15 Best Anime Like Maid Sama! You Need to Watch
Maid Sama! is a shōjo manga by Hiro Fujiwara. It was published between April 2006 and September 2013 and was compiled into eighteen volumes. The manga was adapted into a 26-episode anime television series that aired between April and September 2010. Two OVAs were then produced. Maid Sama! is one of the more interesting examples you’ll find when romantic comedy anime are concerned and that is why we are going to talk about it in this article.
To honor the strange cuteness of Maid Sama!, we have decided to compose a list of the best anime series like Maid Sama! that every fan needs to see. The list is going to include a total of 15 different titles which resemble the Maid Sama! anime in one way or the other.
1. Toradora!
Original Run: October 2, 2008 – March 26, 2009
Number of Episodes: 25 (+ 1 OVA)
Ryuuji Takasu is a Japanese student who has just returned to the 12th grade and who lives alone with his mother. He would love to be an ordinary high school student, but he has one flaw: his intimidating eyes. Because of his sinister demeanor, stupid rumors keep circulating about him, including the fact that he would hit anyone who dared to jostle him and that he would be ready to kill, while he is a very sensitive young man.
Because of this, he has great difficulty in making friends; the heaviest to bear is the absence of a romantic relationship. Luckily, he is in the same class as his best friend Yūsaku Kitamura and his crush, the pretty Minori Kushieda.
Short-lived joy as he will literally run into the local tsundere, Taiga Aisaka (nicknamed the pocket tiger because of his small size and aggressiveness). In particular, he will discover that Taiga is in love with his best friend Yusaku.
It is then the beginning of a sulfurous relationship between these two, between this tsundere who will take advantage of him and make him his housekeeper and incidentally a punching bag, but who keeps him close to him in order to get closer to him. Kitamura, while Ryuji hopes to do the same with the energetic and no less odd Kushieda.
2. S・A
Original Run: April 6, 2008 – September 14, 2008
Number of Episodes: 24
Since she was little, Hanazono Hikari has been the best in all areas. Until Kei Takishima, the son of the President of the Takishima group, arrives and beats her hands down during an improvised wrestling match. Since this humiliation, Hikari has only one idea in mind: to beat Takishima. So she begs her father who sends her to the same high school as her opponent, the prestigious Hakusenkan Academy, although not as fortunate as him, and immediately enters the Special A class that brings together the school’s seven best students.
3. Fruits Basket
Original Run: July 5, 2001 – June 29, 2021
Number of Episodes: 89
Tohru Honda is a 16-year-old high school student who lives alone in a tent after the death of her mother. Without knowing it, she moved to the property of the Sôma family. When she explores the surroundings, she sees a house and enters it. There she meets Yuki and Shigure Soma. Having learned that she was living in a tent, they offered to stay with them in exchange for household chores.
Tohru accepts and then begins to live with Yuki, Kyô and Shigure. Very quickly, she learns the secret of the family: 13 of its members are victims of a curse. These people transform into one of the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac, and the cat, when a person of the opposite sex throws themselves at their neck or when they feel embarrassed, or even weakened.
They become human again a few minutes later (the duration of the transformation can vary), but reappear completely naked (which can be very annoying especially for Tohru who is often there during the transformation).
4. Horimiya
Original Run: January 10, 2021 – April 4, 2021
Number of Episodes: 13 (+ 6 OVA)
Kyōko Hori is a bright and popular high school girl, contrasting with her classmate, Izumi Miyamura, a gloomy boy and supposed otaku wearing glasses. Outside of school, Hori is a homebody who dresses simply and takes care of the house and her younger brother Souta. One day, when Souta returned home injured, he was helped by a stranger with multiple piercings.
This person is revealed to be Miyamura. While surprised that he is a different person at school, Hori is upset when Miyamura saw his true appearance at home, but the two agree to keep their true selves a secret from their classmates.
5. Ore wo Suki Nano wa Omae Dake ka yo
Original Run: October 3, 2019 – December 26, 2019
Number of Episodes: 12 + OVA
Kisaragi Amatsuyu, nicknamed “Jōro”, is part of his high school’s student bureau. Her entourage is made up of her childhood friend, Aoi Hinata, and BDE president Sakura Akino, who are respectively nicknamed “Himawari” and “Cosmos”. Jōro is internally a self-absorbed and manic character who masquerades as an insensitive and goofy young man.
