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Romance anime recommendations.


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butters44



Joined: 20 Aug 2007
Posts: 11
PostPosted: Tue Aug 21, 2007 9:06 pm Reply with quote
Mine has to be Kannon which I just finished watching I mean that was pure genius and I'm glad I kept watching after spoiler[Makoto died] and then when spoiler[Ayu died] cause, I almost had to stop watching I was so sad.

Also what anime do you think also has the best romance in it(doesn't have to be a romance anime)? I guess I would also have to say Kannon cause, I haven't seen very many good ones lately.

[EDIT: By default and inertia, this thread has been designated the "official" Romance Anime recommendation thread. Feel free to add recommendations for whatever romance anime you'd like, not just ones you've seen lately. ~Zalis] "Romance" as a genre has been defined as:
Quote:
romance (love, love, love)
The central plot revolves around the romantic involvement of the story's protagonists.
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ElementSun



Joined: 02 Aug 2007
Posts: 106
PostPosted: Tue Aug 21, 2007 9:34 pm Reply with quote
Love Hina is always a classic, but it's also so generic because I see some of the same elements being reused in every single Harem-related show. It gets very annoying and cliched at times.

Sola is one of my favorites in the romance genre, even though the ending was so sad. I love how they used the sky as one of the main themes of the story. spoiler[The motion picture of the sky in episode 12 is still one of my most memorable scenes in anime.] The ending was very sad, spoiler[because the two main characters knew that they would disappear with each other, but still kept themselves in a sense cheerful denial, such as making promises to watch a movie together.]

Hantsuki was also a very good series, although it was rather short, only 6 episodes. It talks about a boy who was hospitalized for a couple of months because he had Hepatitis A and meets a girl in the east wing (the wing for critical patients), who has been in a hospital ever since she was 11 due to a heart valve condition. It's very touching at some points, and the ending is bittersweet because spoiler[It's great that the girl survives her surgery and they end up marrying each other, but the girl only has around 5 years left to live. The ending is quite open however, and you can choose to believe whatever you like.]

Lastly, Iriya no Sora has also captured my eye. It's also a 6 episode mini-series, and has an element of sci-fi to it. The main characters are likable, and the plot is quite good. It talks about a boy who meets a girl with a strange, but very innocent personality. It turns out she's part of an experiment at the air base nearby. Because of all the surgical enhances she receives, she has fatal side-effects that appear at any given moment. Every time you see her suffering from her one of her breakdowns, it just kills you a little inside. The ending is also quite sad, but can be interpreted in a number of ways.


Last edited by ElementSun on Tue Aug 21, 2007 10:26 pm; edited 3 times in total
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Zewerr



Joined: 09 Jun 2006
Posts: 539
Location: Tacoma, WA
PostPosted: Tue Aug 21, 2007 10:11 pm Reply with quote
I usually go for some action anime's over romance, but I catch a few here and there. I haven't watched any recent ones that have been released. But If I were to pick a favorites, they'd probably be Please Teacher! and Please Twins! All the ones I've seen I didn't really think were that great, but these two I actually kinda enjoyed watching. I'm not really sure why. Perhaps it was the quality and the lack of annoying characters, which most romance animes have a few of.
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ace52387



Joined: 21 Aug 2007
Posts: 61
PostPosted: Tue Aug 21, 2007 10:38 pm Reply with quote
I was roped into Lovely Complex at first, but after 10 episodes or so I'm not sure why i picked it up.

I rarely like romance centered anime series' but I like a lot of romance movies/ova's. Byousoku 5cm and Spirited Away are the ones that pop into mind for me first.

My favorite romance in any anime though has to go to NHK. I'm not going to spoil anything SPECIFIC but....
spoiler[ I love how NHK starts off with a typical love story, where Sato is torn between two girls, one from his past, and one he just met. It takes a pretty strange turn pretty quickly though, and it's interesting and different how disturbingly impure or pathetic the "love" becomes in the end. Both women have serious...serious issues. It's not as heartwarming as your average love story, but to me, it was more impactful.]
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nikandros



Joined: 12 Aug 2007
Posts: 58
PostPosted: Tue Aug 21, 2007 10:54 pm Reply with quote
I like a good romantic series more then a good action series. The reason being, good romance or good drama has a higher chance to show raw emotion. Anyone can create a decent fight scene, it needs good pacing and all of that, but really, it isn't all that special.

The problem with romance anime is, it seems more compelled into cliche plots and character types then other anime and media. Like an earlier poster said, Love Hina is a classic, but Love Hina also happens to be where all other harem romance titles draw inspiration from. So while it may be interesting to see the roots of harem genre anime, if you have seen one of the millions of harem anime titles so much of the plot will be known to you.

