Best Japanese action series
Get ready to binge. We've found a collection of must-watch action shows from Japan, now streaming on Netflix, HBO, Hulu, Prime Video, and other top services!
Cowboy Bebop (1998)
Cowboy Bebop (1998)
In 2071, roughly fifty years after an accident with a hyperspace gateway made the Earth almost uninhabitable, humanity has colonized most of the rocky planets and moons of the Solar System. Amid a rising crime rate, the Inter Solar System Police (ISSP) set up a legalized contract system, in which registered bounty hunters, also referred to as "Cowboys", chase criminals and bring them in alive in return for a reward.
Vinland Saga (2019)
Vinland Saga (2019)
For a thousand years, the Vikings have made quite a name and reputation for themselves as the strongest families with a thirst for violence. Thorfinn, the son of one of the Vikings' greatest warriors, spends his boyhood in a battlefield enhancing his skills in his adventure to redeem his most-desired revenge after his father was murdered.
One-Punch Man (2015)
One-Punch Man (2015)
Saitama is a hero who only became a hero for fun. After three years of “special” training, though, he's become so strong that he's practically invincible. In fact, he's too strong — even his mightiest opponents are taken out with a single punch, and it turns out that being devastatingly powerful is actually kind of a bore. With his passion for being a hero lost along with his hair, yet still faced with new enemies every day, how much longer can he keep it going?
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba (2019)
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba (2019)
It is the Taisho Period in Japan. Tanjiro, a kindhearted boy who sells charcoal for a living, finds his family slaughtered by a demon. To make matters worse, his younger sister Nezuko, the sole survivor, has been transformed into a demon herself. Though devastated by this grim reality, Tanjiro resolves to become a “demon slayer” so that he can turn his sister back into a human, and kill the demon that massacred his family.
Trigun (1998)
Trigun (1998)
Trigun takes place in the distant future on a desert planet. Vash the Stampede is a gunfighter with a legend so ruthless he has a $$60,000,000,000 bounty on his head. Entire towns evacuate at the rumor of his arrival. But the real Vash the Stampede, the enigmatic and conflicted lead character, is more heroic, even though he usually acts like a complete idiot.
86: Eighty Six (2021)
86: Eighty Six (2021)
Called “Juggernaut,” these are the unmanned combat drones developed by the Republic of San Magnolia in answer to the attacks by the autonomous unmanned drones of the neighboring Empire of Giad, the “Legion”. But they’re only unmanned in name. In reality, they are piloted by the Eighty-sixers—those considered to be less than human and treated as mere tools. Determined to achieve his own mysterious ends, Shin, the captain of Spearhead Squadron, which is comprised of Eighty-sixers, continues to fight a hopeless war on a battlefield where only death awaits him.
Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995)
Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995)
At the turn of the century, the Angels returned to Earth, seeking to wipe out humanity in an apocalyptic fury. Devastated, mankind's last remnants moved underground to wait for the day when the Angels would come back to finish the job. Fifteen years later, that day has come... but this time, humanity is ready to fight back with terrifying bio-mechanical weapons known as the Evangelions. Watch as Shinji, Rei, Asuka and the rest of the mysterious shadow agency Nerv battle to save earth from total annihilation.
My Hero Academia (2016)
My Hero Academia (2016)
For his entire life, Izuku has dreamed of being a hero—an ambitious goal for anyone, but an especially challenging one for a boy without superpowers. That’s right: in a world where 80% of the population has some sort of special gift, Izuku was unlucky enough to be born completely normal. But that won’t stop him from enrolling in one of the most prestigious hero academies in the world to learn what it truly means to be a hero.
Dragon Ball Z (1989)
Dragon Ball Z (1989)
After years of peace since the defeat of Piccolo Daimaoh, Goku now lives peacefully with his wife, Chi-Chi, and their son, Gohan. But everything changes when a mysterious warrior called Raditz arrives on Earth, revealing that he is Goku's brother and that they both belong to the warrior race of the Saiyans, a brutal people who conquer planets.
Alice in Borderland (2020)
Alice in Borderland (2020)
With his two friends, a video-game-obsessed young man finds himself in a strange version of Tokyo where they must compete in dangerous games to win.
Attack on Titan (2013)
Attack on Titan (2013)
Many years ago, the last remnants of humanity were forced to retreat behind the towering walls of a fortified city to escape the massive, man-eating Titans that roamed the land outside their fortress. Only the heroic members of the Scouting Legion dared to stray beyond the safety of the walls – but even those brave warriors seldom returned alive. Those within the city clung to the illusion of a peaceful existence until the day that dream was shattered, and their slim chance at survival was reduced to one horrifying choice: kill – or be devoured!
One Piece (1999)
One Piece (1999)
Years ago, the fearsome Pirate King, Gol D. Roger was executed leaving a huge pile of treasure and the famous "One Piece" behind. Whoever claims the "One Piece" will be named the new King of the Pirates.Monkey D. Luffy, a boy who consumed a "Devil Fruit," decides to follow in the footsteps of his idol, the pirate Shanks, and find the One Piece. It helps, of course, that his body has the properties of rubber and that he's surrounded by a bevy of skilled fighters and thieves to help him along the way.Luffy will do anything to get the One Piece and become King of the Pirates!
