Series like Attack On Titan keep gaining widespread popularity owing not only to their extraordinary plot and characters, but also to having some of the best animation in anime. With their success, it's apparent that the quality of animation and pleasant graphics are crucial factors in bringing an anime to the top. There are plenty of anime with beautiful animation that get lost in the shuffle, but others become model series with the right blend of plot, character development, and animation.

With entries from both categories, the anime with the best animation all have agreeable and visually appealing animation that is both clever and beautiful.

Styles, target demographics, and genre can vary highly, but the one thing every one of these series shares is a beautiful animation style that absolutely makes the series.

25 Aldnoah Zero's Muddled Story is Saved By Incredible Animation

Original Anime Series By A-1 Pictures

Aldnoah Zero received mixed reactions from audiences for its story, but it did not lose any points in the animation. The plot is full of action sequences interwoven with science and technology. As A-1 Studio's first try at a mecha anime, the studio performed an incredible job with the plot execution. Depicting a civil war between Earth and a technologically advanced Mars, it combines 2D animation with attractive CGI robot models for the battles.

Aldnoah Zero's mecha battles are executed to a high standard, and the CGI is smooth. The aesthetics establish the fact that the scene is futuristic/alternative. The sci-fi themes are prominent, with beautiful details such as the mecha in use. The Martians' lost technology has distinct mecha designs, such as the six-armed Kataphract Hellas, making the animation thoughtful.

24 Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Anime Uses Film-Quality Animation

Animated by Studio Bind & Based on the Novels by Rifujin na Magonote

Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation represents some of the most controversial popular anime storytelling and is one of the most beloved ongoing isekai series. However, it's also an undeniably strong and well-structured tale of its protagonist, Rudeus Greyrat, as he redeems himself in his new life as a young yet brilliant mage in a strange fantasy world. But an understated yet crucial part of the anime's success is its excellent, film-like animation.

Studio Bind uses this to its fullest extent when rendering combat, sure. Still, Rudy's more isolated scenes are loaded with nuance, convincing body language, and characters who react to the world around them. In a series that lingers so much on its main character's previous agoraphobic tendencies due to previous trauma, it takes an excellent studio to put true meaning behind waking up, and taking a step.

23 Yuri!!! On ICE Captures the Motion of Ice Skating Beautifully

Original Anime Series By Studio MAPPA

One of the best anime directed by a woman, Yuri!!! on ICE focuses on reality and inventiveness. Because this is a sports anime, the sophisticated skate choreography and routines take up a lot of screen time. The animations of human body movements are highly intense. As a skater enters a rink and performs in Yuri!!! on ICE, the camera angles work smartly to record every move. The characters are well-animated with details even when they are not on the skating rink.

The series also employs various lighting techniques, relying heavily on contrasting cool and warm color palettes to convey the mood of a scene. Yuri!!! on ICE is a series created with love and attention, as evidenced by the detailed capture of a hand trembling, the gentle shine on metals, and the faint pink tinge of lips in action.

22 Plastic Memories Revels in a Bright & Colorful Future

Original Anime Series By Studio Doga Kobo

Plastic Memories maintains consistent and high-quality animation throughout its brief 13 episodes. The series has an experimental air because it takes its plot in a sci-fi direction, and is set in a utopia-like atmosphere. The environments in Plastic Memories are bright and use a wide range of color palettes, similar to a watercolor painting. The style portrays the sci-fi feel perfectly and successfully blends with the show's theme and characters.

Character designs are reminiscent of those seen in the Evangelion series, and the facial expressions look extremely human without being uncanny. The series exhibits credible artwork and concepts behind animation with future buildings, machines, and the Giftias.

21 Dragon Quest: The Adventure Of Dai Captures Everything Great About Modern Toei Animation

Anime Series By Toei Animation; Based On The Manga By Riku Sanjo & Koji Inada

Toei Animation has spent the past few years improving its work on all fronts, and sure enough, Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai is one of Toei Animation's best-looking anime thanks to its great artwork and incredible animation from start to finish. It was a perfect adaptation of the classic manga, and it's one of the best showings of how good Toei Animation can be when it counts.

