It was so nice, I’m doing it twice! My last Top 10 list was so well received that I thought I would do another one. This one will be the same as before. It will include shows that I have either watched, am watching, or plan to watch. Some of them I’m just going on what I’ve seen so far and what the description gives, so don’t take these to heart! Although, with this list, I actually watched the majority of these so I know enough to comment on them. A lot of these are newer shows but some are shows a few years older and I’m just now getting to talk about them. Without further adieu, let’s get into it!

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1. Blue Period

Second-year high school student Yatora Yaguchi is a delinquent with excellent grades, but is unmotivated to find his true calling in life. Yatora spends his days working hard to maintain his academic standing while hanging out with his equally unambitious friends. However, beneath his carefree demeanor, Yatora does not enjoy either activity and wishes he could find something more fulfilling. While mulling over his predicament, Yatora finds himself staring at a vibrant landscape of Shibuya. Unable to express how he feels about the unusually breathtaking sight, he picks up a paintbrush, hoping his thoughts will be conveyed on canvas. After receiving praise for his work, the joy he feels sends him on a journey to enter the extremely competitive Tokyo University of the Arts-a school that only accepts one in every 200 applicants.

Facing talented peers, a lack of understanding of the fine arts, and struggles to obtain his parents’ approval, Yatora is confronted by much adversity. In the hopes of securing one of the five prestigious spots in his program of choice, Yatora must show that his inexperience does not define him.

Via myanimelist

I LOVED this show. The first episode had my attention right away. It’s funny because I’ve had this feeling with very few shows. There are some that I watch and find entertaining but then there are some that become so much more than just a show to me. I have a feeling Blue Period is on that track. Instantly, I was able to recognize the emotions and feelings of the main character while he was trying to figure out what he wanted and what he liked in life. That was me not even a few months ago.

For him, it was art, for me it is writing. With the range of experiences and emotions as he tried to do his best in a subject, he knew nothing about, you could practically feel the anticipation and anxiousness of each episode. It also showed the unfamiliar feeling to him of having to really work hard at something but still enjoying it nonetheless.

It had been releasing a new episode every week on Netflix since October and it’s all done so if you wanna binge it on a weekend, I understand.

2. My Dress-Up Darling

Traumatized by a childhood incident with a friend who took exception to his love of traditional dolls, doll-artisan hopeful Wakana Gojou passes his days as a loner, finding solace in the home ec room at his high school. To Wakana, people like beautiful Marin Kitagawa, a trendy girl who’s always surrounded by a throng of friends, is practically an alien from another world. But when cheerful Marin—never one to be shy—spots Wakana sewing away one day after school, she barges in with the aim of roping her quiet classmate into her secret hobby: cosplay! Will Wakana’s wounded heart be able to handle the invasion from this sexy alien?!

via myanimelist

Out of this list, I would say this show is probably one of the most creative. It is also a dream of mine; to have a friend that can create different costumes for cosplay purposes. Cosplaying has always attracted me and I’ve wanted to try but alas, I don’t have a bone in my body that knows how to sew or put together fabrics to make an outfit. I’m not that stylish.

What makes the show really cute is how the main character slowly finds the confidence to love what he does even after being picked on for liking dolls when he was younger. This show is really prevalent now because I see it all the time on social media and even at work how society loves to place labels on people for liking things. We are also obsessed with gender and trying to place genders into a box. I’m hoping the show will tackle some more about the topic but for now, it is just a really cute and funny show.

You can find weekly episodes being uploaded on Funimation or Crunchyroll!

3. Police in a Pod

After graduating from high school, Mai Kawai’s top priority was to find a job with a stable income to avoid turning out like her father. However, despite having taken a variety of civil service exams, she was faced with a harsh reality: nearly every institute denied her entry. The only place that accepted her was a police academy, which she reluctantly joined. Even now that she is an actual police officer, the world continues to be cruel to Mai. Due to her profession, she unexpectedly receives constant criticism from disgruntled citizens. Disheartened by the hostile treatment, she decides to submit a letter of resignation after just a few months of employment. But on the same day Mai chooses to quit, she meets Seiko Fuji—the former ace of the Criminal Affairs Division who is assigned as her new instructor. Finding her new coworker to be enchanting, Mai delays leaving and gives her uninspiring job a second chance.

via myanimelist

Each list I just have to include a comedy show and an anime series depicting what it’s like to be a female police officer in Japan was the way to go. What makes it even funnier is the fact that the MC doesn’t even really want to be an officer but it was the only place she could get in. Even though there are a lot of laughs it still does a good job of giving us a little drama when it comes to the citizens and their problems. It’s also pretty refreshing since their police officers are very different from ours. You might expect a lot of violence but truthfully, you get a lot of scenarios where they were really helping their community and their people. Or they try to but it doesn’t always turn out that way.

Funimation has a few episodes up already if you were wanting to give it a chance.

