Best 80s anime
Anime from 1980 to 1989, series and films. Ranked by community score among titles with a real audience, so a perfect score from ten votes does not make the list. Each series counts once, by its first season. A good place to find the classics later shows keep referencing.
Number one right now: Legend of the Galactic Heroes.
- 1
Legend of the Galactic Heroes
Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu
OVA · 1988 · 110 ep
4.4 / 5
For decades, the Galactic Empire has been locked in an interstellar war with the Free Planets Alliance, a conflict that involves thousands of spaceships and millions of soldiers on both sides. Two new commanders enter the conflict with…
- 2
Grave of the Fireflies
Hotaru no Haka
Movie · 1988 · 1 ep
4.2 / 5
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…
- 3
My Neighbor Totoro
Tonari no Totoro
Movie · 1988 · 1 ep
4.0 / 5
Follow the adventures of Satsuki and her four-year-old sister Mei when they move into a new home in the countryside. To their delight they discover that their new neighbor is a mysterious forest spirit called Totoro who can be seen only…
- 4
Kiki's Delivery Service
Majo no Takkyuubin
Movie · 1989 · 1 ep
4.0 / 5
Kiki is an enterprising young girl who must follow tradition to become a full-fledged witch. Venturing out with only her chatty black cat, Jiji, Kiki flies off for the adventure of a lifetime. Landing in a far-off city, she sets up a…
- 5
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
Kaze no Tani no Nausicaä
Movie · 1984 · 1 ep
4.0 / 5
A thousand years after a global war, a seaside kingdom known as the Valley Of The Wind remains one of only a few areas still populated. Led by the courageous Princess Nausicaä, the people of the Valley are engaged in a constant…
- 6
Castle in the Sky
Tenkuu no Shiro Laputa
Movie · 1986 · 1 ep
4.0 / 5
This high-flying adventure begins when Pazu, an engineer's apprentice, finds a young girl, Sheeta, floating down from the sky wearing a glowing pendant. Together they discover both are searching for a legendary floating castle, Laputa, and…
- 7
Akira
Movie · 1988 · 1 ep
4.0 / 5
It's the year 2019, thirty-one years have passed since the start of World War III. A top-secret child with amazing powers of the mind breaks free from custody and accidentally gets a motorcycle gang involved in the project. This incident…
- 8
Dragon Ball
TV · 1986 · 153 ep
3.9 / 5
Goku Son is a young boy who lives in the woods all alone—that is until a girl named Bulma runs into him in her search for a set of magical objects called the "Dragon Balls." Since the artifacts are said to grant one wish to whoever…
- 9
Maison Ikkoku
TV · 1986 · 96 ep
3.9 / 5
Maison Ikkoku is a romantic comedy series created by Rumiko Takahashi. The story centers around the development of the relationship between Kyoko Otonashi and Yusaku Godai. Kyoko is a recent widow who moves into the apartment house…
- 10
Touch
TV · 1985 · 101 ep
3.9 / 5
The story centers around three characters - Uesugi Kazuya, his twin older brother Tatsuya, and Asakura Minami. Kazuya is the darling of his town as he's talented, hardworking, and the ace pitcher for his middle school baseball team…
Numbers 11 to 36
3.9Gunbuster
OVA · 1988 · 6 ep
GunbusterTop wo Nerae! GunbusterOVA · 1988 · 6 ep3.9In the very near future, a race of huge, insect like aliens is discovered traveling the galaxy. These aliens seem dedicated to the eradication of the human species as it takes its first steps away from the solar system, and they are…
3.9Macross: Do You Remember Love?
