No matter which station you end up at, it is easy to just follow the hoards of people heading in the same direction to find Dotonbori. When you find yourself feeling overwhelmed by a number of people taking pictures, you have arrived. Welcome to Dotonbori! You can picture yourself in GoHand’s key visual for Hand Shakers standing amongst all of the signboards. This is the place where you feel transported into an anime. If you are near the long line by the bridge over the canal, you are clearly at Kani Doraku, one of the many iconic signs in Dotonbori. If you recognize this sign, it was featured in Hand Shakers when Hayate and Chizuru decide to dine here after their failed match against Tazuna and Chizuru. This is one of the places where tourists are drawn to try crab because everyone loves crab, right? Crab sushi is sold at the counter, which is where the line stands. Crowds of people wait to be allowed within the establishment. You can dine here, but you may want to keep walking to consider your options. Also, heed Hayate’s warning; Kani Doraku is not cheap! From here, you can walk through Dotonbori, imagine yourself as Tazuna, as he walks past Dotonbori into the Shinsaibashi Shopping Arcade, which is extremely busy. and the streets are not wide enough to deal with the crowds, especially on weekend nights. The shopping arcade goes on forever, and even when you cross major streets, it continues into other ones. There’s so much you can eat, see, or do that you will be overwhelmed and won’t know where to start.

Back at Dotonbori, you can walk in either direction to follow the Dotonbori Canal and see more iconic shops and foods. One major ramen chain has no signage aside from the large dragon on its signboard. Still, hundreds of people wait to dine here and at one of the other many establishments. If you see a very angry looking Japanese man sign, welcome to one of the most popular kushikatsu restaurants, Kushikatsu Daruma. It can be rather intimidating, but this is one of the most well-known restaurants that serves kushikatsu, skewered foods that are fried. Try the mochi kushikatsu! Anime-wise, you might not come across much. There are not many anime shops although there is an owl cafe if you follow one of the shopping arcades down the ways. There are a lot of pachinko parlors, clubs, host clubs, and all sorts of things to keep you occupied at all hours of the day. Dotonbori has so much to offer everyone that it’s astounding if you have to leave for anything at all (sleep?). Still, if you’re looking for something fun, there is a Disney Store located down one of the shopping arcades and a Sanrio store. There are also arcades of all sorts if you are too young to play pachinko. Do not forget the UFO catchers. Do not you want to win yourself a cute or anime-themed souvenir to take home? There’s a lot here in Dotonbori and do not run off just because you do not actually see a large Animate anywhere (see additional info below).

As we were mentioning before, Dotonbori intersects with multiple shopping arcades so you can literally spend hours here. You can find almost anything you want here including traditional wagashi shops, souvenir shops, Daiso, coffee shops, restaurants, desserts, etc. etc. The options are endless! Do you have any anime foods you’ve been dying to try? Osaka is the place to try them all. They say that Osaka is the kitchen of Japan and most who visit Osaka come for the food. Luckily, if you’re at Dotonbori, all of Osaka’s specialties are right within a couple of steps from each other. There are many ramen shops (including a whole street of ramen options!), supposedly award winning okonomiyaki restaurants, kushikatsu, takoyaki, and yakisoba—all of which are the specialties of Osaka (minus the ramen; that’s just Japan as a whole). Don’t forget the crab! Of course, if you don’t care for local specialties, there are other treats in Dotonbori like a restaurant specializing in katsu, croissant taiyaki (our favorite yum! You’re welcome for the tip), crepes, waffles, Kobe beef, melon pan ice cream sandwiches, etc. There’s no way you’ll go hungry in Dotonbori (nor go home without gaining weight). If you plan on dining at Michelin guide restaurants like the very discreet looking yet Mizuno (that line could take an hour), we suggest dining alone to bypass the line faster. If Kani Doraku or Kushikatsu Daruma are restaurants on your hit list, do not hit up the iconic ones right in the center of Dotonbori. The lines are long. There will be multiple franchises located throughout all of the shopping arcades with shorter wait times so don’t subject yourself to a long wait when you are starving. This is also true of Ichiran, which is a tourist favorite all around Japan when it comes to ramen, and there is one located right on Dotonbori that always has a line while the other one does not! We are a generation that lines up for their food, but do you want to line up even if you do not have to? Let us not forget that earlier, we mentioned host clubs. Why yes, there are many a host club in Dotonbori and its neighboring shopping arcade, so if you want to experience that since you first heard of them in Ouran High School Host Club, Gintama, or much other manga, it will be easy to find a host club here. You will see buildings with the face of their #1 host or all of their hosts advertising a host club. And do not worry, guys, there are hostess clubs too. Much like maid cafes, if you think this is a must-do Japan experience, well, it is available. Just beware of what that experience could cost you. Figuratively and literally. You have been warned! If you want more anime goods, don’t forget to visit nearby DenDen Town, Osaka’s electric town, or take the JR Namba Line to Tennouji Station to hit up Animate. DenDen Town is like Tokyo’s Akihabara but on a smaller scale. You will find a few electronics shops, a few shops selling anime goods, and a few arcades. Dotonbori does not have anime shops, but it is not far from the places that do!

Long before Samurai Jack was fighting between space and time, there was Square’s lesser-known title, Brave Fencer Musashi, who is summoned to a different world by a princess to save it from an evil empire. While RPGs have evolved in their own way beyond how they were presented in the nineties, Brave Fencer Musashi is a quality representation of the beginning of that transition but with its own distinctions that still hold up to this day. While the combat of Japanese RPGs today are not as stationary as they were twenty years ago, Brave Fencer Musashi was one of the first to allow more freedom of movement with it. Musashi can also adapt his enemy’s moves and as he levels up, and he develops new techniques to use with his sword. Though some non-RPG games use this element, Brave Fencer Musashi uses a fatigue meter to a point where players will have to use inns to have him rest up, or he can’t fight effectively. In some ways, fans saw this game as Square’s answer to The Legend of Zelda, which shares a common ground in comparison to Square’s mainstream titles. The game has so many qualities that were ahead of its time by mixing in various genres, which is common in many open world games of today. Some mini-games include memory games, saving dogs, helping people, etc. Beyond its gameplay, the game also feels like an anime with not only its art style but with its cheesy dub. So if you can enjoy games where characters are super deformed due to technological limitations, then Brave Fencer Musashi has so much to offer even twenty years after its release.

