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Kylo Ren is one of the most popular and most hotly debated characters in the Star Wars saga. Kylo Ren follows in a rich literary tradition of Byronic heroes (and villains), including Wuthering Heights's Heathcliff and InuYasha's Sesshomaru. Byronic heroes are stern, sometimes unlikable romantic heroes.

There's a reason both Sesshomaru and Kylo Ren are the stars of so many epic fanfictions. Characters like Kylo Ren are popular in paranormal romance and dark fantasy anime. Sometimes, they're a villain with an arduous redemption arc, and other times, they're a surly anti-hero who ends up doing the right thing but not always for the right reasons.

Related: 10 Sci-Fi Anime That Are Just As Good As Star Wars (If Not Better)

Zagato (Magic Knight Rayearth)

Zagato is the main villain throughout the first arc of Magic Knight Rayearth. The main twist of the arc is that Zagato is driven by love. Princess...

Aesthetically distinctive and magnificently expressive, steampunk is a subgenre of retrofuturistic science fiction featuring a society reliant on steam-powered technology. The visual flare of steampunk takes inspiration from the 19th-century Industrial Revolution, often incorporating both the technological merits and the socio-economic struggles of the time in its themes. Steampunk worlds took a different historical route from other science fiction narratives, where the use of steam engines became absolute.

The genre combines the elegance of Victorian-era fashion with the gritty mechanical practicality of industrialism to craft a distinctive aesthetic fans across all mediums adore. In anime, steampunk has a unique importance as a setting for countless iconic sci-fi epics, fantasy universes, and alternative historical fiction. Existing beyond limitations, anime is uniquely suited to produce some of the best stories in the steampunk genre.

Related: 10 Best Anime With The Coolest Tech

Kabaneri Of The Iron Fortress

The events of Kabaneri of the...

In the animated short film "COLORs," one of five created for Toho Animation's 10th anniversary, a high school girl discovers that her classmate presents as a woman outside of school. She follows them around the city, from a coffee shop to a festival to a forest bursting with fall colors. When they announce one day that they are transferring elsewhere, the girl is overcome with sorrow.

She leaves her apartment to go find them, perhaps to tell them how she really feels. But then, out of nowhere, a warning siren rings. The city bursts into flames as a great sphere hangs in the sky. Soldiers engage the unseen enemy. Amidst the chaos, the girl finds her former classmate and embraces her. Her classmate kisses her on the forehead, and then joins the army.

Most of "COLORs" works beautifully. Illustrator Mai Yoneyama invests the heroine's classmate with larger-than-life glamor but...

The upcoming HBO Max streaming service will leverage AT&T’s sprawling brands to offer a little something for everyone when the platform launches May 27. That includes a handful of series for anime fans, thanks to the variety of Crunchyroll shows that will be on HBO Max at launch.

Seventeen anime titles that stream on Crunchyroll, a leading anime streamer owned by AT&T, will be made available on HBO Max at launch, with new anime series premiering every quarter. The series will be available in dubbed and subtitled versions and will include celebrated titles such as “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood,” “Re:zero – Starting Life in Another World,” and Crunchyroll original series “In/Spectre.”

“Anime is a celebrated, diverse art form with a rich culture rooted in imaginative worlds and vibrant characters. Crunchyroll has centralized these fantastic adventures for everyone to enjoy,” HBO Max chief content officer Kevin Reilly said in a statement. “This...

The battle against the Female Titan ended in bittersweet victory, but the struggle for humanity’s survival rages on. Eren Jaeger and the Scout Regiment are only just starting to unearth the mystery of the ferocious Titans when they are thrust into a terrifying battle once more. Facing horrifying new threats and colossal truths that will shake them to the core, does humanity stand a chance of survival when we don’t even know who to trust?

New life is breathed into the acclaimed kinetic animation of Wit Studio (“Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress”) in a theatrical director’s cut that showcases every twist and turn of Season Two in a bite-sized package perfect for anyone wishing to relive this new chapter, or experience it for the first time.

Anime Ltd is releasing the film in the UK on 21st February, 2018.

Warning: The trailer includes spoilers for season 2...