What I would really like is another Haruhi type, where the male role is more identifiable with the average person. He just is a man, he doesn't blush when caught looking at another woman, he kept the pictures of another very beautiful female, he never denies looking at other women or any of that. He is a real man, so many of the men in the romance genre seem too whipped and they aren't even dating the female lead, she has him wrapped around her finger and he's too much of a coward to even talk openly with her. This leads to poor character development and a stagnant pace to the show.

I am all for unusual pairings, and all of that, but they need different males, and stronger females. A strong female lead isnt a woman who beats the crap out of a man because he is there and might notice her for being a beautiful woman, a strong lead is a woman who is sure of herself and knows how to handle herself. It just seems all the pairings are a weak insecure female and a weak insecure male. I guess what im trying to say is the whole genre needs some fresh blood.

Of course I could just be watching the wrong titles.
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Tony K.
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Joined: 18 Nov 2003
Posts: 11265
Location: Frisco, TX
PostPosted: Tue Aug 21, 2007 11:02 pm Reply with quote
Hm.. I'd have to say the Honey & Clover franchise has really captivated me. On top of the beautiful artwork and soundtrack (love those insert songs and SuneoHair), the story and characters feel very realistic and are easy to empathize for.

Being roughly the same age when I first started watching the series, I saw little of myself in many of the characters. But contrary to a lot of other shounen-oriented romances (and a few shoujo ones as well), it still remained very believable and managed to sway my emotions a bit from time to time. I was anxious, a bit sad, sometimes happy for the characters, and regretful at how much their personalties and situations reflected on myself, among other things.

It's seriously one of my favorite, if not my most favorite anime romance title to date. The script and dialogue, acting, and casting all felt kind of bittersweet, but not completely depressing either. Awesome, awesome writing, and I hope more of it is animated soon.
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Aylinn



Joined: 18 Nov 2006
Posts: 1684
PostPosted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 3:25 am Reply with quote
I like Nodame Cantabile It was nice anime and one of these anime when the main couple was my favourite (something that not happen too often). I like they realistic personality that Nodame is nonconformist and don't care that people think she is weird and how Chiaki change his arrogant attitude and become more patient.

Worth mentioning is also NANA I think relationship between characters were shown very good. Also Honey and Clover is excellent romance anime however could have been much better If only Hagumi hadn't looked like ugly kid taken from kindergarten.


Last edited by Aylinn on Mon Sep 10, 2007 2:09 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Jedi General



Joined: 27 Nov 2006
Posts: 2485
Location: Tucson, AZ
PostPosted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 4:59 am Reply with quote
If by lately you mean recently watched (or watching), then that would be none other than Ah! My Goddess: Flights of Fancy. I'm a big fan of AMG, and I'm very much enjoying ADV's DVD releases of the series. I've always loved the relationship between Belldandy and Keiichi and the recently released 2nd DVD has more of that goodness.

Another recent one would be Ai Yori Aoshi. I recently finished the first series, and I enjoyed it (although not quite as much as I'd originally hoped). The annoying harem-esque elements from the other girls took away from what made that series so great: Kaoru + Aoi's relationship. At least Mayu (one of the "harem girls") managed to capture my heart, so the harem stuff wasn't all bad. Smile
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Master_M2K



Joined: 17 Mar 2007
Posts: 127
Location: UK, London
PostPosted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 5:58 am Reply with quote
Just like the person who created this thread, I've just finished Kanon (2006 version) as recent as yesterday and it has to be the best Romance, Drama I have seen so far Wink and I've seen a lot. Not only that it is produced by Kyoto Animation (my fave studio) but it also has my fave Japanese. voice actor for the male protagonist Very Happy. It's great how it seamlessly mixes the drama with the comedy without having to rely on shocking plot twist but there were some pretty shocking moments like spoiler[when Nayuki's mum was involved in that horrific traffic accident.]

But my all time favorite would have to be the Full Metal Panic series, especially the Kyoto Animation ones (Fumoffu and The 2nd Raid). Not only that it has a great story to get people who hate mecha to enjoy it Anime smile, but there's also plenty of comedy and drama.
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Shinjí90



Joined: 08 Jul 2007
Posts: 26
PostPosted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 3:19 pm Reply with quote
always loved the kanon 2006 remake it has been #1 on my list since i've seen it.
Recently picked up Kimi ga Nozomu Eien, and its a close tie between those two, i have trouble even looking at things about Kimi ga Nozomu Eien cause it makes me depressed lol but still a really good romance.


