Owari no Seraph Archives | 100 Word Anime

Top 5 Anime Vampires – Because Having Fangs Just Isn’t Enough

Posted on February 4, 2022February 4, 2022 by Karandi

The list for my favourite anime vampires is kind of always under construction. Largely because I love vampires and also because every year we seem to get a few anime that take their own interpretation on the blood-suckers. I was kind of hoping Mars Red would add a few new names to the list but alas that story kind of fizzled in the end.

As always, I’d love to know your favourites so please share in the comments below.

Who are my favourite anime vampires?

Please Note: There will be spoilers below.

Honourable mention this week goes to Staz from Blood Lad and Alucard from Hellsing (because even if I don’t mention him on the list, everyone else will).

I also need to throw Dracula from Castlevania here as well because after watching season two I’m just not that into him anymore.

Number 5: Kaname from Vampire Knight

I was really tossing up whether it would be Kaname or Zero on this list when I decided that at least one of them had to make the top 5 but ultimately Kaname being a pure blood vampire and not a human turned into a vampire kind of tipped the scales in his direction. More importantly, it isn’t every character that can turn other vampires into confetti. Kaname may spend way too long brooding on things and is a terrible communicator, but he certainly has the whole presence, attraction and air of danger that tend to be defining traits in certain types of vampire stories.

Number 4: Jirou from Black Blood Brothers

Jirou is a fantastic character. He’s pretty traditional in terms of being a vampire who is sensitive to sunlight and salt water, he doesn’t like being awake during the day, but he is definitely a fighter particularly when his ‘brother’ is being threatened. Which makes him a bit different from so many anime vampires that kind of have their own rules. Add to that the usual fantastic vampiric fashion sense (because who doesn’t look amazing in that shade of red) and a very cool sword and you have one very fun character.

Number 3: Carmilla from Castlevania Season 2

A new entry on the list. While Dracula may have been relatively unimpressive throughout season 2 of Castlevania (okay a lot unimpressive unless you like broody and sulky in your anime vampire), Carmilla swept in and shook things up. While a lot of her manipulations really served no purpose and ultimately she kind of got nowhere, I have to admit she had style and was definitely the most memorable of the new characters introduced during the second season.

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Number 2: Mikaela from Owari no Seraph

I still haven’t actually reviewed Owari and I really should get around to it, particularly as I now have the DVD’s and any story that focuses on anime vampires vs humans is worth at least a discussion.

Mikaela is one of my favourite characters because of his transformation from human to vampire (yet arguably he remains the most human character in the show). Even after everything that happens to Mikaela he never loses sight of what he wants to protect and he will go to any length to keep it safe. It would be nice to say the whole vampiric strength thing was an asset but in Owari just being a vampire really isn’t enough.

Number 1: Megumi from Shiki

She absolutely had to make the list of anime vampires and all things considered, given she’s been the vampire I’ve consistently liked the most, she probably deserves the top spot at this point. Another human turned vampire and loving it (at least at first). Megumi always believed she was destined for more than the village could offer her and while she may not have intended to die, she certainly made the most out of her undead life while she could. Megumi gets bonus points for being one of the creepiest stalkers ever.

There’s the list this week and again, feel free to share your favourite anime vampires in the comments below. I’d love to know your picks and your reasons.

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Tuesday’s Top 5: Anime With Action

Posted on April 4, 2017February 4, 2017 by Karandi

Alright, I’ve looked at romantic anime before but this time I’m shifting my focus to action. It is really hard to get a definitive classification on whether something is action or not. Does one fight sequence really make for action? And how do you compare action used for comedy with gritty realistic fight sequences, and then how do you compare those to the over the top craziness that is most action in anime? In the end my criteria for this list was that the fight sequences themselves were a strength of the show and integral to the narrative. So yes there are anime out there with more action and maybe even more impressive action sequences, this is the list of anime that I came up with.

I’d love to know what action anime you love and why. Please comment below.

Patrons, be sure to check out my lesser top 5 list. The anime on the list this week are all actually decent anime (in their own way – okay one of them is terrible no matter how you slice it) but the action in them is not so awesome.

Please Note – There will be spoilers below.

Honourable mentions this week go to Full Metal Alchemist and Claymore.

Number 5: Soul Eater

While I’d love to put Soul Eater far higher on this list (because Soul Eater is just plain awesome) when looking just at the action of the series I have to admit there are some really wasted moments and some fairly disappointing outcomes in some of the fights. The reason this stayed on the list at all is Maka. Her fights, right from episode 1, are some of the most amazing fight sequences I’ve seen from a female character in anime. She’s not using a ranged weapon, she’s not moral support, she’s out there in the thick of the fight and swinging around a weapon that realistically she shouldn’t be able to pick up. If we ignore the final fight (which, please do), all of Maka’s battles are just a joy to watch. If you’re interested my series review is here.

Number 4: Gangsta

This one is a bit more realistic than Soul Eater but still goes for spectacle and humans who can perform inhuman feats. Nicolas, as a tag, really shows off what he can do and given he seems to just like the rush his fights aren’t about efficiency, they are definitely about fun. Of course, most of his opponents also seem to be enjoying themselves so while the fight might be about life and death, you can’t help but get caught up in the enthusiasm of the clash itself. Again, I’ve reviewed this series so if you are interested the review is here.

