Military anime & manga

[Momogari]

I like military stories. I like the theme in general. I think I liked it in anime ever since Fullmetal Alchemist, but I especially like when it involves strategy and tactics.

Maybe my favorite is the Kingdom manga.

  Spoiler:  

Anyone else have good military stories?

[Jasminedesi16]

I think Attack On Titan could be considered military anime and maybe code geass?

[Beex]

Stratos 4 was ok despite the fact I didn't finish it.

[DeepInAnimeHell]

Owari no Seraph/Seraph of the End has quite a bit of military in it and I definitely love the supernatural elements it has.

[Momogari]

Here's a few modern military shows for people:

GATE
(I didn't know it at the time, but apparently this scene is a reference to an old movie)
[video=youtube;1SSt4qeb0BQ]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SSt4qeb0BQ[/video]

Toshokan Sensou (Library Wars)
(There's auto-translate available for this video's japanese subtitles.)
[video=youtube;Gnvj0s7HZrU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gnvj0s7HZrU[/video]

Pumpkin Scissors
[video=youtube;njfWjNlgK9s]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njfWjNlgK9s[/video]

[Zytah]

I really enjoyed Valkyria Chronicles. It's based off the video game (which is amazing!) and follows the story fairly well ❤

[Gonzalez96]

Although not a main favorite in Japan and inspired by the childhood of a British 60s classic , Firestorm does have some sort of a military feel in it.

[Expendable]

Ghost in the Shell involves a paramilitary group known as Public Security Section Nine.
[video=youtube;QxkMzn4et2U]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxkMzn4et2U[/video]

Appleseed is in a similar vein, with ESWAT units wearing mecha suits. Their latest recruit is rescued from a post-apocalyptic landscape and is brought to Olympus.

  Spoiler:  

[video=youtube;wY4uwf_9btw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wY4uwf_9btw[/video]

Sora no Woto or The Sound of the Sky is post-apocalyptic, an army unit with a multi-legged tank they're repairing, but frankly not that military. The latest recruit has arrived to learn how to play the bugle.

  Spoiler:  

[video=youtube;8-L9RSOB_uc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-L9RSOB_uc[/video]

Blue Submarine No. 6 takes place in a flooded world, where humanity must battle the genetically engineered sea creatures created by one man.

  Spoiler:  

[video=youtube;jhEi_0VziRU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhEi_0VziRU[/video]

Robotech, also known as Macross features military units fighting aliens trying to recover a crashed alien ship that humans have repaired. Bit old, this one.

  Spoiler:  

[video=youtube;qEe0kzyFOyU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEe0kzyFOyU[/video]

Area 88 is about a Japanese airline pilot who following graduation from flight school, gets drunk with his best friend who then gets him signed up to a mercenary contract in the Middle East.

  Spoiler:  

[video=youtube;4wgkP9rnZzg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wgkP9rnZzg[/video]

New Dominion Tank Police - an older anime about a police unit that uses tanks to combat crime.

  Spoiler:  

[video=youtube;PY1QmB_S5RQ]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PY1QmB_S5RQ[/video]

Strike Witches is an alternate history where witches from various nations are recruited to combat alien invaders. Most of the uniforms are nothing more than uniform tops and panties. In war, women's dresses would shrink over time, suggesting they've been fighting a long time. Mostly fan service.

  Spoiler:  

[video=youtube;HSaqvhvnAgI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSaqvhvnAgI[/video]

[Yellow Magic]

Good suggestions here - Area 88 in particular is going straight into my backlog...

It's not 100% a military anime, but Jormungand follows a group of arms dealers who are frequently in contact with military groups all over the world.

[Momogari]

Apparently I've seen some of Area 88 and didn't like it.

[Expendable]

Area 88 can be a bit brutal. We have a pilot fighting to survive in a war that he never wanted, because his friend set him up to remove him from the competition for the top seat in an airline.

Full Metal Panic! has a private military counterterrorism organization called Mithril. One of their men, Sousuke Sagara, a child soldier who was later recruited into the organization, get assigned to be a bodyguard as it allows him to "blend in" as he's the right age. But that doesn't work so well. It's part romantic comedy with mecha combat. At least three series.