4. My Senpai is Annoying

At a certain trading company, saleswoman Futaba Igarashi has managed to hold her respectable job for almost two years thanks to the guidance of her senior coworker—Harumi Takeda. However, due to Igarashi’s short stature, Takeda often teases her and treats her like a kid, leaving Igarashi constantly annoyed by his antics. Despite this, Igarashi notices Takeda’s reliability as he is always ready to help whenever something at their workplace goes awry. As Igarashi and Takeda spend more time together, their relationship soon develops further than simply being coworkers at the office.

via myanimelist

Let me tell you why I sort of relate to this show; me and the MC both look 15. I know how annoying it can be when you are treated like a kid and you’re a grown adult. On one hand, I do appreciate the wonderful genes that keep me looking youthful but on the other hand, I feel like my face and my age do not go hand in hand. To be fair, Igarashi has it worst than I do because she actually looks 12. This is another cute show I picked up with a focus on workplace romance. It’s perfect if you’re just wanting something to quickly binge watch or just looking for something that won’t stress you out every week.

You can find this series on Funimation.

5. Sasaki and Miyano

Miyano spends his days peacefully reading Boys’ Love comics and worrying about how girly his face is-until a chance encounter leads to a scuffle with his senior Sasaki. Intrigued by his feisty junior Miyano, delinquent Sasaki uses every opportunity he can to get closer…

via myanimelist

My fellow BL fans, I’ll never forget you! I had seen the ads for this show on Twitter and was interested so I am giving it a shot. Let me tell you, it’s not disappointing. It’s a wonderful, cute, slice-of-life piece of fluff. Romance has been slacking for me lately. I haven’t been able to find good romance anime without harems or just bad relationships in general. I’m sorry but I will take mushy, lovey-dovey shows over toxic any day. The show will definitely have you smiling and leave you feeling warm and fuzzy inside.

You can watch this show on Funimation.

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6. Sabikui Bisco

A plague-like wind blows across the arid, sandy expanse of a post-apocalyptic Japan. As it sweeps over the living and nonliving alike, rust is all that remains in its wake. The cause of the catastrophic state of the world is believed to be mushroom spores. Bisco Akaboshi, known as the “Man-Eating Mushroom,” is a wanted criminal archer whose arrows instantly grow mushrooms wherever they land. However, he is in truth a “Mushroom Protector,” a person who spreads fungi in order to enrich the land and return it to its previous state. Alongside the crab Akutagawa and young doctor Milo Nekoyanagi, Bisco ventures through the wastelands of Japan searching for the legendary “Sabikui”—a panacean mushroom said to devour all forms of rust.

via myanimelist

Now, this show literally just started airing. I believe there are only about two episodes right now. Upon strolling through Crunchyroll (as if I don’t have a backlog of anime to watch already) I decided to pick this show up and was intrigued. It is set in a post-apocalyptic world and there’s some action and fighting. It might be a little confusing when the series starts but I have high hopes. The premise is something I haven’t heard of before, specifically with fungi, but I like a good survival-type show. Apparently, people can get rust, actual rusting on their body which can cause them to deteriorate which they believe come from mushrooms.

However, our mc secretly uses mushrooms in order to come up with a cure for rust. The government is also after him, which is never good, it was a nice introductory episode. It also gives me Sakugan vibes but the two are completely different.

This series is available on Crunchyroll and Funimation.

7. Run with the Wind

Former ace runner of Sendai Josei High School, Kakeru Kurahara is chased away from a convenience store for shoplifting. Shaking off his pursuer, he runs into Haiji Kiyose, another student from his university. Haiji is impressed by Kakeru’s agility and persuades him to live in Chikusei-sou, the run-down apartment where Haiji resides along with eight other students. Having lost his entire apartment deposit at a mahjong parlor, Kakeru accepts the offer reluctantly. However, Haiji reveals a secret during Kakeru’s welcoming party: the apartment is actually the dormitory of the Kansei University Track Club.

He unveils his ultimate goal of participating in the Hakone Ekiden—one of the most prominent university marathon relay races in Japan. Unfortunately, all the residents apart from Haiji and Kakeru are complete running novices. Worse still, none of the inhabitants are even remotely interested in being involved with Haiji’s ridiculous plan! With only months before the deadline, will the fourth-year student be able to convince them otherwise and realize his elusive dream of running in the Hakone Ekiden?

Via myanimelist

This is from a few years ago and is an underrated gem. It’s not your typical sports anime (but then again, are any of them?) Correct me if I am wrong, but I don’t know too much about running anime or shows about running. As you might expect, I was a little hesitant because I thought, “Well how interesting can this be? They’re just running” then I watched the first episode, paused my television, and went “What in the world am I watching?” The rest is history. It was 23 episodes of my emotions doing somersaults. In the beginning, I was annoyed. I really, REALLY, did not like Haiji. He was being too pushy about running for me.

But then throughout the show, my feelings did a 180 and I liked him. He was still annoying, don’t get me wrong, and I didn’t like how he basically forced the team to happen but, well you would have to watch and be the judge.

