Lovely Complex tells the tale of Koizumi Risa, who falls in love with a boy way shorter than her, Ootani Atsushi. Unfortunately paired together as a comedic duo by their peers, Risa struggles to move their relationship out of the friend-zone. Adapted from a famous shoujo manga and trailing its live-action movie, this romantic comedy anime, with a taste of charming Osaka-ben, has captured the hearts of many viewers.

Similarities between Lovely Complex and Peach girl mainly fall on the lead females’ insecurities. While Momo is shy about her dark skin, Risa is equally resentful of her tall stature. Both of them try to overcome their flaws and end up stronger characters than before. As cliche as it may seem, it’s a story of typical insecure high schooler attempting to find her confidence. It certainly brings back many memories of one’s own high school experience.

Lovely Complex is definitely a must watch if you have enjoyed Peach Girl, as it is definitely not lacking in the love department. It is a shoo-in for tugging at your heartstrings as you cheer for Risa to finally get with the right guy!

Skip Beat! is one of those shoujo anime that continuously increases the lead female’s favourability with audiences. Unlike the rest, Mogami Kyouko is not a weepy love-obsessed girl that spirals down into an eternal weepy drama. Although, she begins with getting her heart broken by her childhood friend, Fuwa Shoutaro. Throughout the anime she advances toward the path of vengeance and victory.

Nevertheless, the dose of drama and romance is equally strong in this anime with that of Peach Girl’s. With two boys accompanying her journey to stardom, Kyouko’s life is full of hurdles. Initially ditched by Shoutaro, Kyouko finds a way to show him who’s boss. In that process, she meets a new man, Tsuruga Ren, an annoyingly cold hottie that slowly (No joke: I mean a glacial pace) reveals his feelings for her.

Similarities between Momo and Kyouko mostly lie on their pendulum-esque love/hate relationship between the two men. As Momo faces the countless sabotages by Sae, Kyouko also encounters frustrations which leave audience hopelessly cheering for them.

Kaicho wa Maid-sama! is a story about Ayuzawa Misaki and Usui Takumi. This anime takes place in Seika High School, once an all-boy school but recently changed to a co-ed school. Due to the fact that the female popularity is a minority, Misaki takes up the job of revamping the school to allow female students to feel safe. Having such a hard exterior, she secretly works at a Maid café. Unfortunately, Takumi finds out and keeps it to himself . Through time, he takes a liking to Misaki.

Originally a manga and now a famous anime in the shoujo genre, Misaki is similar to Momo because they both have loud and strong personalities. They both are independent and totally different from other girls in their high school. Takumi is similar to Okayasu Kairi as they are known for being the popular boys in school. Even though they both are very mischievous, they always have good intentions and in the end, are always there for the main female character.

Inspired by the popular children’s game, Fruit Basket is a shoujo franchise that is positively received in the anime world. Although elements of fantasy set this anime apart from the rest, it still draws similar emotions of a comedic and dramatic love-story.

Fruits Basket is a story about Honda Tooru, who unexpectedly lives with two classmates; the cool Souma Yuki, and the abrasive Souma Kyou. In their new lives together, Tooru attempts to get closer to the two boys and discovers their hidden family secret: The boys cannot be hugged by the opposite sex unless they want to puff into their assigned zodiac animals.

The overlapping tropes of Peach Girl and Fruits Basket is the incessant cycle of heartbreak and restoration. This can get a little tiring for one’s poor soul, but the two anime are able to juggle the lead character’s happiness and sadness.

An additional side note, is the similarity of a sabotaging/ jealous character; Minagawa Motoko and Sae. They both add a little spice and drama to the lead protagonists’ love life.

Ao Haru Ride is a story between Futaba Yosioka and Kou Tanaka. Futaba is very pretty and is admired by loads of boys in junior high school. Because of that, many girls are jealous of her and Futaba is ostracised. So once she enters high school, she changes herself to be less ladylike in order to fit in with the other girls.

Just like Momo, they seek for others’ approval and are determined to changed themselves for others. Futaba has many friends who were her so-called good friend but soon reveal themselves to be total mean girls. This is just like Sae pretending to be Momo’s best friend. After a while, a new student called Kou Tanaka transfers to Futaba’s school and Futaba finds out that he was actually her junior high school crush. But now Kou does not have feelings for her anymore.

In the next semester, Kou and Futaba wind up in the same class and both of them become class president and co-class president. Slowly, throughout the anime, Kou eventually recovers his feelings for Futaba.

This anime is a great display of the constant misunderstandings of one’s feelings, which is common in shoujo dramas. You’re certainly in for a wild ride of emotions (pun intended).

