The action anime genre is one of the most popular genres that you can come across. In fact, most people are drawn to anime based on the action they see. And they end up looking forward to more of that action, and before they know it, they have become anime fans who also watch other genres as well. This time we will take a look at top action anime with a female lead that you should check out.
As the general trend is that you find that most anime are about a young boy who wants to achieve something in his life, and then, as you follow his journey, it is then where you get to find the anime interesting and worth watching. That is not always the case, though, because we have had several anime that are centered around a female lead character and are as interesting as an action anime that you can come across.
If you really like female characters and do appreciate and recognize their prominence in anime, then this is the list that you should definitely check out because we have some interesting and action-packed anime where a female character leads the cast. You would think that if we focus on such anime, we would only name a few. But we do have several numbers of them that you can even dedicate some of your anime-watching time to.
Now, as we look at our list, let’s keep in mind that as a new anime season comes, things are bound to change as well. So this would be an extensive list that will be affected each time a new anime is released.
Witchblade
One of the early anime to feature female lead characters back in 2006, Witchblade is based on an American comic book of the same name even though it is not actually an adaptation of the original story as it has a new setting and characters. It came with a new main character instead of the previous Witchblade bearers, but it is still set in the same continuity as the comic book. Witchblade anime ran for one season of 24 episodes, so it is one of those short anime you can binge-watch.
Witchblade is an anime with a female lead character and focuses on a weapon that only chooses women as its wielders. It is said to be sought by the greed of men since the history of mankind, but it is only bestowed upon the women whose fate it will forever scar. Its wielder must discover the answers for herself as she would always stand on the brink of destiny and will be forced to seek the balance between ecstasy and ruin.
Peach Boy Riverside
Being one of the modern anime, Peach Boy Riverside anime made its debut in 2021 and has been one of the most interesting action anime that you can watch. Peach Boy Riverside has only one season with 12 episodes so far, and there has not been any news regarding a second season. But knowing how interesting and actin packed the first season was, it is likely to get a second season, so if you managed to like the anime, then you should always be on the lookout for any news about Peach Boy Riverside Season 2.
The anime is about Saltherine Aldarake, who is a princess from the Kingdom of Aldarake who dreams of traveling all over the world. However, the outside world is a land where monsters roam as they please, and humans live behind strong walls where they are safer. But a meeting with chance brought her across a traveler known as Mikoto, who gave her hope to further pursue her dreams. But when he reveals that he is indeed Momotaro, she decides that she needs to learn about the world beyond the walls and journeys out with him.
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Ga Rei: Zero
The original anime was announced as a separate story from the manga. Still, as soon as the first episode was broadcasted, fans were confused as the only thing that the new story adapted was the setting and that the main cast was getting killed off from the first episode. The anime then turned all these events into a backstory of Yomi and Kagure before the events of the manga, and these made Ga-Rei: Zero a prequel to the original Ga-Rei anime.
As one of the good anime with a female lead, Ga-Rei: Zero follows the life of Kagura, who is an agent of the government and wields a Ga-rei, which is also known as a spirit devourer that she named Byakuei. She uses it to fight Kensuke’s spiritual awareness, and his attraction to her ends up compelling him to follow her to the agency where he was recruited to fight the supernatural. Ga-rei: Zero has 12 episodes, so it would not take you long to watch the anime to its completion.
Cross Ange
As one of the mecha anime with a female lead, Cross Ange focuses on the development of groundbreaking information transfer and material generation technology known as mana. Problems like pollution and war have disappeared, and peaceful days have arrived in the world. But the people who enjoy the benefit of the mana live in a false peace. Those who cannot use mana are referred to as norma and as seen as opposition to society, and they live in oppression. Cross Ange has 24 episodes and follows the life of Angelise Ikaruga.
