Best Action Manga of 2016

Tanjirou Kamado lives with his impoverished family on a remote mountain. As the oldest sibling, he took upon the responsibility of ensuring his family's livelihood after the death of his father. On a cold winter day, he goes down to the local village in order to sell some charcoal. As dusk falls, he is forced to spend the night in the house of a curious man who cautions him of strange creatures that roam the night: malevolent demons who crave human flesh. When he finally makes his way home, Tanjirou's worst nightmare comes true. His entire family has been brutally slaughtered with the sole exception of his sister Nezuko, who has turned into a flesh-eating demon. Engulfed in hatred and despair, Tanjirou desperately tries to stop Nezuko from attacking other people, setting out on a journey to avenge his family and find a way to turn his beloved sister back into a human.

In a world ravaged by ice and snow, civilization is on the brink of collapse thanks to the elusive Ice Witch. Fighting against the cold has brought out the worst in humanity, leading to cults, violence, and the persecution of the Blessed—those born with supernatural powers. Agni and Luna—blessed orphans with regenerative powers—are making the best of their situation within a small society of elders; their affection for each other serves as a distraction from the uninhabitable climate. Nevertheless, what little serenity they have is stolen away when army commander Doma passes through and incinerates the village they are seeking refuge in—Agni's beloved sister included. Doma's flames do not extinguish until they have reduced their target to ash, and due to Agni's remarkable regeneration, he remains ablaze and in constant, excruciating pain. After nearly a decade of enduring the pain, Agni has conditioned himself to tolerate Doma's flames. However, his burning vengeance is as fierce as it was on the day Luna was taken from him. As Agni traverses a frozen wasteland, he vows to avenge his sister and kill Doma.

Living in a superhuman society, it is hard to feel special. Even more so when the spotlight only shines on professional heroes, those legally authorized to use their special powers known as Quirks in public for the greater good. Kouichi Haimawari grew up aspiring to be a hero, but with a mediocre Quirk like "sliding" that ties him to the ground, he soon came to the conclusion that he could only ever admire them from below. Despite this, Kouichi finds contentment in using his Quirk to carry out day-to-day good deeds, such as returning lost items and helping the elderly cross the street. However, Kouichi's tame life takes a swing into the turbulent when he is rescued from a back alley brawl by Vigilante, or illegal hero, Knuckleduster. Seeing hero potential in Kouichi, Knuckleduster enlists his help in tracking down the source of a dangerous drug known as Trigger that boosts the user's Quirk at the expense of their rationality. Set in a time before the events of the original story, Vigilante: Boku no Hero Academia Illegals follows Kouichi as he chooses to don the reputation of a villain and become a Vigilante, operating in the shadow of the law to prevent crimes from taking to the surface.

What would an ultra-rational Japanese salaryman do if he was reborn as a girl in a world where magic was real? Obviously, become the Empire's most feared magic soldier, while climbing the army career ladder at the ripe old age of nine. The only things standing in Tanya Degurechaff's way are a world war and maybe a supernatural being or two. But Tanya isn't about to let artillery shells or deadly spells stop her when a cushy desk job is calling! (Source: Yen Press)

When dead animals mysteriously start appearing in a remote village, a specialist from Tokyo named Kohachi Inugami is brought in to identify the cause. Upon arriving, Inugami finds a young boy named Kabane working in the fields and quickly befriends him, eventually bringing him on to help solve the case. As the two get closer to the truth, Inugami's suspicion that Kabane is more than human begins to grow stronger and he decides to employ the boy at his detective office, dedicated to solving cases related to the supernatural.

In a fantasy world, there exist witches capable of curses nearly impossible to remove except by very few methods: receive a loving kiss from a prince, hope the wrathful witch has a change of heart, or attempt a third possibility. Guideau and Ashaf are an unusual duo working for the Order of Magical Resonance, an organization that deals with any case related to magic. Guideau, a young woman with the eyes of a beast and a knack for rushing into things head-on, has a deeply personal grudge against witches. Ashaf, a refined yet enigmatic man who carries a coffin on his back, keeps his partner in check with a calm manner and presence of mind. Together, they investigate magical mysteries and crimes, all while looking for the witch who cursed Guideau. The pair arrive in a city where they have heard a witch resides; however, much to their surprise, the people of the city consider the witch to be a hero protecting them. Both Guideau and Ashaf believe that only trouble follows a witch wherever she goes—but that remains to be seen here.Included one-shot: Volume 6: Majo no Kimagure (Witch and Whim)

A young priestess has formed her first adventuring party, but almost immediately they find themselves in distress. It's the Goblin Slayer who comes to their rescue—a man who's dedicated his life to the extermination of all goblins, by any means necessary. And when rumors of his feats begin to circulate, there's no telling who might come calling next...

Plaguing every corner, rumors of the deceased Wei Wuxian never end. Able to control the dead, Wei Wuxian left an epochal dent in the cultivation world, still both feared and revered 13 years later. But when he awakens in the body of a bullied young man who sacrificed his soul to take revenge on his cruel family, Wei Wuxian is faced with trouble once more. However, Wei Wuxian was a mischievous yet brilliant cultivator, and he is not one to be constrained. Using his dark skills, Wei Wuxian interrupts a ritual to capture a powerful cursed arm handled by Lan Sect—a prominent cultivation sect of Gusu, the home of his former acquaintance, the esteemed and poised Lan Wangji. Despite wishing to hide his past life, Wei Wuxian inevitably gets entangled in the sinister web of the ruling cultivation sects' deepest secrets. With Lan Wangji, he attempts to solve the mystery of the demonic arm, but it is soon apparent that they are only scratching the surface—and the truth may just hold the key to his once disgraceful downfall.