Saiunkoku Monogatari is set in an ancient mythological land. The story is about a descendent of a noble family Shuurei Hong (Kou) who has fallen to hard times. Shuurei is a strong and loud woman just like Momo. They both work hard to get what they want. Shuurei wants to work for the government with the new emperor, but in that era it is forbidden for a woman to take up that post. The new emperor, Ryuuki Shi is also similar to Kairi as he’s known for being very laid back and seemingly uninterested in important matters.

However, they both prove otherwise in the development of the anime. One day, Shuurei is offered to work for the emperor as his consort to teach the emperor in being a better ruler for a period of 6 months. Shuurei accepts. Through the anime, Ryuuki also flaunts over his love for men but despite that, he and Shuurei slowly grow fond of each other.

Loyal to the harem genre, Shuurei has other love interests which contribute to the rollercoaster ride of emotions. However, we can all agree that a shoujo anime is incomplete without a wavering heart heroine. This anime is sure to give reminiscence to Peach Girl’s romantic havoc.

Amnesia's plot premise of having an amnesiac trying to recover her memories from interactions with other romantically-involved characters... is not entirely as ‘distinct’ as I have put. Yes, some other people have been crazy enough to think this up, even though it isn't that bad an idea really, just unique. In this case, being Golden Time, the main character is of the reverse gender, and so it is not exactly a Reverse Harem, but a Normal Harem, or whatever the equivalent for that is. They do share the same "golden" idea of a premise though, about amnesiacs or have you forgot ;)?

It seems it is proven my point on how unique the story of Amnesia is, given the difficulties I am facing in finding satisfactorily similar titles to it. So I have taken a dissection of the main themes, and by this thin association, have them related as "recommendations". With the second up, it is another Reverse Harem anime, Fruits Basket. This series have the same erotic arrangement of a Reverse Harem, lots of bishie men chasing the main character, who is in the best of descriptions, "shy". Or more flat-out without character, so if you want a Reverse Harem anime with the main character being "shy" but not boring, Fruits Basket is for you! In this case she is actually shy, and not no-life and no personality. And oh yeah, the premise of this is way cooler! Something about bishie-men transforming into Chinese Zodiac animals when they are hugged by the opposite sex. That is so...interestingly way out there, almost like Amnesia's but cuter.

I shall refer another anime based on the same theme, again. Called sensibly Brothers Conflict, we can only imagine that the conflict in question is the contest of love for the one individual that is the main character; it seems also that this anime has an incest theme. Simply because the girl is also their sister by marriage of their parents, and that is why I used the term incest for this anime. This is as standard as any Reverse Harem type anime, and the timeworn question it poses and asks: who gets the girl? For the Normal Harem type, I believe it is: can the guy get all the girls? So apart from that incest theme, there are strong similarities between the two anime, both originating first as visual novels. Also, if you like boring, flat female leads, both animes have that, together with the usual plot of lots of hot bishies falling for her, not to mention that plot device we call a spiritual aide, protecting and advising her.

Miracle Train has many similar aspects to Amnesia, one of them of course being both Reverse Harem, but also on the supernatual feel, for the Miracle Train being, well, the train itself, and how only the team of bishies, a host club of the train in question, has the ability to even see it in the first place, guiding those worried and troubled girls on a ride they will never forget. Not what you are thinking though, basically the host club is some sort of psychotherapy team. For Amnesia, you already know it as a one-dimensional girl, that speaks nothing beyond short sentences with a gasp at the end, who became an amnesiac after colliding with some supernatual spirit. So besides similarity on feel, the pacing of the story is very similar too, which I imagine as how each episode for both animes begins seemingly and entirely unrelated, with little true plot or character progress, although they both save themselves and get interesting by the 6th episode and yonder. The difference is in how Miracle Train doesn't revolve around a single female lead, with the bishounen of the host club interacting with the many women that board the train, and in Amnesia, the female lead passes through different alternate universes for each of her bishie encounter, all of which are represented by card suits, from Heart, Spade, Clover, Diamond and Joker. Miracle Train too has the bonus of introducing the scenic elements of the route the miracle train travels on, which is the Oedo-line, I believe. I suppose the creators thought that a train-line with a host club is a winning combo.

So far we have covered incest, host club in train stations with similar pacing, another anime about amnesia, and the last being about Chinese Zodiac animals, all of which have the bonus of being Reverse Harem animes at the same time. It is just so that I found another unlikely theme, one of confusion. It is not exactly that surprising, given there is only so much you can differentiate the plot of a Reverse Harem type anime. All the guys want a piece of the action, which is basically as normal and close to reality as it gets. Turning out that this is the fantasy of a lot of girls sure help us otakus to dream on that, so it appeals to both guys and gals. According to what is similar between the two, is the theme of confusion, partly mistaken as mystery, that you only get the idea of both plots at the end of the series. In light of that, I only recommend this anime, K, because quote for truth, "Worth watching if you like to get confused." Which is the strangest promotional caption I have ever heard.