Angelise Ikaruga is the first princess of the Misurugi empire, and she is convinced of the belief of exterminating the norma. When she turned 16, her elder brother Julio exposed her as a norma to the public, and she turned into a target of hate by the public. She is exiled to Arzenal, a military base where norma are conscripted into service against their will, and they fight interdimensional creatures, and this is where her new life as the norma soldier named Ange starts.
Gunslinger Girl
Gunslinger Girl anime came as a 13-episode series adapted from the first two volumes of the manga. The anime is set in Italy, where a social welfare agency sponsored by the government specializes in counterintelligence and counter-terrorism. On the face of the public, it is presented as a rehabilitation center for the physically injured, and it is composed of two independent branches. The anime only ran for one season of 13 episodes with two OVAs and employed young girls who have experienced near-death experiences fitted with cybernetic implants as agents.
Each girl is teamed up with an adult male trainer, and together, they are known as Fratello. The trainer can use whatever methods he considers suitable, and they vary according to the trainer. The Fratello exhibits a unique dynamic, and most of the trainers have police or military backgrounds and can also choose their own cyborgs from a list of candidates. As one of the anime with a female lead, Gunslinger Girl Anime only ran for one season back in 2008 and has not received any updates after that.
Shakugan no Shana
Focusing on the age-old conflict between the inhibitors of the Crimson Realm, a parallel universe to the human world. The realm is populated by Crimson Denizens and can manipulate the power of existence which is referred to as a fundamental power within any biological entity and functions as fuel for people’s existence. Lords of the Crimson Realms are Denizens whose power stands out amongst their peers, and those that are even more powerful than this are known as Gods.
The Denizens who do not involve themselves with the balance between the Crimson Realm and the human world collect the power of existence from humans to use for their own purposes. The Flame Hazes, humans who have formed contracts with a Crimson Lord, are responsible for maintaining the balance by killing any Denizens who disrupt it. Denizens and Flame Haze fight using powerful magic spells known as the power of unrestraint, and the story mostly takes place in Misaki city in Japan. Shakugan no Shana has 24 episodes and only ran for one season as well.
Canaan
Taking place two years after the events of the 428 Shibuya scramble, Maria Osawa and Minoru Minorikawa are dispatched as reporters to Shangai to cover the upcoming international anti-terrorist conference. Their presence in the city was overshadowed by a mysterious event that was being planned by Alphard, who is Canaan’s rival. Alphard was preparing a big anti-terrorism-related plot and was being rescued by Cummings and Liang Qi. Canaan anime has 13 episodes, and it made its debut in 2009, only running for one season.
For an anime with a female lead, Cannan anima managed to show Maria and Minoru returning to Japan from their journey in China, where Maria opened a photo gallery and reflected on the friendship she and Canaan shared. She also kept a portrait she had for public display and named it after Canaan, and it consisted of pictures of Alphard, who was formerly known as Cannan, and the Cannan she used to know back in her Middle East trip.
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Blood +
Blood Plus name ran from October 2005 to September 2006 and had 50 episodes. The anime is set on Onikawa island, and Saya Otonashi, who is under the care of her adoptive family, has been living the life of an anemic amnesiac. She is an ordinary schoolgirl, and her happy life comes to an end when she is attacked by a Chiropteran, a bat-like creature that feeds on human blood. She later found out that she was the only one who could defeat these creatures as her blood could cause their body to shatter.
She carries her Katana and embarks on a journey with her family and friends to rid the world of the Chiropteran threat and recover her identity. The course of her journey revealed the background history of the Chiropterans and Saya’s mysterious past, which extends into the 19th century. As the anime ran, Saya also traveled across the world, from Japan to Vietnam and even to the united states.
Medaka Box
Medaka Box anime is about Medaka Kurokami, who is a charismatic and attractive first-year student at Hakoniwa academy. She is elected student council president and instituted a suggestion box with the help of her childhood friend, and addresses various requests in unconventional ways. She even goes as far as distributing leadership positions to other students, and the student council ended up learning that the chairman intends to initiate the Flask Plan.