Number 3: Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash

I know I just heard the sound of jaws collectively hitting the ground but there is a reason for this choice. While Grimgar is a sleepy little fantasy that is focussed very much on the main character’s internal struggle to cope with this life he finds himself in, the action sequences are an absolutely integral part of this story. More importantly, because every fight is literally a matter of survival for both sides and the tragedy of death is introduced early as a central theme, every battle has a feeling of absolute finality. There are no small conflicts when a single arrow might bring you down and hesitating for a moment could be all the difference between life and death. If we couple this with Grimgar’s distinct art style then the action sequences here are not just deadly they are beautiful. So, while this might be a slow moving story, the action is anything but and if you haven’t given it a go you should probably check out my review and then go check out the anime.

Number 2: Owari no Seraph

This one I haven’t reviewed yet but it will definitely happen. I think what draws me to this is it is a vampire story but it doesn’t really try for horror or atmosphere. It really is a straight up us vs them battle for the right to rule and we have some pretty cool weapons and characters thrown into the mix. Certainly there’s a few issues with the story, particularly in the second half of the second season, but if you like humans (or mostly human) fighting against a superior supernatural force with high stakes than this anime is well worth a watch.

Number 1: Full Metal Panic

Again, I’ve yet to review this anime but it is a great action anime. You have military conflicts, robot fights, explosions in school shoe lockers, and pretty much any other kind of action you could be looking for in a story. The weird mix of serious narrative and high school comedy somehow works and actually the Fumoffu season which is pretty much entirely focussed on the mercenary’s day-to-day school life delivers some pretty amazing action in and of itself. Season 1 and Second Raid give us hostage situations and dramatic rescues, chase sequences, straight up military fights, and just such a range of scenes to enjoy it is kind of hard to overlook this one. As being a fighter is an essential part of Sousuke’s character and the action is used so much for both dramatic and humorous effect I just had to choose this as the number one for the list.

There we go, my top 5 action anime recommendations, though not necessarily the most action filled anime out there. What would you have put on your list?

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Tuesday’s Top 5: Male Characters with Blonde Hair

Posted on March 7, 2017March 5, 2017 by Karandi

Last week I went through my top 5 female characters with blonde hair so now it is time to turn my attention to the guys. And I thought narrowing down the list of female characters was hard. There’s quite a range of blonde male characters to choose from but I think I ended up with a fairly interesting selection. Previously I’ve looked at males with red hair and blue so if you missed those lists check them out. Feel free to add yours in the comments below.

Over on patreon, patrons can access my lesser top 5 list. This week its the blonde guys who make you cringe.

Please Note – There will be spoilers below.

Honourable mentions go to: Urahara (Bleach), Edward Elric (Full Metal Alchemist), Yukine (Noragami), Worick (Gangsta) and Oz (Pandora Hearts).

Number 5: Mikaela from Owari no Seraph

For a character that is essentially killed in episode 1, Mikaela definitely doesn’t let that get in the way of being in a large part of this series. While he undergoes a massive transformation from human to vampire and his cheery personality is all but gone, it could be argued Mikaela is the character who changes the least given regardless of the circumstances he is still trying to protect his ‘family’. I love this character and find the series suffers from his absence at times.

Number 4: Vash the Stampede from Trigun

Vash is the goofy character of the wild west only he isn’t really all that goofy when things get serious and they are stuck on an alien planet and not in the west. As a character with a large bounty on his head and known as a humanoid typhoon more or less everyone in the world is out to get him but Vash just wants to make friends and help people. His crack shooting is almost never aimed at someone and he will definitely take an injury before he’ll inflict one. He’s quite the interesting character once you get past the opening few episodes where mostly he just seems like Daffy Duck with a gun.

Number 3: Natsume from Natsume Yuujinchou

I struggled with whether or not Natsume actually had blonde hair or not but at the end of the day it doesn’t really matter. He’s an awesome character who experiences slow and realistic growth through his encounters. Plus he likes cats. Okay, he spends a lot of time running away from yokai and hanging out in the woods but he mostly still gets to school and he’s even made quite a group of human friends. Mostly it is just fun spending time with Natsume as he grows up.

Number 2: November 11 from Darker Than Black

I reviewed Darker Than Black for my 100th series review and November 11 featured prominently then. He’s one of my favourite characters of all time because of his very cool power (he was also on my list of ice magic users) and his general sardonic outlook on life. I love how he can deliver an accusation or insult with a totally deadpan expression and then add that he was joking after the fact. Admittedly, he needs a shorter message on his phone because wasting people’s time listening to a joke can cost lives.

Number 1: Fai D Flourite from Tsubasa Chronicles

Much like November 11, Fai likes to play the fool at times but don’t let his charming smile fool you. Fai is smart, strong and talented and even if he never lifts a finger in a fight against you don’t think you are going to win. While he might let you claim the draw (mostly because he isn’t fighting back) he seldom has anyone get the better of him. Which makes the few occasions when he stumbles (particularly when it nearly costs him is life) even more shocking. I love that Fai has so much development as a character in the background of this story. He is accused of being a coward and his general desire to simply run away from his past definitely supports that but at the same time he doesn’t abandon his friends throughout the course of the story no matter how bad things get. Plus he looks good in a suit and Mokona likes him.

There you have it, my top 5 male characters with blonde hair. Who would have been on your list?

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Karandi James.