At the sixth and last recommendation, I will end it with one last standard Reverse Harem anime, as classic and typical as it gets. It even shows in the name: it mentions the word prince. That's bound to get any girl wet. And just to show the quality of this Reverse Harem anime, it has been described as "just absolutely fun to watch". Both of the female leads are almost entirely emotionless, with the bishie guys all after her. In fact, they work along the same plot mechanic, with each guy having an episode or arc just devoted to them, and to her as well of course. It takes two to tango, although we can have more than just two persons of course, but then that will turn into a shounen genre, instead of a shoujo, if you know what I mean?

Takahashi Nanami is starting life at a new high school, hoping to make as many friends as possible. The girls in the class talk about a boy, Yano Motoharu, and 2/3 of the girls are in love with him. When Nanami asks the girl sitting next to her about Yano, she curtly states that she hates him. Nanami soon discovers why when Yano intentionally gives her the name of one of her classmates incorrectly and she ends up making a fool out of herself in front of the class. Although her feelings are that of hate, there's a thin line between hate and love, and her feelings begin to teeter! When people say that shoujo romances are unrealistic, they probably haven't seen Bokura ga Ita. Nanami battles her own insecurities as she tries to learn what it means to have her first boyfriend, but Motoharu doesn't make it easy with his complicated past and secretive nature. This is one shoujo romance that really tugs on your heartstrings as you follow Nanami as she seeks out the truth and learns what she must do for her relationship.

Makino Tsukushi can't wait to finish up her years at Eitoku Gakuen. Unfortunately, she negatively catches the attention of the Flower 4, the four boys with the most power and influence in the school, which causes her to gain the red card. Tsukushi isn't ready to back down from the challenge, but then she finds herself falling for one of the F4, Hanazawa Rui. Will she rise to the challenge or crumple under her feelings? There is probably no shoujo series as popular as Hana Yori Dango. It is about the love story of Makino Tsukushi and starts off with her crush on Hanazawa Rui. From her crush to her true love, Tsukushi endures many trials that overall, make her a stronger heroine that is worthy of the one she loves. This is a shoujo romance that has a few turns and although it doesn't turn out the way you believe it will, it shows you that good can come out of it in the end even though you strayed from the path.

Miyazawa Yukino is the essence of perfection; she's beautiful, kind, intelligent, and modest. She's the perfect student, but in actuality, it is just a façade to garner adoration amongst her classmates! Her façade won't last long; Arima Soichiro comes in to steal the top placement from her. In fact, he's also smart, handsome, and modest. Worst of all, Soichiro has also discovered Yukino's secret. Now he's blackmailing her to do things for him! Can they ever be friends or is Yukino's peaceful high school life in peril? Kareshi Kanojo no Jijou, or Kare Kano for short, is the love story between Miyazawa Yukino and Arima Soichiro, who start off similar and branch off into their own individual personalities. This shoujo romance anime is about finding the deeper truth behind someone and accepting them for all that they are. Kare Kano starts off as a sweet romance, but there is so much more than meets the eye.

Kurata Sana is the daughter of an award-winning writer, a star of the hit comedy "Child's Toy", and her manager, Rei, also works as her chauffeur and "pimp". Yes, she lives a great life, but when she's at school, Sana has to undergo the chaos that is her class, which is overrun by the violent boys led by Hayama Akito. Sana's tired of all of the chaos in class and is determined to take it into her hands, but what will come out of her efforts? It may not be easy nor safe, but she's a headstrong fifth grade girl! While Kodocha may not seem like anything so someone who has only watched a few episodes, there is so much for to Kodocha than you might think. Fifth graders don't always have it easy. Akito and Sana may seem like your average fifth graders, but they have much more going on behind the scenes that it appears, but it is when they finally meet that they find the real support they need as they try to overcome their past and present to gain a better future. This is a beautiful shoujo romance because it shows how hard life can be for even the youngest of people, but it can be overcome with the right person by your side.

Shizuku is known for being cold and unfeeling by her classmates which has earned her the nickname "Dry Ice." One day, she is asked to deliver some classwork to a classmate, Haru, who has refused to go to school for a few weeks. Haru decides that Shizuku is his friend, but he's been known to be violent and rash while Shizuku is just a studious bookworm. They both have not had real friends before, but now, can they survive their new budding friendly? Tonari no Kaibutsu-Kun is a cute shoujo anime involving a colder than ice Shizuku who finds herself being stuck with a violent yet overall good guy, Haru. They seem like an unlikely pair, and even when it comes to confessions, they both suck at them, but they both need each other. This is a cute romance between two teenagers who are both surprisingly honest, but Shizuku is quick to call someone out while Haru is a little rash that he doesn't take other people into consideration! What trouble can they get into?