Towards the end, I found myself cheering for a fake track team and wanting everyone to do their best and succeed. Also, Prince is my favorite character and the most relatable. He was really struggling the whole time and I liked that. Not him struggling but I liked the depiction that was most realistic. Some sports shows really have first-timers becoming the ace of a sport in like 4 months.

Never played the sport, never watched it, nothing. In RWTW, it really showed everyone who had never done track struggle and is on their last breaths, probably almost literally for some of them, and shows how nothing is easy.

This gem can be found on Crunchyroll.

8. Tsurune

“Tsurune”—It’s the sound made by the bowstring when an arrow is released, and the sound that inspired Minato Narumiya to learn Kyuudo, a modern Japanese martial art focusing on archery. However, an incident during his last middle school tournament caused him to quit the sport.

But soon, many factors conspire to make Minato take up the bow once again: the start of a new Kyuudo club in his high school, a chance encounter with a mysterious archer, and the support of his childhood friends, Seiya Takehaya and Ryouhei Yamanouchi. Together with his childhood friends and his new teammates, Kaito Onogi and Nanao Kisaragi, Minato rekindles his love for Kyuudo and works with his team toward their aim of winning the prefectural tournament.

via myanimelist

If there was one sport I wish I could have practiced, it would be archery. I tried it once when I was young and sucked. Plus, it’s not really a big sport in most schools so I didn’t really get the chance again. The show is a nice slice-of-life about archery and the drama between the new club members. If you think it’s just about archery, you’re wrong. Sports are NEVER just about the sport in anime. I learned that a long time ago with Kuroko’s No Basket (akabestbasketballanimeever). You’re going to have some members that have a history with others and there’s something preventing them from being great.

Again, I found myself rooting and cheering for these animated people, especially during the tournament where [redacted] and [redacted] happened. I was on edge and stressed!

I do wish the series was a little longer, maybe a few more episodes. But, it was announced a few days ago that a movie was being released so it’s the small victories that matter.

You can find this show on Crunchyroll.

9. Sanrio Boys

Kouta Hasegawa is a completely normal high school student who likes his Pompompurin stuffed animal, a Sanrio character modelled after a Golden Retriever, which his grandmother gave him when he was young. However, an incident in which other kids accused him of being girly for liking Sanrio characters made him ashamed of his attachment to Pompompurin.

Through a series of unexpected events, Kouta ends up meeting others at school who also like Sanrio characters—Yuu Mizuno, a flashy boy who is popular with girls; Shunsuke Yoshino, a member of the soccer team; Ryou Nishimiya, an underclassman who is a library assistant; and Seiichirou Minamoto, the student council president.

Through his new friends, Kouta learns that there is no need to be embarrassed for liking Sanrio characters; and together, they aim to create a play for the cultural festival in order to transform his normal school life into a sparkly one.

via myanimelist

So this is kind of similar to My Dress-Up Darling in terms of having a conversation about what’s masculine and whatnot. Now, this show does dive deeper into the issue with more drama but don’t be fooled, it is a nice, warm-hearted show. I have a soft spot for shows where a character is ashamed to like something but someone amazing comes along and tells them there should be no shame in what they love. I LIVE for that kind of friendship. I’m 3 episodes in and I can tell it’s about to get even better. So far, there’s nothing too crazy going on. It’s looking to just be a nice and comforting show. If you’re not into high school stories then I’d skip but if you are I’d give it a chance. Fair warning, there is a LOT of product placement/advertising since it is about Sanrio but it’s not bothersome in my opinion.

You can find this gem on Crunchyroll.

10. Elegant Yokai Apartment Life

When his new high school’s dormitory burns down, Yushi Inaba is left scrambling to find housing that a sixteen year-old orphan can afford. The only place he finds is an old apartment building called Kotobuki-so, where the rent is cheap and the building is… haunted?! A ghostly boy wanders the halls with his dog. The cook is completely invisible except for her hands. And the landlord is a giant youkai, who doesn’t like it when the rent is late! The unfazed human residents live right alongside their unearthly neighbors; and now that Yushi has joined their community, his life is about to get much stranger!

Via anime planet

Okay, so I’m 4 episodes into this and I just know this show is going to be a favorite for me. I have been in a slice-of-life mood as you can see. It’s just nice to have some fuzzy anime to watch amid all of the dark, depressing, and/or gore. I also sense a bit of, or maybe a small hint of a possible BL going on but I could be completely off!

The yokai are all so cute and different and I’m loving learning about their different backstories. From what I can see, they might also give some more background on the main character because there’s no way they can just leave us out to dry like that. The ghostly boy and his dog are my favorites so far. His backstory is also one of the saddest. It seems like a short series so I’m not anticipating anything too heavy in the shape of the plot, but I also would like some of the already revealed plot to be expanded on.

You can find this show on Crunchyroll.

And there you have it; 10 MORE promising-looking anime that I have stumbled upon.

If you would like to read my last Top 10 list, follow the link below.

 

Please let me know if you’ve watched any of these and what were your thoughts on them if you have. Also, which show sounds/looks the most interesting to you? Please feel free to leave a like, comment, or share this post, and thanks for reading!