What is this genre all about? World War II, or the Second World War (often abbreviated WWII or WW2), was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's nations, including all great powers, organised into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. The war involved the mobilisation of over 100 million military personnel, making it the most widespread war in history. In a state of "total war," the major participants placed their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities at the service of the war effort, erasing the distinction between civilian and military resources. Over seventy million people, the majority civilians, were killed, making it the deadliest conflict in human history.The start of the war is generally held to be September 1, 1939, with the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany and subsequent declarations of war on Germany by most of the countries in the British Empire and Commonwealth, and by France. Many countries were already at war before this date, such as Ethiopia and Italy in the Second Italo-Abyssinian War and China and Japan in the Second Sino-Japanese War. Many who were not initially involved joined the war later, as a result of events such as the German invasion of the Soviet Union, the attacks on Pearl Harbor and British colonies, and subsequent declarations of war on Japan by the United States, the Netherlands, and British Commonwealth.In 1945, the war ended in a victory for the Allies. The Soviet Union and the United States subsequently emerged as the world's superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War which continued for the next 46 years. The United Nations was formed in the hope of preventing another world conflict. The acceptance of the principle of self-determination accelerated decolonization movements in Asia and Africa, while Western Europe itself began moving toward integration.------About the pictureTop left: Battle of WuhanTop right: Second Battle of El AlameinMiddle left: Battle of StalingradMiddle right: German dive bombers over Eastern Front winter 1943-1944Bottom left: Wilhelm Keitel signing German Instrument of SurrenderBottom right: Invasion of Lingayen Gulf
We present you the list of World War II anime you should watch right now.
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Top 19 World War II anime you should watch right now. [2026 List]
- 19. JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken (TV)
- 18. Grave of the Fireflies
- 17. Kimitachi wa Dou Ikiru ka
- 16. Hetalia Axis Powers
- 15. Kono Sekai no Katasumi ni
- 14. Hetalia World Series
- 13. JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Re-edited
- 12. Rainbow: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin
- 11. Shuumatsu no Izetta
- 10. Hiroshima ni Ichiban Densha ga Hashitta
- 9. Strike Witches 2
- 8. Anne no Nikki
- 7. Hadashi no Gen
- 6. First Squad: The Moment of Truth
- 5. Cocoon
- 4. Zipang
- 3. Kishin Heidan
- 2. Ohoshisama no Rail
- 1. Animentary: Ketsudan
19. JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken (TV)
In 1868, Dario Brando saves the life of an English nobleman, George Joestar. By taking in Dario's son Dio when the boy becomes fatherless, George hopes to repay the debt he owes to his savior. However Dio, unsatisfied with his station in life, aspires to seize the Joestar house for his own. Wielding an Aztec stone mask with supernatural properties, he sets out to destroy George and his son, Jonathan "JoJo" Joestar, and triggers a chain of events that will continue to echo through the years to come.
Half a century later, in New York City, Jonathan's grandson Joseph Joestar discovers the legacy his grandfather left for him. When an archeological dig unearths the truth behind the stone mask, he realizes that he is the only one who can defeat the Pillar Men, mystical beings of immeasurable power who inadvertently began everything.
Adapted from the first two arcs of Hirohiko Araki's outlandish manga series, JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken follows the many thrilling expeditions of JoJo and his descendants. Whether it's facing off with the evil Dio, or combatting the sinister Pillar Men, there's always plenty of bizarre adventures in store.
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure (2012) has finished airing and it has 26 Episodes. It is also Known as: ジョジョの奇妙な冒険, JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken (2012)
18. Grave of the Fireflies
In the aftermath of a World War II bombing, two orphaned children struggle to survive in the Japanese countryside. To Seita and his four-year-old sister, the helplessness and indifference of their countrymen is even more painful than the enemy raids. Through desperation, hunger and grief, these children's lives are as heartbreakingly fragile as their spirit and love is inspiring.