Baccano! (2007)
Baccano! (2007)
During the early 1930s in Chicago, the transcontinental train, Flying Pussyfoot, is starting its legendary journey that will leave a trail of blood all over the country. At the same time in New York, the ambitious scientist Szilard and his unwilling aide Ennis are looking for missing bottles of the immortality elixir. In addition, a war between the mafia groups is getting worse. On board the Advena Avis, in 1711, alchemists are about to learn the price of immortality. Takes place in the same universe as Durarara (2010).
Saint Seiya (1986)
Saint Seiya (1986)
Ages ago, the goddess Athena was served by fighters called Saints who channeled the power of the Cosmos within them. Now a youth named Seiya has trained to become a Saint himself by earning the mystical Cloth of Pegasus. He is joined by other Saints with Cloths of their own to fight for Athena.
Hunter x Hunter (2011)
Hunter x Hunter (2011)
To fulfill his dreams of becoming a legendary Hunter like his dad, a young boy must pass a rigorous examination and find his missing father.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (2009)
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (2009)
Disregard for alchemy’s laws ripped half of Edward Elric’s limbs from his body and left his brother Alphonse’s soul clinging to a suit of armor. To restore what was lost, the brothers seek the Philosopher’s Stone. Enemies and allies – the corrupt military, the Homunculi, and foreign alchemists – will alter the Elric brothers course, but their purpose will remain unchanged and their bond unbreakable.
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (2022)
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (2022)
In a dystopia riddled with corruption and cybernetic implants, a talented but reckless street kid strives to become a mercenary outlaw — an edgerunner.
Hell's Paradise (2023)
Hell's Paradise (2023)
Gabimaru reigns as the strongest and most ruthless assassin in his village. But now finds himself on death row—with only one way out: retrieve the Elixir of Life from a sinister island. Longing for freedom, he accepts the challenge. But with fellow convicts vying for the same prize and demonic beasts lurking, how will Gabimaru survive this harrowing quest?
Dragon Ball DAIMA (2024)
Dragon Ball DAIMA (2024)
Mysteriously transformed into mini versions of themselves, Goku and his friends travel to the Demon Realm to uncover the truth and find a cure.
Naruto Shippūden (2007)
Naruto Shippūden (2007)
After 2 and a half years Naruto finally returns to his village of Konoha, and sets about putting his ambitions to work. It will not be easy though as he has amassed a few more dangerous enemies, in the likes of the shinobi organization; Akatsuki.
Dragon Ball (1986)
Dragon Ball (1986)
Long ago in the mountains, a fighting master known as Son Gohan discovered a strange boy whom he named Son Goku. Gohan raised him and trained Goku in martial arts until he died. The young and very strong boy was on his own, but easily managed. Then one day, Goku met a teenage girl named Bulma, whose search for the mystical Dragon Balls brought her to Goku's home. Together, they set off to find all seven and to grant her wish.
Naruto (2002)
Naruto (2002)
Naruto Uzumaki, a mischievous adolescent ninja, struggles as he searches for recognition and dreams of becoming the Hokage, the village's leader and strongest ninja.
Psycho-Pass (2012)
Psycho-Pass (2012)
Psycho-Pass is set in a futuristic era in Japan where the Sibyl System, a powerful network of psychometric scanners, actively measures the biometrics of its citizens' minds. The resulting assessment is called a Psycho-Pass. When the calculated likelihood of an individual committing a crime, measured by the Crime Coefficient index, exceeds an accepted threshold, he or she is pursued, apprehended, and either arrested or decomposed by the field officers of the Crime Investigation Department of the Public Safety Bureau.
Sword Art Online (2012)
Sword Art Online (2012)
In the near future, a Virtual Reality Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (VRMMORPG) called Sword Art Online has been released where players control their avatars with their bodies using a piece of technology called Nerve Gear. One day, players discover they cannot log out, as the game creator is holding them captive unless they reach the 100th floor of the game's tower and defeat the final boss. However, if they die in the game, they die in real life. Their struggle for survival starts now...
Akame ga Kill! (2014)
Akame ga Kill! (2014)
Young Tatsumi travels to the capital of the Empire in order to earn money for his starving people and encounters a world of unimaginable depravity, dominated by the ruthless Prime Minister who controls the child Emperor. Tatsumi is recruited by Night Raid, a group of assassins dedicated to eliminating corruption by mercilessly killing officials and privileged nobles.
SPY x FAMILY (2022)
SPY x FAMILY (2022)
A spy, an assassin and a telepath come together to pose as a family, each for their own reasons, while hiding their true identities from each other.
The Future Diary (2011)
The Future Diary (2011)
Reality quickly unravels when antisocial Yukiteru is called into a death match against 11 other mentally scarred individuals. Each player has a prophetic device tuned to their personality, giving them control over their future—and the fate of their foes.
Devilman Crybaby (2018)
Devilman Crybaby (2018)
Akira Fudo learns from his best friend Ryo Asuka that demons will revive and reclaim the world from humans. With humans hopeless against this threat, Ryo suggests combining with a demon. With this, Akira becomes Devilman, a being with the power of demon but with a human heart.
Fullmetal Alchemist (2003)
Fullmetal Alchemist (2003)
Two young brothers are raised as alchemists, but when they are severely injured trying to perform a forbidden act, they begin searching for the one thing that can save them; the fabled philosopher's stone.
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion (2006)
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion (2006)
Japan has been invaded and conquered by the Britannian Empire. Japan is now known as Area 11 and its citizens known as Elevens. The Britannian Empire takes away Japan's autonomous power and imposes its rule through the use of Knightmares. The Empire's rule has never faltered, but cracks have begun to show...