Anime like Summer Ghost

Hotarubi no Mori e

Also known as Into the Forest of Fireflies' Light.

Studio: Aniplex , Brain's Base , Hakusensha , DAX Production , TV Tokyo , NAS
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Fantasy , Romance , Supernatural

The story of Hotarubi no Mori e centers around Hotaru, a little girl who gets lost in an enchanted forest where apparitions reside. A young boy, Gin, appears before Hotaru, but she cannot touch him for fear of making him disappear.

Tags: Coming of Age , Youkai , Ghost , Tragedy , Rural , Urban Fantasy , Male Protagonist , Shoujo , Female Protagonist , Time Skip , Age Gap , Heterosexual , Iyashikei , Wilderness

Kimi no Suizou wo Tabetai

Also known as I Want to Eat Your Pancreas.

Studio: Studio VOLN , Half H.P Studio , Futabasha , ABC Animation , Asahi Shimbun , JR Higashi Nihon Kikaku , Tohan , Aniplex
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance , Slice of Life

Spring time in April and the last of the cherry blossoms are still in bloom. The usually aloof bookworm with no interest in others comes across a book in a hospital waiting room. Handwritten on the cover are the words: "Living with Dying." He soon discovers that it is a diary kept by his very popular and genuinely cheerful classmate, Sakura Yamauchi, who reveals to him that she is secretly suffering from a pancreatic illness and only has a limited time left. It is at this moment that she gains just one more person to share her secret.

Trying to maintain a normal life as much as possible, Sakura is determined to live her life to the fullest until the very last day. As her free spirit and unpredictable actions throw him for a loop, his heart begins to gradually change.



Tags: Tragedy , Coming of Age , Male Protagonist , Female Protagonist , Philosophy , Heterosexual , Primarily Teen Cast , Rehabilitation , Classic Literature , Unrequited Love , School , Achronological Order

Natsu e no Tunnel, Sayonara no Deguchi

Also known as The Tunnel to Summer, the Exit of Goodbyes.

Studio: CLAP , Pony Canyon
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance , Supernatural

Urashima Tunnel - Once you enter that tunnel, you can get whatever you want, but at a price. Kaoru Tohno, who seems to have an elusive personality and traumatic past, and Anzu Hanashiro, who is struggling to reconcile her ideal image and true-to-heart attitude, team up to investigate the Urashima Tunnel and get what they want. This is an unforgettable summer story of nostalgia and sprinting in a remote countryside.



Tags: Time Manipulation , Rural , Coming of Age , Male Protagonist , Time Skip , Heterosexual , Kuudere , Female Protagonist , Tragedy , Age Gap , Mythology , School , Drawing , Coastal , Bullying

Koe no Katachi

Also known as A Silent Voice.

Studio: Kyoto Animation , ABC Animation , Kodansha
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance , Slice of Life

After transferring into a new school, a deaf girl, Shouko Nishimiya, is bullied by the popular Shouya Ishida. As Shouya continues to bully Shouko, the class turns its back on him. Shouko transfers and Shouya grows up as an outcast. Alone and depressed, the regretful Shouya finds Shouko to make amends.



Tags: Disability , Bullying , Rehabilitation , Language Barrier , Coming of Age , Suicide , Male Protagonist , Tragedy , Primarily Teen Cast , School , Time Skip , POV , Heterosexual , Female Protagonist , Urban , Shounen , Unrequited Love , Philosophy

Kimi to, Nami ni Noretara

Also known as Ride Your Wave.

Studio: Science SARU , Lawson Entertainment , Toho , Shogakukan , Fuji TV , KDDI , JR Higashi Nihon Kikaku
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Fantasy , Romance

Upon entering university, Hinako moves to a coastal town. She loves surfing, and when she's on the waves she's fearless, but still feels uncertain about her future. When a fire wreaks havoc in the town, Hinako encounters young firefighter Minato. As they surf and spend more time together, Hinako feels drawn to someone like Minato who devotes himself to helping other people. Hinako also holds a special place in Minato's heart.


