NoBadPicks

Anime Like Blue Thunder

If you loved Blue Thunder's Action & Adventure and Crime storytelling, these anime deliver a similar experience — selected for art style, narrative depth, and emotional impact. Each includes where to stream it now.

Top Picks

The Flash
7.4

The Flash

1990

When a bolt of lightning crashes through a police crime lab, a mix of electrically charged substances bathes chemist Barry Allen, transforming him into the fastest man alive--The Flash.

Land of the Giants
6.7

Land of the Giants

1968

Set fifteen years in the then-future year 1983, the series tells the tale of the crew and passengers of a sub-orbital transport ship named Spindrift. In the pilot episode, the Spindrift is en route from Los Angeles to London, on an ultra-fast sub-orbital flight. Just beyond Earth's boundary with space, the Spindrift encounters a magnetic space storm, and is dragged through a space warp to a mysterious planet where everything is twelve times larger than on Earth, whose inhabitants the Earthlings nickname "the Giants". The Spindrift crash-lands, and the damage renders it inoperable.

The Time Tunnel
7.6

The Time Tunnel

1966

The Time Tunnel is a 1966–1967 U.S. color science fiction TV series, written around a theme of time travel adventure. The show was creator-producer Irwin Allen's third science fiction television series, released by 20th Century Fox and broadcast on ABC. The show ran for one season of 30 episodes. Reruns are viewable on cable and by internet streaming. A pilot for a new series was produced in 2002, although it was not picked up.

Street Hawk
6.9

Street Hawk

1985

Street Hawk is an American television series that aired for 13 episodes on ABC in 1985. The series is a Limekiln and Templar Production in association with Universal Television. Its central characters were created by Paul M. Belous and Robert "Bob" Wolterstorff, and its core format was developed by Bruce Lansbury, who had initially commissioned the program's creation. This series was originally planned for the fall of 1984, Mondays at 8:00PM Eastern/7:00PM Central. However, ABC executives changed their minds when the summer series Call to Glory did well, and Street Hawk was pushed to mid-season. Street Hawk made its debut on January 4, 1985 on ABC at 9:00PM Eastern/8:00PM Central and ran until May 16, 1985. Reruns aired on the USA Network on Saturdays at 10:00AM from 1990-91.

Automan
7.8

Automan

1983

Automan is an American science fiction superhero television series produced by Glen A. Larson. It aired for only 12 episodes on ABC between 1983 and 1984.

The Wild Wild West
7.6

The Wild Wild West

1965

The Wild Wild West is an American television series. Developed at a time when the television western was losing ground to the spy genre, this show was conceived by its creator, Michael Garrison, as "James Bond on horseback." Set during the administration of President Ulysses Grant, the series followed Secret Service agents James West and Artemus Gordon as they solved crimes, protected the President, and foiled the plans of megalomaniacal villains to take over all or part of the United States. The show also featured a number of fantasy elements, such as the technologically advanced devices used by the agents and their adversaries. The combination of the Victorian era time-frame and the use of Verne-esque style technology have inspired some to give the show credit for the origins of the steam punk subculture.

Marvel's Runaways
7.3

Marvel's Runaways

2017

Every teenager thinks their parents are evil. What if you found out they actually were? Six diverse teenagers who can barely stand each other must unite against a common foe – their parents.

The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
6.5

The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles

1992

At the dawn of the 20th century, Indiana Jones discovered the world. From globetrotting family expeditions as a 9-year-old to the battlefields of World War I as a teenager, Indy’s experiences shaped the heroic, whip-cracking archaeologist he would become. At every turn, Indy encounters history in the making, meeting true-life activists, soldiers, writers, artists, and thinkers who helped influence the world we live in today.

More Anime Like Blue Thunder

Time Bandits
6.2

Time Bandits

2024

Eleven-year-old Kevin's passion for history is put to the test when he joins a ragtag group of time-traveling thieves on a high-stakes and hilarious adventure.

The Persuaders!
7.6

The Persuaders!

1971

An English aristocrat and an American millionaire come together to tackle crime.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars
8.5

Star Wars: The Clone Wars

2008

Yoda, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, Mace Windu and other Jedi Knights lead the Grand Army of the Republic against the droid army of the Separatists.

The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
7.1

The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

1964

Agents Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin work for a secret intelligence service working under the auspices of the U.N. Their immediate superior is Mr. Waverly. Together they operate out of a secret base beneath the streets of New York City, and accesses through several cover business such as Del Floria's Tailor Shop and the Masque Club. This secret intelligence service is called U.N.C.L.E. United Network Command for Law and Enforcement.

Airwolf
7.6

Airwolf

1984

As part of a deal with an intelligence agency to look for his missing brother, a renegade pilot goes on missions with an advanced battle helicopter.

Doctor Who
7.6

Doctor Who

2005

The Doctor is a Time Lord: a 900 year old alien with 2 hearts, part of a gifted civilization who mastered time travel. The Doctor saves planets for a living—more of a hobby actually, and the Doctor's very, very good at it.

Knight Rider
7.5

Knight Rider

1982

Michael Long, an undercover police officer, is shot while investigating a case and left for dead by his assailants. He is rescued by Wilton Knight, a wealthy, dying millionaire and inventor who arranges life-saving surgery, including a new face and a new identity--that of Michael Knight. Michael is then given a special computerized and indestructible car called the Knight Industries Two Thousand (nicknamed KITT), and a mission: apprehend criminals who are beyond the reach of the law. The series depicts Michael's exploits as he and KITT battle the forces of evil on behalf of the Foundation for Law and Government.

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea
7.7

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea

1964

Join the crew of the Seaview aboard their super high-tech submarine, where no mission is too dangerous and no threat is too deadly, be it enemy agents, mad scientists, deadly sea creatures, or impending nuclear disaster.

Sledge Hammer!
7.9

Sledge Hammer!

1986

Sledge Hammer! is an American satirical police sitcom produced by New World Television that ran for two seasons on ABC from 1986 to 1988. The series was created by Alan Spencer and stars David Rasche as Inspector Sledge Hammer, a preposterous caricature of the standard "cop on the edge" character. Al Jean and Mike Reiss, best known for their work on The Simpsons, wrote for the show and worked as story editors.

The Bionic Woman
6.9

The Bionic Woman

1976

After fully recovering from her near fatal bout of bionic rejection, Jaime Sommers, the first female cyborg, is assigned to spy missions of her own.

Danger Force
7.8

Danger Force

2020

Captain Man has a new crew of superhero sidekicks - Danger Force. Captain Man and Schwoz create a fake school to train the kids to harness their uncontrollable superpowers to fight crime.

Stargate Infinity
6.0

Stargate Infinity

2002

This DIC animated action-adventure series follows four exceptional Air Force Academy cadets and a wrongly court-martialed Stargate veteran as they travel planets through gated wormholes protecting a myst. Based on MGMs successful sci-fi franchise Stargate.

Why These Anime Are Similar

These recommendations share core qualities with Blue Thunder (1984): Action & Adventure and Crime themes, comparable animation style, and similar narrative pacing. NoBadPicks uses TMDB collaborative filtering, genre matching, and AI analysis to surface anime most likely to resonate with fans of Blue Thunder.

See full details for Blue Thunder (1984)

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