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Ufotable is a well-known Japanese animation studio responsible for some of the best-produced and clever anime series of the last decade, like Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, God Eater, and the Fate/stay franchise. Recently, the company has been under fire after reports of the company’s tax evasion schemes were revealed to the public, but that shouldn’t diminish the impact of the art that came out of such a unique animation studio.
Never heard of Ufotable before this article? Many of their series are under 30 episodes, so you can take a break from Naruto or One Piece while you finish one of them in a weekend of binging. A great place to start would be with the top ten best anime produced by the company, according to their IMDb scores of course.
Updated on July 20, 2021 by Daniel Kurland: Ufotable isn’t one of the biggest studios to come out of Japan, but every year they become more of a formidable presence in the industry. Ufotable is responsible for some highly influential content that may seem overwhelming to newcomers. A great place to start would be with the top anime produced by the company, according to their IMDb scores.
15 Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! Looks For Light In The Darkness (6.1)
Known also by Manabi Straight, this show takes place in 2035, where the world’s birth rate has decreased. Schools are spiritless, deprived of the vibrancy that existed when children populated the halls. The main character, Manami Amamiya, joins the student council, and although her enthusiasm can be exhausting, she remains focused on uplifting everyone around her by creating the best student festival the school has ever seen.
It’s definitely not a plot to be taken seriously despite the dark future that it presents, and it’s hard to believe that these characters are well into their teenage years. At its core, Manabi Straight is a story about finding your passion, your agency, and changing your environment rather than allowing your environment to change you.
14 Futakoi Alternative Is The Perfect Mix Of Mystery & Romance (6.2)
Futakoi Alternative is a compelling Ufotable series since it refuses to define itself to just one genre of anime. The 13-episode series focuses on Rentaro Futaba, who runs a respectable detective agency. Futaba’s simple life experiences major changes when two precocious twins, Sara and Soju, show up at his agency and insert themselves as his new secretaries.
Futakoi Alternative gets into its share of mysteries, but more often than not it functions as a highly affable romantic comedy. The interactions between Futaba, Sara, and Soju are consistently entertaining and the anime slowly develops a more serious side as it continues.
13 Coyote Ragtime Show Details A Deadly Galactic Adventure For Treasure (6.5)
Contrary to what its name suggests, Coyote Ragtime Show is complex science fiction with intense adventure and heist elements. Franca, the heir to the prolific deceased Pirate King, has a weak to claim her multi-billion dollar inheritance from a highly-guarded vault before the planet that it’s on gets destroyed.
Franca assembles an unlikely team to help her retrieve her loot, yet they’re met with even more unconventional android assassins and space pirates who are just as hungry to steal Franca’s wealth. Coyote Ragtime Show covers a lot of ground in 12 episodes and benefits from its clearly defined premise.
12 Katsugeki/Touken Ranbu Is The Very Best Kind Of Trippy Time Travel Madness (6.5)
Katsugeki/Touken Ranbu, based on a browser videogame by the name of Touken Ranbu, answers the question that many anime fans have pondered, especially after watching the first few episodes of Soul Eater: What if swords came to life? What would they say? Who would they want to kill? How would they look?
After sages animate the weapons of legendary warriors, these swordsmen must travel back in time in order to prevent an army of villains from perverting their timeline. Fans of the game will appreciate being able to play as some of their favorite characters, but don’t expect to see anything revolutionary in this series that hasn’t been done across similar titles.
11 Tales Of Zestiria the X Is An Enlightening Look Into A Magical Universe (6.9)
Yet another anime based on a popular video game, Tales of Zestiria the X takes place in a dying world in need of redemption after legendary beings that control the elements called Seraphim and the men and women that control them, called Shepherds, have disappeared. Sorey, a newfound Shepherd; his childhood friend, Mikleo (who happens to be a Seraph); and Alisha Dipha, a princess who stumbles upon the two after getting lost in a stone labyrinth; seek to restore the world back to a place where Seraphim and humans can coexist as they did in the past.
Though it isn’t the most original story, Tales of Zestiria the X is one that features stunning magical spells and interesting battles that are enough to get audiences invested in this fantastical world.
10 Dokkoida?! Is A Free-Spirited Deconstruction Of Superheroes (7.0)
While this list contains mostly serious tales featuring characters who risk their very lives to save their worlds from an apocalyptic force, Dokkoida?! feels like Ninja Nonsense and Power Rangers had a baby, playing off of common superhero tropes through an absurdist comedic lens. It follows the story of Suzuo Sakurazaki, a country boy who struggles to find a job until he is approached by Tanpopo, a teenage space alien who works for the Galaxy Federation Police, an organization that wants to test out its new prototype mechanical power suits.
After putting on a transformation belt, Suzuo becomes the hero Dokkoida, and must defeat the villains that have been hired to test the limits of his power suit. The catch is that all of the heroes and villains hired by the Galaxy Federation Police are forced to live under one roof, and they lose their jobs if their identities are revealed. Dokkoida‘s humor is so over the top that it deserves a spot so high on this list.
9 God Eater Creates A Stunning War Between Man & Monster (7.0)
It’s almost become a trend that so many of Ufotable’s most highly received anime series also happen to be based on video games, but that only shows how great the studio is at following source material. God Eater is another one of those video game adaptations, taking place in an apocalyptic future where the planet is ruled by monsters of pure destruction known as Aragami, and the only people who can destroy them are soldiers called “God Eaters.”