Tags: Tragedy , Female Protagonist , Coming of Age , Surfing , Ghost , Coastal , Afterlife , Heterosexual , Urban , Urban Fantasy , Male Protagonist , Swimming , Firefighters , Primarily Adult Cast , Work , Tsundere , Love Triangle , CGI , College

Colorful

Also known as Colorful ~ The Motion Picture.

Studio: Sunrise , Aniplex , Sentai Filmworks , Ascension , Sony Music Entertainment
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Slice of Life , Supernatural

"I" died and was kicked out of the cycle of reincarnation because of the sin "I" committed. An angel told me that "I" won a lottery and he gave me a chance to remember the sin. My spirit possessed the body of the 14-year-old boy Makoto, who committed suicide and "I" tried to recollect my memory. "I" felt distressed by the terrible circumstances of Makoto and the fact that "I" was borrowing his body. "I" have started to realize that people are hurting each other because the world is too colorful to distinguish the true color of themselves from others.

Based on an award-winning first person narrative novel by Mori Eto. The movie won several awards in Japan.

Tags: Male Protagonist , Suicide , Philosophy , Family Life , Reincarnation , Rehabilitation , Primarily Teen Cast , Urban , School , Afterlife , Bullying , Drawing , Urban Fantasy , POV

Sonny Boy

Also known as Sonny Boy.

Studio: MADHOUSE , BS Asahi , Shouchiku , Marui Group
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Psychological , Sci-Fi , Supernatural

It’s an ordinary summer vacation...except for the fact that Nagara’s high school has mysteriously drifted into another dimension. As the students begin to develop strange new powers, will they work together to survive the alien environment and find a way home, or will their newly formed factions and rivalries turn on each other?



Note: The first episode received an advance release on YouTube on June 19, 2021. The regular TV broadcast started on July 16, 2021.

Tags: Alternate Universe , Philosophy , Denpa , Coming of Age , Super Power , Survival , Primarily Teen Cast , Isekai , Meta , Achronological Order , Travel , Cosmic Horror , Mixed Media , School , Episodic , Tragedy , Gods , Wilderness , Male Protagonist , Animals , Unrequited Love , Desert , Heterosexual , Baseball , Space , Suicide

Angel Beats!

Also known as Angel Beats!.

Studio: Aniplex , ASCII Media Works , P.A.WORKS , Visual Arts , Movic , Dentsu , Mainichi Broadcasting System , CBC TV , Aniplex of America
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 , School , Amnesia , Primarily Teen Cast , Kuudere , Coming of Age , Memory Manipulation , Boarding School , Male Protagonist , Ensemble Cast , Slapstick , Angels , Survival , Found Family , Isekai , Guns , School Club , Politics , Band , Suicide , Rock Music , Baseball , Heterosexual , Chuunibyou , Drugs

Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai.

Also known as Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day.

Studio: Aniplex , Dentsu , A-1 Pictures , Fuji TV , Fujipacific Music , Aniplex of America , Hanabee Entertainment
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance , Slice of Life , Supernatural

Jinta Yadomi and his group of childhood friends have become estranged after a tragic accident split them apart. Now in their high school years, a sudden surprise forces each of them to confront their guilt over what happened that day and come to terms with the ghosts of their past.



Tags: Coming of Age , Tragedy , Ghost , Rehabilitation , Hikikomori , Love Triangle , Male Protagonist , Found Family , Rural , Primarily Teen Cast , Heterosexual , Female Protagonist , Kuudere , Tsundere , Crossdressing , Bullying

Suzume no Tojimari

Also known as Suzume.

Studio: CoMix Wave , STORY Inc. , Toho
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Fantasy , Mystery , Supernatural

The story follows Suzume, a 17-year-old girl from a quiet Kyushu town who meets a young man looking for a door. They find a door within ruins in the mountain, and Suzume opens it. Soon, more doors begin to open around Japan, bringing disasters from the other side. The film depicts Suzume's liberation and growth, as she closes the doors that are causing disaster.



Tags: Urban Fantasy , Female Protagonist , Travel , Coming of Age , Magic , Shapeshifting , Orphan , Gods , Kaiju , Family Life , Natural Disaster , Animals , Age Gap , Environmental , Time Manipulation , Found Family , Tragedy , Parenthood , Heterosexual , CGI