When people think of fantasy anime, it’s easy to think of series that spend most of their time on exploration, like Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, or political intrigue and mystery, like The Apothecary Diaries. While those series are amazing, sometimes viewers want something different. Sometimes they want a quality series that’s jam-packed with action from beginning to end.
Fortunately, viewers don’t have to compromise much. The fantasy genre has been one of the most popular in anime for decades now, which means there are a ton of incredible fantasy anime to satisfy any fan. Even the ones who just want some great action series have access to plenty of thrilling fantasy anime.
10 Goblin Slayer Sees Its Heroes Going on Dangerous Missions to Stop Goblins
Streaming on Crunchyroll
Goblin Slayer‘s opening episode is a little much for a lot of anime fans. Viewers who can look past its controversial opening will find a series packed with action throughout. The series follows Goblin Slayer, a man with a troubled history who’s become a master of killing goblins. Though other adventurers look down on goblin killing as low-level work, the Slayer takes on as many goblin slaying jobs as possible, hoping to wipe them out for good.
Goblin Slayer is basically a more anime version of Dungeons and Dragons, only more gritty. Each arc is built around the Slayer and his allies taking on a quest that should be simple but has grown out of hand, requiring specialists to get the job done. The group’s cameraderie and creativity keep the ever-evolving goblins from getting too comfortable.
9 The Red Ranger Becomes an Adventurer in Another World Gives a Veteran Ranger Another World to Save
Streaming on Crunchyroll
Red Ranger Becomes An Adventurer In Another World is proof that isekai anime can still be original when they try. In this series, Tougo Asagaki was the leader of the Kizuna Five, but he «sacrifices» himself to defeat their last enemy. Instead of going to the afterlife, he awakens in a fantasy world, still possessing his Henshin Hero powers. With no idea what to do next, Tougo becomes an adventurer and begins traveling the world.
Red Ranger is one of the funniest, action-packed anime of the last few years. It doesn’t take long for Tougo to team up with people trying to save this new world, and he pledges to help them out with the power of his newly-formed bonds with them. This fantasy anime is filled with great references to Super Sentai series of the past, so fans who love tokusatsu and anime should make this series a priority.
8 Mashle: Magic and Muscles Asks a Strength Character to Take on a Mage Boss Rush
Streaming on Crunchyroll
Mashle: Magic and Muscles centers around Mash Burnedead, a magicless teen in a world where humans without magic are usually killed. After being discovered, Mash manages to negotiate a way for him to survive: attend the prestigious Easton Magic Academy and become a Divine Visionary, a title which would allow him to live in peace. Though Mash wields no magic, his incredible physical training still allows him to compete with even the elite mages at his school.
Mashle might be a comedy first, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t also have some great action scenes. Nearly every episode features Mash being tested by a new mage who doesn’t believe in his abilities. Still, his incredible muscles prove to be every bit the equal to their powerful spells, reminding viewers that sometimes warriors can beat mages.
7 Ishura Focuses on Action Between It's Most Powerful Warriors
Streaming on Hulu
For some fans, Ishura might actually be too action-packed. The series takes place in a world where society is recovering after the defeat of a powerful enemy. In the hopes of creating some stability, the governments gather some of the strongest beings in the world for a massive tournament to crown the True Hero.
Two seasons in, Ishura hasn’t gotten to its tournament. Instead, each episode centers around new characters that will participate in the tournament, all while fleshing out the world at the same time. Since the story is an anthology, it’s all centered around showing off just how awesome every fighter is, generally in an incredible action sequence.
6 Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Features a Heroine Who's Great at Befriending Through Magic Battles
Not Currently Streaming
When fans think magical girl, they don’t normally think of an action-packed anime. Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha broke the mold in that respect, introducing a magical series that was actually aimed at a shonen anime audience. The series focuses on Nanoha Takamachi, a young girl asked to help recover powerful items known as the Jewel Seeds by defeating magical creatures. Though Nanoha learns to defeat them easily, when she encounters another magical girl, Fate Testarossa, she learns the job is much more difficult than she would’ve thought.
Across multiple series, Nanoha splits its focus between developing the relationships between the magical girls, and as many cool fight scenes as possible. Defeat means friendship in this world, so many of the girls Nanoha defeats later become her allies and help her take down even stronger foes. Nanoha is great for both experienced magical girl fans, and those who want to try a magical girl anime series but aren’t sure where to start.
