Strike the Blood

Kojou Akatsuki's days as an ordinary high school student in the Demon District of Itogami Island come to an abrupt end after a fateful encounter leaves him with the remarkable abilities of a vampire.

It isn't long before he is thrust into the center of attention when it is discovered that he is the fourth primogenitor, an immensely powerful vampire whom most consider to be merely a legend. Fearing Kojou's destructive potential, the Lion King Organization sends in an apprentice sword-shaman, Yukina Himeragi, to monitor, and should he become a threat, kill the boy deemed the world's most powerful vampire. Forced together by circumstance, the two form an unlikely alliance as Kojou comes to terms with his abilities and they both struggle to protect the city from various emerging chaotic forces.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Himeragi, Yukina Main

Taneda, Risa Japanese

Akatsuki, Kojou Main

Hosoya, Yoshimasa Japanese

Aiba, Asagi Supporting

Seto, Asami Japanese

Rihavein, La Folia Supporting

Oonishi, Saori Japanese

Kirasaka, Sayaka Supporting

Hayama, Ikumi Japanese

Minamiya, Natsuki Supporting

Kanemoto, Hisako Japanese

Kanase, Kanon Supporting

Itou, Kanae Japanese

Astarte Supporting

Iguchi, Yuka Japanese

Akatsuki, Nagisa Supporting

Hidaka, Rina Japanese

Yaze, Motoki Supporting

Oosaka, Ryouta Japanese

Kananiwa, Kozue Producer

Nakayama, Nobuhiro Producer

Yamazaki, Fumiki Producer

Fukuda, Jun Producer

Reviews

Jan 30, 2026

bam541

Recommended

As far as "a regular dude gets superpowers way beyond his league, attracts a lot of girls, and hijinks ensue" stories go, honestly this anime is probably one of the few actually good ones. It's more about drama than action scenes, and it understands how to build up payoffs and twist the story in fun ways. Most of the cast are likeable enough, although I wish some of the more prominent side characters are given time to show their depth. The main relationship dynamic of Kojou and Yukina is sweet as heck, and the other harem participants had their moments too. The action scenes were ... usually lacking in screen time and actual choreography, but other than that the anime consistently looks good. Hats off to the character artists, they never dropped the ball in drawing the waifus, and considering how horny this anime can get, it's not something I'll take for granted, haha.

I see this anime as a comfort watch above all else. The story never really tackles heavy topics, and at most it will use something edgy for a very short period of time. It leans closer to a power fantasy fulfillment sort of thing rather than something super serious that demands your utmost critical thought. But it achieves its goal in a mostly tasteful way, with a desire to entertain rather than just cynically checking all the boxes of what its target audience would want from it. And like I mentioned before, it does a good job of being dramatic without being too far-fetched or annoying, for the most part.

There's some stuff in the last 2 arcs that rubbed me the wrong way, especially the last arc which has 2 of my least liked story tropes (using time travel to spoil future events and making characters misunderstand each other by dumbing them down). The last arc are the only episodes that I didn't like and it definitely put a bad taste in my mouth, but I can't deny how much fun I had watching the anime overall.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Jul 24, 2025

colelouch

Mixed Feelings

If someone ever asked me to name the most mid anime of all time, the textbook definition of a 5/10, especially from the 2010s, I’d immediately point to Strike the Blood. It was a series that drew a decent amount of attention during my early days of watching seasonal anime, and for some reason, it just kept getting new seasons every few years. Naturally, I started to wonder: Does Strike the Blood actually have some hidden brilliance or a cult following that justifies its longevity?

The premise itself is serviceable with vampires, ecchi elements, and supernatural factions, and it initially showed potential. Compared to other ecchi ... series of the time, like High School DxD or Infinite Stratos, its fanservice is relatively tame. Yes, it objectifies women, but not as aggressively. The vampire setup gave me Tsukihime vibes, but overall, the tone and structure felt closer to the Toaru series, with Koujou being a Touma-type protagonist.

