Top Unrequited Love Manga Recommendations

Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru

Also known as My Dress-Up Darling.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Ecchi , Romance , Slice of Life

Traumatized by a childhood incident with a friend who took exception to his love of traditional dolls, doll-artisan hopeful Gojou Wakana passes his days as a loner, finding solace in the home ec room at his high school. To Wakana, people like beautiful Kitagawa Marin, a trendy girl who's always surrounded by a throng of friends, is practically an alien from another world. But when cheerful Marin--never one to be shy--spots Wakana sewing away one day after school, she barges in with the aim of roping her quiet classmate into her secret hobby: cosplay! Will Wakana's wounded heart be able to handle the invasion from this sexy alien?!



Note: Includes four extra chapters.

Tags: Cosplay , Otaku Culture , Fashion , Female Protagonist , Male Protagonist , Gyaru , Primarily Teen Cast , Makeup , Heterosexual , Seinen , Photography , Educational , Crossdressing , School , Primarily Female Cast , Drawing , Nudity , Unrequited Love , Time Skip

Uzumaki

Also known as Uzumaki: Spiral into Horror.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Horror , Mystery , Psychological , Romance , Supernatural

Kurozu-cho, a small fogbound town on the coast of Japan, is cursed. According to Shuichi Saito, the withdrawn boyfriend of teenager Kirie Goshima, their town is haunted not by a person or being but by a pattern: uzumaki, the spiral, the hypnotic secret shape of the world. It manifests itself in small ways: seashells, ferns, whirlpools in water, whirlwinds in air. And in large ways: the spiral marks on people's bodies, the insane obsessions of Shuichi's father, the voice from the cochlea in your inner ear. As the madness spreads, the inhabitants of Kurouzu-cho are pulled ever deeper, as if into a whirlpool from which there is no return...



Notes:
- Includes the extra chapter "Uzumaki Tokubetsu-hen: Ginga", which was included in editions later released.
- Chosen by the American Library Association (ALA) as one of the Top Ten Great Graphic Novels for Teens 2009. (Vol. 1)

Tags: Tragedy , Body Horror , Cosmic Horror , Seinen , Survival , Female Protagonist , Gore , Episodic , Philosophy , Lost Civilization , Rural , Cannibalism , Urban Fantasy , Heterosexual , Suicide , Curses , Bullying , Demons , Unrequited Love , Cult , Yandere

Sousou no Frieren

Also known as Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End.

Status: Hiatus
Genres: Adventure , Drama , Fantasy

The adventure is over but life goes on for an elf mage just beginning to learn what living is all about.

Elf mage Frieren and her courageous fellow adventurers have defeated the Demon King and brought peace to the land. With the great struggle over, they all go their separate ways to live a quiet life. But as an elf, Frieren, nearly immortal, will long outlive the rest of her former party. How will she come to terms with the mortality of her friends? How can she find fulfillment in her own life, and can she learn to understand what life means to the humans around her? Frieren begins a new journey to find the answer.



Notes:
- Winner of the Grand Prize at the 14th Manga Taisho Awards.
- Nominated for the 25th Annual Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize.
- Placed 3rd at the 7th Annual Next Manga Award.

Tags: Magic , Travel , Elf , Philosophy , Female Protagonist , Time Skip , Unrequited Love , Snowscape , Demons , Iyashikei , Medieval , Kuudere , Tragedy , Episodic , Spearplay , Heterosexual , Shounen , Fairy Tale , Dungeon , Food , Time Manipulation

SLAM DUNK

Also known as Slam Dunk.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Sports

Hanamichi Sakuragi's got no game with girls--none at all! It doesn't help that he's known for throwing down at a moment's notice and always coming out on top. A hopeless bruiser, he's been rejected by 50 girls in a row! All that changes when he meets the girl of his dreams, Haruko, and she's actually not afraid of him! When she introduces him to the game of basketball, his life is changed forever...