If you could bring the gameplay of an old-school RPG to modern graphical presentations, Lost Odyssey is a perfect example of that. In fact, many Final Fantasy staff members, most notably Hironobu Sakaguchi, played a part in making it. In this game, you start as Kaim, an amnesiac immortal who goes on a quest who meets other amnesiac immortals to save the world from Gongora. While some critics were turned off by the old-school elements of the combat system, dedicated fans felt it was one of its charms, that it was a great homage to it, but still offering something new. If there is one thing in the story that Lost Odyssey does a great job of sharing, it’s that being immortal may not be that great considering the emotional toll it takes on the individual such as losing friends who don’t have that same longevity. Considering that the Xbox 360 was a failure in Japan and that the console’s main appeal wasn’t in JRPGs, it is to conclude why this game is considered underrated by it's fans.

While the Dreamcast wasn’t known as a JRPG powerhouse, it doesn’t mean it didn’t have its own outstanding contributions to the genre. In this game, you play the role of Vyse, a young sky pirate who must stop the Valuan Empire from taking over the world. While this game does play like your typical JRPG, its cast of likable characters, vast sky world, immersing soundtrack, and diverse battle styles do make it distinct. In addition to your traditional RPG battles, there will also be battles when you use Vyse’s airship and in certain turns, you can use its superweapon. The attacks and spells have their own cutscenes to add dramatic flair. Unfortunately, if you don’t want to have frequent random battles, this may not be the game for you but it’s also a good opportunity to level up. While most RPGs give you a reference map of the world once you can explore it, Skies of Arcadies is about creating the map as you explore, which brings a fresh set of challenges. While the game was met with high praise, it didn’t make a profit and any potential future installments are no longer possible. So if you love old school JRPGs and raiding the skies, then we recommend this game if you want a game that feels like a Ghibli anime with a bit of Leiji Matsumoto.

While Radiant Historia is much newer compared to a majority on this list, we can’t deny this awesome game. As mentioned, Lost Odyssey is old school with its gameplay and modern with its graphics, but Radiant Historia for the DS allows it to be the best of both old and new in both graphics and gameplay. Though it is undeniable that Chrono Trigger is the granddaddy of time traveling RPGs, Radiant Historia offers a fresh take. In this game, you start with Stocke, a soldier for the kingdom of Alistel. He is given a magical book called the White Chronicle, which allows him to travel through numerous timelines in order to change the destiny of his kingdom. Depending on how you conduct yourself in the game, it can ultimately affect the ending in multiple ways like Chrono Trigger, but Radiant Historia was a more novel flexibility to its time travel gimmick. If in the event you make a decision that has dire consequences, the good news is that you can go back in time and correct it. The bad news is, who is to say if you correct a certain event, another bad one won’t take its place? The battle system itself is pretty much in tune with old school RPGs by being turned based, and selecting your attack(s) from a menu. However, it uses a unique grid system where you can put the enemies into one grid and be able to take care of two birds with one stone with chain attacks or super magic spells. Due to the nature of this game, it does have a bit of a learning curve for even RPG veterans but once you learn the ins and outs, you’re in for one heck of an adventure.

Some of you may be familiar with the anime but did you know that it was originally a game? If not, the game was released in the US in 2002, 7 years after its Japanese release (but released with its two sequels as one collection)! While Final Fantasy Tactics brought mainstream attention to tactical style RPGs, Arc the Lad was one of the first released for the original PlayStation. Since it was released in the first year of the original PlayStation, it has an old-school charm that older gamers or retro lovers can appreciate. Due to that, the character graphics look like they are high 16-bit as opposed to 32-bit, but this is made up for with its beautifully detailed environments. Compared to other RPGs, it is relatively much simpler by being linear and shorter. While a good majority of RPGs rely on using customization of weapons and armor, which is another charm of RPGs, Arc the Lad does not use this feature. So if you’re looking for an RPG that takes much less time to beat and is straighter to the point, this can be worth exploring.

Other great classics fans should really check out is Grandia. The game in all of its presentation is the ultimate classic 32-bit JRPG. Like Arc the Lad, it is graphically similar as a more advanced 16-bit RPG but it is a game that truly defines substance over style. In this game, you play as Justin, an ordinary teenager who is the son of an explorer who wants to be like him despite his mother’s objections. However, destiny proves that not only does he have to discover the mysterious origins of the world he lives in, but also save it from doom. Just like the RPGs listed here, it utilizes anime influenced designs of its time, and its English release has a pretty laughable dub but shouldn’t negate the game as a whole. While the surface of the story is pretty generic for RPGs, it explores rich interactions and develops not only the characters individually but their relationships and dwells into other themes such as whether or not the ends justify the means. The game uses a more active battle system that allows more flexibility with the movements and attacks. While a good number of RPGs use a customization system, Grandia is more of a game that requires players to learn the characters individual abilities. The battle system may take getting used to but getting the hang of it is a pretty rewarding experience. Last, the music of Grandia knows how to evoke the emotion of the scenes and environments and sucks you into it.

While many of you Western readers may not have heard of this game, it still managed to become a long-running franchise in Japan for the past 30 years! While each installment of Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest are independent of each other and with Zelda running on its own bizarre timeline, Ys has always followed the adventures of Adol Christin, who always seems to have to save the world after waking up from a shipwreck. As opposed to some mainstream JRPGs that are turn-based, Ys has never really been like that as its presentation has been more in-tune with the likes of Zelda where you can just freely strike at enemies. In fact, its third installment even takes a page from the second Zelda game by becoming a side-scrolling action adventure title. While it does use some elements typical of the JRPG genre, it has its other features that paved way for games outside of it as well. While automatic healing is normal for most games these days, Ys was one of the first games to utilize it and keep it for present releases. Eventually, sequels would introduce other elements such as transforming into monsters to scare people and to combat enemies. While animated cutscenes gained popularity through Chrono Trigger’s PlayStation re-release, Ys’ re-release for the PC Engine became one of the first to feature them. So if you want a try one of the true original Japanese RPGs, Ys is your game and unlike Kingdom Hearts, you can play any installment and not be lost with its story!