Kuronuma Sawako is just a misunderstood teenage girl, rumored to be able to see ghosts and malicious beings, but in truth, she's just a really shy girl whose resemblance to the girl from "The Ring" has led to countless misunderstandings. Sawako has always wanted to make friends, but has been unable to do so yet her one memory of helping her classmate Kazehaya Shouta, the most popular guy in class, has kept her hopeful. Since that time, they have not spoken, but what will happen now that he starts speaking with her? Will she be able to live the normal high school life she has always dreamed of? As for as adorable shoujo animes go, Kimi ni Todoke takes the cake. Everyone thinks terrible of Sawako, but she's misunderstood and actually cares greatly for everyone and refuses to believe that anyone is bad. Although high school romance may not be the most innocent in today's society, Kimi ni Todoke shows you how innocent and pure a high school romance can be in this shoujo romance anime. Don't think there are no struggles along the way. You'll laugh, cry, and squeal with excitement as you watch Kimi ni Todoke.

Koishikawa Miki is your ordinary high school girl living an ordinary life until her parents suddenly decide to divorce. Not only do they divorce, they both switch partners with a newly divorced couple and move under the same roof. Miki's not happy with it, but soon, she finds herself falling for the son of the other couple. Matsuura Yuu. Much like Hana Yori Dango, Marmalade Boy is one of those shoujo romance classics that you can't pass up. Marmalade Boy is about the romance between Miki and Yuu, but along the way there's love triangles, secrets, drama with friends, and a lot of insecurity. Miki and Yuu may struggle, but they do all that they can to conquer their mountains. Don't be fooled; the original premise is silly and strange, but it's the undertones and side stories in this anime that really drive Marmalade Boy to be a classic.

Tachibana Mei is a girl who hasn't had friends or a boyfriend her entire life. She doesn't need them. So far, not making friends has worked out for Mei. Then she catches the eye of Kurosawa Yamato, a handsome, popular guy who says all girls look the same. For some reason, Yamato is interested in Mei; he even gave her his phone number! She wouldn't call; but she did when she really needed his help. Mei doesn't need saving, but maybe there's something about Yamato that will change her. Sukitte Ii Na Yo plays off the same idea as Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun in that the main characters have no real desire to interact with others, but there is an added level of excitement as Mei discovers she may in fact need others and the person she needs the most, is Yamato. Yamato is the angel who saves Mei from her bitter life of solitude and may ultimately open her heart. It's an endearing story of love as it first blooms and how it can change you.

Gouda Takeo is a popular guy who is wanted for his large physique and musculature. Well, technically he's popular with other guys and clubs. His best friend and neighbor is Sunakawa Makoto, a guy whose popular with girls for his looks and personality. Every girl that Takeo has ever liked has fallen for Makoto. One day, Takeo saves Yamato Rinko from a groper on the train, and although he falls for her at first sight, he suspects that she likes Makoto. Sacrificing his feelings, Takeo takes it upon himself to get Makoto and Rinko together. It sounds a little like School Days, doesn't it? Well, don't fooled because shoujo anime Isn't known for its tragedies. Ore Monogatari!! is an adorable shoujo romance anime that follows Takeo as he falls in love and learns what it really means to be a boyfriend. He may not seem like your usual shoujo protagonist, but he's very kind hearted and kind, despite his appearance. This is a love story that shows you that appearances aren't everything, and there's always someone out there for everyone.

Yaza Gaku is a school dedicated to fashion design and one of its students, Kouda Mikako dreams of hitting it big with her own fashion brand. She lives next door to her childhood friend, Yamaguchi Tsutomu, who she has a platonic relationship with despite their many years together. Unfortunately, Tsutomu has been getting quite popular with the girls for his resemblance to the lead vocalist in a band. Mikako doesn't care for the band, but something is stirring inside of her. Gokinjo Monogatari is the story of two childhood friends and their quest for love in high school, while also pursuing their dreams in fashion design. Relationships are complicated. There is more to a person than rumors say. What makes Gokinjo Monogatari an amazing love story is that it starts off with everything in the wrong direction and each individual must figure out what they must do to be with the one they love. There are many "what ifs" and "buts" that the characters ask themselves and their romantic stories become tangled. Along with that, all of the characters in Gokinjo Monogatari are pursuing their dreams and must make a name for themselves outside of school. Life's difficult, but it's not impossible as these young teens will show you just how they balance school, passion for their work, and their romances.

An obvious example that has gone on the rise as a good shounen in the last couple of years is the Fairy Tail series by Mashima Hiro. Although the series focuses on different characters and their strengths and weaknesses, the main point of the story is the idea of growth and love. Although Natsu Dragneel, the protagonist, is not an obvious victim of being shunned by society, he possesses a characteristic that is considered rare — he is a Dragon Slayer. In the world of Magnolia, being a Dragon Slayer is incredible, due to the fact that those who have Dragon Slayer magic are those who are feared greatly. Essentially, this means that people who are classified as having this type of magic are those that were trained directly by powerful dragons, who, from the very start of the story, no longer exist. Natsu’s ultimate goal is to find Igneel, the dragon who raised him, but of course, there are a bunch of obstacles along the way.

