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Best Romance Anime of all Time


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Drifter_Blu



Joined: 07 Sep 2004
Posts: 8
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 6:26 pm Reply with quote
I was just thinking about this today, and I would like to know what you think are the best Romance Anime.[color=blue][/color]
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Key
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Joined: 03 Nov 2003
Posts: 18101
Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 7:16 pm Reply with quote
Despite being burdened by a lot of filler and stock situations, Ai Yori Aoshi is one of the best of recent romantic anime series. It works so well primarily because Kaoru and Aoi, its male and female leads, look and feel perfect together. The story, when it focuses on them, is entrancing, and nearly every shot of them embracing is poster-worthy.

Most people would probably also bring up Oh!/Ah! My Goddess as another example of a great romantic anime, although that one is much more gimmicky. Still, Belldandy and Keiichi have long been considered one of the premier (if not the premier) anime couples.

Blue Gender and RahXephon are both examples of action-oriented mecha series which have surprisingly strong romantic stories mixed in. Neither is a true romance, however.

I have heard people mention Love Hina, Kare Kano/His and Her Circumstances, and Fushigi Yugi as being great romantic series, but can't personally vouch for any of those.

If you want classic anime romance, I've heard a lot of good things about Maison Ikkoku but, again, can't personally vouch for that.
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Perfectsword



Joined: 30 Aug 2004
Posts: 527
Location: Somewhere in NY
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 7:47 pm Reply with quote
I definitaly think that Voices of a distant star is my favorite romance anime i have seen.

it made me cry Crying or Very sad Crying or Very sad Crying or Very sad
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Tony K.
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Joined: 18 Nov 2003
Posts: 11250
Location: Frisco, TX
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 8:06 pm Reply with quote
I haven't seen too many, but I'll definately say Kare Kano is one my favorites, aside from its abrupt ending.

I liked Love Hina the series a lot the first time, but I lost interest during a 2nd viewing. The X-Mas Special, however, is top notch. It cuts down a lot on the slapstick and fanservice, delivering a very quaint romance scenario.

I didn't find too much romance in RahXephon the series, but the movie did a much better job, in my opinion.

Fushigi Yuugi is very soap opera-ish, but still pretty good at some points of the show. It's probably the best action/romance series I've seen (but that's not saying much since I haven't seen a lot Razz).

I'm really eager to see Oh! My Goddess and Maison Ikkoku some day. I hear they're excellent. Smile
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jfrog



Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 925
Location: Seattle
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 8:07 pm Reply with quote
I'm a pretty big fan of Macross: Do You Remember Love? I know it's technically mecha anime, but the love triangle is just as integral to the plot as the war with the Zentraedi and Meltrandi. I know it's cheesy and way too melodramatic for its own good, but that's why I love it so much.

Voices of a Distant Star and Maison Ikokku came close, though. After I got through each of those for the first time, I went into the same weird emotional state that I get from Casablanca, Blankets, and...um, Battle Royale (don't laugh). Millennium Actress was also pretty romantic, but I wouldn't say that was really the focus of the movie.
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Ken Hayashi



Joined: 13 Apr 2004
Posts: 752
Location: Singapore
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 8:19 pm Reply with quote
Perfectsword wrote:
I definitaly think that Voices of a distant star is my favorite romance anime i have seen.

it made me cry Crying or Very sad Crying or Very sad Crying or Very sad


It is too short, and does not have enough character development. Still, it IS a good romance story. It has so much potential to be BIG, all it needs is to have the story expanded into an OVA at least.

I will personally vouch for Ai Yori Aoshi.

For Rahxephon, you'll just have to look at the relationship between Ayato and Haruka to know theirs is one of the most endearing of relationships. spoiler[Man, Haruka has been waiting so long for him. 12 years is a long time, not knowing if he even remembers you.] That's why I loved the ending of the series so much. spoiler[That was a flash-back to when Haruka and Ayato were teenagers when they first met]. It really explained the story quite a bit and made sense of why Mishima kept appearing to Ayato (that's the romantic part of it).

There was this one moment in Macross: Do You Remember Love which made me feel very sad, that was when spoiler[Minmei walks into Rick's room to see Lisa together with Rick] The animation sucks, with lots of re-used footage but that scene stuck in my mind for ages. It was one of the saddest scenes I can remember.

Kare Kano is good too, but not as saccharine sweet as Ai Yori Aoshi. More slice of life, school-kids-discovering-love-for-the-first-time type of romance.
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jfrog



Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 925
Location: Seattle
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 8:29 pm Reply with quote
Hey! I like the animation in DYRL? Maybe it's because my VHS fansub is getting worn out and the picture is really dark, but I think there's lots of visual beauty in that movie. The scene where they switch off the gravity on the Macross and everything floats up, for example, never fails to take my breath away.
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balla



Joined: 15 Jun 2004
Posts: 255
Location: Toronto aka T.DOT
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 9:13 pm Reply with quote
I know this one probably won't count but the Rurouni Kenshin OVA is a great example. spoiler[why the love and betrayal and then lova again between kenshin and tomoe ]is romantic. The violence and the overall fluency of the plot may cover this.
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Joe Arizona



