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Top Ten Swords in Anime
- Randy Zilinski
- Mar 26, 2016
- 8 min read
Out of all the weapons in history, one of the most appreciated, and in anime, exaggurated, is the sword. Although vastly outclassed in current military weapons, the sword is still romanticised in pretty much all fantasies from Dungeons and Dragons to Sword Art Online. In this article, I will cover what I feel to be the top ten swords in anime based on design and abilities and not the wielder. As important as the wielder is, a swordsman can make even the palest of the swords look and perform amazingly, and I'd like to focus on the swords themselves.
10. Sakabatō Kageuchi (Rurouni Kenshin)
Starting off with one of the most vicious, yet kind samurai around, we cover Kenshin Himura's reverse-blade sword, the Sakabatō. During a new piece that the Meiji Era would bring, Kenshin wielded this sword, forged to honor this new time, and end his days as a man-slayer, and help fulfill the promise to never take a human life again. Though the sword is not ornate and does not have a unique design, the fact that the blade was on the inner curve was intriguing enough for many of us fans of the show to adore it. Despite being a shadow of the true version of the sword, the Sakabatō served Kenshin for ten years with it's superior quality and durability.
9. Mugen's Double-Edged Tsurugi (Samurai Champloo)
Although it is number nine on my list, Mugen's Double-Edged Tsurugi is high on my list of swords I want a replica of on my wall. It's unusual spin on the katana is very appealing to the eye with its two prongs on the hilt. The blade appears as an amalgamation of the Okinawan sai, and the a Japanese katana. Combined with Mugen's abstract fighting style, the Double-Edged Tsurugi is a great partner helping parry attacks and carry out sweeping strikes that enemies never expect coming.
8. Yoru (One Piece)
To be honest, my thoughts on the design of this sword are split in half. On one hand, I love the long black blade and the ornate gems, and on the other, that crossguard is one of the dumbest things I have ever seen. Nonetheless, I cannot deny that mixed with Mihawk's abilities, Yoru itself has great power, with the ability to slice through an entire pirate ship with one strike. Yoru's sharpness is unparalleled, with the ability to send a slashing attack of compressed air that can reach an extremely long distance, with great accuracy, capable of slashing a large iceberg from afar. Though I think the crossguard looks goofy, I sure would never want to see someone with this sword charging at me. Being one of the strongest blades in the world, it is known as one of the twelve Saijo O Wazamono, a group of highly rated swords for their superb quality.
7. Ragnarok (Soul Eater)
Let's get this out of the way, Ragnarok is one of the wackiest swords that will be on this list, perhaps because it used to be a weapon in the Soul Eater universe, which is a human that can change into a weapon form. Not only that, but Ragnarok has a wild sense of humor, picking on it's user Chrona. Ragnarok, although able to be weilded as a weapon by Chrona, is physically merged with his blood, and thus in it's anthropomorphic form, Ragnorok stretches out from his back and over his head. As part of Chrona's black blood, Ragnarok can control it and bend it with his wavelength. Chrona's blood can be bent into spikes from droplets and even harden to protect Chrona. Ragnarok's strength even becomes wilder when he devours souls, resulting in increased strength and different transformations, including wings. When Ragnarok has eaten many souls, Chrona's blood transforms into "Mad Blood", which allows Crona to flood entire cities with black blood, and even drive people insane when they come in contact with his own blood. The abilities of this weapon are pretty otherworldly, but they are great in their own right, earning the number nine spot on this list.
6. Nozarashi (Bleach)
This is an example of where simplicity can be so coooool. Kenpachi's sword from bleach starts off with no name, and though it looks like a dinged up crappy old sword, he viciously cuts down anyone before him with ease. Before Kenpachi even knew the name of his sword, the Soul Society assumed that his sword was constantly "released" into it's stronger form, founding on the belief that Kenpachi's overwhelming Reiatsu (Aura/Power) was forcing it into it's released form. Now, this sword would never make it on this list based on its own abilities without release, and thus we move on to its second form. Once released, Nozarashi takes on the form of a giant cleaver/axe hybrid with a wrapped handle and an ornate tassel attached on top. In this form, Nozarashi has huge attack power, and can easily DESTROY A METEORITE HURLING TO EARTH with a SINGLE ATTACK. Oh wait, there's more, sure, it's huge and it can cut through pretty much anything, but tons of swords in anime can do that. When I said anything, I meant it, this sword has been revealed to be able to cut through SPACE ITSELF. Could you imagine fighting against a sword like that? "Well, I'd love to worry about getting cut in half, but no! I have to worry about getting sent to another dimension! This sword needs no more explanation of why it's badassery has earned its place on this list.
