The 20 Best Martial Arts Anime About Hand to Hand Combat

Kenichi Shirahama is no one's idea of a powerful fighter, but when various forces involving a bully, a girl he's fallen in love with, and even gang-related problems combine, he finally gets motivated to show what he's made of. Not content to simply learn one martial art, Kenichi studies Karate, Muay Thai, Ju Jitsu and Chinese Martial Arts at the dojo Ryouzanpaku. The training is tough, but if he actually masters these techniques, he'll be able to combine them into a new martial art of his own creation.

After being bullied his whole life, Ippo Makunouchi lacks confidence in himself. When he's saved from a particularly brutal bullying incident by a boxer named Mamoru Takamura, he finally gets the push he needs to start trying to improve himself. Mamoru wants to encourage him, but he thinks he might be biting off more than he can chew, so he gives him a seemingly impossible task. This spurs Ippo to start training, and enter the world of boxing.

In order to settle business deals, the powerful people in the world of Kengan Ashura hire martial arts experts to engage in gladiator-style battles. Ouma Tokita is a fighter who wants to prove his worth. Alongside his very average manager Kazuo Yamashita, he aims for the top and throws himself headlong into battle.

After destroying a tea shop and taking down an important figure in order to protect a waitress named Fuu, Jin and Mugen are nearly executed. Fuu rescues them and hires them as her bodyguard as she seeks out "the man who smells like sunflowers." Along the way, they face foes that they battle using Jin's swordsmanship and Mugen's breakdance-inspired martial arts. This classic show is a must-watch for any anime fan!

If you're looking for an old-school classic that's intensely violent, look no further than Fist of the North Star. Set in a post-apocalyptic future, the series follows Kenshirou on a journey that starts with his attempts to rescue his kidnapped fiance, and turns into a complex series of high-stakes, high-octane martial arts battles that utilize Kenshirou's treasured Hokuto Shinken technique.

The God of High School tournament was established to find the greatest teenage fighter in all of Korea. Whether it's martial arts, weapons, or superhuman powers, anything goes. Taekwondo fighter Jin Mo-Ri joins and quickly makes friends with karate expert Han Dae-Wi and swordswoman Yu Mi-Ra. They're all there for different reasons, and they're all in for the fights of their lives.

Baki Hanma has dedicated his entire life to becoming as powerful as humanly possible. Why? Because his dream is to surpass his father, the strongest man in the world. Can he possibly match the strength of a man who can knock out elephants and stop earthquakes by punching the ground, or is he doomed to fail?

A young man called Junk Dog spends his days losing fixed boxing matches. This puts food on the table, but it's not enough - he dreams of actually using his skills. When Megalo Box champion Yuri challenges him to real fight, he decides to sign up for Megalonia under a new name: Joe. But Megalo Box fighters must wear gear that that strengthens their punches, and Joe can't afford anything decent. He decides to climb the ranks of Megalonia using only his own body. This risky endeavor seems doomed to failure, but Joe refuses to give up.

Fog Hill of Five Elements is a Chinese anime (donghua) that's known for its high-quality animation and painting-like art style. In ancient times, five magical families representing the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire and soil sealed monsters in cages using magic. A descendent of the fire clan wants to free those monsters and obtain their power in order to save his mother.

If you love the Street Fighter II video games, you might want to give the animated version a try. In order to boost their martial arts prowess, Ryu and Ken Masters begin travelling the world and having encounters with experts of all forms of fighting. Along the way, they get involved in a shadowy organization called Shadowlaw, which forces them to put their fighting skills to the test against their most formidable foe yet - M.Bison.

Shichika Yasuri is one of the few people in the world who uses Kyotouryuu, a sword-fighting technique in which the user wields their own body like a blade. He's leading a peaceful life with his sister until one day, a mysterious girl named Togame appears and enlists his help collecting the 12 "Deviant Blades" for the shogunate. Charmed by Togame, Shichika agrees. The journey won't be easy, but it will be filled with beautifully animated martial arts fights.

Toudou Academy isn't your typical high school. Its purpose is not academic excellence, but promoting martial arts. That's exactly why Souichiro Nagi and Bob Makihara enroll there - they want to be recognized as the greatest fighters around. But when they encounter ridiculously strong people like Masataka Takayanagi and Maya Natsume, they realize that meeting their goal will prove a serious challenge.

Ranma Saotome is the heir to the "Anything Goes" Saotome Dojo. While training with his dad, he falls into a cursed spring that causes him to transform into a girl whenever he's splashed with cold water. Things are already difficult enough for Ranma, but they get even harder when his dad decides he has to marry one of the Tendo sisters in order to ensure the family dojo's future. Akane, the youngest daughter, is a headstrong girl who is just as good at martial arts as Ranma - but the two of them do not get along!

Joe Yabuki is a troubled youth who solves his problems with his fists. One day, he gets into a fight with a dangerous gang and manages to defeat the whole group on his own. This earns him the attention of Danpei Tange, a retired boxing coach with an alcohol problem. Inspired by Joe's talent, he offers to train him as a professional boxer. Joe dismisses him at first, but when Danpei saves his life, he ends up taking his offer. He'll not only have to sharpen his skills, he'll also have to overcome his own personality problems if he wants to make it as a boxer.

You might not think that half-priced bento are worth battling over, but that's because you're not a member of the Half-Priced Food Lovers Club. Club members bring their martial arts skills to all-out brawls with discounted convenience store meals as the prize. You Satou is drawn into this strange world by accident, but he finds himself interested. Sadly, he has no idea how to fight. Luckily for him, Sen Yarizui is there to show him the ropes!

The plot of Kurokami: The Animation is complicated, so here's the basic rundown. In this series, the world is kept in balance by "Tera Guardians" who team up with humans through a magical process called Synchronization. Tera Guardian Kuro bonds with a human named Keita in order to protect him. Keita is drawn into the Tera system, and the two of them begin to understand its deeper secrets through hardcore combat.

Yawara Inokuma is a high school student who wants to lead the life of a delicate lady. But not only is she the granddaughter of the seventh dan Judo master Jigorou Inokuma, she's also ridiculously good at martial arts herself. As she tries to hide her talent in favor of finding a boyfriend, other people keep trying to push her towards becoming the Judo master she was meant to be.

If Kojirou manages to raise a kendo team that can beat his senpai's, he can alleviate at least some of his financial woes by winning a full year's worth of free meals. There's just one problem: does Muroe High School have enough talented kendo competetors who are actually willing to join his ragtag team?

Though she appears to be an ordinary girl, Mao Ran is actually the heiress to a martial arts family and has been training herself for years. But despite her talent, she isn't prepared to enter competitions. She only ends up entering the Prime Mat competition because her grandfather tricks her into it. Eventually, she gets drawn into the world of fighting.

At Daimon High School, problems are settled not through discussion, but through K-Fights - martial arts battles that get seriously intense. Ryoko Mitsurugi is a K-Fight champion who is obsessed with all things samurai. Her true abilities are tested when a Priestess puts her in charge of fighting an invasion from an alternate universe called Solvania.