While this anime isn’t groundbreaking, it is reminiscent of the popular show Attack on Titan, with a main character who lost his family to the Aragami and now has his sights set on growing stronger so that he can avenge their deaths. Overall, it’s a well-animated series, and with the constant string of games throughout this decade, the growing fandom is stronger than ever.
8 Ninja Nonsense Adds An Undeniable Sense Of Humor To Hokage Antics (7.2)
Naruto signified just how much attention people would pay to ninjas once they got their own platform to truly demonstrate what they were capable of. Ninja Nonsense is a show that managed to flip all of those established tropes on its head. Based on Ryoichi Koga’s manga, Ninja Nonsense follows Shinobu, a ninja-in-training who is as innocent as she is clueless, and her escapades with her newfound friend Kaede, her younger sister Miyabi, and her perverted ball of a teacher Onsokumaru.
This light-hearted series is short enough that it can be enjoyed in only a few days. With its peculiar cast of characters, and humor that’s mature enough to be enjoyed by most audiences, fans who are aware of how skilled ninjas should be will find this series hysterical.
7 Tales of Symphonia The Animation: Sylvarant Chapter Ties Together Two Worlds (7.3)
There’s a symbiotic relationship between anime and video games, but the lines have become increasingly blurred when anime series or OVA efforts bring certain chapters of popular video game series to life. Ufotable is responsible for the Tales of Symphonia: The Animation OVA installments, and it’s the four-chapter Sylvarant Chapter that makes the biggest impression.
The crux of the anime involves two corresponding worlds that are inexorably tied together through prosperity and destruction. It’s quite engaging to watch Colette Brunel and her party set out to repair her world, but also the domino effect of loss that this effectively triggers.
6 Today’s Menu For The Emiya Family Brings Slice Of Life Antics To Fate/Stay Night (7.4)
Anime franchises can have unexpected branching narratives set in alternate realities that almost feel like fan fiction. Today’s Menu for the Emiya Family is a 13-episode ONA series from Ufotable that focuses on characters from the Fate/stay night series, but under radically more cheerful circumstances.
Today’s Menu for the Emiya Family turns these warriors into unassuming allies that are more focused on the mundanity of life and how to improve their culinary skills. It’s the perfect change of pace for those that are fans of the serious fantasy anime, but hunger for the characters to have a happy ending.
5 Knight Hunters Eternal Chronicles A Fight For Power In A Broken World (7.7)
Also known by the name WeiB Kreuz Gluhen (literally translated to mean “White Cross Glow” in German), Knight Hunters Eternity is the third entry in the Knight Hunters franchise. In a world of nonstop terrorist attacks somehow related to a mass of student suicides at the prestigious Koua Academy, a team of assassins work to uncover the evil that permeates the school’s exclusive chain of command.
It won’t affect the audience’s understanding of the story if viewers haven’t seen the preceding series. Knight Hunters Eternal remains a well-paced, dramatic anime that’s equal parts dark and gritty, and may have you rethink sending your kids to that fancy private school across the street.
4 Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works Sets An Incredible Competition Into Motion (8.0)
Based off of a visual novel that goes by the name, Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works, is an anime that follows Rin Tosaka, a competitor in a tournament known as the “Holy Grail War” in which she and six others must fight to the death against one another with a summoned “Servant.”
The prize for such a dangerous tournament is the Holy Grail itself, a wish-granting chalice. Not only is the animation beautiful, but the battles are explosive. There’s even an alternate ending that fans can enjoy, just like in the visual novel.
3 Fate/Zero Tells A Fascinating Story About Power Dynamics & Potential (8.3)
While Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works takes place during the Fifth Holy Grail War, Fate/Zero takes place during the Fourth Holy Grail War. It follows the experiences of one of its competitors, Kiritsugu Emiya, a man with an affinity for guns and modern technology as opposed to casting spells.
The characters are extremely well-written, and it’s always interesting to see how the Servants and Masters interact with one another. The animation is flawless, giving fans a spectacle with every battle. One fight in particular during the series’ 24th episode was praised for being so well-paced and choreographed.
2 Demon Slayer The Movie: Mugen Train Contains Some Of Ufotable’s Best Work (8.4)
It’s common practice for popular anime series to turn out corresponding feature films. Rather than recap events from the anime, Demon Slayer: The Movie: Mugen Train continues its story with a claustrophobic demon battle that’s set on board a locomotive. Mugen Train doesn’t just have a tight narrative, but the animation is utterly breathtaking.
Demon Slayer: The Movie: Mugen Train has even earned the prestigious title of the most profitable anime film of all time. Mugen Train proves that Ufotable can compete in the film industry and it’s unlikely that this will be the final Demon Slayer cinematic offering.
1 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba Is A Thrilling Action Anime For The Ages (8.9)
There should be no question as to why this series is the highest-rated of Ufotable’s anime series. The entire series is a stunning work of art that tracks a young boy’s quest to turn his sister from a demon back to a human after a demon attack deprived him of his family. It’s a gruesome, unforgiving anime, with a main character who isn’t just on a hellbound quest for revenge like many Shonen protagonists.
Instead, Tanjiro Kamado is a kind soul who often feels sympathy for the very demons that he is destined to kill. In what other anime would you see a pig-headed Demon Slayer in action? With season two on the way, Demon Slayer is set to hit even greater heights.
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