Also Da Capo / Da capo SS is up there too, finally a romance with not to much drama and a happy ending :cP


Last edited by Shinjí90 on Wed Aug 22, 2007 5:18 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Ruri-chan



Joined: 08 Dec 2005
Posts: 47
Location: tampa
PostPosted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 5:17 pm Reply with quote
I agree with Tony and Aylinn about Honey & Clover. It portrayed different types of love and the main 'love triangle' is not what you expect, which I love.

Kare Kano is another romantic anime that I love for the same reason as Honey & Clover. It's not the typical boy meet girl and they live happily ever after. Their friends go through different ways and types of love that is very realistic.
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larinon



Joined: 27 Jul 2003
Posts: 992
Location: Midland, TX
PostPosted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 7:25 pm Reply with quote
One recent one that I really enjoyed, yet does not get much mention (if at all), is Lamune.

It's a very easygoing, slice of life type of series - at least up until the end. But I did really enjoy it. Nice character designs, nothing really extravagant or flashy. The story was good as well, two people who've been together for most of their lives just realizing what's going on between them. It ends up being a sort of harem show (based on a dating sim), but please don't let this discourage you. Not groundbreaking by any stretch of the imagination, but definitely a pleasant way to pass the time.


Last edited by larinon on Wed Aug 22, 2007 7:27 pm; edited 1 time in total
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pknecron



Joined: 17 Aug 2006
Posts: 41
Location: Victoria, BC. Canada
PostPosted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 10:14 pm Reply with quote
Ones I keep coming back to:

Ah! My Goddess: This one is almost self explanatory. Sweet, charming and funny. With great leads and supporting cast. And I really love the English dubs.

Ai Yori Aoshi: One of my fave. The first 3 episodes are probably the best of any series I have ever watched. The harem aspect of the series does detract and get somewhat annoying, but Aoi and Kaoru's relationship keeps everything on track.

Right now I have started watching Suzuka, and I really like it. Yeah it's got angst coming out the wazoo, but I actually like that. And at times watching it I couldn't help but say to myself: "I know just what you are feeling". And that's something I seldom do with many romantic type shows, either animated or not.
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Kruszer



Joined: 19 Nov 2004
Posts: 7981
Location: Minnesota, USA
PostPosted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 11:02 pm Reply with quote
My favorite is Rumbling Hearts personally. It has some really great characters, beautiful animation. To top it all off it has a highly excellent storyline that can be both dramatic and depressing as well as romantic and ultimately makes for a very fullfilling series. It's one of my all time favorites and is up there in my personal top ten.

Other great ones worth mentioning which I really enjoyed are, REC, Kimagure Orange Road, and Suzuka. REC is an uncoventional masterpiece with 10 short half length episodes and is a great romantic comedy. Kimagure Orange Road consists of a longer series and couple feature films and is a romantic comedy revolving arround a love triangle between 3 friends. Finally Suzuka is a great and very well animated romance anime with a basis in track and field sports as well.
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Vortextk



Joined: 10 Jan 2006
Posts: 892
Location: Orlando, Fl
PostPosted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 11:32 pm Reply with quote
Hmm...Not a genre I avoid but as I was saying in a post in the latest Air thread, I have to kind of temper my drama/romance/depressing shows with a lot more comedy/action. Of course there are plenty of romance/comedy's as well.

I have very open tastes and generally only dislike things which are pretty universally disliked for being bad; save a few exceptions of course.

First, I agree with nikandros that "Kon" from Haruhi was a great male lead. He kept the entire show in reality even when it completely branched off into disbelief.

And second, other than Haruhi, I'd have to say Honey and Clover is my favorite romance, as well as a top slot, in my book. I have to say I wasn't disappointed in the sequel, it was just a bit underwhelming. I missed the character interaction since so many of them were off on their own and the comedy didn't "Nail" it like it's prequel. The original honey and clover really did everything right from the horribly sad moments, to the melancholy "staring out the car window" to the drop dead laughter. It was probably the funniest anime that I took so seriously.(If that makes any sense)

I've watched a handful of other romance shows like Midori Days, Dears, Chobits, Please Teacher and the like. Most aren't bad and are infact a good watch but hardly leave me with the same kinds of impressions.

Oh and someone mentioned Diamond Daydreams. I absolutely loved the "ok well here comes the totally sappy happy endin....what?" They weren't depressing, but some of them had that little twist that really made me enjoy the series more. A slow paced but strong show that you won't ever see me admit to watching to anyone's face.
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