Anime like Birthday Wonderland

Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi

Also known as Spirited Away.

Studio: Studio Ghibli , Studio Hibari , Walt Disney Studios , GKIDS
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Drama , Fantasy , Supernatural

On the way to their new home, 10-year-old Chihiro Ogino's family stumbles upon a deserted theme park. Intrigued, the family investigates the park, though unbeknownst to them, it is secretly inhabited by spirits who sleep by day and appear at night. When Chihiro's mother and father eat food from a restaurant in the street, angry spirits turn them into pigs. Furthermore, a wide sea has appeared between the spirit world and the human one, trapping Chihiro, the sole human, in a land of spirits. Luckily for her though, a mysterious boy named Haku appears, claiming to know her from the past. Under his instructions, Chihiro secures a job in the bathhouse where Haku works. With only her courage and some new found friends to aid her, Chihiro embarks on a journey to turn her parents back to their original forms and return home.

Tags: Female Protagonist , Youkai , Shapeshifting , Magic , Urban Fantasy , Work , Mythology , Curses , Gods , Witch , Anthropomorphism , Isekai , Memory Manipulation , Travel , Dragons , Trains , Primarily Child Cast , Twins

Mary to Majo no Hana

Also known as Mary and The Witch's Flower.

Studio: Studio Ponoc
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Fantasy

Young Mary follows a mysterious cat into the nearby forest and discovers an old broomstick and a strange flower, a rare plant that blossoms once every seven years. Together, the flower and the broomstick whisk Mary above the clouds, and far away to Endor College – a school of magic run by headmistress Madam Mumblechook and the brilliant Doctor Dee. But there are terrible things happening at the school, and when Mary tells a lie, she must risk her life to try and set things right.



Tags: Witch , Magic , Female Protagonist , Kids , Foreign , Coming of Age , Primarily Child Cast , Animals , Isekai , School

Neko no Ongaeshi

Also known as The Cat Returns.

Studio: Studio Ghibli , Walt Disney Studios , GKIDS
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Comedy , Drama , Fantasy

The Cat Returns is something of a loose spin-off of "Whisper of the Heart" as it features two characters from that film: Muta (the cat from "Whisper") and the Baron (the cat statue from "Whisper"). There is no other connection between the two movies and this is not a sequel. The story is based on Neko no Danshaku (Baron of Cat) by Hiiragi Aoi.

The main character of the story, Haru, is a clueless, ordinary 17-year-old girl. She has no special abilities and neither is she an extraordinary beauty. When faced with reality, she is unable to make decisions for herself, thus often sways to others' opinions to avoid challenge. One day, Haru saves the life of a cat without considering her own safety. The cat turns out to be the Cat Prince from the Kingdom of Cats, however as a result, Haru is trapped in the world of cats. Can Baron and Muta rescue Haru who has wandered into the world of cats?



Tags: Animals , Anthropomorphism , Nekomimi , Fairy Tale , Female Protagonist , Kemonomimi , Isekai , Primarily Animal Cast , Royal Affairs , Heterosexual , Arranged Marriage , Shoujo , Urban Fantasy , Male Protagonist , Swordplay , Crossover , Body Horror , School

Kimi no Na wa.

Also known as Your Name..

Studio: CoMix Wave , Kadokawa Pictures Japan , Funimation , NYAV Post , Toho , Madman Entertainment , Selecta Visión
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance , Supernatural

Mitsuha Miyamizu, a high school girl, yearns to live the life of a boy in the bustling city of Tokyo—a dream that stands in stark contrast to her present life in the countryside. Meanwhile in the city, Taki Tachibana lives a busy life as a high school student while juggling his part-time job and hopes for a future in architecture.

One day, Mitsuha awakens in a room that is not her own and suddenly finds herself living the dream life in Tokyo—but in Taki's body! Elsewhere, Taki finds himself living Mitsuha's life in the humble countryside. In pursuit of an answer to this strange phenomenon, they begin to search for one another.

Kimi no Na wa. revolves around Mitsuha and Taki's actions, which begin to have a dramatic impact on each other's lives, weaving them into a fabric held together by fate and circumstance.



Tags: Body Swapping , Time Manipulation , Urban Fantasy , Coming of Age , Memory Manipulation , Female Protagonist , Male Protagonist , Tragedy , Urban , Rural , Gender Bending , Heterosexual , Primarily Teen Cast , Time Skip , Environmental , Mythology , Alternate Universe , Yuri , Trains , Shrine Maiden , School

Ryuu to Sobakasu no Hime

Also known as BELLE.

Studio: Studio Chizu , Cartoon Saloon
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music , Mystery , Sci-Fi

The protagonist of this story, Suzu, is a 17-year old high school girl living with her father in a rural town of Kochi — their town is a textbook definition of depopulation in the Japanese countryside. Wounded by the loss of her mother at a young age, Suzu one day discovers the massive online world, “U,” and dives into this alternate reality as her avatar, Belle. Before long, all of U’s eyes are fixed on Belle (Suzu), when one day the mysterious and infamous Dragon-like figure appears before her.