Grave of the Fireflies has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: Hotaru no Haka, 火垂るの墓, Tombstone for Fireflies
17. Kimitachi wa Dou Ikiru ka
A young boy named Mahito, yearning for his mother, ventures into a world shared by the living and the dead. There, death comes to an end, and life finds a new beginning. A semi-autobiographical fantasy about life, death, and creation, in tribute to friendship, from the mind of Hayao Miyazaki.
The Boy and the Heron has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: 君たちはどう生きるか, きみたちはどういきるか, How Do You Live?, Kimi-tachi wa Dou Ikiru ka, Kimi tachi wa Dou Ikiru ka, Il ragazzo e l’airone, Chłopiec i czapla, Le Garçon et le Héron, Gutten og hegren, Pojken och hägern, Poika ja haikara, El chico y la garza, O Rapaz e a Garça
16. Hetalia Axis Powers
What if nations were people? What traits would they have? What would this mean for historical events?Hetalia Axis Powers takes these questions and runs with them, personifying countries into characters. The show takes a comedic and light approach to politics and historical events while educating the viewer.
Taking place primarily during the events of World War I and World War II, the story focuses on the Axis Powers and occasionally throws the spotlight onto the tumultuous relationship between the Allied Forces. The Axis Powers feature the titular character North Italy, who is clumsy, carefree and loves pasta; Germany, who is very serious but easily flustered; and Japan, who is stoic but has bizarre interests.
Based on Hidekaz Himaruya's widely popular webcomic turned print manga, Hetalia Axis Powers is a historical comedy that pokes lightly at culture, examines the relationships between nations and breathes fun into history.
[Written By MAL Rewrite]
Hetalia Axis Powers has finished airing and it has 52 Episodes. It is also Known as: ヘタリア Axis Powers, Hetalia Axis Powers
15. Kono Sekai no Katasumi ni
The award-winning story of IN THIS CORNER OF THE WORLD follows a young lady named Suzu Urano, who in 1944 moves to the small town of Kure in Hiroshima to live with her husband’s family. Suzu’s life is thrown into chaos when her town is bombed during World War II. Her perseverance and courage underpin this heart-warming and inspirational tale of the everyday challenges faced by the Japanese in the midst of a violent, war-torn country. This beautiful yet poignant tale shows that even in the face of adversity and loss, people can come together and rebuild their lives.
In This Corner of the World has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: この世界の片隅に, To All the Corners of the World
14. Hetalia World Series
The third and fourth seasons of the Hetalia Axis Powers anime. A continuation of the first 2 seasons under a new name, still adapting the online webcomics drawn by Himaruya Hidekaz.
Based on a popular web-released manga series by Hidekazu Himaruya, this has been described as a "cynical gag" story set in Europe in the years between WW1 and WW2 (1915-1939), using exaggerated caricatures of the different nationalities as portrayed by a gaggle of bishōnen. For example, the Italia Veneziano character is into pasta and women. The Deutsche (German) bishi loves potatoes and sausages, and Nippon is an otaku boy. Installments of the manga have jumped back and forth in setting from the ancient times to modern-day geopolitics. The manga's title comes the Japanese words for "useless" (hetare) and Italy (Italia).
Hetalia World Series has finished airing and it has 48 Episodes. It is also Known as: ヘタリア Ｗorld Ｓeries, Hetalia World Series
13. JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Re-edited
In 1868, Dario Brando saves the life of an English nobleman, George Joestar. By taking in Dario's son Dio when the boy becomes fatherless, George hopes to repay the debt he owes to his savior. However Dio, unsatisfied with his station in life, aspires to seize the Joestar house for his own. Wielding an Aztec stone mask with supernatural properties, he sets out to destroy George and his son, Jonathan "JoJo" Joestar, and triggers a chain of events that will continue to echo through the years to come.
Half a century later, in New York City, Jonathan's grandson Joseph Joestar discovers the legacy his grandfather left for him. When an archeological dig unearths the truth behind the stone mask, he realizes that he is the only one who can defeat the Pillar Men, mystical beings of immeasurable power who inadvertently began everything.
