A Strange and Shadowland

I don’t know about you guys, but I’m sick and tired of seeing “Top ___ Best Anime of All Time” lists that are nothing but shounen. So, with "My Happy Marriage" getting a little attention from the anime community, I wanted to put together a list of some romance anime that I consider good “starters” for the genre. Because if I were just now becoming an anime fan, I’d think all there was to offer was shounen action series.

And by “starters” I mean basic stuff that’s not too…out there, and actually involves the characters getting together instead of just harems or using romance as a side plot (sorry Ouran High School Host Club and My Next Life as a Villainess). 

So if you’re new to anime and want stuff that’s not just guys beating the shit out of each other (which is also fun, don’t get me wrong), here are some basics.

Taisho Maiden Fairy Tale- When the pessimistic Tamahiko Shima loses all function in his right arm, his family sends him away to live in the mountains with the cheerful, hard working Yuzuki Tachibana…who was purchased by the Shima family to pay off her family’s debts and basically act as a caretaker/future bride for Tamahiko so they’d never have to deal with him again. It’s a more cheerful version of My Happy Marriage (without the supernatural stuff), except in this one, the guy is the one who has massive self-esteem issues and an abusive family. There are still very serious themes, but ultimately it’s not meant to make you cry every episode. I swear it’s so good, but nobody watched it!

Horimiya- A slice of life in which pretty and popular high school queen bee Hori, finds out her quiet, unassuming classmate Miyamura is hiding piercings and tattoos that could get him expelled. The two gradually find out more about each other and get together in the most realistic way I’ve seen depicted in an anime. It’s also fucking hysterical and genuinely emotional.

Recovery of an MMO Junkie- Another slice of life that focuses on two adults who meet in an MMO game without realizing they also know each other in real life. I don’t want to say much more than that. It’s adorable, and the main character is so relatable it hurts.

Love with Yamada-kun at Level 999- Speaking of MMOs, this is a newer series about Akane Kinoshita, a college first year who’s reeling from a bad break up. In an attempt to get back at her ex, she winds up meeting Akito Yamada, a popular gamer who happens to be in her guild in the MMO they both play at an IRL meetup. The two go from acquaintances to something more as they keep running into each other. Even more relatable main characters and just wholesome relationships all around.

Snow White With The Red Hair- A fantasy in which an apothecary named Shirayuki (meaning, you guessed it, “snow white”) runs away from her home in order to escape becoming the concubine of her town’s prince. While fleeing, she is rescued by Zen, the prince of a neighboring country, and she ends up becoming an herbalist to repay him. I have a habit of comparing this to Akatsuki no Yona, even though the two aren’t really that alike. This is more romance driven while Akatsuki no Yona is more of a serious historical fantasy with romance elements (Yona manga is amazing, but the anime barely scratches the surface, so that’s why I didn’t include it).

Sasaki to Miyano- When the shy, easily flustered Miyano meets Sasaki, a cool “delinquent” upperclassmen, the two end up bonding over manga…specifically BL manga. That’s right, Miyano is a fudanshi, but due to his small stature and somewhat feminine appearance, he’s constantly trying to convince others that he’s not interested in having his own love story where he’d be reduced to a stereotypical doe-eyed uke. But as Sasaki and Miyano spend more time together, they realize that what they have is more than friendship, and they have to come to terms with their own perception of gay relationships. This is my favorite romance of all time. It’s a slow burn, but boy is it worth it. Their relationship is so natural and realistic, just like Horimiya. Just two people hanging out and bonding over things the way people do in real life!

Given: The story of some boys in a band with trauma. Enough said. It's great. Go watch it.

Bloom Into You- Yuu Koito is a high school girl who’s been waiting her whole life for her own perfect romance to start…but when she receives a confession, she realizes she doesn’t know how to respond when she’s just not into the guy. And then she gets another confession…this time from the cool student council president Touko Nanami, who basically jumpstarts her lesbian awakening. Very cute story about how we perceive the concept of love vs actually feeling it. Also has a canonically aro/ace side character, so that’s a win for me. Another show like this is Adachi to Shimamura (but I honestly don’t remember much about it. It just didn’t stick with me as much).

Ore Monogatari- Takeo Gouda is a tall, bulky high school first year with a sensitive heart of gold. He wants nothing more than to find his own true love, but most girls are intimidated by his enormous stature, and they end up falling for his conventionally attractive friend instead. That is, until he meets the tiny, adorable Rinko Yamato. He falls in love instantly, but he’s sure she’s interested in his best friend like everyone else, so he vows to help get them together, even though his heart is breaking. Peak himbo behavior. Pure of heart, dumb of ass.

Yuri on Ice- Yes it’s the gay figure skating anime everyone knows. And yes it’s a fucking romance, okay? I will die on this hill. The romance between Viktor and Yuri is just as important as the plot!

Kaguya-sama Love Is War- Two insanely smart high school students both have a crush on the other, but since they’re…you know…high schoolers, neither of them wants to admit it first. So they come up with increasingly convoluted plans to get the other to confess first. This will go down as one of the best of all time. It’s a hilarious yet poignant modern classic.

Fruits Basket- I’ve talked about it before and I’ll talk about it again. A romance “comedy” that slowly morphs into a drama about a girl named Tohru who finds herself living with the mysterious Sohma family after her mother dies. Little does she know, the Sohmas are the victims of a  (somewhat silly, but ultimately tragic) curse that she must fight to break. Even though I’m more into it for the family drama, the romance is still top tier and plays an important role in the story. This is my second favorite anime of all time, and it’s a classic for a reason. If anyone hasn’t watched it yet, GO WATCH IT! IT WILL RIP YOU TO SHREDS!

