My Top 10 Action/Dramatic Anime

After getting such great feed back from the Top 10 Girly Anime favorites, I decided to give it another shot and do my favorite action/drama animes.  Kicking off the Top 10 is...

10. One Piece

This anime is my least favorite out of the ten. (hence it being number ten)  A good friend of mine recommended it and I figured I should give it a shot.  Granted, the idea of devil fruits giving someone special abilities is intriguing, I just couldn't get past Luffy being an idiot.  Still, it is a cute story and full of action.  Sword fights, sling shot extraordinaires and talking reindeers, One Piece could be suggested for any one starting to get into anime. Just remember this,  Pirates can be selfless, normal people can be heros and most importantly remember, don't touch the straw hat.

9. Bleach

One of the longest running anime/manga and another good anime as a starter.  Ichigo Kurosaki is just your typical high school student except for one small thing, he can see dead people.  When a lost soul or "hollow" (a creature who harms both humans and spirits) tries to harm his family, Ichigo makes the decision to become a soul reaper and begins his journey assisting spirits crossing over to the other side.  The main downside to this anime, as anyone who has invested any time in it can tell you, the filler episodes can be quite tedious and boring at times.  The upside to this anime is that there is literally a soul reaper or character for everyone.  Anyone I have spoken to about Bleach can tell you who their favorite is and why.  They have all been different and there aren't many animes that this holds true for.  Bleach is an action packed breath of fresh air with a variety of flavors that anyone can enjoy.

8. Code Geass

This anime is not for someone who is just getting into anime.  I like to compare it to sushi.  People who have a hard time getting over the texture may have a hard time swallowing this.  It's set in an alternate time flow, which for some reason people have a hard time getting on board with.  Lelouch has suffered many losses due to the tyrannical rule of the emperor of Britannia.  One day he saves the life of a mysterious young girl named C.C. who in return gives him a great gift, a Geass which gives him the ability to make anyone do any command, any wish, order, desire or flight of fancy that Lelouch may have.  Together with his mecha robot, aka Knightmare, Lelouch becomes Area 11's only hope for salvation.

7. D. Gray-man

This was one of the first manga I decided to read (right after Fruits Basket and Wallflower) and when I learned that they were making this into an anime I was thrilled.  Allen Walker is an exorcist who has the ability to see Akuma (evil spirits) and relieve them of their plight.  The Millenium Earl is determined to send the world into hell and it is the exorcist job to try and stop them.  Searching for innocents or tools exorcists use to fight the akuma is a full time job.  Needless to say, Allen has his hands full and is in need of help along the way.  This anime has danger, action, drama, comedy and a little unrequited love thrown in the mix.  People who are uber fans of Bleach can definitely cosign for this one.

6. My HiME

This anime is one of my absolute favorites but the main reason I didn't list it higher is because at times it can be more girly than action packed.  Mai and her brother Takumi are headed to the prestigious Fuuka Academy, when their boat is attacked by mysterious creatures.  Two girls with awesome powers appear out of no where to handle the monster.  Just when all seems well, Mai is put in a life threatening situation and realizes that she too has this mysterious power!  Later on Mai discovers that this power is actually called a child, part creature/part machine and the things attacking her are orphans, monsters that could have been a child but were never bound to a human.  Now its up to Mai, Mikoto, Natsuki and the other girls of Fuuka Academy to discover why there is an out break of orphans and put a stop to it.  Girls with big boobs and short skirts always make for a good time and My HiME does not disappoint.

5. Eureka Seven


This is an anime that I haven't finished watching completely.  I know, shock and horror!  However, the fact that it made it into the top 5 should speak volumes.  This anime revolves mainly around Renton Thurston, a 14 yr old kid who's main love consists of lifting (a sport similar to surfing or skateboarding) and one day escaping his so called "boring" life by potentially joining a rebel group who call themselves the Gekkostate.  Renton gets an opportunity when it literally comes crashing into his lap.  He is then instructed to take a part which has "phenomenal cosmic power!" (itty bitty living space) to the Nirvash.  Renton, along with Eureka, the mysterious pilot who crashed through his room, begin their adventure and Renton discovers that maybe his life back home wasn't as bad as he thought. This is probably also an anime for seasoned vets who just haven't had the opportunity to watch it yet.

4. Death Note

This anime took me awhile to watch because as previously mentioned, I am not a huge fan of horror or creepy crawly things.  After forcing myself to watch Supernatural and realizing that it wasn't as scary as I thought it would be, I figured I could revisit several other things that I had been vehemently avoiding for similar reasons.

The basis of this anime is centered around Light Yagami who stumbles upon a Death Note.  It enables him to kill anyone who's face and name he knows by writing it down in said Death Note.  So naturally he decided to declare himself God and rid the world of criminals.  He grabs the attention of a detective known only as L, who wants to remind Light that he isn't God and no matter what the situation, no one deserves to be murdered.  This particular anime offers a conflict of interest regarding the protagonist and what should ultimately be his fate towards the end.

3. Full Metal Alchemist

For anyone who hasn't seen this anime, you are missing out.  It starts out in an alternate universe shortly after the industrial revolution, someone thought of alchemy theory and actually implemented it to a point that it was the ultimate scientific technique.  Two young boys named Ed and Al Elric attempt to use alchemy to bring their mother back from the dead.  Everyone knows that you don't mess with death and the experiment caused Ed to lose his right arm and his younger brother's soul is now permanently attached to a suit of armor.  Now they are undertaking the difficult task to locate the elusive philosopher's stone to regain their bodies at their original state.  There is mystery and intrigue and danger...not to mention a dash of screwball comedy thrown in between.  A must see for any anime fanatic.

2. Dragon Ball Z

I know everyone was starting to panic when they didn't see it on the list thus far or maybe you're upset because it isn't number one...well too bad because I have a different number one and honestly how could I have a top 10 action/drama anime with out the original anime that started it all for me.  I remember getting out of school, running upstairs and flipping on cartoon network to watch the last of toonami.  The "godfather" of anime, this space age soap opera picks up 5 years after the original anime Dragon Ball dropped off.  As self proclaimed defender of the Earth, Goku must continuously ward off evil with his massive Kamehameha attack, his ability to transform into a super saiyan and having to train others to help him defend Earth, the man has a full time job.  The only down side to the Dragon Ball series is that when I said it was like a soap opera, I wasn't kidding.  You could miss a week or two of the series, tune back in and they still were on the battle that they were on a week ago or fairly close to it.  An easy series to start and stop and still be excited to watch it.

1. Naruto/Naruto Shippuden


My number one all time favorite pick (is anyone who knows me surprised?) Naruto!!  Words can not express how I feel about this anime.  It has taken me on a journey that made me laugh and cry...I've grown along with the show and whenever a character dies, I feel as if I have lost someone close to me.  Naruto is a jinchuuriki (host to a tailed beast) and is an outcast in his village because of it.  He had lost his parents to the mass destruction caused by the tailed beast inside him and has had to raise himself since he was a small child.  Not knowing anything about himself, the only way he knew how to get anyone to pay attention was to cause trouble and get into mischief.  To say that he was the town pariah would be nice.  Once he entered the ninja academy, things started to look up for Naruto.  He knew that he could rely on others, not just himself and as long as he was true to his nindo, or his ninja way, he was unstoppable.  This anime is action packed, full of surprise twists to the story and characters that you can relate to easily.  The statement that family isn't always blood has never been more true than with this story and I give it two thumbs way up! Believe it!!