While many of the first anime to gain popularity in the United States were action-heavy adventure sagas, the format has a long history of love stories set across the past, present, and future. 

There’s a romance anime for virtually everyone: Sawako and Shota of From Me to You: Kimi ni Todoke have a charming grumpy-sunshine dynamic, while Nanami and Tomoe of Kamisama Kiss give viewers an “enemies to lovers” romance. Scott Pilgrim Takes Off adds a sci-fi time-travel filter to its love story, while My Happy Marriage invokes famous fairy tales. Some of these series are achingly sincere, others are laced with comedic misunderstandings — but they all have one thing in common: They’ll all make your heart feel supersized. 

The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity

Rintaro Tsumugi and Kaoruko Waguri couldn’t look more different — he’s a towering blond jock, she’s a petite brunette with saucer eyes. Even more importantly, they come from wildly different backgrounds: He goes to a high school for juvenile delinquents while she attends a prestigious private academy. But as soon as they meet (when she drops by his family’s bakery to sate her sweet tooth), the connection is real. Though the series is mainly a rom-com with plenty of ironic misunderstandings, The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity isn’t afraid to be sincere. Watching Rintaro and Kaoruko work through their various obstacles via honest conversations is both refreshing and heartwarming. Just don’t be surprised if you find yourself tearing up at all their big feelings! 

The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity

13 Episodes   TV-PG   2025

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Kamisama Kiss

As much of a romantasy as any novel by Sarah J. Maas, Kamisama Kiss starts off by thrusting its girl-next-door hero, Nanami Momozono, into a magical world. After a mysterious late-night encounter with a kind old man, Nanami finds out that she’s inherited his title as the “earth god” of her local area, a title which comes with a nice shrine to live in, cute spirit helpers … and a beautiful, magical fox-man (a yōkai) named Tomoe who is dedicated to protecting her. Nanami and Tomoe embody a unique mix of the “enemies to lovers” and “star-crossed lovers” romance tropes — “star-crossed enemies to lovers,” you could say. Tomoe initially resents Nanami for maintaining his enslavement to the shrine, but even as the two grow to like each other, they have to contend with long-standing rules against romance between humans and yōkai. 

Kamisama Kiss

2 Seasons   TV-PG   2012

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From Me to You: Kimi ni Todoke

They say that opposites attract, but the protagonists of this beloved anime seem to have no chance at finding common ground. Shoto Kazehaya is a popular boy whose smile lights up every room, while Sawako Kuronuma’s pale skin, dark hair, and shy manner mean that her classmates constantly compare her to Sadako from The Ring. Against all odds, these two form a real connection — one that helps Shoto broaden his worldview and gives Sawako the confidence to speak up for herself and make friends. Sawako is weighed down by years of bullying, but Shoto isn’t afraid to show her how much she matters to him. Based on the manga by Karuho Shiina, From Me to You is so popular that it’s been adapted into a live-action TV series, which you can also watch on Netflix.

From Me to You: Kimi ni Todoke

3 Seasons   TV-14   2009

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My Happy Marriage

My Happy Marriage starts off like a classic fairy tale. Like Cinderella, Miyo Samori grows up being bullied by her mean stepmother and stepsister. Like Bluebeard, Kiyoka Kudou, the rich man Miyo is married off to, is notorious for mistreating his former lovers. But all the expectations those comparisons may bring are thoroughly subverted when the seemingly cold and impersonal Kiyoka turns out to be a dedicated partner. He takes Miyo’s side against her family and shows her what real care looks like, making their love story genuinely rewarding to watch. 

My Happy Marriage

2 Seasons   TV-14   2023

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Ouran High School Host Club

Ouran High School Host Club stands out within the romance genre as a story that plays with traditional gender stereotypes. Haruhi Fujikoa is a woman, but her androgynous appearance causes the pretty boys of her high school’s “host club” (where women pay for the company of nice men) to mistake her for a man, and draft her into joining them. Haruhi turns out to be an excellent host who charms her clients, but also grows closer to her fellow club members — especially the princely Tamaki Suoh. 

Ouran High School Host Club

26 Episodes   TV-14   2006

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The Quintessential Quintuplets

This romance is spiced with a gripping mystery. In the very first scene of the show, Futaro Uesugi, the protagonist, is about to marry the love of his life, a beautiful redheaded bride. The rest of The Quintessential Quintuplets, however, takes place within a flashback, and we see a younger Futaro assigned to tutor his fiery fellow student Itsuki Nakano. One would assume that Itsuki is therefore his future bride — wrong! It turns out that Itsuki has four identical sisters, and their wealthy father is paying Futaro to tutor them all. As he starts making personal connections with each sister, the question of which one will marry Futaro hangs in the balance, even while lots of identical-sibling hijinks and embarrassing slapstick lighten the mood. Futaro really wants to be a good tutor to the sisters, but he’s constantly tripping into their cleavages, or getting accidentally caught in compromising positions.  

The Quintessential Quintuplets

2 Seasons   TV-MA   2019

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Scott Pilgrim Takes Off

There’s more to romance than kisses and meet-cutes; in order to make love last, you have to be willing to grow together, work through problems, and make peace with each other’s friends. So even though Scott Pilgrim Takes Off removes half of its star couple from the equation in its very first episode (sorry, Scott), this anime sequel to the cult-classic 2010 film adaptation of Bryan Lee O’Malley’s comic series tells a very romantic story: Ramona Flowers (voiced by Mary Elizabeth Winstead) will stop at nothing to find out what happened to her beloved Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera). Without spoiling anything, suffice to say that Ramona learns important lessons about how to keep the flame alive, even in the face of an uncertain future. 

Scott Pilgrim Takes Off

8 Episodes   TV-MA   2023

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Your lie in April

Music becomes the vessel for love in Your Lie in April. When the series begins, former piano prodigy Kōsei Arima hasn’t played a note since his domineering mother died two years prior. But that all changes when he meets Kaori Miyazono, a free-spirited violinist whose insistence on playing music her way reawakens Kōsei to the possibilities of life. But Kaori is dating one of Kōsei’s best friends, and his other best friend has a crush on him. Things get messy, but this story about learning to love again is so beloved that it’s also been adapted as a live-action movie and a stage musical. 

Your lie in April

22 Episodes   TV-14   2014

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