Anime that have a female main character that is strong. This can include: strong willed, an intellectual, physically strong, magically adept or a mix of those traits. Most of the time they are portrayed as mature and respectful.
These traits makes the character(s) heads above the average female portrayal in the anime medium.
For this list, the character[s} are:
-- Strong (of course)
and
-- A Woman (adult female / mature for their age teen)
and
-- A Main Character
or
-- Not main but appears often in the anime (not a one episode cameo character)
Please let me know if there are others out there that I have yet to have the pleasure of viewing, or left out by accident.
Thanks!
Suggested by GreyStoneFlinger
Black Rock Shooter (TV)
Futari wa Precure
Otherside Picnic
Show by Rock
Belle
Princess Connect Re:Dive
Urahara
MORE.....
Golden Kamuy
TV, 2006,
39 eps
Me:-
Author:10
Shuurei Kou
An intelligent women who puts knowledge before romance.
TV, 2007,
26 eps
Me:-
Author:10
Balsa Yonsa
Female Body guard with a spear and quick wits.
TV, 2006,
47 eps
Me:-
Author:10
Nana Osaki
Brash and focused on her music.
TV, 2008,
25 eps
Me:-
Author:8
Kyouko Mogami
Revenge sometimes helps you recreate yourself into a stronger you.
TV, 2014,
24 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Akame, Mine, Leone, etc.
Most all the females portrayed are physically strong, some are a bit mentally unstable though.
TV, 2014,
24 eps
Me:-
Author:9
Yona
Doesn't start off strong, she slowly develops strength as the story progresses.
TV, 2002,
45 eps
Me:-
Author:-
Youko Nakajima
TBA
ONA, 2020,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Tao Yao
Strong willed demon doctor.
TV, 2012,
22 eps
Me:-
Author:8
Akane Tsunemori
Grows stronger as the story progresses
TV, 2004,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Rushuna Tendou
Gun totting seeker of justice
TV, 2004,
13 eps
Me:-
Author:9
Kumiko Yamaguchi
Female yakuza heir that teaches a high school class full of delinquents.
TV, 2017,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Gems all have different strengths
TV, 2005,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:-
TBA
TV, 2006,
11 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Hiroko Matsukata
female journalist with a "Working Man" mode.
Movie, 1997,
1 ep
Me:-
Author:10
San & Eboshi Gozen
One is a fighter the other is a strategist of sorts. Both are strong in their own right.
TV, 2008,
25 eps
Me:-
Author:9
Kotoko Aihara
The most stubborn, single minded female in a romcom, ever!
TV, 2010,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Ryouko Ookami
Female bouncer type.
TV, 2013,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Hajime Ichinose
Unorthodox and unpredictable mental fortitude.
Movie, 2015,
1 ep
Me:-
Author:7
Puts succeeding at her craft above romance in an age where women were not recognized for artistic being creators on the same level as a man
TV, 2000,
167 eps
Me:-
Author:10
Sango
Skilled with her weapon and her sharp tongue.
TV, 2007,
24 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Juliet Fiammata Asto Capulet
Cross dresses and acts as a vigilante
TV, 2006,
24 eps
Me:-
Author:10
Saber
A female version of king arthur, magical knight
OVA, 2001,
3 eps
Me:-
Author:8
Yomiko Readman
Book smart and quick witted with her special paper manipulation.
TV, 2019,
14 eps
Me:-
Author:10
Myne
"Book" smart and magically strong, she is driven to accomplish what she sets out to do.
TV, 2021,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:9
Sei Takanashi
A woman who learns how to live in an isekai world, making potions and learning magic.
TV, 2011,
60 eps
Me:-
Author:8
Aoi Kunieda
Leader of the "strongest ladies of Kantou"
TV, 2008,
13 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Ryoko Yakushiji
"a 27-year-old multilingual investigator that graduated from Tokyo University's elite Department of Law"
TV, 2019,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:8
Tilarna Exedilika
Sword wielding other-worldly magical being with a bit of a chip on her shoulder.
ONA, 2018,
16 eps
Me:-
Author:6
Yun Xi Qian
Head strong and versed in martial arts and 'taoist magic'
TV, 2003,
27 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Maki Aikawa
Female street fighter
TV, 2015,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:8
Hotaru Tachibana
"Hotaru is the Student Council President, and is known for her brute strength, good reflexes and a strong sense of Justice."
TV, 2007,
26 eps
Me:-
Author:-
All women portrayed are sword wielding warriors.
TV, 2022,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:9
Yor Forger, an assassin by trade in one of the worlds worst economical times.
TV, 2018,
13 eps
Me:-
Author:8
Violet Evergarden, is a highly skilled military combatant at such a young age, and has nerves of steel.
TV, 2012,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:-
TBA
TV, 2019,
24 eps
Me:-
Author:9
Maki Oze - muscle bound with nerves of steel.
ONA, 2018,
26 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Wu Xiao , Zhuqing Zhu , etc
This is the start of a series showcasing many strong individuals, the women are no exception!
TV, 2006,
24 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Yuuko Ichihara
"YΕ«ko is very powerful when it comes to magic and knowledge and is highly respected within the spirit realm."
TV, 2007,
500 eps
Me:-
Author:-
Kaguya Ootsutsuki, Tsunade, etc
Ninjas, enough said
TV, 2004,
26 eps
Me:-
Author:-
Madlax
military mercenary
TV, 2022,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:6
Chateau Dankworth
Bounty Hunter
TV, 1996,
47 eps
Me:-
Author:-
Natsumi Tsujimoto and Miyuki Kobayakawa
Superhuman strength and a technical genius
TV, 2015,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:8
Shino Kuribayashi
military women
TV, 2012,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:6
The story of Oda Nobunaga, except there are female versions for each historical figure in that era.
TV, 2010,
24 eps
Me:-
Author:6
Ferris Eris, Kiefer Knolles
sword fighter, magic user
TV, 2023,
24 eps
Me:-
Author:10
Almost all the women depicted have a strength in one sense of the word or another.
TV, 2025,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Takao Ameku
Genius intellegence doctor, head strong to a fault
TV, 2024,
12 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Doctor, head strong
TV, 2022,
13 eps
Me:-
Author:8
Jusetsu Ryuu
Headstrong, sole survivor of her clan, endures painful rituals to maintain her status
TV, 2025,
13 eps
Me:-
Author:7
Scarlet El Vandimion - Nicknames in the anime include: "Ice Rose" (due to her cold beauty) and "Mad Dog Princess" (for her past violent nature). Other titles include "Bloodstained Princess," "Saintess of Chronos," and "Hellfire Bride," That about sums it up!