The first few arcs genuinely piqued my interest; there seemed to be some effort in world-building, hints of global power struggles, and supernatural politics. But all that supposed depth ends up being just background noise. We’re told about various factions battling behind the scenes, but we never actually see any meaningful payoff. These mentions usually just serve as a setup to introduce new characters from exotic places. The story then slips into a very passive, formulaic rhythm with Koujou and his group hanging around on the island until the next crisis lands on their doorstep.

The structure of the anime is rigidly arc-based, with each one lasting about three to four episodes, resembling bite-sized shounen arcs. And this is where the show’s identity becomes clear: everything is just “fine.” The pacing is okay, not too rushed like many modern anime, but not sluggish either. Each arc plays out exactly the same: new threat appears, a new female character joins the group, Koujou gains a new ability, there’s some superficial inner conflict (usually about identity, power, or emotions), and then the group resolves a supposedly world-threatening crisis with minimal tension. This all ends with Himeragi’s now-iconic line, “No senpai, this is our fight,” followed by some fan service, something that has become a meme in the fandom.

It genuinely feels like both the author and production team were self-aware about how formulaic the series had become and simply leaned into it. There’s no sense of progression or cohesion between arcs, as one moment they’re fighting robot terrorists, the next it’s witches and monsters, but everything follows the same mold. And of course, every character loves Koujou. Even the male ones seem charmed by him. Koujou himself reflects the show’s overall tone: he’s not bland enough to be a total self-insert, but he’s still painfully average. He’s strong, but not ridiculously overpowered, and gains new powers at a steady, predictable pace.

Strike the Blood is the ultimate anime for when you want to watch something, but don’t want to be challenged, surprised, or emotionally stirred. Each arc is just a variation of the same template, with different enemies and support characters. It’s the definition of simulacra: You consume it, but you gain nothing from it. And yet, somehow, that makes it stand out. Like its animation, solid overall, occasionally messy, occasionally nice. It gives you a sense of watching something, without ever demanding much from you.

In the end, Strike the Blood is the embodiment of “mid.” Not quite average, not terrible, just okay. Utterly indifferent, and that, oddly enough, is what makes it memorable. A perfect, textbook 5/10.

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

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Jan 27, 2022

Jaws491

Not Recommended

This show is actually fun to watch, but I have to admit that it is a bad guilty pleasure. This is primarily a harem anime with an obvious best girl winner and power fantasy. A different woman's blood typically unlocks another powerful ability of our MC as he tries to overcome life on an island where billions of dollars of damages in incurred on the daily. The sidekick is just as absurd, crying over our immortal MC getting killed even when she knows he's immortal or her blood could fix whatever plot is preventing him from coming back to life. And she has this stupid ... catch-phrase that she blurts before every big fight which got old very fast.

In Strike the Blood, it is as straightforward as it gets. The battles are cool and our MC is a nice guy Chad. He doesn't even have to try to get women to fall for him and want his offspring. Seriously, some of the characters literally propose it. I already know that this show is trashy and stupid, but it is still somehow entertaining and funny. Each new power unlocked is unique and the characters are all surprisingly decently written (besides the whole harem shenanigans). This is pretty much the Index series with an even worse plot. But even after all this just like with Index, I'm still watching it. I'm still going to get through every season because I need to see our MC unlock all of his powers and romance every woman in the world. I need to see him become a god. I need to see him BEAT GOD, which I could honestly see happening in the last season. Well, I'll find out soon enough.

Reviewer’s Rating: 3

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	Poll: Strike the Blood Episode 8 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) Stark700 - Nov 22, 2013	161 replies	by Dreadogastus_F »» Mar 5, 12:38 PM
	Poll: Strike the Blood Episode 6 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Nov 8, 2013	134 replies	by Dreadogastus_F »» Mar 1, 7:56 PM
	Poll: Strike the Blood Episode 4 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) Stark700 - Oct 25, 2013	173 replies	by Dreadogastus_F »» Mar 1, 6:22 PM
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