Highlights
- “Military moe” is a unique genre in anime that combines cute girls with military themes.
- These anime series feature young girls participating in warfare or militaristic settings.
- Despite their cute and feminine appearance, these girls engage in traditionally masculine activities.
“Cute girls doing cute things” and the military genre are two worlds one would never expect to collide, but they have, in more ways than one. Whether the girls are operating military equipment, or whether they ARE the equipment, there’s a certain charm to a series that involves cute girls engaging in traditionally masculine activities.
“Military moe” is a sub-genre of anime that involves just that – young girls who get involved in military warfare or a vaguely militaristic setting at least. This unique niche of moe anime gained popularity in the 2010s and continues to this day.
1 Strike Witches
MyAnimeList Score: 6.95
- Release Date: July 4, 2008
- Studio: Gonzo
- No. of Episodes: 12
Strike Witches is set in an alternate-history version of 1939. Mysterious aliens known as Neuroi begin invading the Earth, and the world’s armed forces join hands to combat this incoming threat. Unfortunately, since their regular weapons don’t have any effect on the Neuroi, they call on the help of female magicians known as “Witches” to use special weapons attached to their legs called Striker Units.
The Witches are all named after real pilots and their Striker Weapons’ designs are based on real-life aircraft. Despite it being rather fanservice-y, the anime has visually striking action scenes and plenty of historical references to please history buffs.
2 Kantai Collection
MyAnimeList Score: 6.82
- Release Date: January 8, 2015
- Studio: Diomedéa
- No. of Episodes: 12
Kantai Collection is based on an incredibly popular free-to-play web browser game and features warships personified as anime girls. Strange beings known as the Abyssal Fleet have taken over the seas and the only ones capable of defeating them are the “Kanmusu” – girls who harbor the spirits of real-life Japanese warships from World War II.
Along with referencing real historical events, KanColle features a massive cast of anthropomorphically personified cast of warships, as one would expect from an adaptation of an online collectible card game. Despite some criticisms of historical revisionism, the anime is undoubtedly popular, gaining a large fanbase and spawning a barrage of memes.
3 The Ambition Of Oda Nobuna
MyAnimeList Score: 7.37
Ever wondered what the Sengoku period would look like if famous Japanese warlords like Oda Nobunaga and Date Masamune were cute anime girls? Regular high-school student Yoshiharu Sagara wakes up one day to find himself in the middle of a Sengoku-era battle, although it’s not the version he remembers.
After meeting Oda Nobunaga’s female counterpart, Oda Nobuna, he discovers he’s in an alternate history version of the Sengoku era, where every figurehead is female. Using his knowledge of the video game Nobunaga’s Ambition, he tries to help Nobuna achieve her ambition and save her from a terrible fate.
4 High School Fleet
MyAnimeList Score: 7.31
- Release Date: April 9, 2016
- Studio: Production IMS
- No. of Episodes: 12
Set in an alternate reality where Japan has been mostly submerged underwater, High School Fleet revolves around a group of high school girls who attend a school on a ship. Akeno Misaki and the other girls dream of becoming protectors of the seas known as Blue Mermaids.
Going aboard a destroyer ship known as the Harekaze, the students soon find themselves in a dangerous situation involving other naval vessels, leading them to be accused of mutiny. And so, Akeno and the other girls try to discover the truth about the mysteries they encounter in their quest to become Blue Mermaids.
5 Gunslinger Girl
MyAnimeList Score: 7.39
- Release Date: October 9, 2003
- Studio: Madhouse
- No. of Episodes: 13
Gunslinger Girl is set in Italy and is about an organization known as the Social Welfare Agency. While the Agency claims to be a charitable institution that helps physically injured young girls, the truth is that they’re a military organization that trains the girls to be assassins by implanting cybernetics into them.
The girls are paired with male handlers, and their extensive cybernetic enhancements and training eventually erase their memories and emotions. Gunslinger Girl is one of the more serious and darker “girls with guns” anime, in contrast to the lighthearted “iyashikei” themes of most military moe series.
6 Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha StrikerS
MyAnimeList Score: 7.63
- Release Date: April 1, 2007
- Studio: Seven Arcs
- No. of Episodes: 26
Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha StrikerS is the third season of the Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha series and is set ten years after the events of the second one. In contrast to the previous seasons, StrikerS heavily focuses on military and teamwork rather than high-school hijinks.
Nanoha, Fate, and Hayate are now adults working at the Time-Space Administration Bureau, an interdimensional military-like organization. Along with a few new magical girl recruits, they form the Riot Force 6 and tackle foes who are after dangerous magical objects known as Lost Logia.
7 Sound Of The Sky
MyAnimeList Score: 7.54
- Release Date: January 5, 2010
- Studio: A-1 Pictures
- No. of Episodes: 12
- Japanese Title: So Ra No Wo To
Sound of the Sky follows a young orphan girl named Kanata Sorami, who gets inspired to join the Helvetian army as a bugler after hearing a rendition of Amazing Grace on the bugle. She gets assigned to the 1121st Platoon in the town of Seize, where she meets other girls. Connecting with her new mates, she discovers the beauty of family and friendship.
Set in a post-apocalyptic, post-war world, Sound of the Sky is a more melancholy take on the military moe genre, with the series exploring everyday life and close bonds between the main characters, as they deal with remnants of their pasts.
8 Arpeggio Of Blue Steel: Ars Nova
MyAnimeList Score: 7.35
- Release Date: October 8, 2013
- Studio: SANZIGEN
- No. of Episodes: 12
- Japanese Title: Aoki Hagane no Arpeggio: Ars Nova
Arpeggio of Blue Steel is about a powerful naval fleet of warships called the “Fleet of Fog.” In the year 2039, most of the Earth’s land has been submerged underwater due to global warming, and the Fleet of Fog has obliterated the world’s naval forces. Each ship is represented by a human female avatar called a “Mental Model” and their job is to prevent humans from traversing the seas.
Seventeen years later, Gunzo Chihaya, a former student of the Japanese National Academy, discovers a submarine named I-401 and its Mental Model Iona, who has somehow gained sentience. Leading a small group of privateers known as the “Blue Steel,” Gunzo finally finds hope in combating the Fleet of Fog.
9 Girls und Panzer
MyAnimeList Score: 7.52
- Release Date: October 9, 2012
- Studio: Actas
- No. of Episodes: 12
Girls und Panzer is set in an alternate world where World War II tanks are used for a female-oriented sport known as Sensha-do. Coming from a family of Sensha-do practitioners, Miho Nishizumi transfers to Oarai Girls’ High School to escape from the sport, as the school had abolished Sensha-do.
Unfortunately for her, the school decides to revive the Sensha-do program and the student council pressures Miho to join, as she’s the only student with prior experience. To make matters worse, the school will shut down if they don’t win the upcoming championship. However, Miho falls in love with Sensha-do after taking charge of a squadron of tanks.
10 Girls’ Last Tour
MyAnimeList Score: 8.21
- Release Date: October 6, 2017
- Studio: White Fox
- No. of Episodes: 12
- Japanese Title: Shojo Shumatsu Ryoko
Like Sound of the Sky, Girls’ Last Tour is set in a post-apocalyptic world. Chito and Yuuri, the last two survivors of an apocalypse, explore the decaying landscape on a military vehicle called a Kettenkrad. They go about their daily lives hunting for food, supplies, and any other survivors.
The crushing solitude of being in a post-apocalyptic wasteland is alleviated by the two protagonists’ close bond with each other. They reminisce, have snowball fights, and find old technology among the ruins, all of which make the bleak city a little more bearable.
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