  Spoiler:  

[video=youtube;i6tqnui9zqM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6tqnui9zqM[/video]

Blue Drop - five years before the start of this anime, an alien spaceship tested a weapon they believed would pacify the humans living on a small island - instead, it drove both the ship's crew and the island inhabitants crazy, killing each other. On the island, only one small girl was found alive by rescuers, Mari Wakatake. Now a high school student, she is transferring to a girl's boarding school - and her room mate/class rep is the captain of the alien scout ship. One season, may be hard to find.

  Spoiler:  

[video=youtube;fF3-ldkf0MQ]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fF3-ldkf0MQ[/video]

Iriya no Sora, UFO no Natsu (Iriya's Skies, Summer of UFO's) - The war started in 1947, it's just that nobody's noticed. Iriya Kana is the last surviving pilot fighting a secret war against aliens using a very advanced aircraft code-named Black Mamba. She's also a teenage girl - and she just met a boy, Naoyuki Asaba, both sneeking into the school pool for a private swim before the start of classes. Six episodes, may be hard to find.

  Spoiler:  

Episode spoiler













In one of the final scenes, you see her fight suit with chest armor - and it's covered in prayers and well-wishes, like the Kamikazi before they flew off to battle.

  Spoiler:  

[video=youtube;nZgCt8JUewY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZgCt8JUewY[/video]

And two more - Arpeggio of Blue Steel alien AI warships that look like WW2 battleships but with highly advanced alien weapon systems have crushed the navies of the world, but one of the alien submarines, I-401 (Iona) was found adrift in a harbor following a battle. It was hidden away in a drydock bay but defeating all efforts to gain entry. It turned out she was just patiently waiting for the right person to come along. Mostly a rogue unit taking on alien forces directed by Mental Models that are all female (ships have female names, right?). Mostly ship battles, some fan service. Incredible art.

  Spoiler:  

[video=youtube;rPoyoUikA5I]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPoyoUikA5I[/video]

Tactical Roar - a super hurricane known as the "Grand Roar" has been raging for half a century in the Pacific, affecting not only the climate, but the flow of sea traffic and a rise in piracy and terrorism. To combat this, private military corporations offer escort services to merchant vessels. One of these is the Pascal Magi, an often discounted ship as its crew is complete female. Some comedy, fan service, and ship combat. This may be hard to find.

[Momogari]

Oh, I haven't seen Iriya no Sora or Blue Drop yet.


Yesterday I was thinking of something else and I remembered FMP Fumoffu. I didn't fumoffu being that great, but I do remember the original full metal panic being good. Very different shows of course.

[Expendable]

Oh, I haven't seen Iriya no Sora or Blue Drop yet.

They are older animes. I've a fondness for scifi. I should warn you, Iriya is more than a little brutal, a real fist to the gut in some scenes.

Yesterday I was thinking of something else and I remembered FMP Fumoffu. I didn't fumoffu being that great, but I do remember the original full metal panic being good. Very different shows of course.

The first two were a lttle more dramatic but with some funny moments when Sousuke displayed his military responses to high school situations, while Fumoffu was more fun fluff.

[Momogari]

Alderamin on the Sky is a hidden gem

[video=youtube;Lyb-k0zhqRg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lyb-k0zhqRg[/video]





And, since I just can't seem to plug it enough, Crest of the Stars. (Banner of the Stars is the sequel)

[video=youtube;iANf6R4q8kg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iANf6R4q8kg[/video]



But I think the best naval battles were from Last Exile:

[video=youtube;T5boCKoH1Wg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5boCKoH1Wg[/video]

[Tanya]

I don’t consider half of these military anime, some of them are special agents or police force anime types instead.

However, military forces are quite different from each other so I don’t see a reason why they can’t be considered military.

Here are few of many
Fleet Girls
The Saga of Tanya the Evil
Izeta the Last Witch
Heavy Objects
Knights and Magic

The fact is there are a bunch of them. I could go on, as I particularly like military themed anime.

Especially ones that involve military units. That said most giant robot anime seems to fall short.