Another great anime style RPG Honey has to recommend is the cult hit, Wild Arms. Wild Arms just somehow manages to masterfully mix the Wild West and European fantasy. In addition, its soundtrack magically captures all of its emotional qualities. In this game, you play as Rudy, Jack, and Cecilia who have their own abilities and tools that offer a fun balance to this game in both battles and solving dungeons puzzles/obstacles. Rudy has the ability to use ancient firearms known as Ancient Relic Machines, or ARMs for short in battle, while he can use bombs to take care of obstacles. Jack is a swashbuckler who can use a grappling hook to get across rivers and other large gaps. Last, Cecilia is your magic user and carries an endless supply of water in a jar. The graphics are diverse with its use of animated cutscenes, 2D overhead exploring, and 3D battles, which is pretty distinct compared to not only RPGs but games as a whole. While it may be only a cult game, the game still managed to produce sequels independent from each other so those of you reading can pick up any installment and enjoy it.

Xenogears is a masterful mix of the Old and New Testaments, Wuxia, Hayao Miyazaki’s fantasy, Jules Verne’s classic Sci-Fi, and mecha. Due to its distinct nature, the game creates so much depth that still holds up to this very day. However, it came close to not getting an international release due to its religious-based themes. While CG FMVs were the rage, Xenogears expresses its story through animated cut scenes, which is more consistent with the game’s graphics and character designs. It feels as if you’re watching an anime. A good number of players are likely to have issues with the dub, but the animation quality still excellently holds up. The game still controls like your typical RPG with a time battle system but with two different styles when using mechs and when you’re not using them. These two combat features offer more diversity to how you can play the game.

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Some of you may have seen the anime but did you know that Sakura Taisen was originally an RPG for the Saturn? If not, then that’s more than enough reason why it qualifies for this list. If you have seen the anime, it faithfully follows the first game. The original game feels like it’s three genres in one with elements of old-school tactical RPGs, dating sims, and visual novels. It’s about as Japanese you can get. During downtime as Ogami, the captain, you have the chance to interact with the characters and build your relationships with them. When talking, you are presented with choices with how you react to them and they may respond in different ways depending on their personalities. The RPG elements are more like your typical Japanese RPGs, but the battles will be expressed through mechs that are more gear and steam oriented to reflect its time period of taking place in an alternate 1920s. In conjunction with the more anime style RPGs listed here, this game also treats players to anime cutscenes. So if you want a game with a unique setting, a great cast of characters, and a bombastic soundtrack, check out Sakura Taisen whether you’ve seen the anime or not.

If this was the first season, we would probably give it to Aizawa. His analytical prowess is always top notch and his fight during the League of Villains’ surprise assault on the students was phenomenal. However, in recent episodes we get to see slightly different sides of All Might. All Might is the #1 hero. He is the strongest and fastest hero in the world and he is a symbol of peace and justice. It’s the type of honor that All Might exudes that causes villains like Stain to detest 90% of the hero population (to make it clear they like All Might, but hate most other pros). Just recently, we got to watch All Might play a villain and that was incredible to watch. He doesn’t hold back against Midoriya and Bakugo (though he has a handicap), and it’s exciting to see him capture a villainous mindset. He literally destroys an entire section of the city with one punch in order to reveal where the two students may be. There’s very little doubt that he would have kept this up until he found them.

Fumikage Tokoyami is one of the most intriguing characters in the series and it’s a safe bet to assume that many are hoping for an episode that is more focused on him and his personal struggles. Thankfully, we have seen his abilities in action quite a few times. His Quirk is Dark Shadow, which involves calling forth a shadow-like monster that is always with him. Though it is his Quirk, Dark Shadow does seem to have its own personality. As a fighter, he has shown great awareness of his Quirk’s strengths and weaknesses as well as the strengths and weaknesses of others’ Quirks. His focus never wavers as shown when he is still able to steal a headband from Todoroki’s team at the last moment in order to send his team to the finals of the Sports Festival. Simply put, he always keeps his cool and his Quirk can be used in a number of ways.

It is extremely hard to not like Ochako Uraraka. She is one of the most lovable characters in the show, and she has proven herself to be a formidable opponent. Her Quirk is Zero Gravity, which allows her to negate gravity for objects that she touches. Though her Quirk might not seem great battle, she consistently figures out new ways to utilize her power. This is shown to great effect in her battle against Bakugo, where she imperceptibly sets a massive amount of rubble into the air and then brings it crashing down on his head. She is also always willing to put herself in situations that will help her grow. Despite the epic nature of her trap, she still loses the battle against Bakugo and then decides that she needs to become a more powerful fighter and spends her internship with a fighting expert.

Stain was the main antagonist introduced directly after (practically during) the Sports Festival Arc. He started getting media attention while the Sports Festival was happening, because he continuously attacked heroes, either crippling or killing them. His Quirk involves immobilizing others by tasting their blood, which is why he has a countless assortment of blades across his body. Stain is an impressive villain and one that gains the respect of many viewers due his personal ideology. Rather than simply wanting to cause destruction and chaos, he wants to eliminate fake heroes. He believes that society is being hurt by heroes that approach the profession for either monetary gain or fame. It is an ideology that many can get behind, especially as he turns his blade against the villain mastermind Tomura Shigaraki for trying to make him target a child (Izuku). It also helps that he is quite skilled with his blades and has a truly terrifying aura.

Momo Yaoyorozu is an extremely intelligent, practical, and cunning student. Her Quirk is Creation, which allows her to create objects from any exposed part of her body. Admittedly, she needs to understand the structure and makeup of the object in order to create it. Her powers and intellect are so highly regarded that she was one of the few students to get into UA based off of recommendations. In the first season of the show we got glimpses of her analytical powers and immediately understood why she was brought into UA simply from recommendations. However, it wasn’t until just recently, when she was facing off against Aizawa with Todoroki as her teammate. First off, we get to see her insecurities, which are wrapped around the fact that she got in on recommendations and yet hasn’t shown any true potential. It’s a powerful moment and brings out a lot of emotions. Then the battle ends with her being the mastermind behind capturing Aizawa, which helps boost her confidence greatly.

This recent arc brought us the old hero Gran Torino, who really didn’t want to become a hero, but wanted to use his powers freely and so got a hero’s license. He also trained young All Might and is now taking Midoriya under his wing. His Quirk is JET and he can basically zip across any environment with an incredible level of speed and dexterity. We don’t get too much information on Gran Torino, but what we do see is pretty awesome. For a pretty darn old man, he can move and handle dangerous situations with ease. He’s not afraid to throw himself in harm’s way for the sake of others. He’s also incredibly intelligent and understands what is needed for people to grow. We see this powerfully he asks Midoriya what his name is when the internship is over.