Movie · 1984 · 1 ep
Macross: Do You Remember Love?Movie · 1984 · 1 ep3.9A.D. 2009 - The human race is in the middle of a three-way war with a race of giant humanoid aliens called the Zentraedi (male) and Meltrandi (female). After executing a space fold that sent it and part of South Atalia Island to the edge…
3.8Angel's Egg
OVA · 1985 · 1 ep
Angel's EggTenshi no TamagoOVA · 1985 · 1 ep3.8In a desolate and dark world full of shadows, lives one little girl who seems to do nothing but collect water in jars and protect a large egg she carries everywhere. A mysterious man enters her life... and they discuss the world around…
Fist of the North Star
TV · 1984 · 109 ep
Fist of the North StarHokuto no KenTV · 1984 · 109 ep3.8Nuclear war has devastated the planet, turning one fertile ground into a barren, inhospitable landscape on which mankind struggles desperately to stay alive. Society has collapsed and a fight for control wages between vicious dictators…
3.8City Hunter
TV · 1987 · 51 ep
City HunterTV · 1987 · 51 ep3.8Ryo Saeba works the streets of Tokyo as the City Hunter. He's a "sweeper" and with his sidekick Kaori Makimura, he keeps the city clean. People hire the City Hunter to solve their dangerous problems, which he does with a Colt Python. When…
3.8Legend of the Galactic Heroes: My Conquest Is the Sea of Stars
Movie · 1988 · 1 ep
Legend of the Galactic Heroes: My Conquest Is the Sea of StarsGinga Eiyuu Densetsu: Waga Yuku wa Hoshi no TaikaiMovie · 1988 · 1 ep3.8This movie, based on an anecdote of "Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu" written by novelist Tanaka Yoshiki, preludes the 110-episodes TV series by describing the first encounter between the ambitious young man Reinhard von Museal under the imperial…
3.8Patlabor the Mobile Police
TV · 1989 · 47 ep
Patlabor the Mobile PoliceKidou Keisatsu Patlabor: On TelevisionTV · 1989 · 47 ep3.8In the future, advanced robotics has created heavy robots ("labors") for use in a variety of functions: construction, fire-fighting, military, and more. However, though the robots are only machines, their operators are also only human…
3.8Armored Trooper Votoms
TV · 1983 · 52 ep
Armored Trooper VotomsSoukou Kihei VotomsTV · 1983 · 52 ep3.8A century of bloodshed between warring star systems has plunged nearly 200 worlds into the flames of war. Now, an uneasy truce has settled across the Astragius Galaxy... Chirico Cuvie, a special forces powered-armor pilot is suddenly…
3.8Ranma ½
TV · 1989 · 18 ep
Ranma ½Ranma 1/2TV · 1989 · 18 ep3.8After taking a surprise dip in a cursed spring while on a training journey in China, martial artist Ranma Saotome and his father, Genma, aren't quite themselves anymore. Now Ranma turns into a girl whenever he's splashed with cold water…
3.8Macross
TV · 1982 · 36 ep
MacrossTV · 1982 · 36 ep3.8In 1999, a giant alien spacecraft crash lands on South Ataria island. Humanity proceeds to attempt to rebuild this marvel, but political conflicts centered around the Macross result in a global war. After 10 years, the Unification Wars are…
3.8The Mysterious Cities of Gold
TV · 1982 · 39 ep
The Mysterious Cities of GoldTaiyou no Ko EstebanTV · 1982 · 39 ep3.81532. Esteban (12) is a foundling from Barcelona, with a mysterious power of ordering the Sun to appear, for which he is called "Child of the Sun". Upon the death of his adoptive father, Esteban learns he was rescued as a baby from a…
3.8Shounan Bakusouzoku
OVA · 1986 · 12 ep
Shounan BakusouzokuOVA · 1986 · 12 ep3.8In Japan, the country that inspired the slogan "Born to be Mild," the blood of young men still runs hot. In the old days they'd go off into the country and hack each other up with swords, but these days, what with school, that isn't very…
3.7Urusei Yatsura
TV · 1981 · 195 ep
Urusei YatsuraTV · 1981 · 195 ep3.7It all begins when aliens invade and threaten to conquer the Earth! However, one member of the human race is chosen at random to duel the aliens and save the planet: Ataru Moroboshi, a lecherous slacker from Tomobiki High School who…
3.7Barefoot Gen
Movie · 1983 · 1 ep
Barefoot GenHadashi no GenMovie · 1983 · 1 ep3.7It'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…
