Far too often these days, fantasy settings in anime are just fodder for power fantasies. However, some fantasy anime prefer to travel down a darker path. These series feature characters who’ve been horrendously wronged and become singularly driven by revenge.
Fantasy anime series focused on revenge often take place in dark fantasy settings, allowing viewers a break from the usual high fantasy featured in most series. While these can occasionally veer into being needlessly edgy, the best series are cathartic. Great revenge storylines push fans to think about the downsides to giving oneself over to such an all-consuming emotion, or at least offer the enjoyment of seeing a target of revenge finally get what they deserve.
Related
10 Most Underwhelming Anime Final Battles, Ranked
Sometimes an anime ends on a spectacular and epic super showdown, and sometimes, a series totally drops the ball with an underwhelming final battle.
10
Kaze no Stigma Sees a Mage Return to His Family After Being Exiled
Stream Kaze no Stigma on Crunchyroll
Kaze no Stigma follows the story of Kazuma Kannagi, a member of a clan of powerful fire wielding mages who has no talent for flame spells. After being defeated by his cousin, Kazuma is banished from his family and vanishes for several years. When he returns, it’s as a wind mage so powerful he surpasses many of the very mages who once mocked him. Unfortunately for him, his arrival happens just as many members of the Kannagi family start being murdered by an assailant with wind powers, causing all eyes to turn to him.
Kaze no Stigma was a minor favorite in the late 2000s, featuring a protagonist who enjoyed getting back at all the family members who once mocked him. Kazuma frequently battles against other members of his family, eager to reveal his superiority after finally finding a style of magic he excels in. Still, the revenge storyline isn’t nearly as all-encompassing here as it is in other fantasy anime.
Kaze No Stigma
- Release Date
-
April 12, 2007
9
Blast of Tempest Features 2 Teens Looking for Answers to a Murder From Their Past
Stream Blast of Tempest on Crunchyroll
-1.jpg?q=70&fit=crop&w=825&dpr=1)
Blast of Tempest follows two teenagers, Yoshino Takigawa and Mahiro Fuwa, after their lives are shattered thanks to the loss of Mahiro’s sister and Yoshino’s girlfriend, Aika. Mahiro swears to find the person responsible for murdering his sister and parents, vanishing for an entire year. When he returns, he saves Yoshino from an attacker by revealing he wields magic powers. Together, the two of them agree to help a mage whose family intends to awaken a dangerous power known as the Tree of Exodus, all for the sake of Mahiro getting revenge on his sister’s killer.
Coming out of nowhere in 2012, Blast of Tempest surprised anime fans by being a great story about revenge. The series pulls from some famous Shakespeare stories like The Tempest and Hamlet, making story often feel like viewers are watching a tragic play unfold. In other words, this is as much for fans looking for a revenge-driven narrative as it is for theater kids who love anime.
8
Dororo Shows a Boy Hunting Demons to Recover His Body
Stream Dororo on Amazon Prime
In Dororo, Hyakkimaru is the son of the samurai lord Daigo Kagemitsu, a man desperate enough to trade away anything in search of power. Kagemitsu even surrenders Hyakkimaru’s body before he’s born, resulting in Hyakkimaru being born without his limbs or senses. Though Hyakkimaru is forgotten by his father, he’s discovered by a doctor who grants him artificial limbs. After growing older, a battle against a demon causes Hyakkimaru to regain one of his senses. This sends him on a journey to defeat other demons to regain the rest of his body, alongside an orphan child named Dororo.
Related
10 Best Anime Films You Can Stream on Crunchyroll for Your Next Movie Night
Crunchyroll is full of some excellent anime films that are perfect for when you’re planning your next movie night.
Based on one of Osamu Tezuka’s older classics, Dororo is a sleeper hit that received a superb adaptation from MAPPA and Tezuka Productions. Hyakkimaru’s battle explores what it means to be human, as he continues battling against demons and recovering parts of himself while becoming numb to the violence he has to suffer to regain what was stolen. This story is perfect for fans who like seeing stories showing the cost of revenge.
Dororo
- Release Date
-
2019 – 2019
- Directors
-
Kazuhiro Furuhashi
- Writers
-
Yasuko Kobayashi
- Franchise(s)
-
Dororo
7
Blade of the Immortal Sends a Man on a Quest to Slay 1,000 Evil Men
Stream Blade of the Immortal on Amazon Prime
The former outlaw Manji has been cursed with immortality. In exchange for killing 100 innocents, he must find a way to kill 1,000 evil men if he ever wants to be free of the curse. One day, Manji is hired by Asano Rin, a woman whose life was destroyed by Anotsu, leader of the Itto-ryu sword style. Burning with revenge, Rin refuses to rest until she can finally take Anotsu’s life.
Adapted from a legendary seinen manga, Blade of the Immortal is one of the best samurai anime ever. While Manji himself only cares about getting rid of his curse, Rin’s fiery need for revenge pushes the main story. Still, since Manji constantly on the hunt for more evil men to slay, the series revels in violence, so fantasy anime fan who want awesome sword battles should definitely look here.
Blade of the Immortal
- Release Date
-
October 10, 2019
6
Claymore’s Protagonist Trains to One Day Fight the Person Who Stole Her Mentor
Stream Claymore on Crunchyroll
Claymore is set in a world where humanity struggles against Yoma, monstrous beings who prey on humans for food. Their only protection are the Claymores, women who are half-human, half-Yoma that wield the strength and speed necessary to defeat the Yoma. The series follows Clare, the youngest and weakest of the Claymore, who slays Yoma while training to become strong enough to get revenge on the person who took her mentor away.
