Top Meta Anime Recommendations

Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu

Also known as Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-.

Studio: White Fox
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Drama , Fantasy , Psychological , Romance , Thriller

In the story, Subaru Natsuki is an ordinary high school student who is lost in an alternate world, where he is rescued by a beautiful, silver-haired girl. He stays near her to return the favor, but the destiny she is burdened with is more than Subaru can imagine. Enemies attack one by one, and both of them are killed. He then finds out he has the power to rewind death, back to the time he first came to this world. But only he remembers what has happened since.



Notes:
- The first episode aired with a runtime of ~50 minutes as opposed to the standard 25 minute long episode.
- In the Winter 2020 season, Re:ZERO was rebroadcast and re-edited to fit into an hour time-slot. This edit included the first OVA and added slight modifications to certain scenes throughout. It also added an additional scene at the end of the final episode.

Tags: Isekai , Time Manipulation , Time Loop , Tragedy , Alternate Universe , Male Protagonist , Witch , Magic , Gore , Cult , Love Triangle , Body Horror , Maids , Suicide , Heterosexual , Primarily Female Cast , Unrequited Love , Elf , Yandere , Demons , Politics , Hikikomori , Coming of Age , Butler , Femboy , Tomboy , Travel , Twins , Assassins , Kemonomimi , Meta , Kuudere , Nekomimi , CGI , Dragons , Body Swapping , Crossdressing , Foreign , Tsundere

No Game No Life

Also known as No Game, No Life.

Studio: MADHOUSE
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Comedy , Ecchi , Fantasy

Bored with life and considering the real world to be just a “crappy game,” savvy sibling shut-ins Sora and Shiro have withdrawn into their own fantasy world filled with video games.

However, one day they find themselves summoned to another world by a boy who calls himself “God,” their abilities are about to be put to the ultimate test! Now not only their fates — but the fate of all of humanity — will be decided by a series of games that may just be the hardest these super-geniuses have ever faced!



Tags: Isekai , Gambling , Alternate Universe , Video Games , Hikikomori , Magic , Female Protagonist , Primarily Female Cast , Male Protagonist , Parody , Gods , Politics , Kuudere , Kemonomimi , Nudity , Class Struggle , Female Harem , Meta , Travel , Nekomimi , Memory Manipulation , Elf , Super Power , Judo , Kingdom Management

Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai: Tensaitachi no Renai Zunousen

Also known as Kaguya-sama: Love is War.

Studio: A-1 Pictures
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Psychological , Romance , Slice of Life

Known for being both brilliant and powerful, Miyuki Shirogane and Kaguya Shinomiya lead the illustrious Shuchiin Academy as near equals. And everyone thinks they’d make a great couple. Pride and arrogance are in ample supply, so the only logical move is to trick the other into instigating a date! Who will come out on top in this psychological war where the first move is the only one that matters?



Tags: School , Heterosexual , Tsundere , Primarily Teen Cast , School Club , Ojou-sama , Episodic , Slapstick , Female Protagonist , Seinen , Male Protagonist , Meta , Ensemble Cast , Parody , Kemonomimi , Rotoscoping , Nekomimi

Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo!

Also known as KONOSUBA -God's blessing on this wonderful world!.

Studio: Studio DEEN
Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Comedy , Ecchi , Fantasy

Kazuma Satou decides that today is the day to get out of the house for a bit. Since he dies, pointlessly, it's clearly a bad choice. The goddess who greets him in the afterlife, however, offers him a chance to be reborn in a world not unlike that of a video game, and as a bonus she'll even throw in a cool item or power! Can't possibly be a bad choice, right? Except he arrives with no money at all, dead average skills, and his "bonus" isn't useful at all--since he picked the goddess, Aqua, herself. How are the two of them supposed to defeat the evil Devil King and live happily ever after? Well, for them, it probably starts with day laboring rather than adventuring. And it's only going to get more disappointing from there!



Tags: Isekai , Satire , Parody , Primarily Female Cast , Male Protagonist , Ensemble Cast , Magic , Slapstick , Masochism , Anti-Hero , Afterlife , Gods , Reincarnation , Meta , Chuunibyou , Primarily Adult Cast , Alternate Universe , Dullahan , Swordplay , Dungeon , Succubus , Nudity , Shounen

Mirai Nikki

Also known as The Future Diary.