5. Scissor Blade (Kill la Kill)
Probably the most popular weapon from this year, the scissor blade's design is sleek and appealing, apparent by all the replica's made by the countless prop fabricators. There are two versions of this blade, and I'll be covering the more popular one (such filthy scum I am). The red half of the scissor blade is known as Decapitation mode, which has the ability to destroy a "Goku Uniform", allowing Ryuko to absorb it's Life Fibers. Although Ryuko has a metal guitar case in which she can carry it around in, the Red Scissor Blade has a nifty ability to change it's size to as about the size of normal scissors. Honestly, the design of this blade carries it's weight on this list, the abilities of the blade are very reliant on the wielder, and thus, I could not put it higher on the list based on it's amazing design alone.
4. Sword of the Dragonslayer (Berserk)
Alright, let's get down to business. The Sword of the Dragonslayer is the epitome of giant ridiculous swords, noted sometimes just as "a heap of raw iron". The sword is so large, it needs to crossguard, the blade itself functions as one instead, with a single chain in which Guts loops right over his shoulder and lets the sword hang right off his back. Now, I don't want to be some kind of giant main-character fanboy, but I challenge anyone to say this guy isn't a cool cat. I'll be there right when you say it to his face and get your face sliced off. Guts is constantly using this sword against Apostles and evil spirits, and such the Dragonslayer simultaneously exists in not only the physical realm but the astral realm, watch out Ghost-Buster's you got a challenger for most awesome ghost hunter.
3. Kubikiribōchō (Naruto)
One of the most iconic anime swords, especially over here in the U.S. is a sword that most only know as "Zabuza's sword" from Naruto. Kubikiribōchō (translated to Decapitating Cleaver) is a large sword, similar to that of The Sword of the Dragonslayer that was previously mentioned, except for the fact that it 's much wider, and it sports a semi-circular cut out near the handle that can be used to fit the sword's namesake and decapitate enemies who stand before it. Now it would be unfair to put this higher on the list than The Dragonslayer based on this design alone, but the Kubikiribōchō has a unique ability in that it can reform itself by harvesting it from the blood of its victims, no matter how severe the damage is to the blade, whether it's a chip, or nearly half the blade being separated. As a fan of the design of this sword, I can say it was one inspiration for me to start building props, and it was one of the first that I finished and felt completely proud of. The following is a photo of my cosplay wielding the sword (good job to the slender man photobomb I haven't noticed til now!)
2. Tessaiga (Inuyasha)
Packed with nostalgia, the Tessaiga is a sword known to anime fans all around as "the sword that could". Starting off as a dinky chipped sword that couldn't cut a blade of grass, the Tessaiga is a sword that has grown to overcome the odds and do exactly what it needed to do when the time came. The Tessaiga is one of two sister-swords, in which it was called "the sword of destructions" whereas the sister sword Tensaiga was "the sword of life". Made from the fang of his father, Inuyasha wields the sword and follows it as though it had a mind of its own, leading him to care for humans and grow alongside it. As the sword is used to defeat strong yōkai, it can absorb techniques and skills from it and thus it's power can grow indefinitely. With the abilities it has absorbed, the Tessaiga has transformed many times, resulting in it being able to destroy magical barriers and destroying hundreds of demons with one slash. Now, the sword from there seems to be amazing, but it's final ability pushes it over the edge and pushes it's badassery to 11. This last technique, known as the Meidō Zangetsuha allowed the user to SEND THEIR ENEMY TO HELL. Inuyasha at the end of the anime was able to wield divine judgement, and send his enemies to hell, it's a bit much, but something could be said about a half-demon paladin.
1. Kuwabara's Spirit Sword (Yu Yu Hakusho)
Nostalgia seems like a theme in this series, and although I'd love to break from the mold, Kuwabara's Spirit Sword mesmerized me as a child. Think about it, nothing could be cooler than a lightsaber, except for maybe a saber that it purely light in itself. Kuwabara's Spirit Sword it so versatile, it needs no scabbard, and can be called on at any time given he has enough spirit energy. Much like a lightsaber, it can be used for defense by deflecting projectiles and avoid a direct collision. Versatility is the strength of this sword, as the size and shape can be derived by Kuwabara based on his spirit power and needs. Not only can this sword be used to slash enemies normally, the spirit sword could be bent mentally to change the direction if Kuwabara were fighting enemies too nimble for him. Though maybe not the most powerful of the swords on this list, it's abilities and the sheer amazement you get from imagining it in your hands earns it the top spot on this list.
Like this top 10? Feel like your favorite sword was left out? Tell me what you think and what top 10 lists you'd like me to cover next! If you like what you've read here, please share it with your friends, and feel free to subscribe to one of our social medias which we keep a steady flow of content for you to read each week!
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