If you’re sitting there wondering if there is life after Dragonball Z, Naruto, Bleach and One Piece, then look no further. This half of 2016 has had some great new releases in the ever-growing world of anime. Here are just a few that aren’t even six episodes in yet, so there’s plenty of time to catch up and watch weekly:

1. "Drifters"

Badasses from throughout history are plucked from our world and dropped into another, where they are recruited by the forces of good or evil and thrown into battle against one another to save, or destroy the world.

Instead of historical badasses, the show decides to call them ‘Drifters’. We follow Shimazu Toyohisa, the 16th-century samurai of the Shimazu clan, in the Battle of Sekigahara where he famously died keeping the enemy at bay whilst his troops retreated. From there he is swiped away into another dimension and winds up with Oda Nobunaga and Nasu no Yoichi. The trio tumble into a battle bigger than they’ve ever known and fight beside such figures as Julius Caesar, Joan of Arc and Anastasia Romanova.

With incredibly animated fight scenes that see samurais and WWII fighters slicing people in half and shooting holes in dragons, Drifters is a fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat watch. It has something a little extra for those who know the historical figures in the show. Watching Julius Caesar shouting at magicians in Japanese and then ride away on a horse with a cowboy and a samurai isn’t something you see every day. And after all the gore, it is, of course, an anime, so those silly moments in between the action are all still there.

2. "Shuumatsu no Izetta: Izetta, the Last Witch"

In an alternate historical universe, World War II is in full swing and Germania are about to crush the small country Elystadt, when the captured Princess of Elystadt unlocks the powers of Izetta, the last witch.

Because broomsticks are old-fashioned and kind of lame for a witch in the current fashion climate, Izetta rides a gigantic gun that she can charge up with her magic to fire tank-destroying bolts one after another. She joins forces with the Princess, her childhood friend, and they vow to destroy the Germanian army and save Elystadt once and for all.

The plot of this show runs on political subterfuge seen from both sides of the war and battle between the ground troops, meaning every aspect of the war is known to the viewer and how each of the components affects each other. While the show obviously steers away from being a more serious war-genre type by using an anti-aircraft witch, the historical accuracy of the weaponry and technology used in the 1940s is on point.

3. "Trickster"

Yoshio Kobayashi wants to die, but he is invincible. He spends his time wandering around a futuristic Tokyo trying every suicidal method imaginable. Then, Kensuke Kobayashi finds him and pressures him to join the Boys’ Detective Club. Yoshio finally accepts under Kensuke’s promise to find a way to kill him.

The Boys’ Detective Club is an organisation led by Kogoro Akechi and formed predominantly of schoolboys. However, there is one girl, Makoto Noro, whose presence exists through a remote-controlled owl while she stays in her ivory tower playing video games and researching enemy intel. They are a privately hired organisation that people go to when they don’t want the police involved. They can deal with anything from missing persons cases to getting cats out of trees.

The anime has scope for both an overarching enemy and episodic plots. The colourful art, playful use of not-too-futuristic technology and supernatural elements make it engaging and fun to watch. You never know what piece of kit Kensuke’s going to whip out next to knock out a security guard or scale a skyscraper. I'm up to episode 5, the latest episode, and still the most mystifying question has not been answered: how is hiring schoolboys to bust crime legal and who thought it was a good idea? With so much to find out, I can't wait for the next episode.