10 Best War Anime
Descriptions
Summary
- War anime captures the enormity of conflict, whether set in the past, present, or future. It's a brutal struggle for survival and power.
- War stories in anime can range from battles against supernatural creatures to political conflicts between nations, showcasing the horrors of combat.
- War anime explores heavy themes such as revenge, trauma, the consequences of monarchy, and the quest for unity, providing a unique perspective on the realities of war.
The medium of anime might not be what comes to mind when first thinking of war stories, but there are actually a great many classic anime series that focus on telling the tale of a war where all hangs in the balance. While some anime use war as just a small piece of the puzzle, other series make war their main focus, telling the tale of how one great country fell to another.
The best war anime have a grand scale, capturing the enormity of what war is and what it means for two countries to go to war. The protagonist might be a great hero of this war, or they could be an ordinary soldier out in the trenches, experiencing a far less glamorous side of things. War anime might be set in the medieval past, the modern day, or in the distant future, but regardless of setting, the realities of war often remain the same. It's kill or be killed on the battlefield, and that's true whether one has a sword, a machine gun, or a starship.
9 Attack on Titan - A Supernatural War for Survival
Created by Hajime Isayama, animated by Wit Studio and MAPPA
Attack on Titan tells the tale of Eren Yeager, who lived peacefully with his mother until attacking Titans, monstrous humanoid creatures that eat people, came and destroyed their home, along with hundreds of others, and killed his mother. Eren vowed revenge against the Titans on that day, and joined the Survey Corps to train to kill them. Attack on Titan isn't just about battling Titans, however; there is another political entity which exists in this world who seeks to annihilate these people entirely, ultimately making the conflict man versus man. A story full of wild twists, Attack on Titan definitely doesn't shy away from the horrors of combat.
8 Record of Grancrest War - A Fantastical War for Peace
Created by Ryu Mizuno, animated by A-1 Pictures
Record of Grancrest War is a fantasy anime from 2018 which follows Siluca, a young mage girl, and Theo, a noble with a plan to bring peace to a world that has fallen into utter chaos after a disastrous wedding of political alliance. The story is that of Theo's ascendancy as they travel the world and take steps towards bringing the conflict between the Fantasia Union and the Factory Alliance to an end. Despite its fantasy setting and the involvement of magic, Record of Grancrest War portrays the brutality of war and its effects on the wider world, even for those who aren't fighting.
Created by Shoji Gatoh, animated by Gonzo Digimation
Full Metal Panic! is a mecha anime series set in a rough equivalent to the modern day, and follows Sosuke Sagara, a former child soldier from Afghanistan who now works for the anti-terrorist military organization known as Mithril. Sagara is entrusted with the safety of Kaname Chidori, a Japanese school girl who many groups are after for unknown reasons, at least to Sagara. The series has its share of conventional combat in addition to mecha fights, but one thing it does especially well is showcase the trauma that Sagara has from his time as a child soldier, and how Kaname helps him to build trust for the first time.
Full Metal Panic! has a goofy side series, Fumoffu, in addition to two proper sequels: The Second Raid and Invisible Victory, which continue the story.
6 Vinland Saga - Turning Away From War
Created by Makoto Yukimura, animated by Wit Studio and MAPPA
Vinland Saga tells the story of Thorfinn, initially a young boy on a quest to avenge his father's death. Thorfinn is swept up into the conflict between England and Denmark, and despite his father's warnings against violence, ends up in the middle, dealing death himself at every turn. Vinland Saga really captures how a desire for revenge is the thing which keeps large-scale conflicts alive, as new combatants join to avenge those who have already fallen on both sides. The second season, which still involves Thorfinn, is a fairly major departure from the first, but it continues many of the themes about war just as easily.
5 Alderamin on the Sky - From Nobody to War Hero
Created by Bokuto Uno, animated by Madhouse
Alderamin on the Sky follows the lazy young genius Ikta Solork, a boy who wants nothing to do with heroics or battle. However, when a war breaks out between his home nation of the Katjvarna Empire and the Republic of Kioka, Ikta ends up joining the military alongside his childhood friend Yatorishino. The story is all about how a boy who doesn't want to be a hero ends up becoming one anyway, and how he deals with this fact is a key element of the series. It explores what it's like to have greatness thrust upon you, and how difficult it can be to live up to others' images of you.
4 The Heroic Legend of Arslan - Glory and Horror of War
Created by Yoshiki Tanaka, animated by Liden Films and Sanzigen
The Heroic Legend of Arslan is a 2015 anime adapting a manga, which in turn was adapted from light novels written by Yoshiki Tanaka of Legend of Galactic Heroes fame. Arslan follows the eponymous character, prince of a land known as Pars (based on Persia), who sees his country taken over by the neighboring nation of Lusitania after a diabolical plot takes down the King. Arslan, who barely escapes, must now put together an army and retake his homeland, and become the rightful king he was always meant to be. Arslan deals with heavy themes like slavery, religion, and the troubles of monarchy, but handles them masterfully. While the setting is lightly fantastical, the war aspect is heavily grounded in reality.
3 Mobile Suit Gundam 00 - The Eradication of War
Created by Hajime Yatate and Yoshiyuki Tomino, animated by Sunrise
Following the depletion of fossil fuels and a transition to solar power from space, three major powers came to rule the Earth in Mobile Suit Gundam 00. However, these powers left many smaller nations, without access to solar power, who constantly warred with one another, leading to the creation of the private military organization known as Celestial Being, which uses Gundams in an attempt to keep the peace. The story follows Setsuna Seiei, one of four Gundam pilots working for Celestial Being. As the three powers come together to try to crush Celestial Being, a war that aims to end all wars begins.
2 The Legend of the Galactic Heroes: Die Neue These - An Epic War in Space
Created by Yoshiki Tanaka, animated by Production I.G.
The Legend of Galactic Heroes is based on a long-running light novel series by Yoshiki Tanaka, and follows two heroes on opposite sides of a war: Yang Wen Li, a genius who wants nothing to do with war in the Free Planets Alliance, and Reinhard von Lohengramm, an equally genius noble on the side of the Galactic Empire. Yang and Reinhard make for fascinating contrasting protagonists, and their different viewpoints on war are an inherent part of their characters. It's a grand tale of strategy, underdog heroics, political intrigue and of course, war, with no other series out there quite like it.
Die Neue These is a remake of a late 80s/early 90s Legend of Galactic Heroes anime which is also an excellent war story.
1 Kingdom - A Quest to Unify the Warring States
Created by Yasuhisa Hara, animated by Studio Pierrot
Kingdom is a series set in China during the Warring States period of Chinese history, and follows a war orphan, Xin, as he sets out on his quest to become the kind of war hero who can finally unite China for the first time in hundreds of years. Xin falls in with the King of the land of Qin, and becomes a top general for him, aiding the King to achieve their dream of bringing China together. The story involves a healthy dose of politics in addition to war drama, and explores both the high-level and low-level perspectives on war. While it's definitely one of the longest series on this list, it's also easily at the top.
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