5 Dog Days Features Fighters Competing at the Highest Level
Not Currently Streaming
Dog Days comes from the creator of Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha, with the creator dipping into the realm of isekai anime before it became overwhelmingly popular. The series follows Cinque Izumi, an athletic high-schooler who gets brought to the country of Flonyard and asked to become their champion. Though Cinque initially believes he’ll have to fight dangerous opponents, it isn’t long before he realizes he’s being asked to essentially operate in a series of war games for the sake of a losing country.
Dog Days manages to combine fluffy cuteness with impressive action scenes. The characters are all adorable, from the animal people to the students isekai’d to their world, but that doesn’t stop the anime from sparing no expense on the action. With special spells being used to keep all damage non-lethal, characters are free to go all-out in their attempts to win.
4 Record of the Grancrest War Perfectly Balances Action & Intrigue
Streaming on Crunchyroll
Record of Grancrest War brings another of Ryo Mizuno’s light novels to the forefront. Where Record of the Lodoss War feels like if Dungeons & Dragons were an anime series, Grancrest War feels like if Fire Emblem turned into an anime. The series follows Theo Cornaro, a young knight, and his mage partner Siluca Meletes, as they gather an army to fight against the dark forces of chaos and unite their country into a single land again.
Record of Grancrest manages to adapt Mizuno’s entire series in just 24 episodes. The anime is a bit rushed as a result, but it also means the series doesn’t ever slow down on the action. Nearly every episode features increasingly large-scale battles between different kingdoms. Record of the Lodoss War is easily one of the most underrated fantasy anime around.
3 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Has Almost No Downtime for Its Protagonists
Streaming on Crunchyroll
Appearing at the very end of the 2010s, Kimetsu no Yaiba: Demon Slayer quickly turned into the biggest series of the new generation of shonen anime. The series follows Tanjiro Kamado, a young boy inspired to become a demon slayer after nearly all of his family is killed by a demon. The only member he has left is his sister Nezuko, who’s been transformed into a demon herself. Still, Tanjiro and Nezuko travel together in the hopes of finding a cure and stopping the head of the demons, Muzan Kibutsuji, forever.
Demon Slayer isn’t just beloved for its standout characters, but for its excellent action scenes. Tanjiro and his allies only get enough downtime to recover from their last big mission before being sent off to yet another dangerous case. The work that ufotable has done in elevating the manga’s already detailed action into some of the most beautiful scenes in anime has turned the studio into one of the most respected by fans in the industry.
2 Fairy Tail Focuses on Mages Who Solve Their Problems With Their Fists
Streaming on Crunchyroll
One of the late 2000s shonen anime that managed to become a breakout success aside from the Big 3, Fairy Tail is still around well over a decade after it started. The series focuses on Natsu Dragneel, a Dragon Slayer who works for the magic guild Fairy Tail, a collection of the rowdiest mages in history. Though Natsu spends most of his time completing missions for the guild, he’s also searching for Igneel, the Fire Dragon who raised him and disappeared when he was a child.
As expected of a shonen anime, Fairy Tail is full of action from the very first episode. The series starts with Natsu and his new friend Lucy fighting it out with a giant minotaur to save a fellow member of Fairy Tail. By the end, power creep sees the entire guild having a showdown with an entire country, while also preparing for a massive battle with the most powerful dragon that ever lived.
1 Dragon Ball DAIMA Brings Back the Fantasy of OG Dragon Ball With the Action of DBZ
Streaming on Crunchyroll
Dragon Ball DAIMA saw the Dragon Ball franchise go back to its fantasy roots for a season. Instead of the sci-fi focus the series saw with Dragon Ball Z and even Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball DAIMA introduced a new villain who came from the Demon World. When the Demon King Gomah wished to transform all the Z Fighters into children, Goku and his friends are forced to travel to the Demon World to find their Dragon Balls and wish themselves back to normal.
While Dragon Ball Daima does offer the fantasy feel of the original Dragon Ball series, the action is as good as ever. In fact, it might be better, as Toei put on a showcase with each battle in the twenty-episode saga. Watching the Z Warriors take on the strongest villain in DAIMA at the end is actually one of the franchise’s coolest fights, especially with Goku and Vegeta each reaching new levels of Super Saiyan for the series.
