Anime like Kanon (2006)

CLANNAD

Also known as Clannad.

Studio: Sentai Filmworks , Animation Do , Kyoto Animation , Pony Canyon , TBS , Movic , Key
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Romance , Slice of Life , Supernatural

Tomoya is a bitter, third year high school student. His mother passed away, causing his father to resort to alcohol and gambling. Tomoya is distant with his father and has become a delinquent in the years since his mother's death. Walking to school, he meets Nagisa Furukawa who is a year older but is repeating the grade due to illness. She is alone, as most of her friends have moved on. The two begin hanging out, and as time goes by, Tomoya finds his life shifting in a new direction.



Tags: School , Coming of Age , Primarily Teen Cast , Family Life , Ensemble Cast , Male Protagonist , School Club , Heterosexual , Ghost , Tragedy , Primarily Female Cast , Urban Fantasy , Amnesia , Slapstick , Female Protagonist , Gangs , Kuudere , Female Harem , Baseball , Tsundere , LGBTQ+ Themes , Twins , Basketball

CLANNAD: After Story

Also known as Clannad: After Story.

Studio: Kyoto Animation , Pony Canyon , TBS , Rakuonsha , Animation Do
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance , Slice of Life , Supernatural

A few months have passed since Tomoya declared his love to Nagisa, and his life keeps moving forward as he continues to meet a variety of new people, expanding his world in the process. While Tomoya's world continues to expand, his and Nagisa's relationship is entering a new phase, and neither of them is quite sure where it will take them. Through his relationship with Nagisa, Tomoya begins to understand the meaning and importance of family.

But as Tomoya and Nagisa begin a family of their own, they are faced with many hardships along the way in Clannad: After Story



Note: Includes 2 un-numbered 'extra' and 'summary' episodes that aired at the end of the series.

Tags: Family Life , Coming of Age , Tragedy , Urban Fantasy , Male Protagonist , Philosophy , Alternate Universe , Heterosexual , Marriage , Time Skip , Rehabilitation , Afterlife , Work , Female Protagonist , Slapstick , Primarily Female Cast , Time Manipulation , Trains , School , Primarily Teen Cast , School Club , Baseball , Primarily Adult Cast

AIR

Also known as Air.

Studio: Kyoto Animation , Pony Canyon , TBS , Key
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance , Slice of Life , Supernatural

Yukito Kunisaki is on a journey in search of the Winged Maiden who was bound to the sky centuries ago, after hearing an old childhood tale from his mother. As Yukito shows his puppet show to people in an attempt to make some money, he finds himself in a small town in which he did not expect to stay very long. However, when he meets an unusual girl named Misuzu, things take a drastic turn as he is invited to stay with her.

By staying in the quaint town, Yukito soon becomes friends with the locals. As he gets to know them better, he learns of their problems and decides to help, putting his search for the Winged Maiden on hold. With his search on hold, and his growing attachment to Misuzu and the small town, will Yukito ever find the Winged Maiden, or is she closer than he thought?

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Note: Includes episode 13, Soushuuhen (Summary).

Tags: Tragedy , Magic , Reincarnation , Historical , Homeless , Family Life , Amnesia , Male Protagonist , Achronological Order , Kuudere , Samurai , Primarily Female Cast , Heterosexual , Ensemble Cast , Tsundere , Female Harem , Time Skip , Dinosaurs , Slapstick , Work

Little Busters!

Also known as Little Busters!.

Studio: J.C. Staff , Key , Sentai Filmworks , Warner Bros. Japan , Visual Arts
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Slice of Life , Supernatural

When tragedy struck Riki Naoe as a child, he was rescued from grief over his parent's deaths when four other kids "recruited" him for their group—the "Little Busters." Now in high school, Riki and the other Busters are still fast friends, and though their vision of being heroes for justice may have faded, they'd still do anything for each other. Which is why Riki is now on TWO special missions. The not so secret one: recruiting new members so the Busters can form a baseball team. Preferably FEMALE recruits, as the current dude/babe ratio is an inconvenient 4 to 1. The OTHER mission, though... That's the strange one. Because Riki and Rin, the group's singular girl, are receiving odd messages, delivered by cats, concerning the existence of a "secret world" and assigning them tasks they have to complete. Were their youthful dreams of being crusaders not so fanciful after all? Or is there something even more vital at stake? Between steeling his courage to talk to girls, dealing with his own narcolepsy and facing his feelings concerning Rin, Riki may just need the strength of a superhero to solve the ultimate mystery of the Little Busters!



Tags: School , Coming of Age , Ensemble Cast , Tragedy , Male Protagonist , Slapstick , Found Family , Urban Fantasy , Baseball , School Club , Memory Manipulation , Orphan , Twins , Kuudere , Crossdressing , Foreign , Cute Girls Doing Cute Things

ef: a tale of memories.

Also known as ef ~ A Tale of Memories.

Studio: Shaft , Rondo Robe , Sentai Filmworks , NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Psychological , Romance

On Christmas Eve, Hiro Hirono's bike is stolen by a girl chasing a thief who stole her purse. He gives chase and finds her unconscious and his bike ruined. The girl, Miyako Miyamura, soon awakes and the two begin to talk. After making sure she is okay, they end up spending Christmas Eve together. Later, Hiro finds out Miyako attends the same school as him and they begin to spend more and more time together, Miyako developing affections for Hiro. Kei Shindou -- Hiro's childhood friend who has long held a crush on him -- begins to become jealous and a love triangle follows.