Tags: Basketball , Male Protagonist , Primarily Male Cast , Ensemble Cast , Shounen , School , Primarily Teen Cast , Delinquents , Heterosexual , Rehabilitation , School Club , Tragedy , Philosophy , Unrequited Love

Soul Eater

Also known as Soul Eater.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Comedy , Fantasy , Supernatural

Maka is a scythe meister, working to perfect one particular scythe until it is good enough to become Death's Weapon -- the weapon used by Shinigami-sama, the spirit of Death himself. As if that wasn't unusual enough, her scythe is a demon scythe called Soul Eater, which can change form from a scythe to a human-looking boy. In order to make Soul Eater powerful enough to be Death's Weapon, he must eat the souls of 99 humans and 1 witch. Along the way, the two of them face many different challenges, including a cat witch named Blair (who happens to have a thing for Soul) and a teacher who's been turned into a zombie (and wants him to join her!). Her fellow students, like the shadow ninja weapon meister named Black Star who always needs to be the center of attention, aren't much help, either. It'll be a miracle if Maka even survives, let alone manages to make Soul Eater into the Death Scythe.



Note: Includes four extra chapters.

Tags: Ensemble Cast , Magic , Shounen , Henshin , Male Protagonist , Super Power , Female Protagonist , Gods , Guns , Witch , Shapeshifting , School , Swordplay , Twins , Foreign , War , Agender , Nudity , Travel , Urban Fantasy , Philosophy , Coming of Age , Alternate Universe , Assassins , Tragedy , Zombie , Werewolf , Body Horror , Urban , Gender Bending , Kemonomimi , Nekomimi , Tanned Skin , Unrequited Love , Space , Martial Arts , Heterosexual

Yagate Kimi ni Naru

Also known as Bloom Into You.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance , Slice of Life

Yuu has always loved shoujo manga and awaits the day she gets a love confession that sends her heart aflutter with bubbles and hearts, and yet when a junior high classmate confesses his feelings to her…she feels nothing. Disappointed and confused, Yuu enters high school still unsure how to respond. That’s when Yuu sees the beautiful student council president Nanami turn down a suitor with such maturity that she’s inspired to ask her for help. But when the next person to confess to Yuu is Nanami herself, has her shoujo romance finally begun?



Note: Includes eight extra chapters.

Tags: Yuri , Female Protagonist , Coming of Age , School , Primarily Teen Cast , LGBTQ+ Themes , Primarily Female Cast , Unrequited Love , Love Triangle , School Club , Acting , Philosophy , Aromantic , Asexual , Shounen , Athletics , Restaurant , Writing , Nudity , Time Skip , Bisexual , Tragedy

Kanojo, Okarishimasu

Also known as Rent-A-Girlfriend.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Ecchi , Romance

In today’s Japan, “rental” services can deliver an afternoon with a “friend,” a “parent,” even a fake girlfriend! After a staggering betrayal by his girlfriend, hapless freshman Kazuya gets just desperate enough to give it a try. But he quickly discovers how complicated it can be to “rent” an emotional connection, and his new “girlfriend,” who’s trying to keep her side hustle secret, will panic when she finds out her real life and Kazuya’s are intertwined in surprising ways! Family, school, and life all start to go wrong, too… It’s sweet but naïve boy meets cute but ruthless girl in this 21st-century manga rom-com!



Tags: Fake Relationship , Male Protagonist , Love Triangle , Prostitution , Shounen , Primarily Female Cast , Cohabitation , Unrequited Love , Work , Female Harem , Heterosexual , Tsundere , Gambling , Acting , Primarily Adult Cast , Filmmaking , College , Aliens , Coming of Age , Meta , Slapstick , Nudity , Agriculture , School

Ao Haru Ride

Also known as Ao Haru Ride.

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

Futaba Yoshioka thought all boys were loud and obnoxious until she met Kou Tanaka in junior high. But as soon as she realized she really liked him, he had already moved away because of family issues. Now, in high school, Kou has reappeared, but is he still the same boy she fell in love with?



Note: Includes two extra chapters and two one-shots.

