20 Best Anime series like Kino's Journey (2003)

Scenery that we have never seen. Sounds that we have never heard. Scent that we have never smelled. Food that we have never tasted. And the surge of emotion that we have never experienced. This is the expedition of recollecting the pieces torn apart and sensation left alone. When we reach that place, what will we think? Howling, 40 degree angle. Raging, 50 degree angle. Shouting, 60 degree angle. A wilderness beyond the heavy sea. The furthest south, far from civilization. At the top of the Earth. We will find lights through the girls' eyes to live tomorrow.

During the events of the original Rozen Maiden, after circling "yes" on a paper and agreeing to wind an unknown "something," a traumatized Jun Sakurada fights alongside the lifelike dolls known as the Rozen Maidens. But what would have happened if Jun had circled "no"?Jun, having gotten over his school trauma from his younger days, spends his time attending college and working in a bookstore. However, he does not feel as though he belongs anywhere. One day, he finds a book containing instructions on how to make a Rozen Maiden. Mysteriously, when he arrives home that night, the second volume in the book series has been delivered to his house, along with some pieces of a doll. But as suddenly as they started arriving, the books stop coming, and Jun gets a notice that says that the books have ceased being published. With an incomplete doll in hand, and a message from his other self in another world, this Jun also finds his way into the world of the Rozen Maidens.

Four men are assigned to the prison: Jūgo, a man who attempted to break out of prison and ended up extending his jail time; Uno, a man who likes to gamble with women; Rock, a man who likes to get into fights; and Nico, a man who likes anime.

Gayus and the beautiful but cruel sword-wielder Gigina are "special equationists," individuals that manipulate the equations that govern world's laws thus allowing fantastic and deadly results. These two bounty hunters are caught up in a battle with dragons in the city of Eridana and in the intrigue of great nations.

Nature made Ash Lynx beautiful; nurture made him a cold ruthless killer. A runaway brought up as the adopted heir and sex toy of "Papa" Dino Golzine, Ash, now at the rebellious age of seventeen, forsakes the kingdom held out by the devil who raised him. But the hideous secret that drove Ash's older brother mad in Vietnam has suddenly fallen into Papa's insatiably ambitious hands—and it's exactly the wrong time for Eiji Okamura, a pure-hearted young photographer from Japan, to make Ash Lynx's acquaintance...(Source: Viz)

In some distant future, it's common knowledge that all wolves have been extinct for 200 years. However, it seems this is false as wolves have not disappeared but rather have taken human form. Kiba, a lone wolf, wanders into a city, trying to sniff out the Lunar Flowers that are supposed to lead whoever follows the scent to paradise. The source of the smell is Cheza, a girl who sleeps in what appears to be suspended animation in a lab. She and the wolves are drawn to each other, and Kiba hopes to find paradise once he finds the source of the scent of Lunar Flowers. However, once Kiba finds Cheza, she is kidnapped by a mysterious person called Darcia, and his search begins anew. Before he leaves the city, he meets 3 other wolves, Tsume, Hige and Toboe. All four wolves have very different personalities and ideas, and their friendliness towards each other is a little rough around the edges. However, they soon band together to continue to search for paradise.

Nadie is a bounty hunter targeting Ellis, a young amnesiac girl who is a suspect in the murder of a famous scientist. Nadie manages to apprehend Ellis, but on a whim, decides to help unlock Ellis's memories.

In the crime-ridden, mafia-governed city of Ergastulum, Worick and Nicolas are two "handymen" known as "Benriya" who would take any dirty job from either police or mafia -- for a good price. After an assignment from police the two met and later joined by Alex, a former prostitute who got interested in the mysterious background of the team, in particular of Nicolas' abilities.

Italy is in a deep depression, so to support her family, Marco's mother goes to Argentina to work as a domestic. But after she writes to her family that she is sick, her letters stop coming. So Marco decides to go to Argentina to look for her. He travels across Argentina to find her, meeting many wonderful people, and having many adventures during his journey.