Studio: Asread
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Horror , Mystery , Psychological , Supernatural , Thriller

This psychological thriller, based on the manga written and illustrated by Sakae Esuno, is about Yuki, a loner who's not very good with people. He prefers to write a diary on his cell phone and talk to his imaginary friend, Deus Ex Machina – The God of Time and Space. However, Yuki soon learns that Deus is more than a figment of his imagination when he makes Yuki participate in a battle royale with eleven others. The contestants are given special diaries that can predict the future, each diary possessing unique features that give it both advantages and disadvantages. Within the next 90 days, the contestants must try to survive until there is only one left standing. The winner will become the new God of Time and Space.



Tags: Battle Royale , Death Game , Survival , Yandere , Tragedy , Alternate Universe , Suicide , Meta , Gore , Gods , Time Manipulation , Male Protagonist , Crime , Super Power , Urban , Female Protagonist , Shounen , Urban Fantasy , Heterosexual , Age Gap , Clone , Anti-Hero , Netorare , Guns , CGI , Terrorism , Police , Henshin , Adoption , Nudity , LGBTQ+ Themes , Bisexual , Orphan , Tanned Skin , Cult , Stop Motion , Disability , Psychosexual , Boys' Love

Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai?: Tensaitachi no Renai Zunousen

Also known as Kaguya-sama: Love is War?.

Studio: A-1 Pictures
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Psychological , Romance , Slice of Life

After a slow but eventful summer vacation, Shuchiin Academy's second term is now starting in full force. As August transitions into September, Miyuki Shirogane's birthday looms ever closer, leaving Kaguya Shinomiya in a serious predicament as to how to celebrate it. Furthermore, the tenure of the school's 67th student council is coming to an end. Due to the council members being in different classes, the only time Kaguya and Miyuki have to be together will soon disappear, putting all of their cunning plans at risk.
A long and difficult election that will decide the fate of the new student council awaits, as multiple challengers fight for the coveted title of president.


Tags: School , School Club , Ensemble Cast , Tsundere , Female Protagonist , Male Protagonist , Episodic , Primarily Teen Cast , Ojou-sama , Coming of Age , Heterosexual , Slapstick , Parody , Meta , Kuudere , Seinen , Bullying , Villainess , Otaku Culture , Crossdressing , Primarily Female Cast

Kill la Kill

Also known as Kill la Kill.

Studio: Trigger
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Comedy , Ecchi

After the murder of her father, Ryuuko Matoi has been wandering the land in search of his killer. Following her only lead—the missing half of his invention, the Scissor Blade—she arrives at the prestigious Honnouji Academy, a high school unlike any other. The academy is ruled by the imposing and cold-hearted student council president Satsuki Kiryuuin alongside her powerful underlings, the Elite Four. In the school's brutally competitive hierarchy, Satsuki bestows upon those at the top special clothes called "Goku Uniforms," which grant the wearer unique superhuman abilities.

Tags: Henshin , Female Protagonist , Revenge , Nudity , Parody , Surreal Comedy , Class Struggle , Dystopian , Tomboy , Super Power , Aliens , Coming of Age , Primarily Teen Cast , School , Military , Anti-Hero , Incest , Cult , Psychosexual , Villainess , Bullying , Ensemble Cast , School Club , Tokusatsu , Delinquents , CGI , Gore , LGBTQ+ Themes , Tragedy , Orphan , Tsundere , Meta , Cosplay , Yandere , Cheerleading

Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Come wa Machigatteiru.

Also known as My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU.

Studio: Brain's Base
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Romance , Slice of Life

This romantic comedy revolves around an antisocial high school student named Hikigaya Hachiman with a distorted view on life and no friends or girlfriend. When he sees his classmates talking excitedly about living their adolescent lives, he mutters: "They're a bunch of liars." When he is asked about his future dreams, he responds: "Not working." A teacher gets Hachiman to join the 'Volunteer Service' club, which happens to have the school's prettiest girl: Yukinoshita Yukino.



Tags: School , School Club , Primarily Teen Cast , Male Protagonist , Anti-Hero , Heterosexual , Love Triangle , Kuudere , Hikikomori , Satire , Femboy , Meta , Tsundere , Bullying , Female Harem , Episodic , Chuunibyou , Bisexual , Tennis , Rehabilitation

DEVILMAN crybaby

Also known as Devilman Crybaby.

Studio: Science SARU
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Drama , Horror , Psychological , Supernatural

New Devilman project marking Go Nagai's 50th anniversary as a creator.

The protagonist Akira Fudou learns from his best friend, Ryou Asuka, that an ancient race of demons has returned to take back the world from humans. Ryou tells Akira that the only way to defeat the demons is to incorporate their supernatural powers, and suggests that he unite with a demon himself. Akira succeeds in transforming into Devilman, who possesses both the powers of a demon and the soul of a human. The battle of Devilman and Akira Fudou begins.