Tags: Shoujo , School , Love Triangle , Heterosexual , Female Protagonist , Primarily Teen Cast , Unrequited Love , Tomboy , Coming of Age , Kuudere , Tsundere , Tragedy , Time Skip , Age Gap

MASHLE

Also known as Mashle: Magic and Muscles.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Comedy , Fantasy

This is a world of magic where magic is used for everything. But deep in the forest exists a young man who spends his time training and bulking up. He can't use magic, but he enjoys a peaceful life with his father. But one day, his life is put in danger! Will his muscular body protect him from the magic users who are out to get him? Powerfully trained muscles crush magic as this abnormal magical fantasy begins!



Note:
- Eleventh place of Tsugimanga 2020 Award in the Manga Category.

Tags: Magic , Fitness , Surreal Comedy , Shounen , Parody , Male Protagonist , Primarily Teen Cast , School , Slapstick , Time Manipulation , War , Primarily Male Cast , Food , Unrequited Love , Volleyball , Tennis , LGBTQ+ Themes , Asexual , Aromantic

Given

Also known as Given.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Music , Romance , Slice of Life

Ritsuka Uenoyama is bored with it all—with school, with his basketball club, and even with his one true passion: playing guitar. That is, until the day he finds his favorite hidden napping spot occupied by a strange boy cradling a broken-stringed guitar. At first, Uenoyama is nonplussed by Mafuyu Sato and his slightly odd behavior, but when, on a whim, he asks Mafuyu to sing, the power of that song pierces him to the core.



Tags: Boys' Love , Band , LGBTQ+ Themes , Rehabilitation , Primarily Male Cast , Ensemble Cast , Coming of Age , Tragedy , Male Protagonist , Bisexual , Suicide , Unrequited Love , School , Love Triangle , Urban , Kuudere , Tsundere

Ao no Flag

Also known as Blue Flag.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance

High school senior year, spring—one of life's important forks in the road. Taichi Ichinose finds himself in the same class as Futaba Kuze, who he feels strangely averse to, and his popular childhood friend, Touma Mita. One day, Futaba confides in him her love for Touma, and asks him for help. How will Taichi respond? This new “pure” love story begins as the three are colored in the emotions of youth.



Tags: Coming of Age , LGBTQ+ Themes , Love Triangle , Male Protagonist , Shounen , Primarily Teen Cast , Chibi , School , Philosophy , Bisexual , Boys' Love , Baseball , Ensemble Cast , Unrequited Love , Time Skip , Heterosexual , Rehabilitation , Yuri

Agyeogui Ending Jugeumppun

Also known as Villains Are Destined to Die.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Drama , Fantasy , Psychological , Romance

This game’s got me obsessed! It’s like it’s taken over my life... wait—HARD MODE ACTIVATED. No-no-no-no-no! It has literally taken me and thrown me into the part of Penelope Eckhart. Love is easy as the heroine, but as the hated villainess, I’m trying very hard not to die… at the hands of my brothers… the prince… a fork… every possible ending is death! This world is stacked against me, but can my wits and insider game knowledge score the affection of these male characters? Or the reset button???



Tags: Female Protagonist , Villainess , Full Color , Isekai , Reincarnation , Tragedy , Ojou-sama , Adoption , Video Games , Bullying , Royal Affairs , Long Strip , Primarily Adult Cast , Estranged Family , Male Harem , Heterosexual , Magic , Yandere , Suicide , Slavery , Tsundere , Unrequited Love , Espionage

orange

Also known as orange.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Psychological , Romance , Sci-Fi , Supernatural

Everyone has regrets in life. So who wouldn’t take the chance to change the past if given the opportunity? When sixteen-year-old Takamiya Naho receives a mysterious letter, claiming to be from her twenty-seven-year-old self, her life is suddenly thrown into flux. The letter tells her that a new transfer student by the name of Naruse Kakeru will be joining her class, and to keep her eye on him. But why? Naho must decide what to make of the letter and its cryptic warning, and what it means not only for her future, but for Kakeru’s as well.