Claymore is one of the rare shonen anime that feels more like a seinen. Its world feels mostly hopeless, and the lead protagonist is a stoic ice queen on a mission with a slim chance of ever succeeding. Nonetheless, Claymore‘s incredible world-building and solid character writing will keep viewers invested the entire series. Claymore only ranks in the middle because, as good as it is, the anime never finished adapting the manga.
5
Revenger Shows a Lost Samurai Finding Purpose in Helping Others Get Revenge
Stream Revenger on Crunchyroll
Raizou Kurima is a samurai without a purpose. Once destined for a happy life, Raizou’s lord Matsumine tricked him into assassinating his father-in-law for the crime of dealing opium. After realizing the opium dealer was actually Matsumine, Raizou works with a group of assassins to dispense true justice to Matsumine. Known as the Revengers, the assassins travel across Japan to inflict revenge for those who lack the power to do so themselves.
Related
10 Amazing Anime Movies That Have No Bad Scenes
The best anime films are faultless from beginning to end, not losing their audience’s attention even for a second.
From the name alone, anime fans should know what they’re getting into with Revenger. The entire series is built around those pushed so far they would do anything for revenge. Even the lead character surrenders any chance of a happy life going forward, seeking only to find a purpose by providing others with the same closure that revenge gave him.
4
Goblin Slayer Follows One Adventurer’s Quest to Eradicate All Goblins
Stream Goblin Slayer on Crunchyroll
In the world of Goblin Slayer, humanity relies on adventurers to deal with the monsters of the world, but one group of monsters that often go unnoticed: goblins. Since they can be easily dispatched by experienced fighters, they don’t pay much, leading most adventurers to ignore them entirely. Yet, there’s one man who refuses to let even a single goblin extermination quest go unnoticed: the Goblin Slayer, who carries a lifelong hatred of all goblins and won’t rest until they no longer exist.
Goblin Slayer is basically a D&D campaign where the focus is on endless quests of hunting down a variety of goblins, from giant warriors to mages. The lead character’s goal is revenge for goblins destroying his life as a child. Though he can’t ever get the goblins who killed his family and village, he’s devoted all of his training and knowledge to becoming the ultimate goblin-killing machine. After the disturbing opening episode, it’s easy to see why Goblin Slayer is so hungry for revenge.
3
Kill la Kill Features Its Hero Seeking Answers for Her Father’s Murder
Stream Kill la Kill on Hulu
Ryuko Matoi’s hunt for her father’s killer has brought her to the prestigious Honnouji Academy, which wields such power that they even have control over the surrounding city. Honnouji is led by president Satsuki Kiryuin, who wields incredible power thanks to her “Goku Uniform”, which grants superpowers to the wielder. Though Ryuko stands no chance against them normally, she gains the power of Senketsu, the God Clothes, which allows her to fight back and go digging for the truth behind what happened to her father.
Related
10 Years Later, These 7 Anime Have Aged Like Fine Wine
2015 was jam-packed with high-quality anime, and these 7 titles are the cream of the crop.
Though Kill la Kill is Studio Trigger’s first TV production, viewers should come expecting a looker. It’s a gorgeous anime with some excellently choreographed fights, showing off that it was originally planned to be a battle-focused story. It also makes sense given Ryuko’s fiery attitude, as she’s willing to do battle with anyone on her quest for revenge.
Kill la Kill
- Release Date
-
2013 – 2014
- Directors
-
Akira Amemiya, Masahiko Otsuka, Hiroyuki Imaishi
- Writers
-
Kazuki Nakashima
- Franchise(s)
-
Kill La Kill
2
Attack on Titan Sees a Man Change the World for the Sake of Revenge
Stream Attack on Titan on Hulu
At this point, Attack on Titan is probably the most well-known revenge storyline ever created. Set in a world where human-eating giants known as Titans have hunted humanity to nothing, Attack on Titan follows Eren Yeager, a young man whose life was destroyed by the Titans. Filled with rage, Eren vows to hunt down and eradicate every last Titan.
Attack on Titan is an epic dark fantasy series that’s not only about what revenge does to one person, but what it can do to a world. It’s a series filled with twists and earth-shattering reveals, but one that keeps revenge at the forefront, showing how the cycle of hatred irrevocably changes people. Still, Attack on Titan is such a 10/10 anime series that it should be considered a must-watch whether viewers like revenge storylines or not.
1
Berserk (1997) Follows One Man on a Rage-Filled Hunt for Revenge
Berserk (1997) Is Currently Unavailable to Stream
Berserk follows Guts, a wandering swordsman who travels the land, hunted by demons and evil spirits thanks to a magical brand on his neck. Known as the Brand of Sacrifice, Guts had the brand forced onto him by his former best friend, Griffith. Once the man he was closest to in the world, Guts now hunts Griffith in search of revenge for sacrificing all of their allies to the gods in exchange for his power.
Given Berserk‘s source material has been going since 1989, Guts’ quest for revenge is legendary in the anime world. Though he’s but a swordsman, his will to push on has allowed him to slay demons and battle against destiny itself in search of paying back Griffith for what he’s done. Given Griffith’s power it feels like an impossible goal for Guts to achieve, but Berserk‘s excellent storytelling makes viewers want to follow along to see how it ends nonetheless. This series stands at the top of revenge anime not just because of Guts’ fire for vengeance but also because Miura’s dark fantasy universe might be one of the best in all of fiction.