One Punch man is a relatively new shounen series and it possesses characteristics and qualities of a conventional shounen anime. Saitama, the protagonist, is a guy who merely wants to save the world with his own powers. He is not the typical underdog that we are used to seeing, but he is an underdog nonetheless. He is someone with pure intent on wanting to save the world, and so he trained his ass off in order to be someone that was worthy of saving people and being a hero. Of course, people that were higher up in the hierarchy did not acknowledge him or his strength merely because of his appearance, and as Saitama seeks to prove himself to the ones who said he wouldn’t succeed, he meets different friends along the way, one of whom is named Genos, a cyborg who looks up to him and recognises his hard work and perseverance. Saitama spent about three years training by himself in order to become infinitely stronger, and one of the defining features about him that most people notice at first glance is the fact that he’s bald, and how he lost his hair is one of the things about him that makes fans love him — he became bald because of all his hard work and training! Although the theme of the anime and series itself is somewhat “serious” in the sense that it’s pretty heavy on the notion of saving the world, the writer of the webcomic-turned-into-anime has taken the liberty to ensure that it is still entertaining as hell! There are bountiful badass fights, and as is usually present in shounen anime, a companion that admires the protagonist greatly. A lot of fans around the internet like to joke around that in a lot of shounen, the power of “nakama” is what drives characters to become stronger and fight harder for justice, or for their honor, or whatever it is that they intend to fight for. However, the notion of believing in your friends and possibly your family is one of the more intricate details of shounen, and the funny part is that it works. Generally, people don’t tend to get tired of the friendship trope, because it’s so common that it would be an outlier if it wasn’t comprised of these components. Having a protagonist with a fatal flaw and try to prove themselves to an audience of people that underestimate them is what shounen is all about — and One Punch Man surely delivers!

An oldie but goodie, Marmalade Boy is a shoujo, romance anime that actually predates Boys Over Flowers by a couple years. Produced by the same studio, Toei Animation, Marmalade Boy was made as one of a series of shoujo anime including Boys Over Flowers, so it’s no wonder the two are quite similar in storytelling and animation. In Marmalade Boy, a likable Miki finds herself in an emotionally complicated love triangle as she finds herself truly falling in love for the first time. Two families strangely decide to family swap, bringing together Miki and her new brother Yuu. Yuu is originally cruel to Miki, but somewhere and somehow they find love in a “broken” place. Life isn’t smooth sailing, however, as a jealous ex continuously tries to break them apart. Marmalade boy Yuu isn’t as heartless as Domyouji in the beginning of Boys Over Flowers, but it has all that angst and old school flavor that will put you right back into F4 mode.

Peach Girl is a shoujo, romance, school anime with a dramatic high school love triangle involving an average high school girl Momo, who gets teased for being too tan. She agonizes if she should remake herself for the boy she loves or turn to another boy who likes her. She also has to fend off other a love rival, namely her best friend, or should I say “frenemy.” The main focus of Peach Girl is feelings, and the characters have a lot of them, a whole lot of them. If you loved the suspense of guessing and second-guessing who the main girl will end up with in Boys Over Flowers, then this is the love triangle for you.

Sometimes, you just want a modernized Cinderella tale of entering the world of high society and a class-crossing love story without all the angst. You don’t want to cry, but you just want to laugh and laugh and laugh. At those times, you want Ouran High School Host Club. Ouran High School Host Club is a shoujo, romance, comedy, school anime, but it’s pretty heavy on the comedy. The anime stars Haruhi, a bright, middle-class girl who attends a private high school for the rich elite. She plans on simply studying hard and flying under the radar until graduation, until she breaks an insanely expensive vase owned by the Ouran High School Host Club, a club in which the most handsome men on campus play host to their female classmates. To pay for the vase, Haruhi joins the club and cross-dresses as a male host, but this risky move brings her to the attention of the prince of the hosts, Tamaki, who quickly falls for her. Ouran High School Host Club is a light-hearted comedy with a hint of romance between our intelligent lead and a not-so-intelligent but gorgeous rich boy. It is almost as if someone took Boys Over Flowers and decided to make all the characters into adorable caricatures of themselves while throwing in a few more flower boys, you know, for fun.