20 The Elusive Samurai's Animation Is an Oldschool Masterclass

Animated by CloverWorks & Based on the Manga by Yusei Matsui

Shonen Jump readers could immediately tell a glorious vision was at stake for the future anime adaptation of The Elusive Samurai, and news of its adaptation by CloverWorks and the involvement of Yusei Koumoto, among others, was a great sign. The series instills joy and unstoppable fluidity in motion itself, with Tokiyuki Hojo's ability to escape harm rendered in unflinching, nailbiting detail. Despite being surrounded by legions of foes, he's able to dodge every otherwise fatal blow, but yet, this is only the top of the iceberg.

Some of the other great qualities about The Elusive Samurai's animation is how well it works with an older, late 1990s-early 2000s visual aesthetic, minus the dated grainy look to create an experience best viewed on the biggest screens available. The series' animation styles vary strongly depending on the scene, including a 3D introduction sequence, moody scenes rendering its characters as if they're in a stage play, and integrating original manga s. The Elusive Samurai unites the manga with the best visuals of classic anime, with the opportunity to shine as bright as Suwa Yorishige's aura.

19 Hyouka Uses Animation to Make Dreams Reality

Animated By Kyoto Animation & Based on the Novel By Honobu Yonezawa

Hyouka is an extremely visually appealing anime series by Kyoto Animation. It follows the Kamiyama High School Classic Literature Club having fun solving mysteries and ing the time in their mundane lives. The dominant lighting, heavily stylized and startlingly abstract events, and monologues set the mood and ambiance. It transports viewers to a fantastical world far removed from reality.

The wordplay illustrated in Oreki's imagination has a distinct visual element, with the layers of each enigma mapped out carefully to the audience. Some scenes have a dreamy air, and this contrast between the mundane and the abstract makes Hyouka a unique experience.

18 Oshi no Ko's Animation Elevates the Manga to New Heights

Animated by Studio Doga Kobo & Based on the Manga by Aka Akasaka and Mengo Yokoyari

Few anime captivate their viewers in such multifaceted fashion as well as Oshi no Ko, in how the animation is far from the only draw. This series stands as Aqua Hoshino's investigation of the murder of his mother, who was his favorite idol and a patient in his previous life as a doctor. The powerful, emotional delivery of episode #1 shows a heartbreaking animated sequence few anime can match. Yet, the series shows careful animation of everything from idol dances, to YouTube fitness videos, TV performances, and more.

Yet, the anime continues to reveal impressive tricks up its sleeve, thanks to the visionary duo of Aka Akasaka and Mengo Yokoyari. This shows itself in season 2's 2.5D Stage Play Arc, where characters metaphorically transform into their onstage roles so strongly that the visual aura they cast is that of their character, assuming another identity entirely. Other elegant moments include the menacing crow-infested imagery within Aqua's starry eye as he plots vengeance against the orchestrator of his mother's murder and the wonderfully neurotic moments with Kana Arima.

17 Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works Features Fates' Greatest Animation

Animated By Ufotable & Based on the Visual Novel By Type-Moon

The premise of Unlimited Blade Works is generic as a battle royale for the holy grail, but the animation is the greatest of the Fate/Stay Night series. Unlimited Blade Works' animation aesthetic is extravagant, from the scenery to the character designs to the jaw-dropping action scenes. Cities in motion, sweeping bridge panoramas, crowded parks, and gloomy cemeteries are just a few examples of the anime's stunning artwork.

With quick movement and excellent camera angles, the action is well-coordinated. The conflicts between the master and servants are well-choreographed and well-detailed. Characters move naturally, and features like water reflections, intricate hair movements, and 3D opponents add to the animation that has made Ufotable studio popular.

16 Attack On Titan's Distinctive Art Direction Makes it Visually Stunning

Animated By Wit Studio & MAPPA, Based on the Manga By Hajime Isayama

Attack on Titan features one of the most captivating survival stories ever, paired with magnificent characters, music, and of course beautiful animation. For people new to anime, it can serve as one of the best anime for beginners to get an enthralling taste of the incredible things the medium is capable of. Attack on Titan's art is incredible, and it leaves spectators in awe of how far animation has progressed.

Many were startled by the 3D maneuver gear action, which quickly became a highlight of the show's distinct animation. Soldiers bolt off of buildings and into the air above them, breaking free from traditional ground battle and entering the world of high-flying intensity. Characters are extensively drawn in varied thicknesses of black to make them stick out from the background, which is the animation's characteristic aesthetic.