He does everything to intensify his relationship with them and tries to guess which, from Himawari or Cosmos, will ask him to date him first. However, the sequence of events has something else in store for him. Jōro then goes to the library reading space for some reason.
6. Boys Over Flowers
Original Run: September 8, 1996 – August 31, 1997
Number of Episodes: 51
Boys Over Flowers tells the story of sixteen-year-old Tsukushi Makino, whose parents sacrificed everything to send her to Eitoku, a private school for children from good families, far beyond their means, in the hope of raising money, and her finding a handsome and rich son-in-law.
Tsukushi’s vision is not really the same. It must be said that the atmosphere that reigns there is terrible. The students are bad to the bone, like stereotypes of the children of the rich, especially the F4, a group of four extremely rich boys who rule in Eitoku. Anyone who opposes the F4 will receive the infamous red card and be persecuted by the whole school.
Makino is determined to stay in her corner for the remaining two years and devote herself to her studies. But one day, Tsukushi’s only friend, Makiko, stumbles upon Tsukasa Dômyôji, the head of F4 and heir to the Dômyôji group, the richest in Japan. She begs his forgiveness but the boys don’t seem ready to listen to her.
7. Say I Love You.
Original Run: October 6, 2012 – December 30, 2012
Number of Episodes: 13 + (1 OVA)
Mei Tachibana is 16 and has never had a boyfriend and feels lonely. Suddenly, of all people, the crush at her school is interested in her: Yamato Kurosawa. Mei falls in love with Yamato and the friendship develops into a real and serious relationship.
The two have to survive different crises and collect their first experiences together. Above all, Aiko Muto is against the relationship. Over time, Mei makes new friends and Aiko recognizes the relationship.
8. Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun
Original Run: July 7, 2014 – September 22, 2014
Number of Episodes: 12
The high school student Chiyo Sakura has fallen in love with her classmate Umetaro Nozaki, but it is difficult for her to admit this to him. After one unsuccessful attempt, he takes it home with him. But contrary to Sakura’s hopes, he thinks she is a fan – Nozaki is a mangaka and draws a comic series for girls (“Shōjo”), which appears in the magazine Gekkan Shōjo Romance.
She has long since noticed her talent in the art club, so he recruits her as an Inker. Sakura likes to do this, after all, she is so close to him and maybe she can still confess her love to him. Through the frequent work together, they make new friends and Sakura learns about the work of a mangaka. So Nozaki first goes in search of interesting people who he can use as a template for his stories.
Sakura introduces him to her classmate Yuzuki Seo – a sporty, helpful, but also rough and insensitive girl. Through Nozaki, Sakura met Mikoto Mikoshiba, who drew Nozaki the decorations and patterns. Mikoto is a would-be womanizer who often knocks out slogans but is shortly afterwards ashamed of himself.
9. Kaguya-Sama: Love Is War
Original Run: January 12, 2019 – June 27, 2020
Number of Episodes: 24
The Shūchiin Academy is a prestigious school where the country’s future elites, almost exclusively the children of the rich, continue their studies. Within the high school students’ office, the two brilliant exemplary models of the academy, the vice-president Kaguya Shinomiya and the president – from a modest background – Miyuki Shirogane, conceive of love in a particular way: they are attracted to one by the other, but it is impossible for them to confess their feelings because of their too much pride, even if a semester has passed.
Indeed, considering the correlation between inequality of love interest and the relationship of domination in a relationship of this ilk, they each conclude that whoever confesses first, will become the “loser” of the couple and will inevitably come from there. to be submitted by the other. Thus begins their daily life filled with various plots and other stratagems to force the other to confess his feelings.
10. Skip Beat!
Original Run: October 5, 2008 – March 29, 2009
Number of Episodes: 25
Mogami Kyōko and Fuwa Shōtarō are childhood friends. Kyōko has always known Shō, helps his parents, takes care of him and forgives him everything, like a prince. Also, when at the age of 16, the latter leaves Kyoto, his hometown, to run away to Tokyo where he has a chance to break into the song, he asks Kyōko to accompany him.
She accepts, very happy to have been chosen by her childhood friend. But once there, Shō is totally absorbed in his work as a singer. He almost never enters the apartment they occupy, while Kyōko combines the jobs in order to be able to pay the rent and the lifestyle of Shō, now become famous. Despite the difficulties, the young girl continues to work until exhaustion for her prince, and all this while keeping a smile!