Link, a shepherd from Ordon Village, sees village children, including with his childhood friend Ilia, being kidnapped by monsters. He chases after them only to find his world covered in twilight. Thereupon Link suddenly transforms into a wolf and finds a mysterious character named Midna. His journey to bring back light into the world begins.

"O, Hero!" With that cliched line, Kazuya Souma found himself summoned to another world and his adventure—did not begin. After he presents his plan to strengthen the country economically and militarily, the king cedes the throne to him and Souma finds himself saddled with ruling the nation! What's more, he's betrothed to the king's daughter now...?! In order to get the country back on its feet, Souma calls the wise, the talented, and the gifted to his side. Five people gather before the newly crowned Souma. Just what are the many talents and abilities they possess...?! What path will his outlook as a realist take Souma and the people of his country down? A revolutionary transferred-to-another-world administrative fantasy series starts here!

Known as Hardcore Leveling Warrior, Ethan is the #1 player of the world's biggest game, Lucid Adventure. But when a mysterious player kills Ethan and forces his character back to level 1, he will do anything to get back on top. New friends and old foes, as well as mysterious forces and his own dark past, will follow him as he does his best to take back what was once his.

A world in which Korea is the global capital of combat sports. At Nam-Il High School where the best and most talented students of martial arts reside, Jiu Ji-Tae suddenly finds himself thrust into their midst despite being a total weakling. By neutralising his physical shortcomings through jiu-jitsu, can he rise to the top of the fight classes?

Kirito awakens in a vast, fantastical forest filled with towering trees. In his search for clues to the truth of his surroundings, he encounters a young boy who seems to know him. He ought to be a simple NPC, but the depth of his emotions seem no different than a human. As they search for the boy's parents, Kirito finds a peculiar memory returning to him. A memory from his own childhood, of this boy and a girl, too, with golden hair, and a name he should have never forgotten—Alice.

The hero of Tensei shitara Ken deshita differs from your standard otherworldly protagonist in that he is reincarnated as a sword! Beginning his quest by spawning in the middle of a beast-ridden forest, he encounters an injured girl frantically fleeing for her life. Saving her from her assailants, the pair acquaint themselves, and the girl introduces herself as Fran. She bears a heavy past, having endured the enslavement and maltreatment of her tribe, the Black Cats. As the hero is unable to remember the name from his past life, the young and tenacious Fran bestows him the name "Shishou" and becomes his wielder. Thereafter, Shishou and Fran become a formidable team, embarking on quests to liberate the oppressed and exact justice!

For some reason, Bard Roehn, an old knight, sets off on a carefree solo journey. What was supposed to be a laid-back trip to seek delicious food and savor the subtleties of life turns out to be the whirlpool of a gigantic conspiracy?! But it was the beginning of an adventure told around the world!

The U.A. High School Hero Course teaches young hopefuls everything they need to become heroes. Between killer events like the Sports Festival and internships, there's even Parents' Day! That's when all the kids get the chance to show their parents what they're made of!

The setting of Fate/Apocrypha is a parallel world to Fate/stay night where the Greater Grail was removed from Fuyuki after the Third Holy Grail War and disappeared for many years. Around the 2000s, around the same time as the Fifth Holy Grail War would have happened, the group that plundered the Grail, Yggdmillennia, openly declares their secession from the Mage's Association and that they are in possession of the Grail. The Association dispatches fifty magi to retrieve it, but all but one are instantly slaughtered by Lancer of Black. The one remaining manages to activate the reserve system of the Greater Grail, allowing for the summoning of fourteen Servants in total. This marks the start of the Great Holy Grail War in Trifas, featuring two different factions, the Black Faction, whose members are part of Yggdramillennia, and the Red Faction, whose members were sent by the Mage's Association with the exception of one from the Church. The Grail itself also summons Ruler to act as a mediator of the Holy Grail War.

Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization takes place in Sword Art: Origin, a restoration of Aincrad with intentions of research and development in the year 2026, three years after the original Sword Art Online event.

Granted powers by the Land of Magic, Magical Girls are protectors of the world. A strange invitation to a game called Magical Girl Raising Project was sent by an unknown person. Now, 16 magical girls are trapped in a game world and are forced to work together to survive. The objective is simple, and the tasks will be difficult. But in this survival game, not everything is as it seems…

As the world is in the middle of an industrial revolution, a monster appears that cannot be defeated unless its heart, which is protected by a layer of iron, is pierced. By infecting humans with its bite, the monster can create aggressive and undead creatures known as Kabane. On the island Hinomoto, located in the far east, people have built stations to shelter themselves from these creatures. People access the station, as well as transport wares between them, with the help of a locomotive running on steam, called Hayajiro. Ikoma, a boy who lives in the Aragane station and helps to build Hayajiro, creates his own weapon called Tsuranukizutsu in order to defeat the creatures. One day, as he waits for an opportunity to use his weapon, he meets a girl named Mumei, who is excused from the mandatory Kabane inspection. During the night, Ikoma meets Mumei again as he sees Hayajiro going out of control. The staff on the locomotive has turned into the creatures. The station, now under attack by Kabane, is the opportunity Ikoma has been looking for.

Kamishiro Kanna was summoned to another world to be a hero, but the one who summoned him was a scheming princess, and when his mana measurement showed 0, he was to be gotten rid of. Together with an half-elf kyonyuu silver haired bishoujo he met in the palace’s prison, they escaped on a dragon she summoned. The thing Kanna didn’t know was that 3 days after his escape from the palace, the princess did another summoning and summoned 3 high school students who happened to be his close friends.