Romance anime has, historically, been a tough sell for me despite the genre’s prevalence and popularity. I hadn’t seen too many, so it wasn’t the fairest attitude, but what I did see really left me cold. Everything I saw in the “romance” genre were anime filled with inane plot points, needless fanservice that was supposed to be considered romantic, and the most unrealistic characters in anime I’d seen. I wrote the genre off and stuck to good, old-fashioned shōnen series likeDemon Slayer, Blue Lock,and more.
Then I sawBlue Box,and that changed everything for me. I never realized thatromance anime could not only be good,but inBlue Box’scase, be great.Blue Boxchanged my opinion of the romance genre as a whole, and I couldn’t be more grateful to it. After watchingBlue Box,and realizing just how good romance anime could be, I decided to take a look at everything else the genre had to offer. Since watching the series, I’ve seen a ton of other romance anime that got 8/10s from me, and a few 9/10s I think everyone should watch — even if they’re not fans of the romance genre like I wasn’t.
Blue Box is Straightforward in the Best Way Possible
A Classic Love Triangle
Blue Boxis one of thebest romance anime series of all timebecause of how simple it is. The series is set around Taiki Inomata. He’s an optimistic, hard-working young man at Eimei Junior and Senior High. He’s on the badminton team, and he’s one of the best players representing his school. He has a crush on his senior, Chinatsu Kano, the star of the girl’s basketball team at the same school. The two are often the first to get to practice early, and if that wasn’t enough, Chinatsu later moves in with Taiki after her parents leave the country.
Though casual fans may not associate it with the magazine,Blue Boxis currently being published in Shonen Jump.
While their relationship seems complicated enough due to their new proximity, Taiki has a childhood friend who develops a crush on him too. Hina Chōno is the star of the girl’s rhythmic gymnastics team and a girl wanted by all. She starts to have feelings for Taiki,creating a love triangle where either of the two female love interests has a chanceto win Taiki’s affection.
What Makes Blue Box Special
No Boring Tropes Found Here
Blue Boxisn’t filled with thesame boring anime tropesthat weaken many other romance series. First and foremost, it has a solid foundation any anime series should strive for. It has great animation, unique character designs, and a realistic setting I could relate to immediately. It takes this exceptional base and builds upon it immensely. Taiki works his hardest to get Chinatsu’s attention while being mindful of the fact that the two living together could make things uncomfortable for her if she found out that he had feelings for her.
Hina’s confession in the middle of the season is one of the best moments. It’s real, raw, and a little awkward, like all real confessions are. There aren’t any wildly out-of-place fan service moments inBlue Boxeither, making the series as a whole feel even more relatable. While romance anime characters are often exaggerations meant to represent broad character archetypes, the protagonists ofBlue Boxare all wonderfully grounded.The characters inBlue Boxall feel like people I went to high school with.
Netflix’s New Romance Anime Is Already a Smash Hit Thanks To a Secret Element Others Missed
Netflix’s Blue Box blends coming-of-age romance with sports as badminton player Taiki pursues his crush, star basketball player Chinatsu.
The result of these more realistic characters was a surprise, as I found myself directly relating to a handful ofBlue Box’sheroes as they navigated their burgeoning feelings for each other. I’ve confessed to a girl I had a crush on awkwardly and did what I could to get a certain someone’s attention when I had feelings for them. At its core,Blue Boxis too relatable for anything less than a 9/10.
What I Started Watching Because of Blue Box
The Romance Genre Is Filled With Top-Tier Series
I will always be grateful toBlue Boxbecause it taught me that the romance genre is filled with some of thebest anime of all time. This is going to sound dumb to so many people with a higher emotional intelligence than me, but I thought that a good anime needed huge fights, amazing transformations, and tons of violence to be worth my time. It doesn’t help that big action series likeJujutsu KaisenandDemon Slayerwhat often get the most attention in fan conversations.Blue Boxproved that I was completely wrong in the best way possible.
Since watchingBlue Box,I’ve dived head-first into the world of romance anime.If you’re looking for recommendations for shows similar to one of the best new romance series out there, I have a couple of absolute bangers to recommend.Tsuki ga Kireiis one of the best romance animes out there for awkward people like myself. There aren’t many other series that properly replicate the feeling of texting your crush like this one.
Blue Box Sports Manga Isn’t Really About Sports (That’s A Good Thing)
Blue Box might be about basketball and badminton, but all of that takes a seat on the sidelines for the main player on the court: Romance.
A Sign of Affectionmight be a 10/10 for me. It’s beautiful, unique, and everything I could have asked for in just 12 amazing episodes. It’s hard to tell ifSkip and Loaferis a romance anime or a slice of life, but I think it’s a little of both. No matter what you consider it, if you likedBlue Box,you’ll loveSkip and Loafer.The romance anime is so much more than I thought it was, and it’s thanks toBlue Boxthat I’ve gotten to experience so many wonderful stories.
As it turns out, romance is a diverse genre in the world of anime. While there are undeniably an abundance of trope-filled series with cookie-cutter plots and characters that stray closer to caricature, there are also plenty of romance anime with genuine heart and characters that can speak to a wide variety of anime fans. If you’ve been burned by romance anime before, don’t make the same mistake I did. Give series likeBlue Box,Skip and Loafer, andA Sign of Affectiona try and you won’t be disappointed.
