Non toxic romance that doesn’t involve high schoolers.
What are your favorites? The only thing I can think of that I’ve seen is Wotakoi and even that has a relationship in it that’s kinda toxic.
Try Cherry Magic
Watakoi has straight up physical and emotional abuse going on with that secondary couple.
You made me realize the genre is so sparse that most of what I’ve found has been manga. The single anime I can think of off the top of my head word be Signs of Affection, but it’s college and only the first season is out. As for manga:
Complete:
- Sweat and Soap - they get together early in the story and actually have sex and communicate about their problems
- Telework Yotabanashi - one volume, this is what got me introduced to the author of Sweat and Soap.
Ongoing:
- Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You. This one is much more drawn out, but the main characters are so earnest and emotionally supportive of each other.
I read lots of manga so that’s perfect. Thanks!
Hmm… it’s more self-aware toxic than non-toxic but you should try Kowloon Generic Romance.
I did enjoy that but it felt like it was other genres much more than romance.
Surreal idiot humor — series that are surreal, absurd and/or satirical because most if not all of the characters are idiots, and the world somehow matches them.
Examples: Pani Poni Dash, Galaxy Angel, Nichijou, Photon, Renkin Sankyou Magical Pokaan, Robot Girls Z, Namiuchigiwa no Muromi-san, Kill Me Baby…
Have you been watching City the Animation? Made by the same people who did Nichijou, and it shows.
Actually I haven’t, but only because I’m planning on binging it.
Sports anime about things that can only vaguely be considered sports.
Hibike! Euphonium, Initial D, March comes in like a lion are more obvious ones but band anime like K-On!, Bocchi the Rock!, and Nana also have a similar appeal.
These all have some kind of competition or performance involved, so they are structurally similar to sports anime with character drama and training/practice leading up to a big climax that caps off both the drama and the training.Maybe this genre isn’t so niche as these shows are all very popular, but I don’t often see people consider them to be similar in any way.
Genre-savvy meta-commentary. Best example I can think of is The Disastrous Life of Saiki K
Not anime but Rustlers Rhapsody is worth checking out.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rustlers’_Rhapsody
Good pick. I would say Haruhi Suzumiya, Gamers!, B-Gata H-Kei, and The Tatami Galaxy also fit this description.
IMO this is more a feature of parodies than a genre in of itself.
I’d call it a niche subgenre of parody
Fantasy exploration anime. Stuff with a strong focus on worldbuilding where the protagonists explore a vast and rich world. So stuff like Frieren, Shangri-La Frontier and Delicious in Dungeon. Plenty of fantasy anime starts off strong in this department but either abandons the exploration aspect completely or falls off.
high stakes game. its not a genre you in particular talk about specifically, but there are several entries in it that are worth watching.
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I don’t know if this counts as a genre (or subgenre), but I like works that are a blend of sci-fi and high fantansy - specifically sci-fi elements in a high fantasy setting.
The best example I can think of is Captain Corinth.
I have yet to watch an anime that satisfies this specific constraint.
Mahjong. Akagi is my favorite series of all time.
There are only a handful of series with anime adaptations, but I’ve read nearly every manga that has translations available.
Late Agriarian Economic Mercantilism Fantasy anime.
Truly strange other. For anime Blame (the city), and Knights of Sidonia (Gauna). Same author for both. Live action / novel Solaris. Babel-17 for some of the side aliens.
True, actual, Slice of Life.
This means no fantasy or sci-fi elements. I’ve seen maybe 3 that fit this category. Though I do still like some of the crazy ones like FLCL and Cardcaptors.
The three that fit are Azumanga Dioh, Lucky Star, and Food Wars (and even FW is a little shakey with the clothing explosion stuff, but that is also funny af so I let it slide.)
True, actual, Slice of Life.
This means no fantasy or sci-fi elements. I’ve seen maybe 3 that fit this category.
Bruh.
There are tons of good real-world-based slice-of-life anime out there.
Just go to AniList or similar, then filter by slice-of-life; make sure to filter out fantasy and sci-fi.
If you’re fine with a stronger focus on comedy you should watch City: The Animation.
I wasn’t aware of it but it looks perfect.
It’s by the author of Nichijou, so if you haven’t seen that classic, watch that too.
My dress up darling is really good. No fantasy or sci-fi.
There is an anime called Silver Spoon, based on a manga made by the author of Fullmetal Alchemist. It’s about a student that starts studying in a school of agriculture.