And now for some honorable mentions that didn't quite fit into the regular list:

Ride Your Wave- A movie about a surfer who falls in love with a firefighter……and I’m not going to say any more than that. Go into it blind. If you like stuff like Your Name, this is a good one to watch.

Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun- A comedy about a high school girl who finds out the upperclassman she has a crush on is actually a shoujo manga artist, and no matter how she tries to confess to him, he just never gets it.

The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague- A slow burn slice of life that focuses on a guy with ice powers who has a crush on his coworker. That’s it. That’s the show. When I say slow, I mean SLOW. It’s perfectly cute and fluffy, but my god does it take forever to get anywhere with these two.

Skip to Loafer- A high strung, small town girl decides to go to high school in Tokyo, where she meets a variety of classmates, including the laid back Sousuke Shima. The unlikely pair become friends, and soon enough, she starts to feel something more than friendship. The only reason I didn’t include it in the main list is because they don’t get together by the end of the first season, but it’s still really cute (also canonically trans character for the win!?)

I have posts for this~!

[Book of Shadows]

[Grimoire/Book of Shadows Ideas] (tw: gif)

[Grimoire Organization]

[Grimoire Organization Ideas]

[Grimoire Prompts] (tw: gif)

[How to Make a Witchy Planner]

[Ideas for Your Grimoire]

[Ideas for Your Grimoire or Book of Shadows]

[Journaling Styles as Books of Shadows]

[Organizing Your Grimoire (Tips from a Neat Freak Virgo)]

Richtor’s Grimoire Tips: 

[Part 01 - Introduction]

[Part 02 - Styles of Grimoires]

[Part 03 - What Should I Write?]

[Part 04 - Organization]

[Part 05 - Decoration]

[Thoughts on Keeping a Magical Book or ‘Book of Shadows’]

[What to Put in Your Book of Shadows?]

Witch Tip - Book of Shadows / Grimoire:

[Part 01]

[Part 02]

The World of Grimoires:

[Part 01 - Why Keep a Grimoire?]

[Part 02 - Choose Your Weapons]

[Part 03 - Grimoire Styles]

Long story short: what do you want to put into it? 

It is your book, to do with as you will. Put in whatever you think you will want / need to know, that reflects your style of practicing, etc. 

In a tl;dr version of all those links, and a modified version of [this post], here’s some ideas on things you can put into a grimoire (based mostly around informational purposes). 

This list is not complete / extensive / ; moreso, it has a lot of different suggestions to give you some ideas of things you can put in. 

about you as a witch

these could be in the format of journal pages

what you want out of witchcraft, information about your natal / birth chart if you like astrology, any notes of things you do day to day, etc.

terminology of terms within witchcraft and magic

spell timing, such as Sabbats and esbats, moon phases, days of the week, time of the day, etc.

correspondences for herbs, essential oils, crystals / minerals, colors, the four elements, planetary associations, etc.

substitutions for particular items like herbs, crystals, etc.

any safety precautions for working with certain herbs, crystals, etc.

information on how to determine personal correspondences and associations

magical / non-magical materials that can be used in spells

information on the “basics” of witchcraft

what intent means, and how to work with it

what it means to visualize, and alternatives if you can’t

what meditation can do for magic, and how to do it

what channeling energy means, and how to do it

what it means to charge / enchant objects, and methods to do it

setting up an altar / magical work space, and how to do it

information on any religions you work within

example: for Wicca, you may wish to write out the Wiccan Rede, how to cast a circle, how to call the four corners / elements / guardians of the watchtowers, how to set up an altar, etc.

information on any deities you work with / wish to work with

offering ideas for any deities you work with

invocations for any deities you work with

rituals / dedications / prayers to any deities you work with

information on any spirits you work with / wish to work with

offering ideas for any spirits you work with (i.e. the fae, elemental spirits like sylphs and salamanders, etc.)

information on the history of witchcraft

information on familiars and working with animals in magic

information on varieties of magic

examples: energy work, candle magic, crystal magic / crystal grids, sachet magic, knot magic, kitchen magic / tea magic, bath magic, traditional magic, urban / modern magic, chaos magic, pop culture magic, green magic, hedgework, spirit work, shadow work, blood magic, sex magic, necromancy / death magic, etc.

MAGIC NO LONGER LOOKS LIKE A WORD TO ME

any safety precautions for working with certain varieties of magic

any divination methods you wish to try

examples: definitions of the tarot cards, tarot spreads, cartomancy interpretations, definitions of runes, reading tea leaves (tasseomancy) / coffee grounds, tips on pendulum reading, etc.

spells that you write yourself, or sigils you create yourself

any notes and observations you made when testing that spell / using it

spells or sigils from external sources that you may want to use and/or reference

specific categories of spells

examples: protection, cleansing / purification, banishing, binding, healing, new beginnings / moving on, happiness, self love, relationships, friendships, glamours, confidence, strength, energy, luck, money / wealth, school, employment, sleep, dreams / nightmares, divination, magic amplification, etc.

recipes for potions, powders, oils, tinctures, etc.

chants and incantations

blessings

curses

information on any magical groups or covens you participate in

coven rules and guidelines, members lists and contact information, etc.