With her hero name being Froppy, it’s hard not to love Tsuyu Asui. She is one of the top female students at UA and she has shown time and time again that she knows how to handle herself. Though she might seem aloof at times, she has a clear idea of where she wants to be in the future. Having been in two villain battles, she’s become quite the veteran. It’s in these moments, more so than when facing against her classmates, that we see her calm nature and strength. She knows how to best utilize her powers in almost any situation and she is extremely cooperative. She knows how to help others and the importance of believing in your team.

Bakugo is the childhood friend then bully of young Midoriya. He’s brash and quick to anger, but his combat ability is top notch. His Quirk is Explosion, as his hands release fiery bursts that range from the strength of a sparkler to that of a bomb. Despite his power, he rarely let’s his anger cloud his judgment (as seen with his battle against Uraraka) unless he’s dealing with Midoriya. Bakugo is the bad boy of the series and it is fascinating to watch him grow and fight. Okay, so his personal development might not be as noticeable as other main characters, but that’s because he was skilled to begin with and he literally has one goal in mind: to be number 1. He pursues this goal so relentlessly that newcomers to the series might think that he’ll become a villain. However, it’s clear that he wants to be the BEST HERO, and to become anything else would be accepting failure.

You can’t really create a list about the characters of Boku no Hero Academia and not include the main character. Midoriya was the Quirkless boy, who is now on his way to becoming the greatest hero that ever lived. Yeah, it sounds a bit too much like a fairy tale, but the way Midoriya pushes himself, constantly abusing his own body, keeps things from becoming stale. He is constantly improving his battle abilities and unlocking the potential of others, such as Bakugo, Todoroki, and Tenya. Now that he has finally learned to better control his abilities, by releasing only 5% throughout his entire body, it’s a lot more fun to watch him in battle. The way he darts across the environment and the electrical green glow about him are visually stunning.

Todoroki was one of the students to get into Hero Academy off of recommendations, and so in the beginning we only get a couple glimpses of his power. However, as one of the main rivals towards young Midoriya and Bakugo in the newest season we get a lot more of this incredible individual. He is the son of the second strongest hero and was essentially born as a means to become the hero that surpasses All Might. This is because his father is rather obsessive, which led to Todoroki’s mother scarring a little Todoroki with boiling water. Home life is not the best, and the amount of frustration he feels towards his father and confusion towards his mother create a complex character, who we get to watch grow emotionally and mentally. Oh, and he’s one of the most awesome fighters, with control over both fire and ice. His combat abilities and quick thinking are seen endlessly in his fights with Tenya, Midoriya, Bakugo, and Stain.

Bouncy and bubbly, Ochako is so positive and lively that her enthusiasm alone can push others into action. Despite her outgoing and often silly outward persona, when she needs to be Ochako can be incredibly serious and determined, as demonstrated in the Quirk Apprehension Test and attack on USJ arcs. As someone who's kind of whacky, it's interesting to see her go up against and work with some of the more solemn and mature members of 1-A, and somehow manage to match their level. Ochako does not come off as being naturally cool, although her hero costume does look somewhat like a pink Megaman. She does get some really awesome moments, though, when she's not floating away somewhere or throwing up. She uses her powers incredibly well, like using a pillar as a baseball bat and destroying robots by just dropping them from the sky. Although not a natural bad-ass like some heroes Ochako is a pretty cool gal for someone so silly.

Cute, wide-eyed Tsuyu is the quick-witted frog girl of the class. While at first Tsuyu doesn't stand out quite as much as some characters, it quickly becomes obvious that she's got a good head on her shoulders and is a pretty capable fighter. On top of that with her skin tight hero suit and large chest, she's already built up quite a significant fanbase. Tsuyu's sociable attitude and common sense when it comes to fighting make her a really cool person just to be around. As she doesn't have the intense, colder personality that some other characters have, she's really easy to get on with and generally just a very likeable person. The fact that she comes off as normal and sensible considering here Quirk and the people around her is one of the things that makes her stand out most.

Always playing by the rules, Tenya is the goody two-shoes president of class 1-A. With his tendency to do things by the book, Tenya is proficient at getting on the some of the more laid back students' nerves, although he does prove to be incredibly useful in times of panic. His calm and calculating demeanor make him the perfect leader type, he just needs a little more self-confidence with the role. Although starting off as the nerd of the class and very rigid, Tenya loosens up as the series goes on and he gets used to the rest of the class, realising how he also has a lot to learn. His logical thinking and desire to lead, turn him into a figure of authority among the other students and someone to look to when everything goes tits up. Apart from his personality, his knight-like hero suit is very cool, and perfectly reflects his personality, as well as his Engine Quirk turning him into some kind of kick-ass mecha-knight.

Proving to be by far the most battle-ready of the girls, Momo is incredibly versatile in the field due to her Creation Quirk allowing her to create any non-living object. As long as she's had enough to eat anyway. Momo's hero suit's main purpose is to reveal as much skin as possible, allowing her to use her Quirk more easily, though it does feel like there may be an ulterior motive to that. Momo's fighting style is truly impressive to see given that she generally uses basic hand held weapons against opponents with much stronger physical Quirks than her. In fact due to her strategic thinking and intelligence, she managed to rank first in the Quirk Apprehension Test. With her strength as a hero, along with her warrior princess like attire, Momo is the coolest girl in 1-A.

Sadly Fumikage hasn't had much screen time just yet, though what we have seen has been pretty nice so far. Like the other more powerful heroes, Fumikage remains calm under pressure and seems to possess a quick mind and combat experience, allowing him to easily take enemies down from the shadows. His appearance as a mutation-type Quirk user is also very interesting, with his bird head making him the class member with the least human appearance. With a serious and cooperative manner, as well as powerful defensive and offensive capabilities with his Quirk Dark Shadow, Fumikage is an amazing teammate to fight alongside. He's not just cool, but respectable a person and as a hero. More importantly his dark, raven like visage with his bird head and dark cloak looks sick, his Quirk completing the ensemble. Seriously the dude summons a raven shadow from his body for crying out loud.

