It has been thirty years since the first appearance of the “Burnish” – a race of mutant pyromancers who reduced half the world to ash. When an aggressive new group of mutant fire-wielders known as the “Mad Burnish” appears, Galo Thymos, a new member of the anti-Burnish rescue team known as Burning Rescue prepares to face off against Lio Fotia, the head of the Mad Burnish. Who will emerge victorious once the flames of battle are extinguished?

Soul Eater and Fire Force author Okubo Atsushi has said some fairly cryptic things in the past about the integrity of his story ideas, perhaps insinuating that talking about his ideas before their release could lead to some underhanded things happening. Those cryptic statements being said, it is impossible not to join some dots and connect Fire Force to 2019’s Promare, a story with many of the same elements. With supernatural fires, human terror as a result of these fires, as well as heroic fire fighters who exist to extinguish these flames of terror – Promare very much sounds like Fire Force as far as the skeletons for both shows. However, Studio Trigger’s film has its own charm being a Trigger work, with it feeling a lot like Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. With the sparks of controversy aside, Promare is definitely a flame like Fire Force and therefore worth the watch – not to mention the fact that it is a whole lot of fun with its use of mecha and CGI.

Death City is home to the famous Death Weapon Meister Academy (DWMA), a school lead by Lord Death himself. The place’s modus operandi is to cultivate “Death Scythes” for the budding Shinigami who attend the school to wield in combat against evil. Death Scythes are made from human hybrids who can transform their bodies into various weapons; however, they can only become fully-fledged Death Scythes after they’ve consumed 99 evil souls and one witch’s soul. Soul Eater Evans is a Demon Scythe who aims to become a Death Scythe with the help of his wielder, Maka Albarn. The two are polar opposites, with Soul being a bit of a delinquent in contrast to the straight-laced Maka. Together with their schoolmates, Death The Kid, son of Lord Death himself, and the hot-headed Black☆Star, Maka and Soul protect the city from evil while collecting souls so they can eventually become a formidable Death Scythe and Meister pair.

Being the title that made Okubo a household name as far anime and manga go, Soul Eater very much feels like a prototype, with the series protagonist of Fire Force being similar in demeanour and appearance to Soul Eater Evans. Kusakabe Shinra’s sharp-toothed grin and demonic red eyes mirror those of Soul. However, Soul Eater following characters who are engaged in heroic work in order to protect ordinary citizens is similar to Fire Force and its concern with the firefighters who combat the Infernals.

When superpowers known as “Quirks” become commonplace in society, heroism, the profession that used to be the object of children’s fantasies, becomes an absolute necessity. With 80% of society having some sort of special ability, a fifth of people lack such powers, including Midoriya Izuku. Despite lacking a Quirk, Izuku has always wanted to become a hero like his idol, the number 1 hero, All Might. Izuku’s dedication to his dream has him taking notes of all heroes whenever he can. When he meets All Might, he soon learns of All Might’s inheritable power and to make things better yet, All Might views Izuku as his successor. After several months of gruelling training, Izuku enrols at UA High, famous for its hero training program, beginning his journey to becoming the best hero.

The main similarity between My Hero Academia and Fire Force is the protagonists. Both Kusakabe Shinra and Midoriya Izuku join their respective professions in order to become heroes. The two series are also similar in how they show the element of the responsibility that comes with great power, as well as the darker elements to the plot which find themselves tucked away in the very come-up stories of the protagonists. Both series, heroism and villainy aside, come across as fairly light-hearted and comical, elements which greatly reflect their rooting in the Shounen genre.

Assiah is the realm of the humans, Gehenna, the realm of the demons. Demons arrive in the human realm through possessing human beings. Satan, the ruler of the demon realm is too powerful and hence cannot find a suitable host to possess. He finally figures out a plan: he will send his son to rule Assiah and become a host suitable enough for the Demon King himself. The son, Okumura Rin, lives a difficult life as a troublesome teenager who lives in an orphanage. His life becomes more difficult when demons begin to attack him and he finds out that he is the son of Satan. He vows to become an exorcist to protect Assiah from his father with his brother Yukio.

Both Blue Exorcist and Fire Force have misunderstood protagonists. While Blue Exorcist’s protagonist, Rin, is literally the son of the demon of all demons, Satan, Kusakabe Shinra is labelled a demon for his abilities. The two have dark pasts, with both of them having lost parents due to their supernatural abilities. However, both protagonists take it upon themselves to use their powers for good, no matter how difficult the path becomes.

Hellsalem’s Lot is a diverse city. In fact, it is so diverse that it is common knowledge that all sorts of supernatural entities live alongside human beings. Three years ago, a gateway between Earth and a realm known as “the Beyond” opened in New York City, trapping New Yorkers and otherworlders in an impenetrable dimensional bubble. Libra is a secret organisation in Hellsalem’s Lot made up of both humans and supernaturals, tasked with maintaining order in the city and ensuring that the chaos does not spread to the rest of the world. Leonardo Watch is a hobbyist photographer who lives with his mother and sister. However, when he obtains the “All-Seeing Eyes of the Gods”, his sister loses her eyesight. He enters Hellsalem’s Lot to find answers about his new supernatural abilities and soon finds himself at Libra, with his life going further away from the realm of normalcy.

Kekkai Sensen and Fire Force are similar in that they both have main characters who enter organisations in order to solve mysteries about their respective pasts. However, in the same vein, these protagonists end up getting more than they bargained for in their new environments. Both series have supernatural elements, although Kekkai Sensen lends itself to more supernatural concepts than Fire Force.

Kageyama “Mob” Shigeo is a 14-year-old who, from an early age, has possessed incredible latent psychic potential. However, he soon realises the potential danger of his abilities and vows to suppress his powers. In an attempt to learn how to control his powers, Mob takes up one Arataka Reigen, a con artist claiming to be a psychic, up to be his mentor. Reigen; however, uses Shigeo’s authentic powers to make a quick buck. Mob now participates in exorcisms and various other paranormal activities every single day; however, if his emotions go unchecked his powers stand to cause incredible destruction for the world around him and he simply can’t be stopped.

Kusakabe Shinra and Kageyama Shigeo suffer from the same problem – their faces don’t always do them right when it comes to emotional expression. While Shinra isn’t stoic like Mob is, his toothy-grin whenever he feels nervous or uncomfortable has done much damage to his life. Both characters seek to use their abilities for the good of other people and have suffered trauma as a result of their powers either inflicting pain on other people or being blamed for doing so. Both universes also have their fair share of characters who have varying abilities of the same nature – espers in Mob Psycho 100 mirror the second and third generation Infernals of the Fire Force universe.