Arslan is the heir apparent of Pars, a strong nation that sits at the hear of the trade route connecting the East and the West. When the pagan nation of Lusitania begins an invasion of Pars, the timid Arslan is confronted with battle for the first time. His worst anxieties are realized the Parsian army falls for a Lusitanian stratagem and are routed. He barely escapes with his life, thanks to the loyal and indomitable warrior Daryun. Together they will stand against the invasion and the cruelties of fate that are about to blow down on Pars.

High schooler Yūta Iridatsu has experienced “astral projection” i.e. his spirit has been separated from his body. He woke up in a mansion named Koraikan and met a cat spirit named Chiranosuke, who told him “You must find the Sacred Tome of Koraikan in order to return to your physical body.” While searching through corridors of Koraikan, Yūta bumped into underpants of its female residents, and doing so would, eh, create some big trouble for planet Earth.

Pacifica Casull is the most feared and hated person by the followers of the God Mauser. Known as the Scrapped Princess, she is the poison that will destroy the world. To avoid being killed by the zealots of Mauser, Pacifica and her adoptive brother and sister leave the village of Manhurin. Her brother, Shannon, is an expert with the sword while Racquel is proficient with magic. At every step of the way, however, someone is constantly trying to kill Pacifica, hoping to somehow avert the catastrophe that is supposed to befall the world on her 16th birthday.

In order to uncover the "end of the sky," as spoken of in ancient mythology, Kal-el Albus is sent to Isla, an island in the sky. There he attends Cadoques High's Aerial Division, where he enjoys a carefree life with his schoolmates. That is...until a surprise attack by the air tribe drags Isla into a bloody war.

In an elegant future Paris, a Count returns to wreak havoc on those that betrayed him.

One day, a city suddenly disappears. Takuya, a professional by-the-contract courier and lone wolf, meets Yuki, the only survivor from the city's extinction. The two rely on a message from Yuki's father, who was heard to be missing, and head toward the disappeared city, Lost. However, unexpected obstacles strike before the pair, with the reality especially shocking for Yuki. Before them are the feelings of those left behind, a mysterious group manipulating in the shadows, and unveiling the hidden conspiracy. Takuya and Yuki, who both were initially strangers, would deepen their bond during the journey and unravel the mystery of the Lost city.

Shu is a typical Japanese boy, but has an unbeatable, optimistic and determined attitude. However, when he sees a mysterious girl with strange eyes named Lala-Ru up on a smokestack, he is soon pulled into a strange desert world. Shu soon discovers the true terrors of war, which includes genocide, brutal torture, hunger, thirst, and child explotation. Now Shu is trying to save Lala-Ru, as well as his hard earned, and often relunctant, new friends from the insane dictator, Hamdo. Whether Shu can possibly accomplish saving those he cares about while still holding up to his values remains to be seen.

3 years after the ultimate life-or-death game with Teiai Group, Kaiji was entrapped by Teiai and again back in the underground, forced to do hard labour. One day, Kaiji wins a bet to get out of the underground with 1 million yen, and promises the other workers that he will save them. But to do so, he only has 14 days and needs 200 million yen! Kaiji meets his former rival Tonegawa and learns that there is a chance to turn the tables in the game. It was a monster casino machine that will make 1 billion yen if you win...

Cobra lived an adventurous life until his enemies began to hunt him down. He surgically altered his face and erased his own memory in order to hide from his foes and lead a normal life. Eventually, he regains his memories and re-unites with his old partner Lady Armaroid and his ship Tortuga. Cobra travels the galaxy, fighting the outlaw Pirate Guild, but also fleeing the law-enforcing Milky Way Patrol.

Ōban Star-Racers is a French/Japanese anime created by Savin Yeatman-Eiffel of Sav! The World Productions. Originally produced as a short movie titled Molly Star Racer, a television series was developed in cooperation with Jetix Europe, with animation production by HAL Film Maker and Pumpkin 3D. It aired in more than 100 countries including Japan. In the US the series aired on ABC Family and Jetix/Toon Disney between June and December 2006.

