ookami to Koushinryou II (Spice and Wolf II)

Holo, the Wise Wolf, is one of the main protagonists and partner of Lawrence through the story of Spice and Wolf. She is a goddess that oversaw the growth and harvest of wheat for a village until they no longer needed her, causing her to leave it behind to journey with Lawrence. A wise and haughty anime wolf, she can shed her appearance as a young girl to become a massive wolf, well beyond the ability of mortals.

Gen Shishio

From: Kekkaishi

Gen Shishio is a young man who has the blood of both human and wolf Ayakashi (supernatural creature), making him a half-breed. After a rough introduction, he serves as an ally to Yoshimori and assists in his duties in protecting the grounds Karasumori, which possesses a mysterious power that draws Ayakashi to it. He can turn into an anime wolf-man, capable of high-speed movement and enhanced strength, allowing him to tear his enemies apart faster than they can blink.

Ame & Yuki

From: Ookami Kodomo no Ame to Yuki (Wolf Children: Ame and Yuki)

Ame and Yuki (who share the same spot on this list) are the titular children of Hana, a human woman, and a wolf-man. After the father's death, early in the story, Hana struggles to raise the two children by herself and must cope with the oddities brought about by their wolfish traits. The anime wolf children, themselves, also come to terms with their heritage, both human and wolf, in a heartwarming story that really shouldn’t be missed.

Zafila

From: Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha A's (Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A's) & Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha ViVid (Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha ViVid)

Zafila is one of the Wolkenritter, four ancient artificial beings that serve the master of the Book of Darkness, with Hayate being his master upon her awakening it. During Nanoha A's, he serves as an antagonist until events lead to him and the others turning to Nanoha’s side. He can use magic to shift between a large blue anime wolf form and a humanoid form, has a wealth of knowledge spanning his several lifetimes, and can use a form of magic melded with martial arts known as Strike Arts.

Gabumon

From: Digimon Adventure & Digimon Adventure tri. 1: Saikai (Digimon Adventure tri. Chapter 1: Reunion)

Gabumon is a digimon (a digital monster) that serves as the partner of Yamato Ishida throughout the various Digimon franchise. His evolutionary line turns him into various types of anime wolves befitting this list. His Champion form, Garurumon, is a giant fire breathing anime wolf, his Ultimate form, WereGarurumon (as pictured above), makes him an anime werewolf, and his Mega form, MetalGarurumon, makes him a cyborg anime wolf that can fire missiles and freeze his enemies solid.

Kouga

From: InuYasha & InuYasha: Kanketsu-hen (InuYasha: The Final Act)

Kouga is a supporting character in InuYasha that appears throughout the series. The leader of a group of wolf-demons, many of his pack are slaughtered by Kagura, who serves Naraku, thus leading to him seeking revenge. Thanks to two powerful jewel shards in his legs, he can run fast enough to generate tornadoes and kick hard enough to shatter stones. In addition, this prominent anime wolf also commands a legion of normal wolves who serve him.

The world of anime is filled with a variety of amazing animals: some cute, some majestic, and all loyal to either their master or their cause. If you enjoyed this article, why not come visit our "anime zoo" filled with all kinds of wonderful anime animals!

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