Tags: Demons , Tragedy , Body Horror , Gore , Urban Fantasy , Gods , Shapeshifting , Psychosexual , Male Protagonist , Philosophy , Cosmic Horror , Nudity , War , Monster Boy , Angels , Henshin , Anti-Hero , Mythology , Coming of Age , Unrequited Love , Cannibalism , Revenge , LGBTQ+ Themes , Athletics , Boys' Love , Hip-hop Music , Heterosexual , Guns , Drugs , Meta , Masturbation , Bisexual , Public Sex , Politics , Motorcycles , Afterlife , Shounen , Post-Apocalyptic , Conspiracy

Bakemonogatari

Also known as Bakemonogatari.

Studio: Shaft
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Mystery , Psychological , Romance , Supernatural

First season of the Monogatari Series, part 1/6. Contains the arcs Hitagi Crab, Mayoi Snail, Suruga Monkey, Nadeko Snake, and Tsubasa Cat from the Bakemonogatari light novels.

Thanks to Meme Oshino, Koyomi Araragi, a high school student, is able to remain a human after coming across a female vampire... However, since the incident, Koyomi seems to meet girls who have an apparition-related issue. Hitagi Senjougahara doesn’t weigh anything, Suruga Kanbaru’s right arm becomes like that of a monkey’s, and a young girl, Mayoi, cannot find her way home no matter how many times she tries. Koyomi, a Mr. Nice Guy, ends up helping each and every girl solve her problem with the help of Meme Oshino.



Tags: Ensemble Cast , Youkai , Urban Fantasy , Male Protagonist , Surreal Comedy , Kuudere , Philosophy , Primarily Female Cast , Vampire , Ghost , Coming of Age , Satire , Heterosexual , Primarily Teen Cast , Meta , Dissociative Identities , Curses , Monster Girl , Psychosexual , Love Triangle , Yandere , Tomboy , Parody , Gore , Rotoscoping , Nekomimi , Female Harem , LGBTQ+ Themes , Tsundere , CGI , Gods , School , Amnesia , Rehabilitation , Aliens

Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan

Also known as The Disastrous Life of Saiki K..

Studio: J.C. Staff , EGG FIRM
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Slice of Life , Supernatural

To the average person, psychic abilities might seem a blessing; for Kusuo Saiki, however, this couldn't be further from the truth. Gifted with a wide assortment of supernatural abilities ranging from telepathy to x-ray vision, he finds this so-called blessing to be nothing but a curse. As all the inconveniences his powers cause constantly pile up, all Kusuo aims for is an ordinary, hassle-free life—a life where ignorance is bliss.

Unfortunately, the life of a psychic is far from quiet. Though Kusuo tries to stay out of the spotlight by keeping his powers a secret from his classmates, he ends up inadvertently attracting the attention of many odd characters, such as the empty-headed Riki Nendou and the delusional Shun Kaidou. Forced to deal with the craziness of the people around him, Kusuo comes to learn that the ordinary life he has been striving for is a lot more difficult to achieve than expected.

Note: Aired in 2 versions, a 120-episode 5-minute short series, and a combined 24-episode 24-minute TV series with the same content.

Tags: Super Power , Surreal Comedy , Satire , Episodic , Parody , School , Meta , Mythology , Asexual , Male Protagonist , Ensemble Cast , Primarily Teen Cast , Shounen , Tsundere , Kuudere , Aromantic , Memory Manipulation , Urban , Chuunibyou , Unrequited Love , Ghost , Heterosexual , School Club , Gyaru , LGBTQ+ Themes , Incest , Video Games , Gangs

Komi-san wa, Komyushou desu.

Also known as Komi Can’t Communicate.

Studio: OLM
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Romance , Slice of Life

Timid Tadano is a total wallflower, and that’s just the way he likes it. But all that changes when he finds himself alone in a classroom on the first day of high school with the legendary Komi. He quickly realizes she isn’t aloof—she’s just super awkward. Now he’s made it his mission to help her on her quest to make 100 friends!



Tags: School , Kuudere , Disability , Female Protagonist , Episodic , Slapstick , Primarily Teen Cast , Male Protagonist , Coming of Age , Heterosexual , Shounen , Agender , Meta , Yandere , Femboy , Gender Bending , Transgender , Crossdressing , Cute Girls Doing Cute Things , Chuunibyou , Maids , Unrequited Love , Gangs , Bullying

Gintama

Also known as Gintama.