3.7Space Adventure Cobra
TV · 1982 · 31 ep
Space Adventure CobraSpace CobraTV · 1982 · 31 ep3.7Seeking reprieve from a painfully ordinary 9-to-5 existence, mild-mannered office worker Johnson visits the TM corporation, a company that sells virtual dreams. In Johnson's dream adventure, he's the notorious space pirate Cobra!…
3.7A Little Princess Sara
TV · 1985 · 46 ep
A Little Princess SaraPrincess SaraTV · 1985 · 46 ep3.7Sara, a pretty girl born into a rich British family in India, is treated like a little princess at a dormitory school in London. Sara’s sweet school life turns to tragedy when she learns of her father’s death and the family’s bankruptcy…
Ginga Nagareboshi Gin
TV · 1986 · 21 ep
Ginga Nagareboshi GinTV · 1986 · 21 ep3.7Born in the bitter cold of the Ouu Mountains as the son of Riki, the mightiest bear-hunting dog, is the magnificent tiger-striped puppy, Gin! To defeat the murderous Akakabuto—who seeks to build a stronghold deep in the mountains of Ou…
3.6Saint Seiya: Knights of the Zodiac
TV · 1986 · 114 ep
Saint Seiya: Knights of the ZodiacSaint SeiyaTV · 1986 · 114 ep3.6Ages ago, the goddess Athena was served by fighters called Saints who channeled the power of the Cosmos within them. Now a youth named Seiya has trained to become a Saint himself by earning the mystical Cloth of Pegasus. He is joined by…
3.6Night on the Galactic Railroad
Movie · 1985 · 1 ep
Night on the Galactic RailroadGinga Tetsudou no YoruMovie · 1985 · 1 ep3.6What is true happiness? For Giovanni, the answer is as far away as the stars. Mired in hardship, the young kitten faces problems that should be unknown to someone his age. At school, his classmates mock and ridicule him, and after the bell…
3.6Space Runaway Ideon
TV · 1980 · 39 ep
Space Runaway IdeonDensetsu Kyojin IdeonTV · 1980 · 39 ep3.6From the continuing reclamation of the ruins of the planet Solo, mysterious mechas are excavated. But suddenly, an alien called Buff Clan attacks seeking the limitless energy “Ide.” The earthlings are backed into a corner, when the three…
3.6Gosenzo-sama Banbanzai!
OVA · 1989 · 6 ep
Gosenzo-sama Banbanzai!OVA · 1989 · 6 ep3.6The Yomota family is small and typical: father Kinekuni (42), mother Tamiko (38), and son Inumaru (17). One day, a beautiful girl appears at their front door, calling herself "Maroko Yomota," granddaughter of Inumaru who travels back in…
3.6Captain Harlock: Arcadia of my Youth
Movie · 1982 · 1 ep
Captain Harlock: Arcadia of my YouthWaga Seishun no ArcadiaMovie · 1982 · 1 ep3.6Earth has been conquered by the evil Illumidus Empire, with parallels drawn to the U.S. post World War II occupation of Japan. Captain Harlock with a group that will become his life long friends begin their fight against this tyranny…
3.6Taiyou no Kiba Dougram
TV · 1981 · 75 ep
Taiyou no Kiba DougramTV · 1981 · 75 ep3.6The story is centered around a small group of guerilla freedom fighters on a colonial planet named Deloyer, who are known as the "Deloyer 7", or "Sun Fang" team. In an unexpected coup, the elected Governor of Deloyer becomes dictator and…
3.6Blue Gale Xabungle
TV · 1982 · 50 ep
Blue Gale XabungleSentou Mecha XabungleTV · 1982 · 50 ep3.6Jiron Amos seeks revenge against the outlaw who killed his parents, but in a world where crimes are forgiven if they’re not brought to justice within three days, there’s only one thing he can do: steal the mecha Xabungle. (Source: Hidive)
3.6Mobile Police Patlabor
OVA · 1988 · 7 ep
Mobile Police PatlaborKidou Keisatsu PatlaborOVA · 1988 · 7 ep3.6In the future, rapidly advancing technology gives birth to giant robots known as "Labors," so named for their usefulness in heavy industry. However, this also gives rise to "Labor crimes," resulting the need for a new branch of law…
Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honnêamise
Movie · 1987 · 1 ep
Royal Space Force: The Wings of HonnêamiseOuritsu Uchuugun: Honneamise no TsubasaMovie · 1987 · 1 ep3.6"I will not give up. I will realize my dream...even if it means death!" When cadet Shiro Lhadatt signs up with the Royal Space Force, he encounters ridicule and apathy from manipulative leaders and a cynical public. But a chance encounter…