Medaka Box is also an anime with a female lead, and as it is centered around the student council, a lot of females are involved as well. When the student council was challenged to a tournament by Misogi Kumagawa, who wanted to replace Medaka’s council with his own. Kumagawa was defeated, and two students were unsealed from his powers and completed their transfer to Hakoniwa academy. They seem to be too powerful than abnormal, and they were dubbed not equals, with Anshin as their leader.
Vivy Flourite Eye’s Song
Based on numerous experiments with creating autonomous AI, humans concluded that AI could only be functional if they were given just a single mission to dedicate their lives. The first autonomous AI was then created, named Diva, with the mission to make people happy with her songs. But her quest to sing on the main stage of the theme park NiaLand is disrupted by the arrival of Ryunji, an AI from 100 years in the future, and it tells her of a world where AI has decided to eradicate humanity and wishes to join hands with her to prevent it.
Vivy Flourite Eye’s Song ran for only 1 season with 13 episodes from April to June of 2021. It is also one of the anime with a female lead character and has managed to gain popularity and a fan base of its own. But at the moment, it is not yet confirmed whether the anime might return for season 2 anytime soon.
Bofuri
Bofuri anime focuses on the life of Kaed Honjou, who was invited by her friend Rasa Shiramane to play the game New World Online with her. While she is not usually a games person, what she dislikes, in reality, is being in pain. So she created a character and named her Maple, then she decided to put all her points in VIT to minimize pain. She ended up moving slowly and could not use magic to a point where even a rabbit could get the best of her.
In the end, she managed to acquire a special skill known as absolute defense due to her pumping point into VIT and also gained a counter-skill that works against special moves. With her new ability to nullify all damage, she goes on adventures with her friends. Bofuri anime only has 12 episodes, and fans are currently waiting for any news on whether the anime will get season 2 or not.
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Moribito
Moribito: Guardian of the Spirit anime explores the life of Balsa, who is an itinerant female spear-wielding and has saved the life of Chagum, the second prince of New Yogo. Her life ended up changing unexpectedly, and at the request of Chagum’s mother, Balsa accepted the charge of protecting Chagum for the rest of his life when she found out that he was an assassination target from his father.
Chagum seems to be possessed by something, and signs are showing that it might have to do with a water demon that was defeated by Mikado’s ancestors many years ago. Balsa and Chagum then have to allude to the Hunters, a secret elite group of warriors who serve Mikado and their leader Mon, in order to survive. Moribito clearly explores more like an anime with a female lead and explores different aspects of character development compared to most anime.
Akame ga Kill
When Tatsumi accompanied by his two childhood friends, set off to the Capital in search of a way to make money to help their poverty-stricken village, he fails to enlist in the army but is swindled out of all the money. He is then taken in by a noble family who offers him help but intends to kill him just like they usually do with other people. He ended up being rescued by the Night raid and was invited to join their ranks.
Led by Akame, a young swordswoman, Night raid has members that each carry a Teigu. A weapon created via alchemy as part of the supernatural Danger Beasts over 900 years in the past. About half of these weapons have been lost to history, even though about 48 of them were created at first. They range from weapons like swords and firearms to more utilitarian items like armor and ever organic beings. Their use is not suitable for everyone’s usage, so they will have to be compatible with them if someone uses them as their weapon.
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Yona of The Dawn
Many years ago Kouka kingdom was founded and ruled by a red dragon who came down to earth from the heavens and changed into a human named Hiyuu. On his side, four warriors from the Gods helped him lead the kingdom to prosperity. As time passed, this legend became a tale usually told to children. When the kingdom had no male heirs but a sole princess named Yona, who lived a lavish life of ease. She falls in love with her cousin Soo-Won and is protected by her bodyguards.
She had all she wanted and was sheltered from the harrowing reality outside the castle walls. Unlike these peaceful illusions, Kouka went through and underwent a political upheaval from within the kingdom after her beloved Soo-won staged a bloody coup and murdered her father. Yona was forced to flee with only Hak by her side and started to live her life on the run. She became a central figure in this anime with the female lead and was always surrounded by enemies on all sides as she still yearns to live and save her kingdom.