Katsuki is the explosive rival and polar opposite to Boku no Hero Academia's lead, Midoriya. Despite his bad attitude and overwhelming arrogance, he desires to become a hero more than most, with his fervor constantly pushing him to reach the top. His explosion Quirk perfectly matches his explosive and chaotic personality, as well as packing a seriously powerful punch for a hero-in-training. With his unrelenting, almost berserk-like fighting style, along with his ever destructive Quirk, watching Katsuki wreak havoc is always awesome. Although he can come off as stupid or rather lacking in common sense at times, Katsuki's will to keep pushing forward is seriously cool, with no foe able to break his hardened resolve. Whether it's buckets full of self-confidence or plain old insanity, Katsuki is a bad ass on the battlefield.

Wielding the opposing powers of fire and ice, Todoroki is likely 1-A's most powerful member, though he hasn't received a whole lot of screen time just yet. Todoroki is one of the most relaxed members of the class during lessons, probably due to being so powerful that even the villains can't touch him. Though maybe relaxed isn't quite right, rather he keeps to himself, and tends to only speak when he feels it's necessary. Todoroki's powerful, lone wolf aura coupled with his intense appearance makes him instantly cool without him really having to do anything. His power itself is awesome as well, or rather powers, with two in one ice and fire that wrecks most of his classmates. What makes him really stand out amongst his peers though is the authority he holds when he speaks, as if others being weaker than him is to be expected.

Boku no Hero Academia's short and weak protagonist Midoriya is most certainly the person who wants to become a hero most of all. With his new Quirk having fairly limited uses at the moment, Midoriya is simultaneously the weakest of the heroes and one of the strongest, a very odd position to be in. The fact that his power is so all over the place, however, is what makes it so interesting, which part of Midoriya's body will break today? Okay so in many ways Midoriya is both very cool, and very lame at the same time, as is the curse of shounen protagonists who must rise to the top. Much like his teacher All Might, Midoriya's drive to be a hero and help people is the coolest thing about him, pushing him to perform awesome feats to save his friends and classmates. So despite his internal whining and crying, Midoriya's courageous side always shows through when the time is right.

Both a dedicated teacher and overwhelmingly lazy, in Aizawa's opinion, you either do something well, or you don't do it at all. When not being be a sleeping bag caterpillar, Aizawa is one of the city's top heroes, Eraserhead, with his ability to temporarily erase other people's Quirks being both unique and powerful. Despite his uncouth appearance and harsh attitude, as a hero, Aizawa still prioritises his students safety above all. When he's not just being straight up tired, Aizawa looks like a total badass, with his crazy long hair, cloth covering half his face, and that sick visor. He's got the "looks like a bad guy but is actually a good guy" vibe going on which is always cool. Aizawa's cold determination to look after the kids is impressive as well, and although he doesn't give pretty speeches about heroism or being the good guy, he fights until he's literally crushed into the floor to keep everyone safe.

The ultimate hero, always brave and righteous, reassuring the world that it's in safe hands, All Might. Super fast, super strong, super handsome, All Might's powers may not be as weird or interesting as some of the other heroes', but they're powerful enough to make him number one. Even now with his powers fading, All Might remains a symbol of justice and safety among the public and heroes alike, and someone for villains to live in fear of. All Might's crazy powerful Quirk by itself makes him come off as one of the cooler characters, but what stands out most is his personality. Despite seeing his weaker side and the problems he now faces due to his injury, All Might never stops fighting for what he believes in and protecting people. Even when he can no longer move, he still stands between evil and the defenseless till the very end, one of the coolest things a hero can do.

Ichirou Inuyashiki is a boring salaryman reaching old age. He spends his days alienated at work and at home, but one day he is suddenly diagnosed with cancer and falls into despair. That’s when, thanks to a certain accident, he receives super-hero like powers. Then there’s high-school student Hiro Shishigami, who was also involved in the accident and starts using the powers he received as he wishes. Is the true nature of humans good or evil? These two who have gained great powers start to move according to each of their feelings.

Once every twelve years, a twelve-way battle royale is held, and this year is the 12th time. Twelve ferocious fighters carrying the names of the twelve characters of the Chinese zodiac fight, wagering each of their lives and souls. These strange twelve participants are the rat, the ox, the tiger, the rabbit, the dragon, the snake, the horse, the goat, the monkey, the rooster, the dog, and the pig. The one who emerges victorious can have one wish granted regardless of the circumstances. There is one wish that each contender wants granted no matter what... Who will survive until the end? On a battlefield where strategy and slaughter swirl together, whose tears will be the one to fall? The battle royale that will shake your soul is about to break out.

Nobuaki Kanazawa has just transferred to a faraway high school. Due to something that he experienced at his previous school, Nobuaki is afraid of becoming close to his classmates and has closed his heart towards them. However, on Sports Day, during the class relay race, he takes a chance and begins to open up to them. In the middle of all of this, all of his classmates, himself included, have one email from a something called “King” delivered to their cellphones. The students all regard it as some simple trick, but Nobuaki knows exactly what this is. A conflict known as the game of “death” is about to begin. Rules of King’s Game 1. Full class participation is mandatory. 2. Please follow all of the orders in the emails that are delivered from the king within 24 hours. 3. Those who do not follow the orders will be punished. 4. You cannot quit Kings Game part of the way through.

In this modern society, a new kind of “illness” is striking young boys and girls; Loneliness, disbelief and outrage push this generation to get more or more attached to Internet and technologies. The experts called those symptom “Net Addiction”. To prevent that, a certain Rehabilitation Facility has been set up to “Lead the young man back to the right path”. Enrolled to treat is addiction, Hibiki had no idea that this Rehabilitation Facility is nothing more than a prison. In this place where it’s not permitted to escape, how will Hibiki challenge despair in this hell?

After a certain incident Ren Fujii, a student at a school in Suwahara City, gets into a fight with his best friend Shirou Yusa. However, this was no ordinary fight - it was like a fight to the death, and Ren ends up being forced to spend two months in the hospital. It's December when Ren is finally discharged. Feeling as though he’s lost half of himself, he thinks he must build a new life, one without Shirou. But although he wants to treasure what he still has, that too begins to fall apart. He’s plagued by nightmares. There’s a mass-murderer on the rampage, with black-cladded ‘Knights’ on their tail. In this increasingly insane world, Ren steps out alone to cross the border between the ordinary and the extraordinary, wishing for nothing more than to return to the dull but warm days of his past. But how will Ren see things in the end, after getting involved in the continuation of a war from the past?