Just like Boys Over Flowers, this anime spans a lot of genres: shoujo, romance, school, and comedy. Misaki is the strong, smart student council president of her high school, but she also works at a maid café to make ends meet. She managed to keep her image-destroying part-time job a secret from her schoolmates until she gets spotted by the most popular boy in school, Usui, a handsome teenage boy who is rather aloof and somewhat cold. In classic romantic comedy fashion, hilarity ensues as Misaki agonizes over if Usui will tell the world about her secret, but this horrible situation soon turns to love. Privileged bad boy? Check. Poor, hard-working girl? Check. It may be a slightly different version of the rich boy, poor girl formula when compared to Boys Over Flowers, but Maid-sama! does it well and with a few laughs. The characters seem like a good match. In the end, you’re left with emotional satisfaction that you would expect from a romantic comedy. You may be wondering by now, how could a self-respecting girl like Misaki (or Tsukushi) fall for a pretentious jerk like Usui (or Domyouji), and this anime will give you the answers, all the answers you already knew but wanted to know again.

Boys Over Flowers may be a fairytale Cinderella story meets modern life, but Snow White with the Red Hair is an actual Cinderella tale, or a Snow White tale. A rich prince and a simple poor girl fall in love, but this time in a much sweeter and newer package. Snow White with the Red Hair is currently airing, so you get your romance with brand spanking new animation presented masterfully by the animation studio Bones. Shirayuki is an honest, intelligent, and kind girl who works diligently at her family’s medicine shop, but when she is forced to become a concubine to the prince of her country, she flees only to be saved another prince, Prince Zen, of a neighboring country. Shirayuki enters the castle of Prince Zen because she wants to repay him for saving her but also because of growing feelings and attraction to him. The second season has just started. Since Zen’s older brother, the crowned prince, has returned to the castle, Shirayuki and Zen’s relationship has been put under a microscope. Meanwhile other men are also showing interest in Shirayuki. Will it lead to a royal wedding or to the end of a fairy tale? Snow White with the Red Hair may appear too clean cut to be similar to Boys Over Flowers, but the difference in social status between the two main characters and how they learn to rely and trust each other despite all the upper class naysayers has the earmarking of Boys Over Flowers. That is, if Tsukushi would choose Hanazawa’s alternate reality sweet-hearted younger brother, who does not exist in HanaDan, but we wish he did! Not to mention the show is super character-driven, and Shirayuki is an extremely lovable character and a joy to watch in this classic shoujo series.

A Lull in the Sea brings a purely fantastical story to the modern world with gorgeous modern animation and is heavy on the drama and romance with a splash of fantasy. In a small coastal town in Japan, the local people share the shore with a group of people who live under the sea. But, as sea dwellers are slowly and controversially moving to live on land, the sea people population has become so small, sea schools have closed, and the children must attend school with land dwellers. One sweet and simple-minded junior high school girl of the sea, Manaka, finds herself drawn to a new classmate on land, Tsumugu, who also has a keen interest in the students from the sea. This new found innocent relationship is troubling to Manaka’s childhood friend, Hikari, who sees himself as Manaka’s only protector and only match, though he is unsure of his true feelings. These relationships are further strained by discrimination and deep-seated rivalries between those of the land and those of the sea. A Lull in the Sea is a beautiful love polygon mixed with coastal town mythology that will bring you to tears of sadness and joy. Instead of social class discrimination we see in Boys Over Flowers, A Lull in the Sea brings us tensions between “races” of people. Like Boys Over Flowers, characters rule the story, and emotional conflicts, expressed or not, are always front and center. Not to mention there are more love triangles than you can wave a stick at. The story is mainly told from Hikari’s perspective, but the emotions are so raw and real, A Lull in the Sea is guaranteed to leave you a giant, sobbing puddle on the floor, regardless who you’re shipping. That being said, who do you ship?

No, you are not wrong! Before this story became famous because of the popular Korean drama television in 2009, this manga was adapted to an anime series that aired between 1996-1997, and they even made a live-action movie in 1995, and a Japanese TV drama series in 2005. When Tsukushi Makino decided to go to the famous Eitoku Academy, she didn't know that her simple life was about to be changed by the infamous "Flower Four" or F4, that basically is a group of 4 boys that rule the academy. After getting the attention of the F4 leader because she was the only girl that wasn't falling for him, her life will be in a constant roller coaster, the leader F4 leader will go from bullying her every day to develop deep feelings for this stubborn girl. With a unique beginning that will capture your heart, Hana Yori Dango also captures the spirit of young love, just like Blue Spring Ride. A relationship that starts from hate and finishes in love, will make you wonder in how many ways love can come to you without warning, just like it happened to Futaba and Kou when they began high school.

What does Erika Shinohara from Wolf Girl and Black Prince have in common with Futaba Yoshioka from Blue Spring Ride? They make random stories in order to impress their friends. But Erika decided to include a random stranger whom she took a candid photo and told everyone that he was her boyfriend. Little she knew that the boy in the photo goes to the same school with her, and with a “charming prince” attitude he accepted to play along with her game. However, Erika did not expect that her charming prince would turn into a black prince who started a game of his own that included blackmail and pet treatment. Erika and Futaba have something in common, more than the fact that apparently they like to make lies, and is that they end up learning to love their partners. Nowadays people tend to fall in love instantly, but these girls took their time to learn how to love these cold guys, but who are we to judge?