Included series/one-shot:
Volumes 1-5: Haru-iro Astronaut (春色アストロノート , Spring-Colored Astronaut); #1: Bessatsu Margaret 2011-06, #2: Betsuma sister 2012-01, #3~5: kakioroshi
Mami and Tomoki have always shared everything in life, they are identical twins, yet so different in character and personality: Mami tender and helpless, courted by boys to whom she doesn't never "no" for excessive kindness, Tomoki with a strong sense of duty and a great spirit of sacrifice, would do anything to see his sister happy. But there comes a time, however, when one realizes there are things that cannot be shared, especially when it is something extremely rare and unique... just like an alien?!
Volume 6: Mirai (未来)
Volume 7: Suwa Hiroto (須和弘人)
A side story focusing on Naho and Suwa's lives in the world where Kakeru passed away at age 17.

Notes: Nominated to the 20th Annual Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize.

Tags: Love Triangle , Shoujo , School , Time Manipulation , Heterosexual , Female Protagonist , Suicide , Primarily Teen Cast , Alternate Universe , Ensemble Cast , Tragedy , Unrequited Love , Acting

Hikaru ga Shinda Natsu

Also known as The Summer Hikaru Died.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Horror , Mystery , Psychological , Supernatural , Thriller

Two boys lived in a village: Yoshiki and Hikaru. The two did everything together...until the day Hikaru was encompassed by a mysterious light. That was when everything changed—Hikaru most of all. Yoshiki still wishes from the bottom of his heart to always stay by his side...but is there even a Hikaru left to be with?

Tags: Monster Boy , Male Protagonist , Rural , Cosmic Horror , Body Horror , Tragedy , Primarily Teen Cast , Boys' Love , Mythology , School , LGBTQ+ Themes , Unrequited Love , Gods , Curses , Urban Fantasy , Seinen , Aromantic , Asexual , Mountaineering

JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken: Stardust Crusaders

Also known as JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 3: Stardust Crusaders.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Mystery , Supernatural

In a Japanese jail sits 17-year-old Jotaro Kujo: punk, fighter, delinquent...and possessed by a force beyond his control! Around the world, evil spirits are awakening: "Stands," monstrous invisible creatures which give their bearers incredible powers. To save his mother's life, Jotaro must tame his dark forces and travel around the world to Cairo, Egypt, where a hundred-year-old vampire thirsts for the blood of his family. But the road is long, and an army of evil Stand Users waits to kill JoJo and his friends...



Tags: Super Power , Shounen , Male Protagonist , Foreign , Primarily Male Cast , Travel , Tragedy , Urban Fantasy , Vampire , Time Manipulation , Ensemble Cast , Body Horror , Delinquents , Desert , Revenge , Animals , Shapeshifting , Gambling , Cars , Disability , Age Regression , Unrequited Love

Fruits Basket

Also known as Fruits Basket.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Psychological , Romance , Supernatural

After a family tragedy turns her life upside down, plucky high schooler Tohru Honda takes matters into her own hands and moves out...into a tent! Unfortunately for her, she pitches her new home on private land belonging to the mysterious Sohma clan, and it isn't long before the owners discover her secret. But, as Tohru quickly finds out when the family offers to take her in, the Sohmas have a secret of their own--when touched by the opposite sex, they turn into the animals of the Chinese Zodiac!



Note: Volume 9 includes the bonus chapter "Rain Shelter of Terror".

Tags: Shoujo , Mythology , Animals , Ensemble Cast , Tragedy , Shapeshifting , Philosophy , Rehabilitation , Heterosexual , Reincarnation , Found Family , Female Protagonist , Urban Fantasy , Primarily Male Cast , School , Family Life , Primarily Teen Cast , Coming of Age , Age Gap , Tsundere , Estranged Family , Youkai , Curses , Love Triangle , Memory Manipulation , Disability , Orphan , Unrequited Love , Incest , Crossdressing , Henshin , Delinquents , Cohabitation , Monster Boy , Iyashikei , Revenge , Dissociative Identities , Teacher , Marriage , Transgender

Boku wa Mari no Naka

Also known as Inside Mari.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Ecchi , Mystery , Psychological , Thriller

College dropout Isao Komori wakes up one morning to find himself in the body of a high school girl. How did this happen and what happened to the girl whose body his is possessing?

