By D.Y.
Leading up to Valentine’s Day is a perfect time to catch up on romance anime for those in love or seeking love. On the other hand there’s also anime out there for those of you NOT interested in love. Regardless of which side you’re on there’s viewing options for both those in favor and opposed to Valentine’s Day. Here are 5 Valentine’s Day and 5 Anti-Valentine’s Day anime suggestions for your enjoyment.
VALENTINE’S DAY
- Golden Time
What if you can reinvent yourself? Choose a different path, make new friends, fall in love for the first time… again. You can if you’re Banri Tada who developed amnesia after an accident in high school. Now beginning college and putting his past behind him, he starts a relationship with Kouko Kaga. The course of this drama follows the ups and downs of being in a new relationship.
- From Me to You: Kimi ni Todoke
Relive your puppy love days as you watch Kuronuma Sawako experience her first crush. Sawako is an awkward high school girl who’s kindhearted but has trouble communicating with her peers. She’s also naïve and clueless when it comes to the most basic things like smiling, making friends, and love. This is very unfortunate for Kazehaya Shouta who’s infatuated with her. Subtle gestures don’t always work; sometimes a blatant confession of love is the best.
- Clannad
Clannad displays how some of the best relationships began in friendship. Tomoya Okazaki and Furukawa Nagisa meet one day on the way walking to school. Furukawa tells Tomoya she has a dream to start a drama club. Seeing the pureness of her heart Tomoya decides to do all he can to make sure her dream is realized. As the collaborate, they grow a deep bond which eventually turns into love.
- Ita Kiss: Itazura na Kiss
Love can take time, but Aihara Kotoko is very patient. Kotoko stays faithful and maintains her crush on the most popular and intelligent guy in high school, Irie Naoki. This drama follows the trials and tribulations through all stages of a relationship from dating through post marriage.
- Toradora!
Don’t ignore what’s in front of you. Aisako Taiga and Takasu Ryuuji are two high schoolers in love with two of the most popular students. Learning of each other’s secret flames they decide to help one another win over their crushes. Only thing, now that they’ve been spending so much time together they began to grow affections for each other instead. Ain’t love funny that way.
ANTI-VALENTINE’S DAY
- School Days
If you like any of the above romance anime, you’ll like the beginning of School Days. If you love Fatal Attraction and slasher films, you’ll like the rest of it too. School Days follow the love triangle between Itou Makoto, Katsura Kotonoha, and Saionji Sekai. It’s an excellent demonstration of what can seriously go wrong if you cheat. Word of advice: Don’t’ cheat.
- Tokyo Ghoul
Boy meets girl. Boy takes girl out for coffee. Girl turns boy into ghoul… It’s a bummer when first dates don’t work out. In the world of Tokyo Ghoul, human–like creatures exist who feed off of human flesh. After nice guy, Kaneki Ken, is turned into a ghoul himself, he’s forced to live out the rest of his life amongst these creatures. Quickly, he learns that just as there are good humans there are good ghouls and just as there are bad ghouls there are bad humans. Ride this emotional roller coaster as we watch Kaneki transform from MLK to Malcolm X.
- Elfen Lied
If you like harems and you also like horror, this is the perfect anime for you. Kouta finds himself in a house full of women: a childhood friend, an orphan and a cold-hearted murderer. It may be hard to believe, but Elfen Lied does an excellent job balancing the harem qualities with the horror aspects. So, watch and find out who Kouta chooses in this terror-ridden romance.
- Guilty Crown
Encountering your favorite singer you have a crush on would be a dream come true. When Ouma Shuu meets lead singer, Yuzuriha Inori, he’s willing to do anything for her. Which naturally leads him to run an errand for her where he unfortunately gets involved with the terrorist group she happens to be a member of. There begins Shuu’s adventures where he becomes increasingly engrossed in the group’s causes and uncovers secrets hidden by the government as well as uncovers secrets in his personal life.
- From the New World: Shin Sekai Yori
Follow Watanabe Saki and her junior high friends as they grow up and explore the new world around them. Watch as they strengthen their relationship bonds and fall in and out of love with one another. Then discover this is a dystopian society where humanity is on the brink of extinction and the only way humans can have some peace of mind is to constantly engage in intimate relations to distract them from everything else that’s happening in the world. Sigh. Things to look forward to in the future.
Hope you enjoy! Watch and let me know what you think.
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