If you are shoujo lover, then this anime should be in your top five favorite shoujo anime. Itazura na Kiss tells the popular story of Kotoko Aihara who confessed her feelings for Naoki Irie, but he rejected her because he does not like dumb girls. But fate decided to give another opportunity to this poor girl by destroying her house with an earthquake, and she had no other choice than to move with his father’s childhood best friend whose son turns out to be no other than Naoki. Fate can be funny sometimes, right? Just like Naoki at the beginning, Kou from Blue Spring Ride does not like Futaba when he meets her again in High School, but eventually he will develop feelings for her again just like in this anime. There is a saying that goes “Hate is just one step away from love”.

We all want a person like Haru Yoshida as a friend, even though he might be sometimes a little monster. Most of us has a friend or classmate that is like Shizuku Mizutani. A cold-hearted girl that does not care about making friends, and whose only interest is studying. But people like Shizuku can change when someone like Haru appears in their life. This strange couple has an exquisite way of starting their relationship that makes you wonder if you’re really not in love with one of your friends right now. Shizuki knew that she had feelings for his little monster, but Haru could not tell the difference between “like” or “in love”. Sounds similar? Futaba knew that she was still in love with Kou, but the stubborn Kou was never sure about his feelings for her. Just like the main characters of My Little Monster, Futaba and Kou from Blue Spring Ride passed through the same struggles. Friends that due to their confusing feelings go through some problems until their hearts find a way to finally release their true desires.

How would you feel, if your classmates compared you with the main character from The Ring? The poor Sawako had to deal with this every day in her school. Her classmates used to believe that she was different from them due to her “scary” appearance. Most of them used to believe that “Sadako” could speak to ghosts and cursed people, and that was the reason why no one dared to speak with the sweet and innocent girl. Until one day, the idol of the school decided to become friends with her, which made her open up to her classmates. Due to the fact that she finally made friends, she was eternally grateful to her idol. But destiny decided to grant her one more wish, and Sawako started to develop feelings for him, and he, Shouta Kazehaya, ended up falling for her as well. Sawako is a gentle reminder of Futaba’s past in junior high. Due to the fact that Futaba was feminine and cute, this made her female classmates not like her because all the boys were falling for her. When she met Kou, Futaba felt like she found an “exceptional one” because she used to believe that all the boys were too rough. Shouta can be easily compared to Kou in junior high as well. Both of them were considered as idols due to their gentle manners and intelligence, and of course, both of them only fall for the sweet girls. In resume, we can say that From Me to You could be like the prequel version of Blue Spring Ride, if Kou and Futaba’s past had taken a different path.

If you haven’t watched this anime, please be warned that you will need at least 2 boxes of tissues. This anime became very popular for its original plot that will make think twice about the way you are living your life now. Kousei Arima was a famous pianist since his childhood, but after his mother dies, he lost the ability to listen to his own playing. After two years of living the normal life of a student, the beautiful violinist Miyazono Kaori walked through his path, and his life changed drastically from that moment. With Kaori’s help, little by little Kousei gets over his trauma and starts to develop feelings for the violinist, but he decided to ignore those heartbeats because she was the love interest of one of his best friends. Kaori can easily represent Futaba’s true personality. Having the ability to help others and share some of their own happiness is something that both of them are good at. After realizing that her feelings for Kou haven’t disappeared, Futaba decides to stay by his side, even though Kou was being cold towards her, but she knew that deep inside he was having problems, and that never stops Futaba from trying to help him, even if that requires her to reveal her true personality to others. Kousei can be compared to Kou, because both of them were hiding from their past, but there is always one person that will bring you to light. Basically we can say that Your Lie in April could be like another version of Blue Spring Ride if Futaba had remained with her true personality after junior high, but definitely with a different ending.

Though his role in the original series might be considered vague to a significant degree, there is no denying the fact that this guy is the reincarnation of the Earth Prince Endymion. If there’s anything certain in Sailor Moon, it is the fact that royals are not to be crossed, and they are formidable as well. His expanded role in Sailor Moon Crystal definitely showed fans a more well-rounded dimension to his character, and in that particular series, he was depicted to not only be a capable fighter, he was depicted to be strong enough to stand side by side with his better half, Princess Serenity herself.