Studio: Sunrise
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Comedy , Drama , Sci-Fi

Life isn't easy in feudal Japan... especially since the aliens landed and conquered everything! Oh sure, the new health care is great, but the public ban on the use of swords has left a lot of defeated samurai with a difficult decision to make concerning their future career paths! This is especially true if, as in the case of Gintoki Sakata, they're not particularly inclined towards holding a day job, which is why Gintoki's opted for the freelance route, taking any job that's offered to him as long as the financial remuneration sounds right. Unfortunately, in a brave new world filled with stray bug-eyed monsters, upwardly mobile Yakuza and overly ambitious E.T. entrepreneurs, those jobs usually don't pay as well as they should for the pain, suffering and indignities endured!



Tags: Parody , Samurai , Ensemble Cast , Meta , Slapstick , Male Protagonist , Surreal Comedy , Anachronism , Found Family , Aliens , Episodic , Swordplay , Shounen , Police , Terrorism , Satire , Historical , Tragedy , Primarily Adult Cast , Space , Mopeds , Ninja , Sadism , Crime , Masochism , Oiran , Robots , LGBTQ+ Themes , Homeless , Crossdressing , Mafia , Ghost , Nekomimi , Boxing , Pirates , Educational , Fishing , Yakuza , CGI , Dissociative Identities , Kuudere , Body Swapping , Anthropomorphism , Female Harem

Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai: Ultra Romantic

Also known as Kaguya-sama: Love is War -Ultra Romantic-.

Studio: A-1 Pictures
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Psychological , Romance , Slice of Life

The elite members of Shuchiin Academy's student council continue their competitive day-to-day antics. Council president Miyuki Shirogane clashes daily against vice-president Kaguya Shinomiya, each fighting tooth and nail to trick the other into confessing their romantic love. Kaguya struggles within the strict confines of her wealthy, uptight family, rebelling against her cold default demeanor as she warms to Shirogane and the rest of her friends.

Meanwhile, council treasurer Yuu Ishigami suffers under the weight of his hopeless crush on Tsubame Koyasu, a popular upperclassman who helps to instill a new confidence in him. Miko Iino, the newest student council member, grows closer to the rule-breaking Ishigami while striving to overcome her own authoritarian moral code.

As love further blooms at Shuchiin Academy, the student council officers drag their outsider friends into increasingly comedic conflicts.



Note: The first episode had an advanced screening on April 2, in both New York & Los Angeles.


Tags: School , Heterosexual , School Club , Primarily Teen Cast , Ensemble Cast , Slapstick , Coming of Age , Tsundere , Female Protagonist , Male Protagonist , Meta , Ojou-sama , Kuudere , Parody , Episodic , Seinen , Love Triangle , Satire , Detective , Unrequited Love , Cosplay , Crossdressing , CGI

Ouran Koukou Host Club

Also known as Ouran High School Host Club.

Studio: bones
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Romance , Slice of Life

Fujioka Haruhi wins a scholarship to attend Ouran Academy, a school reserved for only the most rich and prestigious. Despite what other students may think of her, she cares little for physical appearances or the fact that she is a commoner.

Unfortunately for Haruhi, her high school days take a sudden turn when she stumbles upon the Host Club, an elite club filled with super rich and beautiful boys who use their specific traits and charms to entertain young ladies. Even worse, Haruhi accidentally breaks an 8-million yen vase in the club. Since she is unable to repay her debt with money, Haruhi finds herself with no choice but to work for the Host Club, becoming a male host herself.

Tags: School Club , Shoujo , Parody , Crossdressing , School , Female Protagonist , Primarily Teen Cast , Male Harem , Primarily Male Cast , Ensemble Cast , Tomboy , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things , Surreal Comedy , Femboy , Meta , Episodic , Twins , LGBTQ+ Themes , Mixed Gender Harem , Heterosexual , Found Family , Love Triangle , Unrequited Love , Chibi , Ojou-sama , Food , Martial Arts , Delinquents , Gangs , Yakuza

Kage no Jitsuryokusha ni Naritakute!

Also known as The Eminence in Shadow.

Studio: Nexus
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Comedy , Fantasy

Some people just aren’t suited to playing the part of the flashy, in-your-face hero or the dastardly, mustache-twirling villain with larger-than-life panache. Instead, they operate in the shadows and pull the strings of society through wit and cleverness. That’s the role Cid wants to play when he’s transported to another world. Cid spins a yarn or three and becomes the unlikely leader of the underground Shadow Garden organization that fights against a menacing cult (which he totally made up). However, there’s a catch even his wild imagination didn’t see coming: the cult he concocted actually exists, and they’re beyond displeased that his power fantasy just got in the way of their evil plans!