The Vision of Escaflowne is a 26-episode Japanese anime television series produced by Sunrise Studios and directed by Kazuki Akane. It premiered in Japan on April 2, 1996 on TV Tokyo, with the final episode airing on September 24, 1996. Sony's anime satellite channel, Animax also aired the series, both in Japan and on its various worldwide networks, including Hong Kong, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, and South Asia. The series is licensed for Region 1 release by Bandai Entertainment.The series follows a teenage high school girl named Hitomi, who finds herself pulled from Earth to the planet Gaea when a boy named Van appears on the high school track while battling a dragon. In Gaea, she is caught in the middle of a war as the Zaibach Empire attempts to take over Gaea. Van, with aid from Allen, commands his mystical mech Escaflowne in the struggle to stop the Zaibach Empire. Hitomi's fortune telling powers blossom in Gaea as she becomes the key to awakening Escaflowne and to stopping Zaibach's plans.While the anime series was in production, two very different manga retellings were also developed and released: a shōnen version of the story entitled The Vision of Escaflowne and a shōjo retelling titled Hitomi—The Vision of Escaflowne. In addition, a second shōjo adaptation called Escaflowne—Energist's Memories was released as a single volume in 1997. The story was novelized in a series of six light novels by Yumiko Tsukamoto, Hajime Yatate, and Shoji Kawamori. A movie adaptation, Escaflowne: The Movie was released on June 24, 2000, but bears only a basic resemblance to the original series. Four CD soundtracks and a drama CD have also been released in relation to the series.

Four assassins, members of a group called Weiß, work out of a flower shop called Kitty in the House.

In the 2030s Earth has been overrun by the Blue, which are mutated insect-like creatures that kill and harvest humans for food. Most of the surviving human race has moved to Second Earth, a huge spaceship that orbits the planet. Yuji and Marlene must work together to reach Second Earth and fight against the Blue.

Claymore is a dark fantasy manga series written and illustrated by Norihiro Yagi. The series initially premiered in the now defunct Monthly Shōnen Jump in the May 2001 issue. When the magazine was canceled in June 2007, the series was temporarily moved to Weekly Shōnen Jump where it was still published monthly. When Jump Square was introduced in November 2007, the series was moved to it. The individual chapters are published in tankōbon volumes by Shueisha, with 23 volumes released as of December 2012. Madhouse adapted the first eleven volumes of the series into a twenty-six episode anime series. Directed by Hiroyuki Tanaka the series premiered in Japan on NTV on April 3, 2007 and ran until September 25, 2007. A CD soundtrack for the anime series, and a CD of character songs using the anime voice actresses were released on July 25, 2007 and September 27, 2007, respectively. The Claymore manga is licensed for an English language release in North America by Viz Media. It released the first volume of the series on April 4, 2006 and has released 21 volumes as of November 6, 2012. The anime adaptation is licensed for release in North America by Funimation Entertainment, which has released the first DVD for the series in Fall 2008 and released the entire series on Blu-ray in Spring 2010. Madman Entertainment has licensed the anime for release in Australia and New Zealand and the anime is sub-licenced by Manga Entertainment for UK distribution.

In a world where memories exist in memory chips separate from the body, death of the body no longer means death of the soul. It is possible for memories to be viewed, altered, and transferred between bodies. These memory chips are used by the rich to obtain eternal lives in carefully selected bodies, while for the poor, selling their own bodies and conserving their souls in the chips often become the only way to earn a living. An electrolytic cloud in the sky serves as a barrier between the heavens of the fortunate and the underworld of the destitute, making this social division impregnable.One day, a man named Kaiba wakes up in an empty room with no memories, a mysterious hole in his chest, and a locket holding the picture of an unknown woman. After escaping an attack and stumbling upon a decrepit village of underworld residents, he begins his adventure across the different planets of this strange universe to find out more about his own identity and the woman he once knew.