Black Lagoon
Focused on a team of Pirate mercenaries known as the Lagoon company that smuggles things in and around Southeast Asia. It has four members, including Revy, who was the main gunfighter. Their base of operation is located in the fictional harbor city of Roanapur. Its located in a city where the Japanese yakuza and a wide assortment of pickpockets and thugs thrive.
The Lagoon company also transports goods for various clients using their Black Lagoon ship, and they have particularly friendly relationships with the Russian crime syndicate Hotel Moscow. The team usually takes on various missions involving firefights and hand-to-hand combats with nautical battles across Southeast Asian territories. When they are not on duty, they are usually at the yellow flag, a bar in Roanapur which is often destroyed during firefights.
A Certain Scientific Railgun
Composed of a 25-episode season, A Certain Scientific Railgun anime is about Misaka Mikoto, who is known by most people as the ranked third level 5 and the highest attainable level of an esper who is a role model to most students in the academy. It is also known that, in reality, Mikoto is far from the role model figure that most would assume of her. The anime also looks at Mikoto’s various exploits within the city together with her devoted roommate Kuroko.
As one of the anime with the female lead, the introductory season of the anime was about a mysterious sound file that can allow its listeners to gain esper powers and the teacher that developed this file. Season two of A Certain Scientific Railgun alludes to a substantial arc in the series novel, which involves an experiment that used Mikoto’s DNA to create clones which are later slaughtered to I’ve way for an attempt to produce the very first level 6. And then the third season is about the sports festival with Mikoto’s rival level 5 being the key player.
Kill La Kill
Kill La Kill focuses on a vagrant transfer student Ryuko Matoi. She comes in armed with a scissor-shaped king sword that can cut Goku Uniforms. She arrives in Honno city looking for the murderer of her father and assumes that Satsuki might be involved. After a failed attempt to challenge Satsuki on her first day, Ryuko came across a sentient sailor uniform in a complex beneath her father’s home. She decided to name it Senkesu and later learned that the suit is called Kamui and it can increase her abilities while transformed.
Ryuko and Satsuki also noted that their suits have superpowers and have a will of their own. So the anime also triggered the fits original anime project produced by Kazuki Nakashima and Directed by Hiroyuki Imaishi, both of whom had previously worked together on Gurren Lagann and later went to work on Promare as Kill la Kill was broadcast in October 2013. Kill la Kill is one of the early anime with a female lead and would later get an Ova as a 25th episode, with the main anime having 24 episodes and only one season.
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Claymore
Claymore anime ran for one season with 26 episodes following the adventures of Clare, a Claymore who is half Yoma, Half-Human hybrid. She fights for survival in a world filled with Yoma, demons that have the ability to shapeshift.
Humans are plagued by Yoma that feed on humans, and a mysterious group that s known as The Organisation creates Human Yoma Hybrids for a fee. These female warriors are referred to as Claymores and wield Claymore swords powered by demonic energy.
Ghost in The Shell
Ghost in Shell’s original anime had 26 episodes and is set in the sub-universe of the Ghost in The Shell Story. It has all the major protagonists and places from the manga as well. It deviates a bit from the events in the manga, and this has created paradoxes between the manga and the stand-alone universe.
Jojo Bizzare Adventures: Stone Ocean
Jojo Bizzare adventures finally received an anime with a female lead where Jolyni Cujo was sentenced to 15 years in prison after being framed for murder. She is taken to Green Dolphin prison and her father, Jotaro, gives her a pendant that has awakened mysterious powers within her.
Later she found out that a disciple of Dio framed her so that he could easily kill her in prison. So she had to fight for her survival as she tried to escape. Stone Ocean has 12 episodes and made its debut as Season 5 in 2021 on Netflix.
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