Sailor Jupiter might be just one of the regular Senshi introduced in the series, but there is no denying the raw power that she holds. This has been shown numerous times in the anime as well, especially since Jupiter is already powerful even in human form, being physically strong and imposing due to her tall stature. As a Senshi, she is definitely one of the stronger ones as well. In fact, it could be noted that in the Dark Moon arc, she was the Senshi that had to be cheated and poisoned just so she could be defeated. Her peers, Mercury and Mars, were taken pretty easily.

Of course, the very first Senshi to awaken on Earth deserves a spot on this list. After all, in her past life, she is not just a regular sailor scout. Rather, she was the one who led them to protect Princess Serenity. This alone is proof that to a very significant degree, the power of Venus is no joke. This could be seen through the course of the series as well. After all, even before Sailor Moon emerged as a Senshi, Venus was already an active scout, battling crime to the point when she became a household name, complete with a dedicated video game and the like. Plus, there’s also no denying that her attacks are pretty cool as well.

Neptune is one of the four Outer Senshi of the Solar System, and was introduced in the Infinity Arc. Wielding powers associated with the sea, and having abilities such as precognition even without transforming, she is actually very formidable. Plus, she’s arguably one of the most attractive Sailor Scouts that Naoko Takeuchi designed, making her all the more likeable. One thing that really makes her stand out from the other Senshi is the fact that she holds one of the talismans that are required in order to summon the Holy Grail. Doing so awakens Sailor Saturn, the Senshi of destruction and rebirth.

Also one of the Outer Senshi, Uranus serves as a foil to Neptune, as the two usually work together and actually have a full-blown romantic relationship (Yes, Sailor Moon was really ahead of its time when it was released, right?). Between the two, however, Uranus was the one who acted as the male persona, with some of the other girls even having a crush on her when she was first introduced. In battle, Uranus is pretty aggressive, with her attacks being based on the element of the sky. She also holds yet another of the talismans required to awaken Saturn, and through her Space Sword, she’s arguably one of the most powerful characters in the Sailor Moon canon.

If the concept of Sailor Moon was not overt enough, the series is all about power coming from the most unexpected packages. Such is the exact case with Sailor Chibi Chibi, the tiniest and arguably one of the most powerful Senshis introduced in the entire canon. Coming from the endless cosmos itself, this little lady most probably holds powers that are near-limitless and godlike. Part of this is due to the fact that her persona as Chibi Chibi is simply as a disguise. I don’t want to spoil it here, but before she came to Earth as this little lady, she was one heck of a Sailor Senshi. Though the scope of her powers is not really shown, there is little doubt that she is among the top ten.

Sailor Pluto’s existence was so secret that very few even knew that she existed. She holds the Garnet Orb, a powerful staff that imbues her with the power of time. In fact, she is so powerful that she could literally stop time in its tracks, as she did in the season ender of the Black Moon Arc, when she used this power to save Chibiusa, whom she has grown fond of. As a Senshi, Pluto is one of the most ruthless, keeping her tasks beyond all else. As she was instructed to eliminate all intruders who would dare and search for the gates of time, she does not hesitate to kill anyone, even Sailor Moon herself. As formidable as she is, however, her immense power comes at a price; sometimes, at the cost of her own life.

In sheer destructive powers alone, Sailor Saturn could easily top this list. After all, being the Senshi of death and rebirth, a simple motion of her Silence Glaive was enough to destroy whole worlds and reset the evolutionary time clock to zero. Her power was so immense, that the other three Outer Senshi, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, were fearful of her awakening, having witnessed her destructive powers. Just like Pluto, however, her immense power comes at a very steep price, as each time she uses her destructive powers to their full strength, Sailor Saturn dies and gets reborn. Thus, her powers are generally one-time use only, since she literally resets the clock on herself, and of everything around her.

Arguably one of the strongest foes ever to be encountered by the series’ protagonists, Sailor Galaxia is the exact antithesis of Sailor Moon. Whereas Sailor Moon values all life, Galaxia has a habit of extinguishing it. Sailor Moon loves making friends out of her enemies, while Galaxi loves making puppets out of those she intimidates or defeats. Her power is also sourced from the exact opposite of the titular character’s Silver Crystal and thus, imbues her with a ridiculous amount of power. In fact, her ruthless actions, and her tendencies for committing evil were so grave, she eventually gained the notorious reputation of ruining worlds in her quest to find the strongest source of power.

Physically, Sailor Moon might not seem all that powerful. But then again, she is the sole person who could wield the Silver Crystal, which is, as noted earlier, the rumored source of absolute and limitless power. Apart from this, she also holds the power of love; something which, considering the genre of the series, is the ultimate form of power. She is also the one with the purest heart, as could be seen through the course of the series itself. Apart from this, Sailor Moon also holds a ridiculous amount of courage, something which was seen time and again despite the odds being stacked against her. For one, she has the capability to keep fighting even after losing those she deems most important to her, all the while maintaining hope that things will turn out alright in the end. It definitely takes something in order to be that strong.