Adapted from the first two arcs of Hirohiko Araki's outlandish manga series, JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken follows the many thrilling expeditions of JoJo and his descendants. Whether it's facing off with the evil Dio, or combatting the sinister Pillar Men, there's always plenty of bizarre adventures in store.
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Re-edited has finished airing and it has 3 Episodes. It is also Known as: JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken Re-edited, ジョジョの奇妙な冒険 Re-edited, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Re-edited
12. Rainbow: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin
Japan, 1955: Mario Minakami has just arrived at Shounan Special Reform School along with six other teenagers who have been arrested on serious criminal charges. All assigned to the same cell, they meet older inmate Rokurouta Sakuragi—a former boxer—with whom they establish a close bond. Under his guidance, and with the promise that they will meet again on the outside after serving their sentences, the delinquents begin to view their hopeless situation in a better light.Rainbow: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin follows the seven cellmates as they struggle together against the brutal suffering and humiliation inflicted upon them by Ishihara, a sadistic guard with a grudge on Rokurouta, and Gisuke Sasaki, a doctor who takes pleasure in violating boys. Facing such hellish conditions, the seven inmates must scrape together all the strength they have to survive until their sentences are up; but even if they do, just what kind of lives are waiting for them on the other side?
Rainbow has finished airing and it has 26 Episodes. It is also Known as: RAINBOW 二舎六房の七人, Rainbow: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin
11. Shuumatsu no Izetta
The time is pre-World War II and the setting is a European-like imaginary world. A large-scale war erupts and bloody battles are taking place throughout the world. Eylstadt is a small country that lacks a strong military force and natural resources. Finé, who is the crown queen of Eylstadt, decides to use a secret weapon against larger countries, in a time where battling against larger countries was unthinkable. The secret weapon is a witch named Izetta, who uses her magical force to fight. The young witch Izetta is the last survivor of her kind, and is notable for her burning red hair.
Izetta: The Last Witch has finished airing and it has 12 Episodes. It is also Known as: 終末のイゼッタ, Izetta, Die Letzte Hexe
10. Hiroshima ni Ichiban Densha ga Hashitta
The story follows a girl who works on a streetcar both before and after the bomb drops on Hiroshima.
Hiroshima ni Ichiban Densha ga Hashitta has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: ヒロシマに一番電車が走った, Hiroshima ni Ichiban Densha ga Hashitta
9. Strike Witches 2
After discovering that Neuroi are capable of communication with humans and making peace with the nest above Gallia the Witches squads are now on a mission to re-establish communication when a sudden attack vanishes the Neuroi; they now discover a new and massive nest that just appeared covering almost all Europe. Ruthless and without mercy it annihilates allied forces along with Witches. Word of the attack reaches Fuso and a support battalion is deployed to rescue the survivors. Among the rescue team is the former Striker captain Mio Sakamoto and the now civilian Yoshika Miyafuji who want to save their dear friends.
Strike Witches 2 has finished airing and it has 12 Episodes. It is also Known as: ストライクウィッチーズ 2, Strike Witches 2
8. Anne no Nikki
Amsterdam, June 12, 1942. Anne celebrates her 13th birthday and begins her diary, which she calls "Kitty". Hiding for two years from the German threat, the young girl writes about her idealistic views on the world, her ambitions, her fears and her first love, Peter.
The Diary of Anne Frank has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: アンネの日記, Anne no Nikki
7. Hadashi no Gen
It's the summer of 1945. 3 years have elapsed since the war between Japan and USA began. Gen is a young boy living a struggling yet satisfying life in the city of Hiroshima, that has been strangely spared by the bombing taken in almost every other Japanese City. Food is scarce, and Gen's family is suffering from severe malnutrition, which endangers his pregnant mother. There isn't much spare time as Gen and his little brother Shinji help their father and mother at work and try to make sure their family survives the tough times. Little do they know, what the Americans have in store for the city of Hiroshima and as of the 6th of August 1945, their lives are about to change dramatically.
