Anirban Bhattacharya
Action is one of the most popular genres of anime. One of the main reasons for this is the beautiful art that anime uses to portray the action sequences. Also, there’s a huge range when we talk about the portrayal of action in anime. From simple martial arts and sword fights to big, high energy, kaleidoscopic fight scenes. Here’s the list of top action anime of 2018. The list includes best action romance anime, best action adventure anime and best action thriller anime.
10. Grancrest Senki (January)
‘Grancrest Senki’ is a fantasy and action genre anime which aired in the month of January and ran till June. The anime is set in the continent of Atlatan. The people of Atlatan had recently achieved peace. But the didn’t last long after the occurrence of an event known as The Great Hall Tragedy. The event was by no means meant to cause chaos or havoc. Rather it was meant to be a peaceful and entertaining event where two alliances the Fantasia Union and the Factory Alliance were gonna be united due to the marriage of Sir Alexis and Lady Marrine. But the event was doomed due to the convergence of chaos. Chaos is a dark energy which brings with itself destruction and demons. Demon Lord Diabolos appeared from within the dark energy and murdered the archdukes. Siluca Meletes a mage from the Alliance faction is traveling through the countryside to train under a magician. She is attacked by a few soldiers but is saved by Theo Cornaro who possesses a magical crest. Learning of Theo’s noble aim of ridding his town of Chaos Siluca enters into a magical contract with him. Thus, starting their journey.
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10. Killing Bites (January)
Look, I know many of you may not have enjoyed ‘Killing Bites’ because there wasn’t any good story or interesting characters. Yes, that’s true. But I knew that all along since I had already read the synopsis. I watched it for the same reason you watch a B-movie. There’s gore, there’s action, and there’s fanservice. The last part was one of the main reasons I picked it up (God help me). The story is simple. It’s a bunch of mutated humans fighting each other to death. Yuuya Nomoto is a normal high-schooler. One day he unknowingly ends up participating in the abduction of a girl, Hitomi Uzaki. But there’s more to Hitomi than just sexy looks. She ends up murdering all of them except Yuuya. Yuuya is then forced to take Hitomi to a hidden place. There Yuuya is wagered as a prize for the winner of the match between Therianthropes. Therianthropes are human-animal hybrids. But thanks to Hitomi who defeats the others Yuuya is saved. But now he is the investor of Hitomi, who needs to fight in death matches known as Killing Bites and win that is if Yuuya wants to live.
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9. A.I.C.O.: Incarnation (March)
‘A.I.C.O. : Incarnation’ came out this year in the month of March. The anime had around 12 episodes. Look, if you love a good character driven plot then this won’t be an entertaining watch for you. One of the reasons for that is the main character Aiko whose predictable and annoying reactions to everything becomes a bit frustrating. But why did I include it then? One of the main reasons I did that was because I liked the visuals of the anime. Another reason was the futuristic world that the series brought forward. The plot isn’t something new. While researching artificial life an unfortunate event took place. This event was known as the burst. An AI called ‘matter’ now lurks in Japan and destroys everything in its path. Aiko is a teenage girl whose parents were killed during ‘Burst’. But it turns out she might be the key to solving the problem that plagues the nation. The anime only has 12 episodes, each episode is around 20 minutes, so you can binge it.
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8. Golden Kamuy (April)
Honestly speaking, I got to know of this anime two months before while I was doing another article. I didn’t think much of it but recently when I came across this title again and decided to give it a watch after finding out that it was only 12 episodes. I haven’t reached the end yet so can’t really comment on the ending but so far I have enjoyed it. This is a historical anime. The protagonist of the anime is Sugimoto who had survived the Russo-Japanese war. He was known as Sugimoto the immortal when the war was still ongoing. One of his comrades died during the war. Sugimoto hopes to save his widowed wife and decides to hunt for gold promised by the gold rush. He gets to know of a hidden stash of gold belonging to criminals. Now, he and his partner, an Ainu girl who saved his life from harsh cold, must find the gold before other criminals do.
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7. Tokyo Ghoul: Re (April)
Now, here’s the thing I enjoyed the first to seasons of ‘Tokyo Ghoul’ a lot. The story was good and interesting. The characters were great and the way season 2 ended was great. But I didn’t really enjoy the recent season of the franchise as I enjoyed the other two. I still decided to include this on the list because I liked the franchise. Also, I know there are many fans of the series who enjoyed the third installment. The first few episodes confused me but as I went through the episodes things became more and more clear. The events take place after a period of two years since the CCG attacked Anteiku. Tokyo has experienced a great deal of change due to the growing influence of CCG. The ghouls still pose a threat and they have become aware of CCG and are much more cautious. To help neutralize the threat faster CCG has created a new squad known as the Quinx Squad consisting of individuals who have gone through surgery to gain Ghoul like powers.