This episode of Boku no Hero Academia was so hard to watch. I did not want it to end at all, and it really sucks saying goodbye to such an excellent show. However, all good things must come to an end. Now that everything and all of the tests are over, the students have some free time and decide to go shopping together as a class and hang out before their summer camps. What everyone ends up doing though is splitting the moment that they all arrive to get what they want. Up to this point, it felt like an average final episode. Till asshat Tomura Shigari showed up looking for his own motivation for why he is doing what he is doing. He takes Deku captive and starts to talk to him about Stain and more. Ochako, finally doing something for once, happens across them and helps DEku get free before Tomura disappears. While it does suck to let him go, it is interesting that we get to see that he will be coming back after crying like a little baby in his bar for countless episodes. Suddenly things take a turn for the somber as we see the police get involved and get a moment of emotion from Deku’s mother. A reminder that evil never sleeps. With the third season announced, we cannot wait for more!

I didn’t really know what to make of the first episode of Gamers!. I mean, the protagonist Amano is irritating but also entertaining and while the main girl Karen is cute, the other characters didn’t really stand out to me apart from the angry guy Tasuku (my type is so easily spotted). Which is why things took a sudden change for me this week, when the focus switched to said angry preppy guy. We learn that Tasuku’s done a so-called “high school debut”, completely changing himself in order to fit in better and become the popular guy he is now. His former self was none other than a fully-blown otaku, with thick-rimmed glasses and a dorky hairstyle. However, we also learn in this episode that he is kind. Despite saying the kind of crap teenagers say about each other, he actually reaches out to Amano and hangs out with him. However, the best (and cutest) moment of episode two is when Tasuku finds out that his girlfriend Aguri isn’t just with him because how he looks now, as he assumed. Nope, she in fact has adored him since his geeky middle-school years, a fact that touches not only Tasuku but us as viewers.

This week’s Oh Crap! moment comes to you from the amazingly deceiving Made in Abyss. This seemingly cute and childish anime has been full of shocks this season but this latest episode has been quite an emotional. My favorite heartbreaking moment of the week comes from Mitty’s backstory where Mitty, some melted looking cat genitalia thing, is shown as a young girl who Nanachi comes across one day after spending most of his life living with the dredges of society eating scraps and barely surviving. The two of them have dreams and believe in whatever garbage is fed to them so of course, they find themselves wanting to better their lives by becoming useful to the research involving the Abyss. Unfortunately for them, they become the subjects of human experimentation and get to see the gruesome scene where Mitty is transformed from a hopeful little girl into a grotesque creature. From then on, it gets worse. She is stabbed, her limbs are crushed, and every part of her destroyed in hopes of seeing the extent of her durability. Mitty weeps in pain as a reflex. Yet it is when Reg looks Mitty in the eye and blasts her that we truly feel sadness as we see the relationship between Nanachi and Mitty put on the line in order for Mitty to finally gain solace. It’s crushing. It’s gruesome. But it’s so right. And of course, this is our favorite moment of the week. How can you not have major feels during this?!

Time to talk about one of our new shows for this season, and one that a lot of people were looking forward to. UQ Holder! is the story of Touta Konoe, a vampire kid who just happens to be a descendant of Negi Springfield, although he doesn’t remember it because he lost all memories in a car crash. He should’ve died in this accident, actually, but he was the only survivor thanks to Evangeline A. K. McDowell (do you remember her?), who transformed him into a vampire and became his tutor and her maternal figure. And by the way, now in her adult form, Yukihime —as people call her now— already gifted us a few sexy scenes. Reading this, you may think “this is the typical Shounen with fanservice and the hero in the making”; and you may be right, but the you should see the fight between Yukihime and a limb-less Touta going against a bounty hunter in disguise… it was gory as hell!! Obviously, anyone who has not seen the Negima series will miss a lot of flashbacks, cameos, and stuff like that, but it also looks like the story of this vampire can attract people on its own. If you missed Negi, go watch this anime right now; even if you only missed the ladies constantly around him, you won’t be disappointed in the first scenes! at!

In the 5th episode of Keppeki Danshi! Aoyama-kun, the Fujimi soccer team is practicing when it’s brought to our attention that the team captain is a member of the Aoyama fan club, which is made obvious by the captain and his girlfriend wearing matching “No Aoyama No Life” t-shirts. This fanclub stands in the sidelines and cheers on Aoyama-kun no matter what he’s doing. Another team member says he’s gained a new respect for their captain, Gaku, and then we’re taken to a cutaway where we see Gaku and his girlfriend, Yuri, doing cute couple things like holding hands, using baby names for each other, and smiling at each other during games, with Yuri sweetly wishing Gaku “good luck!”. But then... we see that during a game, Gaku’s girlfriend is in full Aoyama club garb and with her eyes following Aoyama’s every move and not Gaku’s. The best part comes when we see Yuri genuinely telling Gaku “I only love you, Gaku!”, again, in full Aoyama wear and with a sign that reads “I love Aoyama”. “Ok” Gaku sighs, and then we see him and Yurippe, as he calls her, both enthusiastically cheering for Aoyama-kun, before Gaku takes his fanclub clothes off before hitting the field as the Fujimi soccer team captain. Does Gaku also idolize Aoyama? Or is he only in the club because of Yuri? It doesn’t really matter, because it’s super awkward, adorable, and hilarious! The hilarity doesn’t stop there in this episode, but that was certainly something that stuck with me all week! I hope you’re not missing out on this wonderful comedy!

We’re gonna cheat a bit because Papa no Iukoto wo Kikinasai! *phew* or PapaKiki for short is a pseudo-loli anime. There is one token loli in the anime -- Miu, but depending on how flexible is your preferred age range, the 3-year-old Hina, and the 14-year-old Sora can be considered lolis as well. But the main reason why this is on the list is Miu, who is voiced by Kitamura Eri, a seiyuu who voiced a popular loli (we’ll get to that soon). When you hear her speak, it’s hard to ignore her voice similar to another loli from another anime series. So much so that one can’t help but think of inappropriate things to he—Stop imagining indecent thoughts toward this young, ripe and supple little girl, dear reader! Lolis are for petting and cuddling only! But in all seriousness, PapaKiki is more focused on the story of Segawa Yuuta, a college freshman taking responsibility to raise the three young daughters of his sister who died in a plane crash, as their new father. The path of going there is harsh for he has to raise money and care for the girls. PapaKiki is not an anime that is filled with fanservice, it’s an anime about being a responsible parent and the sacrifices it entails. But with that said though… They weren’t holding back in the OVA. Whew… just saying. By the way, are you sure your lawyer is on the line?