Barefoot Gen has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: はだしのゲン, Gen of Hiroshima
6. First Squad: The Moment of Truth
First Squad is set during the opening days of World War II on the Eastern Front. Its main cast are a group of Soviet teenagers with extraordinary abilities; the teenagers have been drafted to form a special unit to fight the invading German army. They are opposed by a Schutzstaffel (SS) officer who is attempting to raise from the dead a supernatural army of crusaders from the 12th-century Order of the Sacred Cross and enlist them in the Nazi cause.
First Squad: The Moment of Truth has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: ファーストスクワッド, Pervyi Otryad, Первый Отряд
5. Cocoon
San and Mayu are two schoolgirls living in Okinawa during the closing months of the Pacific War. Together with their classmates, the two friends are drafted into the war effort as nurses for wounded soldiers. When ordered to die for their country, the remaining members of the group escape only to face the harsh environment of a tropical paradise that has become a hellish battlefield.
Cocoon has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: Cocoon
4. Zipang
Mirai, an improved Kongou-class Aegis guided missile destroyer, is one of the newest and most advanced ships in the entire Japanese Self Defense Force (SDF). Her crew, also one of the newest, is lead by Capt. Umezu Saburo and Executive Officer Kadomatsu Yosuke. While running scheduled training exercises one day, Mirai encounters a fierce storm that throws their navigation systems into temporary disarray. After a few minutes of recovery, the crew is shocked to discover that they've been transported back in time to June 4, 1942—The Battle of Midway, during World War II. Letting history take its course for this battle, they manage to avoid the conflict firsthand and make a vow to remain annonymous, changing history as little as possible. However, when the crew comes across the dying Lt. Commander Kusaka Takumi, XO. Kadomatsu's instincts to save lives takes over, changing the course of history more than he could've imagined.
Zipang has finished airing and it has 26 Episodes. It is also Known as: ジパング, Zipang
3. Kishin Heidan
October 1941, as the second World War threatens to destroy the civilized world, an unforeseen complication suddenly occurs. An alien invasion! Despite the sudden appearance of these extraterrestrial aggressors, the Axis and Allies continue their destructive conflict. Only the Kishin Corps and their giant Geo-Armor Robots (a.k.a.: Kishin), developed from a captured alien robot soldier, stand between the Earth and total annihilation!
A teenager, named Taishi, suddenly finds himself at the center of a struggle over a mysterious black attaché case entrusted to him by his father, Professor Tokamura. The case contains the controlling mechanism for one of the giant Geo-Armor Robots, and the Japanese Kanto Army, the alien invaders, and the Kishin Corps all want to recover the device! Between the spies, the armies, the aliens, and the Giant Robots, Taishi is in for an epic adventure—if he can survive it!
Kishin Corps has finished airing and it has 7 Episodes. It is also Known as: 機神兵団, Alien Defender Geo-Armor - Kishin Corps, Machine-God Corps, Panzer Robot
2. Ohoshisama no Rail
This is the autobiographic tale of Kobayashi Chitose, a young Japanese girl growing up in a Japanese-occupied North Korea. As World War II progresses, Chitose begins to realize that her family will not be able to escape the effects of the conflict. From the simple disappointment of not being able to get the type of backpack she wants for school, to her father's recruitment as a soldier, the war begins to impact her life in a very real manner. But the end of the war does not mean the end of hardship for her. The Koreans, fed up with years of Japanese rule and persecution, have joined forces with a Chinese-backed communist government and are systematically making life a living horror for the Japanese left in North Korea. Fearing reprisal since he was a Japanese veteran, Chitose's father risks everything to get his family out of the north and to the US-occupied area south of the 38th parallel.
Ohoshisama no Rail has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: お星さまのレール, O-Hoshisama no Rail, Ohoshi-sama no Rail
1. Animentary: Ketsudan
A strict retelling of the Pacific side of WW2.
Animentary: Ketsudan has finished airing and it has 26 Episodes. It is also Known as: アニメンタリー 決断, Animentary: The Decision