The series also tells the story of Renji Asou. One day, he meets Chihiro Shindou, the twin sister of Kei Shindou, at an abandoned train station. Even though she's very shy, they get along pretty well and begin meeting at the same spot everyday. However, Renji finds out that Chihiro was in a car accident years ago and as a consequence she suffers from a disability: her memory lasts only 13 hours. Nevertheless, after learning that Chihiro's dream is to write a novel, Renji finally decides to help her fulfill her dream while also trying to make her overcome the difficulties imposed by her condition.

Tags: Amnesia , Writing , Love Triangle , Heterosexual , Twins , Denpa , Rehabilitation , Photography , Philosophy , Ghost , Primarily Female Cast , Drawing , Basketball , Snowscape , Female Harem

Kaginado

Also known as KAGINADO.

Studio: LIDENFILMS Kyoto Studio , Tohokushinsha Film Corporation , Visual Arts , Key
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy

Laughs and shenanigans are on the horizon in this crossover! Fan-favorite characters from Kanon, Air, Clannad, Little Busters!, Rewrite, and more start the school year together in a new world where anything is possible. With so much personality in one anime universe, every day feels like a new kind of dream.



Tags: Crossover , Ensemble Cast , Chibi , Slapstick , Meta , School , Baseball

Angel Beats!

Also known as Angel Beats!.

Studio: Aniplex , ASCII Media Works , P.A. Works , Visual Arts , Movic , Dentsu , Mainichi Broadcasting System , CBC TV
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Comedy , Drama , Supernatural

Otonashi wakes up in the afterlife to find out he has no memories of his life before death. Desperate to survive in a war that could yield another unfortunate fate, he joins the SSS in the battle against Angel, whose very mission is to destroy all inhabitants of this afterlife. As Otonashi struggles to recover his memory and learn more about this world, he finds that not all is as it had seemed.



Tags: Afterlife , Tragedy , Philosophy , School , Amnesia , Primarily Teen Cast , Coming of Age , Kuudere , Memory Manipulation , Politics , Male Protagonist , Slapstick , Ensemble Cast , Angels , Survival , Found Family , School Club , Guns , Rock Music , Isekai , Band , Baseball , Heterosexual , Suicide , Drugs , Chuunibyou

sola

Studio: diomedéa , Nomad , Lantis
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance , Slice of Life , Supernatural

Sola's story revolves around Yorito Morimiya, the main protagonist, who is a young boy attending high school. He loves taking pictures of the sky at any time of day and any time of the year. One day, Yorito decides to take a picture of the sunrise overlooking the bay, but is deterred when he meets a strange girl trying to force a vending machine that stole her money to give her what she tried to buy—a can of tomato juice. Yorito helps her with forcing the machine while attempting to strike up conversation with her, despite it being four in the morning. Yorito tells her why he is here, but by the time he has forced the can out of the machine, the girl has mysteriously vanished.



Tags: Memory Manipulation , Urban Fantasy , Love Triangle , Super Power , Tragedy , Amnesia , Kuudere , Heterosexual , Coastal , Seinen , Youkai

ToHeart

Also known as To Heart.

Studio: KSS , The Right Stuf International , OLM
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance , Slice of Life

For as long as Akari can remember, she and Hiroyuki have always been friends. But with time, everything changes, and her feelings have turned into something more. As a new semester of high school begins, will the two childhood friends come closer together or drift further apart? Join Hiroyuki, Akari and all their friends - the bubbly Shiho, the quiet Serika, the lovely Kotone, and more - in this heartwarming tale of love, relationships and friendship!



Tags: School , Heterosexual , Female Harem , Iyashikei , Male Protagonist , Love Triangle , Primarily Female Cast , Robots , Athletics , Super Power

Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu

Also known as The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.

Studio: Kyoto Animation , Lantis , Bandai Entertainment , Kadokawa Pictures USA
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Mystery , Sci-Fi , Slice of Life , Supernatural

Kyon, your typical high school student, has long given up his belief in the supernatural. However, upon meeting Haruhi Suzumiya, he quickly finds out that it is the supernatural that she is interested in; aliens, time travelers and espers among other things. When Haruhi laments about the lack of intriguing clubs around school, Kyon inspires Haruhi to form her own club. As a result, the SOS Brigade is formed, a club which specializes in all that is the supernatural.

Much to his chagrin, Kyon, along with the silent bookworm, Yuki Nagato, the shy and timid Mikuru Asahina, and the perpetually smiling Itsuki Koizumi, are recruited as members. The story follows the crazy adventures that these four endure under their whimsical leader, Haruhi. The story is based on the light novels by Nagaru Tanigawa.

Note: This entry is for the original 14-episode 2006 airing. The series was further expanded and reordered into a 28-episode series in 2009.

Tags: School Club , Achronological Order , Urban Fantasy , Gods , School , Time Manipulation , Primarily Teen Cast , Meta , Aliens , Alternate Universe , Philosophy , Parody , Male Protagonist , Magic , Otaku Culture , Kaiju , Female Protagonist , Tsundere , Kuudere , Filmmaking , Ensemble Cast , Episodic , Unrequited Love , Baseball , Maids