Joined: 06 Jul 2004
Posts: 144
Location: Phoenix
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 9:31 pm Reply with quote
Ai Yori Aoshi is the best I've seen, romance-wise. I almost always wanted to celebrate everytime Kaoru and Aoi finally had some moments to themselves. Those were two characters I really enjoyed rooting for. Being able to see all the ranges of Aoi's emotions, other than the demure china doll she portayed to all the secondary characters was a hoot. My favorite Aoi moment:spoiler[ when she temporarily went all cat-girl over being able to smell Kaoru's scent on his futon and pillows.] Kaoru, like most of us, brings some emotional baggage, but is able to overcome it much better, it seems, than Soichiro Arima in Kare Kano. The lavish art and colors, along with what must be the Japanese perception of young America that is Tina Foster makes this series a winner. Kare Kano was great. The darkness that began enveloping Arima, while Yukino began flourishing as a individual with and without him, I thought gave a hint of possible outcomes for their relationship, despite the way the anime ended. Asaba rocked!
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deathbringer



Joined: 21 Aug 2004
Posts: 276
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 9:56 pm Reply with quote
Love Hina, Ai Yori Aoshi, Midori no Hibi (wish it were longer), Maison Ikkoku, and Onegai Teacher are all very good.

Edit: Wow, how'd I forget Saikano and Oh! My Goddess?


Last edited by deathbringer on Wed Sep 15, 2004 7:38 am; edited 1 time in total
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Kazuki-san



Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 2251
Location: Houston, TX
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 9:58 pm Reply with quote
OMG Kimi ga is so reakl it maek me crie!!!!!11111111

(not really, but I felt I had to express that since Nagi expects something like that to appear sooner or later Razz )

I would have to say that RahXephon is very good, probably not the best, but pretty high up there.

Like Ken said, their relationship is quite unique. spoiler[And poor Haruka, to wait so long, thinking of Ayato, not knowing what happened to him, to get him back, but lose him again in the end.. ] Pretty touching if you ask me.
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dormcat
Encyclopedia Editor


Joined: 08 Dec 2003
Posts: 9902
Location: New Taipei City, Taiwan, ROC
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 10:11 pm Reply with quote
Kazuki-san wrote:
I would have to say that RahXephon is very good, probably not the best, but pretty high up there.

Like Ken said, their relationship is quite unique. spoiler[And poor Haruka, to wait so long, thinking of Ayato, not knowing what happened to him, to get him back, but lose him again in the end.. ]

Huh?! Which one are you talking about, TV or movie? spoiler[The timelime was totally rewritten ("tuned") at the end of the TV series; they were married, with a purple-haired daughter Quon. Shocked At the end of the movie, they had been married for 60 years. Ayato passed away, and Reika appears as their granddaughter. Rolling Eyes] Unless you are talking about the moment just before the end of TV finale, when spoiler[Ayato left Haruka for the final battle.]
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Kazuki-san



Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 2251
Location: Houston, TX
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 10:31 pm Reply with quote
dormcat wrote:
spoiler[Shocked At the end of the movie, they had been married for 60 years. Ayato passed away, and Reika appears as their granddaughter. Rolling Eyes]


Movie.. but actually... spoiler[they hadn't been married for 60 yrs.. Haruka was given the memories of them living together, that was his gift to her.. then he told her to wait for him, and at the end of the movie, he comes back for her]

Also, the movie is nothing more than a retelling of the TV series from Haruka's point of view. It answers some of the questions that the TV series never did, which is why I assume it was made. And I also believe it answers the question of exactly what was going on at the end of the TV series, since most people couldn't figure it out.. spoiler[since at the end of the movie we learn that Ayato gives Haruka memories of them being together, it's most likely that the ending of the TV series is the same thing.. memories of them being together, just at an earlier point in time than we see in the movie. ]

As for Reika spoiler[it's not a surprise that she appears as the granddaugher.. after all, Ayato did see her quite often, so that name being adopted isn't that weird.. and of course it makes sense that she would look like Haruka.. although I will admit she looks a lot like Haruka... well.. exactly like.. ]


Last edited by Kazuki-san on Tue Sep 14, 2004 10:49 pm; edited 1 time in total
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gnollman



Joined: 05 Oct 2003
Posts: 535
Location: Richmond, KY
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 10:45 pm Reply with quote
Well, I liked Kimi ga nozomu eien.... I also think that the Macross love story is pretty nice... as is the one in Iketeru Futari... and Kare Kano.... and Sakura Tsuushin, though somewhat misguided...
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Key
Moderator


Joined: 03 Nov 2003
Posts: 18101
Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)
PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2004 10:50 pm Reply with quote
Perfectsword wrote:
I definitaly think that Voices of a distant star is my favorite romance anime i have seen.

it made me cry Crying or Very sad Crying or Very sad Crying or Very sad


Oh, yes, I completely forgot to mention that one. It is one of the top entries in recent romantic anime, despite being only 25 minutes long and very much on the melancholy side.

Saikano also comes to mind. It is harsh, brutally frank, powerful, and tragic on a Major Tear-Jerker level, though it really is a desperate love story at heart. It is also one of the best series of any type out there right now.

And I suppose I can't forget Escaflowne. I think the movie version makes for a better romantic story than the series, though the series brings about a more convincing love triangle. Either way it's another example of a worthwhile love story hidden behind mecha action.
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