- Updated on: July 22, 2022
- by Ernie
We all know that the MC’s charm is the all-new way to a Gen Z manga fan’s heart, right? And the best way to steal a reader’s attention is through the MC’s impeccable intellect.
What are the odds that the manga portrays an intelligent MC, when it is so much easier to put up a funny character and just make everybody laugh instead of fall in love? Hmmmm…
Table of Contents
Today, we are going to list 13 Manga Where the Main Character Is Smart/Genius. So, without any further ado, let’s begin our list.
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Table of Content
JAPANESE MANGA WHERE THE MAIN CHARACTER IS SMART / INTELLIGENT/ PRODIGY
13. No Game, No Life

| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6/10 | 5/10 | 5/10 | 6/10 | 22/40 | 
Strategy. Cheating. Gaming. Bluffing. Name it, this manga has it. A 2013 Japanese Comic, revolving around the world being a game towards two whiz, badass siblings transported into a gaming world.
And…do we even need to reiterate that they’re clearly geniuses as broad daylight, beating out names after names in the game? Sheeesh!
Surely, you will enjoy this smarty-pants duo, dwelling fearlessly inside their comfort zone of virtual reality.
12. Liar Game
 
															| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 | 5/10 | 23/40 | 
Revolving around a professional swindler protagonist, trying to save the story’s heroine in a game of lying. Phewww…*wipes forehead sweat*. Intense, right?
You either be buried in a mountain of debt or take a very huge sum of money, the protagonist’s goal to save the heroine leads to schemes that would surely poke your mind’s capacity.
The thrill this manga brings will surely meet your expectations for a genius MC, added by the heroine’s obnoxiousness. Check it out yourself.
11. Gosick
 
															| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6/10 | 7/10 | 5/10 | 6/10 | 24/40 | 
How would you feel being accused of murder just because you’re present in the crime scene? Surely, you can’t get out of that situation if you are not as smart as the MC of this manga, who helped the protagonist outwit the case!
Set in a fictional European country, how would the accused get along with the loner but genius MC, Victorique de Blois?
You better discover it yourself? *eye wink*
10. At Night I Move
 
															| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6/10 | 7/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 | 25/40 | 
As the title suggests, the MC’s smart and swift moves activate every night! How is that? It’s interesting, right?
Seeking revenge for his sister who was assaulted by three juvenile delinquents, Mochizuki Wataru discovered his bizarre ability after meeting an accident caused by the criminals who oppressed his sister.
What ability does he gain every night? Is it connected to his dreams? Discover Wataru’s genius and mysterious journey for revenge in this suspenseful manga!
9. SKET Dance
 
															| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6/10 | 7/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 | 25/40 | 
Who wants to laugh and fall in love, and oops, solve mysteries in a snap!? Count me in!
A story of a trio of the SKET Brigade or formerly the Living assistance Club, whose leader is a great master of concentration, solving mysteries after mysteries focusing for a specific amount of time.
Getting the job done with the SKET Brigade’s little antics, surely, this manga would actually be hundred percent fun!
8. Warlock of Magus World
 
															| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7/10 | 7/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 | 26/40 | 
An Isekai Japanese Comic, which tells the story of Leylin, a scientist reincarnated into a world of mages and knights.
Endeavoring to discover the secrets and power of the Universe, he performed experiments to catch clues and mysteries, leading to the answers.
What sets him apart from the rest aside from his wit, is his MC vibe with a non-heroic aura, and immoral senses, which surely makes us curious on how he was made as the MC of this fantasy driven manga.
7. Dr. Stone

| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7/10 | 6/10 | 8/10 | 7/10 | 28/40 | 
With the whole world on the verge of petrification after a bizarre global phenomenon, a lone boy arises to undo the effect on him.
He is a cut above the rest. A different one, who aims, not just for survival, but also the rebuilding of a new world and civilization.
With his impeccable knowledge on science, he seeks to rebuild everything from scratch and that sets this manga apart from others.
With its post-apocalyptic genre, truly, this manga is worth checking for. You’ll never know in no time, you’ll get hooked.
6. Tomodachi Game
 
															| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7/10 | 7/10 | 7/10 | 8/10 | 29/40 | 
This Japanese Comic is definitely a grower, which develops from “Mehhh” into a masterpiece.
This manga uncovers the mad genius side of the MC after being dragged into a titular game with his friends.
Being deemed as a “monster”, how will the MC challenge everyone in the game? And how will his villainous side be exposed after the development of the story? Is friendship maintained or ruined as the story advances?
You need to catch it for yourself!
5. Detective Conan
 
															| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/10 | 7/10 | 7/10 | 6/10 | 30/40 | 
I mean, do I even need to explain it? Detective Conan is that guy!
A master of solving mysteries and cases, Conan is up there in terms of wit, intelligence, and smartness.
The real question is, how many more needles could Detective Mouri take before snapping his neck? Stay tuned on the adventures of Conan and the cases he solves for several thousand times!
4. The Promised Neverland

| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7/10 | 8/10 | 9/10 | 8/10 | 32/40 | 
Curious to see a group of children who don’t even hit puberty, outsmart everyone including you and me?
The story starts off with a group of children in an orphanage with a dark, terrifying secret.
The story abruptly unveiled that the children are mere livestock for demons and that the orphanage is a brain cultivating farm.
Discover how the children solved clues and mysteries leading to the head of operation, and how they try to escape such a dungeon.
3. Usogui
 
															| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8/10 | 9/10 | 8/10 | 8/10 | 33/40 | 
With an ensemble of casts bearing extraordinary wit and smartness, this gambling manga is top notch!
From side personas, extras, supporting characters, and of course, the MC itself, everything is a representation of genius supremacy.
The exciting part is how all the characters involved managed to go on with their schemes and psychological fights, knowing all of them possess such extraordinary intellect. You better be ready, or the plot will outsmart you.
2. Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion
 
															| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/10 | 10/10 | 10/10 | 7/10 | 37/40 | 
A genius madman is a perfect bait to catch everybody’s heart.
Lelouch, who has an alter persona, Zero, created a revolution with the Geass that was given to him by C.C.! Bizarre characters that deserve our attention.
How Lelouch established the title “hero that is an antihero” is all in the manga and is worth everybody’s attention!
Catch Lelouch and his charismatic executions and experiments in this action-packed manga.
1. Death Note
 
															| No Brainer Meter | Character Writing | Plot | Art | Total | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/10 | 10/10 | 10/10 | 8/10 | 38/40 | 
Light Yagami, the MC of the manga, discovered a book called Death Note, which turned him into an executioner of life based on his judgement.
The person whose name he writes on the book will die with the manner of death which he also decides.
This left him the responsibility to cleanse the world based on his judgement of righteousness and evil or turn everything into chaos with his decisions. This manga is definitely thrilling and mind bugging, with how Light uses his mind to outwit death and how he chooses the names to write in this powerful book of life and death.
Which Character Do You Think Is The Smartest?

In our search for a charming MC, isn’t it cool to find one whose charm radiates from its out of this world smartness? Check those “13 mangas Where MC is a Genius” recommendations out for yourself and discover the right dose of genius you could find from those MCs, and start your japanese comic journey like someone who’s a “NO BRAINER”.
 

 
 
 