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6. Megalo Box (April)
‘Megalo Box’ is a sports and action genre anime. I really enjoyed the series. The art is great and the visuals are stunning. I liked the concept of the show as well as the execution of the fight scenes. Talking about characters, I will say that they are not overly dramatic. The main character of Junk Dog is interesting and the show will make you care for him. I mean who doesn’t care for an underdog making it big. Anyway, the plot of the story revolves around Megalo Boxing. It is a style of boxing where the boxers enhance their speed and power via the use of gears and other technology fitted on their arms. Junk Dog is an underground Megalo Boxer. Though he is really skilled he earns money by throwing matches. He hits when he is told to and goes down as ordered. But one day he is defeated by Yuri, the current Megalo Box champion. He challenges JD to fight his way up to him in the tournament known as Megalonia if he wants to fight him again. But in such a short time will JD be ready?
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5. Attack on Titan Season 3 (July)
The third installment of the ‘Attack on Titan’ series aired this year beginning in the month of June and running till October. I had been waiting for this season for some time now. There was a delay of four years between the first and the second season. So, even though it was announced that the series will air in 2018 I personally had my doubts. I generally don’t watch new seasons unless a bunch of episodes has been released. I recently completed watching all the episodes and enjoyed it thoroughly. The season starts with a murder mystery. Also, this season will deal a lot with political corruption and all. If you have not seen ‘Attack on Titan’ yet then please do so. The story is set in a time when human-like giants walked on earth and fed on humans. Faced with extinction the humans decided to train people to fight back. The protagonist of the series is Eren Yeager who after witnessing the death of his mom at the hands of a titan decides to join the military and kill the monsters.
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4. Boku no Hero Academia Season 3 (April)
I loved the first two installments of ‘Boku no Hero Academia’. The concept is great and the characters are quite interesting. One of the main reasons I enjoyed the show was because of its visuals. The visuals are amazing and make the action sequences much more entertaining. Another great thing about the show is the presence of quirks. I enjoy it a lot every time a new quirk is shown. For people who haven’t watched the series yet, here’s the synopsis. Quirks are special powers that humans gain naturally. Over the course of time the number of humans with quirks have increased and now it is around 80%. But still, Izuku Midoriya is a quirkless boy. Since the age of four, he has been wanting to become a hero like All-Might who is the greatest hero of all. But is disheartened when he founds out about his inability. He doesn’t give up and works hard to enter into the Hero Academy. After a chance encounter with his idol, he trains hard under him and ultimately gains his power. The third season of the series will let the viewers know about the origins of the All for One and it’s rival.
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3. Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens (January)
I felt that ‘Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens’ i a different sort of anime. The protagonist of the series is Zenji Banba who is a detective investigating certain hitmen companies. He lives in a city called Fukuoka which houses dangerous individuals like hitmen, revenge seekers, murderers et cetera. Xianming Ling is a cross-dressing hitman who is frustrated at the companies due to lack of jobs. After one of his targets commits suicide he is denied payment. He asks for another mission and is asked to take out Banba. But instead of doing as told he asks Banba to join him. Will Banba join the person who was sent to kill him? Or will he take the other route?
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2. Devilman: Crybaby (January)
One of the best action anime to air this air was ‘Devilman: Crybaby’. Though the high volume of gore and sex might put some people off I liked it. It was fresh to see a different type of art. The plot of the anime is based on devils who need humans as a host to take form. Akira Fudou the protagonist of the anime is a kind-hearted guy. He is willing to help anyone in need. When his friend Ryou asks his help to uncover some devils who are going to be at a party he agrees instantly. But the party turned out to be dangerous. Devils started possessing people and all hell broke loose. To save his friend from imminent danger Akira decides to fuse with a devil known as Amon. He gains enough power to defeat everyone and save Ryou. Now Akira, a Devilman, along with Ryou works to neutralize any threat to humans.
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1. Garo: Vanishing Line (October)
‘Garo: Vanishing Line’ is the third TV series in the ‘Garo’ franchise. Unlike the earlier versions, the series doesn’t take place in any fantasy world. Rather it is set in modern times in a modern city. There’s politics, businesses, and technology which form the setting for this series. Russell city is filled with corruption. Here, manifestations of ill emotions known as Horrors run wild and cause havoc. The only people to defend the city against Horrors is The Makai Order which is a group of powerful Makai Knights and Makai Alchemists. Sword is one of the best members of the order and possesses the Garo armor and blade. He knows that there is a danger looming over the Makai order. His only hint is a phrase ‘El Dorado’. He meets a girl named Sophia who has the same phrase as a clue to her brother’s disappearance. Sword decides to team up with Sophia so that he can neutralize the threat to his order and also find Sophia’s brother.