Tags: Virtual World , Primarily Teen Cast , Female Protagonist , Artificial Intelligence , Augmented Reality , Coming of Age , Found Family , CGI , Tragedy , Fairy Tale , Idol , School , Heterosexual , Anthropomorphism , Dragons , Fugitive , Cyberpunk

Hoshi wo Ou Kodomo

Also known as Children who Chase Lost Voices.

Studio: Media Factory , Movic , CoMix Wave , Yahoo! Japan , GKIDS
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Drama , Fantasy , Romance

Strange sounds in the darkness... Unearthly music from an old crystal radio... These are all the warning Asuna Watase has before a simple walk to her clubhouse catapults her into a nightmarish adventure that will take her beneath the Earth to a lost land beyond the realm of legend! Attacked by a strange monstrous creature, rescued by a mysterious stranger and pursued by a relentless enemy, Asuna finds herself enmeshed in a centuries old mystery that will bind her to a strange young defender and lead her inevitably, towards a secret that may hold the key to life itself!



Tags: Mythology , Lost Civilization , Gods , Philosophy , Female Protagonist , Magic , Rural , Urban Fantasy , Tragedy , Demons , Travel , Guns

Mimi wo Sumaseba

Also known as Whisper of the Heart.

Studio: Studio Ghibli , Tokuma Shoten , Walt Disney Studios , GKIDS
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Drama , Romance , Slice of Life

During summer vacation, a schoolgirl named Shizuku, who longs to discover her true talents, observes an ordinary-looking cat riding by himself on the train. Intrigued, she decides to follow him. This chance encounter leads her to the mysterious Seiji, a boy who is determined to follow his dreams, and The Baron, a magical cat figurine who helps her listen to the whispers in her heart. Soon, Shizuku's exciting adventures carry her far beyond the boundaries of her imagination.



Tags: Coming of Age , Writing , Female Protagonist , Heterosexual , Shoujo , Animals , Primarily Teen Cast , School , Tsundere , Fairy Tale , Crossover , Love Triangle , Kemonomimi , Nekomimi , Unrequited Love , Cycling

Hottarake no Shima: Haruka to Mahou no Kagami

Also known as Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror.

Studio: Production I.G , Dentsu , Funimation , Pony Canyon , Fuji TV , Toho , POLYGON PICTURES
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Fantasy

Your favourite teddy bear. That model kit that took so long to complete. The picture book you used to read over and over again. The shining stone you found that day in the park. Where do all your childhood's treasures go when you grow up? In this story, we meet fantastic creatures that gather all these little objects that fall into oblivion as they are forgotten by their owners when they step into adulthood. These creatures sneak into our world from a different dimension, and unseen by humans, they take all the ditched and forgotten "treasures" into their world. Here, they use their booty to build their own city, a fairy tale-like place called... Oblivion Island!



Tags: Full CGI , CGI , Female Protagonist , Isekai , Magic , Bullying

Nemo

Also known as Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland.

Studio: Tokyo Movie Shinsha , Discotek , TMS Entertainment
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Fantasy

Welcome to the fantasy world of "Little Nemo," where dreams of enchanted lands and new friends take young Nemo into an exciting, fun-filled adventure through Slumberland. On one unforgettable night, Nemo falls asleep. Soon, with the help of his flying pet squirrel Icarus and his friend Professor Genius, they journey together into Slumberland. Nemo is lovingly embraced by the people of Slumberland, particularly the King, who adopts Nemo and makes him heir to the throne. He is entrusted with two very special possessions: the prized royal Scepter, and a mysterious key that unlocks many secrets!

Though Nemo is warned not to open the one door with the power to destroy Slumberland, temptation proves too strong and the King is abducted as a black cloud of nightmares washes over the formerly idyllic dreamscape. Now, if Nemo is to reverse his error and bring the King back, he must rally his friends and journey deep into Nightmare Land.



Tags: Kids , Musical Theater , Ojou-sama , Male Protagonist , Trains , Goblin

Summer Ghost

Also known as Summer Ghost.

Studio: FLAT STUDIO , FLAGSHIP LINE , Avex Pictures , GKIDS
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Supernatural

Tomoya, Aoi, and Ryou are high school students who met online. An urban legend speaks of a "summer ghost," a spirit girl who appears when fireworks are set off.

Tomoya cannot live the life he envisioned for himself. Aoi cannot find her place in the world. Ryou has his once shining future suddenly pulled away. Each has their own reason for needing to meet the summer ghost. On a summer night when life and death cross paths, where will each of their emotions take them?

Tags: Ghost , Coming of Age , Tragedy , Female Protagonist , Male Protagonist , Urban Fantasy , Primarily Teen Cast , Afterlife , Found Family , Bullying , Suicide , Denpa , Heterosexual