11. Ouran High School Host Club
Original Run: April 5, 2006 – September 26, 2006
Number of Episodes: 26
Ouran High School is a privileged educational institution where children of the richest and noblest families in Japan (children of politicians and big business tycoons) go to school. At the school, some of the best teachers in the country design the curriculum in such a way as not to overload the pampered wealthy students. Thanks to such care, they have a huge amount of free time that they spend on their hobbies.
One of the adornments of the Ouran School is the so-called “Host Club”, where rich and handsome young men use their natural abilities to entertain equally rich and beautiful girls with a certain benefit for themselves.
By chance, Haruhi Fujioka, who had enrolled in this school thanks to his academic achievements, enters the abandoned music classroom in which this club is based. After accidentally knocking a luxurious 8-million yen vase off a stand, Haruhi Fujioka found himself in virtual slavery by the wealthy members of the Host Club. From now on, he must go to the store, work as a servant, carry out small errands and do other dirty work in the club until graduation, thereby fulfilling his duties to the club.
12. Kimi ni Todoke
Original Run: October 6, 2009 – March 30, 2011
Number of Episodes: 38
The high school student Sawako Kuronuma is loathed by her classmates, as various rumors manifested in the school that she could see ghosts and curse people. The reason for this is the similarity of her name to Sadako, a character from the Ring.
Many students fear her presence and avoid her as much as possible. Only the new and very popular student Shōta Kazehaya treats her like any other girl. One day they get the opportunity to talk to each other, which turns their entire life upside down.
With his help, she tries to make new friends and to talk to strangers like any other schoolgirl. She is almost exaggeratedly grateful for his support and a close relationship slowly develops between the two, which has to overcome many hurdles.
13. Kamisama Kiss
Original Run: October 1, 2012 – March 30, 2015
Number of Episodes: 25 (+ 5 OVA)
Nanami Momozono’s father has a thing for gambling, which causes them to live in misery. One day, her father runs away from home and abandons her, leaving behind his debts. Unable to pay the rent, Nanami is evicted from her apartment. She then wanders the streets until she meets a strange man, who gives her his house after hearing her story.
He leaves after kissing her on the forehead. When she goes to the address he gave her, Nanami realizes that the house is actually a temple, where spirits live, including a boy with fox ears and a tail. She learns that by kissing her, the man made her the new god of the Earth and she will have to face many situations to keep her place as a divinity!
14. Spice and Wolf
Original Run: January 9, 2008 – September 24, 2009
Number of Episodes: 24 (+ 2 OVA)
Spice and Wolf is set on a continent inspired by Europe in the late Middle Ages. The population of a small town, Pasloe, in an unspecified time, made a pact with a wolf god to avoid lean periods and guarantee good harvests.
While preparing for the feast in honor of the wolf, a young merchant named Lawrence discovers, hidden among the skins contained in her cart, a sleeping girl with the ears and tail of a wolf. The young woman introduces herself as the Holo – name of the wolf deity – of her and asks the boy to take her back north to where she was born.
Lawrence, initially skeptical, asks the girl to prove to him that she really is Holo the wolf goddess. The goddess then decides to transform herself, assuming the appearance of a huge wolf; Lawrence is thrilled and terrified. After a few small events in Pasloe village, Lawrence agrees to take Holo with him. The wolf goddess, during the journey, shows an enormous experience in the trade so as to surprise the expert merchant Lawrence.
15. Lovely★Complex
Original Run: April 7, 2007 – September 29, 2007
Number of Episodes: 24
The tall Risa Koizumi and her short classmate Atsushi Ōtani both go to the first grade of high school. They are often referred to as “All Hanshin Kyojin,” a well-known Japanese comedy anime duo, because of their size differences and frequent arguments. But both are otherwise very similar, have the same taste in music and develop a good friendship with each other.
Her classmates Ryōji Suzuki and Chiharu Tanaka, Nobuko Ishihara, and Heikichi Nakao found each other in the summer so that Koizumi and Ōtani are now surrounded by two couples. Now they finally want to fall in love, and Koizumi soon finds out that Ōtani already had a girlfriend in Mayu Kanzaki.
Koizumi soon meets Haruka Fukagawa again, a kindergarten friend of hers, who now falls in love with her. The one-year younger transsexual Seishiro / Seiko Kotobuki falls in love with Ōtani, who rejects her when it is discovered that she is a boy by birth.