Tags: Female Protagonist , Body Swapping , Dissociative Identities , Gender Bending , Seinen , Philosophy , Psychosexual , Denpa , Hikikomori , LGBTQ+ Themes , Primarily Female Cast , Rehabilitation , School , Male Protagonist , Masturbation , Unrequited Love , Nudity , Tragedy , Primarily Teen Cast , Bullying , Amnesia , Disability

Otoyomegatari

Also known as A Bride's Story.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Drama , Romance , Slice of Life

A Bride’s Story tells the tale of a beautiful young bride in nineteenth-century Asia. At the age of twenty, Amir is sent to a neighboring town to be wed. But her surprise at learning her new husband, Karluk, is eight years younger than her is quickly replaced by a deep affection for the boy and his family. Though she hails from just beyond the mountains, Amir’s clan had very different customs, foods, and clothes from what Karluk is used to. As the two of them learn more about each other through their day-to-day lives, the bond of respect and love grows stronger.



Note: Won the Prix Intergénérations ("Intergenerational Award") at the Angoulême International Comics Festival in 2012 and the 7th Manga Taishou award in 2014.

Tags: Ensemble Cast , Marriage , Historical , Female Protagonist , Heterosexual , Travel , Seinen , Foreign , Arranged Marriage , Iyashikei , Indigenous Cultures , Desert , Environmental , Family Life , Rural , Matchmaking , Age Gap , Educational , War , Cohabitation , Military , Food , Religion , Unrequited Love , Language Barrier , Twins , Archery , Nudity , Animals , Female Harem , Polyamorous , LGBTQ+ Themes , Large Breasts

Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu

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

Status: Releasing
Genres: Action , Adventure , Drama , Fantasy , Mystery , Psychological , Romance , Thriller

Subaru Natsuki was just trying to get to the convenience store but wound up summoned to another world. He encounters the usual things--life-threatening situations, silver haired beauties, cat fairies--you know, normal stuff. All that would be bad enough, but he's also gained the most inconvenient magical ability of all--time travel, but he's got to die to use it. How do you repay someone who saved your life when all you can do is die?



Tags: Time Loop , Time Manipulation , Heterosexual , Tragedy , Isekai , Witch , Male Protagonist , Cosmic Horror , Ensemble Cast , Gore , Politics , Disability , Astronomy , Memory Manipulation , Magic , Cult , Body Horror , Reincarnation , Elf , Amnesia , Suicide , Alternate Universe , Twins , Dissociative Identities , Unrequited Love , Maids , Hikikomori , Assassins , Time Skip , Love Triangle , Dragons , Age Regression , Yandere , Kemonomimi , Crossdressing , Female Protagonist , Femboy , Medieval , Shapeshifting , Zombie , Curses , Necromancy , Werewolf

Sasayaku You ni Koi wo Utau

Also known as Whisper Me a Love Song.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Drama , Music , Romance

Bubbly, energetic first-year high school student Himari falls head over heels for her senpai Yori after hearing her band perform on the first day of school. Himari tells Yori she just loves her, and to Himari's surprise, Yori says she loves Himari back! But when Himari realizes that she and her senpai are feeling two different kinds of love, she begins to ask herself what "love" really means...



Notes:
- Eighteenth place of Tsugimanga 2020 Award in the Manga Category
- First place in Yuri Navi’s best Yuri Manga of 2020

Tags: Yuri , Primarily Female Cast , Female Protagonist , Band , LGBTQ+ Themes , Unrequited Love , School Club , School , Love Triangle , Primarily Teen Cast , Bisexual , Tragedy , Incest