Tags: Isekai , Chuunibyou , Male Protagonist , Parody , Anti-Hero , Magic , Cult , Acting , Swordplay , Reincarnation , Primarily Female Cast , Meta , Female Harem , Nudity , Espionage , Satire , Elf , School , Terrorism , Assassins , Politics , Kemonomimi , Gore , Heterosexual

Shin Seiki Evangelion Movie: Air / Magokoro wo, Kimi ni

Also known as Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End of Evangelion.

Studio: Gainax , Production I.G
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Drama , Mecha , Psychological , Sci-Fi

NERV faces a brutal attack from SEELE, but with Asuka in a coma, and Shinji in a nervous breakdown, things soon turn into the surreal. This movie provides a concurrent ending to the final two episodes of the show Neon Genesis Evangelion.



Tags: Philosophy , Tragedy , Dystopian , Coming of Age , Post-Apocalyptic , Denpa , Meta , Gods , Body Horror , Conspiracy , Male Protagonist , Gore , Super Robot , Afterlife , Mythology , Kaiju , Robots , Cosmic Horror , Female Protagonist , Religion , Psychosexual , Primarily Teen Cast , Guns , Kuudere , Nudity , Masturbation , Clone , Tsundere , Politics , Space

Danganronpa: Kibou no Gakuen to Zetsubou no Koukousei - The Animation

Also known as Danganronpa: The Animation.

Studio: Lerche
Status: Finished
Genres: Horror , Mystery , Psychological , Sci-Fi , Thriller

A group of 15 elite high school students are gathered at a very special, high class high school. To graduate from this high school essentially means you'll succeed in life, but graduating is very difficult. The school is presided over by a bear called Monokuma, and he explains to them that their graduation hinges around committing a murder. The only way to graduate is to kill one of your classmates and get away with it. If the other classmates discover the identity of the killer, the killer is the only one executed. However, if they fail to catch the killer, only the killer graduates and the others are annihilated. Which of the 15 will survive the bloodbath to come?

Tags: Death Game , Battle Royale , Tragedy , Survival , Detective , Dystopian , Memory Manipulation , Amnesia , School , Ensemble Cast , Gore , Dissociative Identities , Twins , Male Protagonist , Post-Apocalyptic , Primarily Adult Cast , Artificial Intelligence , Suicide , Tanned Skin , Meta , Crossdressing , Yandere , Femboy , Kuudere , CGI , Surreal Comedy , Primarily Teen Cast , Gyaru , Idol , School Club

Tonikaku Kawaii

Also known as TONIKAWA: Over The Moon For You.

Studio: Seven Arcs
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Romance , Slice of Life

The story follows a protagonist whose name is written with the characters for "Hoshizora" ("Starry Sky" in Japanese), but whose name is pronounced as "Nasa". On the day of his high school entrance exams, Nasa encounters a beautiful girl named Tsukasa. For Nasa, it feels like destiny is finally calling out to him that he will have a girlfriend, but things take a turn for the worse when Nasa is hit by a car and unable to attend his entrance exams.

After Tsukasa helps the injured Nasa, he confesses his feelings to her, and she agrees to go out with him, but only if Nasa agrees to marry her first. A year later Nasa aces the entrance exams, but he decides to work a part time job and live by himself instead of going to school. After Nasa turns 18, Tsukasa re-appears, and their happy, romantic, and mysterious married life together begins.



Tags: Marriage , Family Life , Heterosexual , Iyashikei , Coming of Age , Shounen , Primarily Adult Cast , Meta , Male Protagonist , Kuudere , Maids , Love Triangle

serial experiments lain

Also known as Serial Experiments Lain.

Studio: Triangle Staff
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Psychological , Sci-Fi , Supernatural

We're all connected... There is the world around us, a world of people, tactile sensation, and culture. There is the wired world, inside the computer, of images, personalities, virtual experiences, and a culture all of its own. The day after a classmate commits suicide, Lain, a 14-year-old girl, discovers how closely the two worlds are linked when she receives an e-mail from the dead girl: I just abandoned my body. I still live here...

Has the line between the real world and the wired world begun to blur?



Tags: Denpa , Virtual World , Philosophy , Dissociative Identities , Augmented Reality , Female Protagonist , Memory Manipulation , Artificial Intelligence , Software Development , Cyberpunk , Gods , Cosmic Horror , Conspiracy , Cult , Video Games , Suicide , Religion , Urban , Meta , Tragedy , Primarily Female Cast , Amnesia , Afterlife , Adoption , POV , Orphan , Anti-Hero , Drugs , Trains , Aliens , School , Isekai , Death Game , Age Gap , Bullying , Zombie