Once you’re done with PapaKiki, the next on this list is an anime that is heartwarming, cute and funny. Ichigo Mashimaro falls under the “Cute girls doing cute things” category along with the likes of Yuru Yuri, Kiniro Mosaic, and Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka?, but the main difference is 90% of the main cast in Ichigo Mashimaro are true lolis who are below the teenage bracket. And like shows of cute girls doing cute things, Ichigo Mashimaro’s story is focused on the 5 main cast doing daily things like making presents, go to school, study and so on with a sprinkle of humor that will get you chuckling in the end. The fanservice is on the lighter side and while there are some moments that will get a lolicon happy, they’re not too uncomfortable to break the mood. If you want to start your descent into loli anime, Ichigo Mashimaro is a comfy start. You’re safe... for now.

Princess Astarotte Ygvar is a young succubus from the Creature Realm, and she’s reaching the age where she starts making her harem full of men to suck their life-seeds in order to grow and survive. The problem is Astarotte hates men and she does her best to avoid her mentor Judit from teaching her the ways. To finally get Judit off her back, Astarotte challenged Judit to bring back a human male from the forgotten realm of humans. Surprisingly, Judit successfully entered the human realm and brought back a fine male specimen named Touhara Naoya. Will Astarotte accept Naoya to cure herself of her fear of men and finally start her male harem in order to survive adulthood? But wait, don’t go start watching due to its premise because… well… you’ll see none of that sucking the life-seeds out of men thing from this anime. It’s too early on the list for that sort of stuff! The story focuses on antics of Astarotte being a tsundere and has androphobia, and a story about Astarotte’s upbringing, struggles and how is Naoya a part in this web of mysteries. Initially, the anime is fanservice comedy with boob shots, awkward skirt shots, and a loli crotch to the face, but the tone shifts to a more serious side. Your experience with the anime may vary depending on what you’re expecting from this anime: a loli succubus gulping down some mayonnaise or just a heartwarming story about family.

Newly graduated teacher Yabe Satoshi is excited for his first day as an elementary teacher and thrilled to meet his first students. Unfortunately, he teaches a class with the Marui Sisters — the notorious triplets with attitude problems. Futaba, Mitsuba, Hitoha wastes no time in bringing Satoshi literal hell on Earth. Think of Dennis the Menace, multiply the titular troublemaker by 3, turn them into lolis for good measure, but with attitudes that are far more extreme, violent and without the ignorance of childish innocence. You get the teacher’s living nightmare Mitsudomoe. In a way, Mitsudomoe is similar to Ichigo Mashimaro and other slice of life anime involving a bunch of cute girls, but with a twist of malice and lots of toilet humor. The Marui sisters aren’t your usual cute lolis for they’re extremely strong, violent, sadistic, perverted and manipulative towards their classmates, especially towards their teacher Satoshi. If you’re into lolis who bites back (literally and figuratively), love toilet humor, and who is (probably) a masochist, then Mitsudomoe is an extremely funny series of 3 lolis bringing pain and nightmares to anyone who gets in their way.

Lolis, spats, bloomers, maid uniforms, Ro-Kyu-Bu! ticks the right boxes for a loli anime with a competitive basketball twist. Heck, even the premise is what you’d expect from a loli anime: Hasegawa Subaru’s dream to play basketball in high school was shot down after the team captain was found out he was having a relationship with their coach’s underaged daughter, and the team was suspended. Ouch. However, fate has forced him to wear his uniform and hold the ball once again when his aunt forced him to coach for a girls basketball club at an elementary school. Reluctant at first, but after seeing the girls, especially the future point guard, and star player of the team Minato Tomoka and their love for the soon-disbanding club, Subaru gathers up the courage to stand up and teach them basketball. If you’ve seen the classic Slam Dunk and the current anime Kuroko no Basket, Ro-Kyu-Bu! plays out similarly of a struggling basketball club, a star player determined to be the best, scenes of the players practicing basketball basics, and the eventual matches against rival teams. And with the added twist cute lolis with oversized fluffy hairs, Ro-Kyu-Bu! is a cute take on the basketball anime. Obviously Ro-Kyu-Bu! is not as serious as other sports anime, but it’s serious enough for you to care about these girls doing their best to learn basketball.

Add a toasted jam on her mouth while running late for school, Kinomoto Sakura is your average genki middle schooler. And like any average middle schooler, Sakura is always full of energy, gets teased a lot by her big brother, has a loving father, a dead mother, has a best friend with a weird hobby and has a crush on someone who is older than her. One day she stumbles on a book she saw in her dream, and upon opening it, the cards are magical and Sakura accidentally scattered them throughout the world. Keroberos (sorry, not the three-headed dog Cerberus) appeared before Sakura and told her that he’s the guardian of the Clow Cards, magical cards holding immense power, Sakura has released. What are they gonna do? Well, Keroberos has appointed Sakura the title of Cardcaptor and it’s up to them to find and retake the Clow Cards before they bright catastrophe to the world! Cardcaptor Sakura is a visual marvel from start to finish all thanks to CLAMP’s impressive attention to detail and attractive character design. And it’s arguably the 90s was when CLAMP was at its best in delivering well-animated shows. These days CLAMP getting meme’d for creating noodle people art styles. But to be fair, CLAMP made some other great shows, but their very best work is perhaps Cardcaptor Sakura. But anyway… Cardcaptor Sakura is structured episodically sort of a like the monster-of-the-week format where Sakura hunts down the Clow Cards, though most of the time the anime is focused more on the daily lives of a huge cast of quirky characters, most notably Sakura’s best friend and secret admirer Daidouji Tomoyo who loves to take photos and video of Sakura. And once Tomoyo founds out Sakura is a mahou shoujo, Tomoyo is the primary source of an assortment of dresses for Sakura to wear. And here’s a fun fact: Sakura’s dress is different in every episode. For the loli factor, Cardcaptor Sakura is pretty tame and harmless, though you get some awkward moments of Sakura getting all embarrassed in front of her crush, the much older Yukito, and moments like Tomoyo acting way too suspicious like she’s actually gay towards Sakura. But actually, everyone in the anime is showing signs of gayness.

Illyasviel von Einzbern is your typical elementary school student who is friendly, kind, has good grades and likes her brother a lot, has become a mahou shoujo because the talking magical wand Kaleidostick Ruby is fed up with her former master Tohsaka Rin, and sees Illya as a worthy successor. With the power of Kaleidostick Ruby, Illya is now tasked to hunt for seven Class Cards containing the Heroic Spirits of legend. Prisma Illya is a story of love, magic and a ton of ecchi moments. Prisma Illya is a guilty pleasure anime to the fans of the Fate series who are tired of seeing world-ending stories with characters who barely cracks a joke to inject some fun once in a while. With so many sequels, it’s not hard to tell this spin-off series is extremely popular with fans or non-fans of the Fate series. And this anime is no way innocent for it has tons of sexual jokes, fetishes, incest, crude humor, and sexually suggestive scenes involving lolis which you will immediately tell is not meant for kids. Prisma Illya has interesting stories to tell and some dark moments, but you get this feeling the anime is self-aware and sometimes breaks the tension by cracking a joke… A lot of ecchi. For all intents and purposes, Prisma Illya is another magical girl similar to Cardcaptor Sakura, but with lots sexual jokes and imagery. And for anyone who is tired of shows taking itself way too seriously, those are good enough justification to watch this series about “cute lolis doing cute lolis” and not worry about anything else.

Despite her look and childish demeanor, Nijihara Ink is a high school student with a future ahead of her. But one day, a literal talking duck fell from the sky and Ink nursed him back to health. It turns out the duck, now named Ah-kun, is a powerful wizard from a magical kingdom and was sent to Earth against his will by his master. On Earth, Ah-kun grants Ink the power to transform into the mahou shoujo Pastel Ink and use her power to… help her crush study English. Moetan is a parody anime with lots of jokes hardcore otaku will figure out, sprinkled with lots and lots of moe moments, that you might end up getting type-2 diabetes. And of course, this anime being centered around lolis and mahou shoujo, Moetan wastes no time to deliver lots of loli fanservice like lots of panty shots, transformation scenes where Ink starts off naked, awkward moments and with some popular staples like rivals, love interests and a bit of action. Ink is loli by looks, not by age and you won’t notice that if the anime didn’t mention Ink is 17 and is in high school. And this sort of age manipulation is the perfect excuse to make lots of ecchi loli scenes and without the guilt the girls are underaged. And you probably noticed by now loli and mahou shoujo goes in hand in hand like peanut butter and jelly because cute lolis look cuter in frilly clothes. Yeah, this combination makes Sailor Moon too old to be a mahou shoujo. Out goes the old and busted, here comes the new hotness.

What happens when a couple of grown perverted men transformed into pubescent girls? And they’re surrounded by other pubescent girls? And has a habit of groping said girls? You pretty much get Ryofuko-chan. Don’t expect any stories or plot points relating to the Three Kingdoms story because Ryofuko-chan doesn’t reference any of them, and there is no real plot. Two popular figures from the Three Kingdoms story ended up on Earth as elementary girls and the chaos revolves around Ryofuko groping his… er... her classmates, badmouthing her teacher for having massive F-cup boobs, and do things no normal girl should be doing. Watching Ryofuko-chan must be done in private because not only you see these lolis in the nude very often, there are scenes of older men gazing at these girls’ skirts with pervy eyes, lots of sex jokes, a fat otaku stalking, and scenes with two hunky guys with permanent boners who get all horny when giving CPR to other hunky men. And there’s even a scene of two guys directly staring at a loli’s… uh… taco. Ryofuko-chan is, admittedly, very funny, but in an uncomfortable way that will make you question why Japan is into this sort of thing and is this anime even legal to own in your country. Ryofuko-chan is a shameless, yet entertaining loli anime catered specifically to the lolicon crowd, and it’s obviously not for everyone. You’re not using the family PC, are you?

Daisuke Aoki is a 3rd-grade teacher who meets Kokonoe Rin, a very young girl with long hair. After an act of kindness from Aoki, Rin made Aoki, her teacher, her lover. Rin literally wants her 3rd-grade teacher to be her lover. Who would have thought that your biggest obstacles in your life come from the most unexpected places! But is Rin’s love for Aoki really true? Are her feelings just puppy love? Or is it genuine true love? Does actively seducing Aoki mean something else? Loli anime is often made as a form of fanservice and it’s rare to see one with a mature story to tell. Astarotte no Omocha did tell, or at least try to tell a mature story, but it’s not as grounded as Kodomo no Jikan with a story of an adult teacher falling in love with his young student. Aoki is not a pervert and is a respectable man, but with Rin’s sexual advances, and Aoki slowly discovering Rin’s past, upbringing, and character, it’s not hard to see why Aoki is opening his heart. There’s a lot of loli fanservice in Kodomo no Jikan, but they’re not tacked on just for the sake of fanservice like Ryofuko-chan. They’re there to titillate and evoke an emotion that their love is forbidden. If you think loli anime is just exploitative material, go watch Kodomo no Jikan. Not all Japan makes are for lolicons and a fetish can be molded into something worthwhile and insightful to watch. Remember: The great thing about anime is it tackles any story, even stories that are deemed too controversial in the West and the rest of the world. Oh and Rin is voiced by Kitamura Eri, the same seiyuu who voiced the loli Takanashi Miu from PapaKiki. Remember: Lolis are for petting and cuddling only!

Sometimes power can come in small packages, and with a punch of comedy. Toradora tell us the story of Ryuuji Takasu, a high school boy with one of the more scariest delinquent faces that you can imagine, and contrary to his caring and house oriented nature, Ryuuji’s looks cause him all sorts of trouble. One day in school, Ryuuji crosses paths with his classmate “The Palmtop Tiger,” Taiga Aisaka who is delicate and small like an elementary school kid, when in reality, she has the power to really kick ass, especially Ryuuji’s. Toradora is a romantic comedy that brings out all the cuteness of loli anime with the protagonist Taiga Aisaka. Taiga is as petite and beautiful as a bisque doll with the height of a little child. Taiga surprises everyone with the roughness of her personality, because this cute little thing has the mouth of a street fighter punk and the physical power to knock off the toughest of the boys in her school. Only with the support of her best friend Minori and of course the care and patience of our fun protagonist Ryuuji, this pocket size loli tiger shows the inside beauty and kindness that really poses and ends up trapping our hearts with her adventures.

Le Portrait de Petite Cossette is a loli anime will leave you with chills from its use of sound and visuals. With the kind of psychological drama from horror, Le Portrait de Petite Cossette takes you to meet Eiri Kurahashi, a university student and talented artist. When Eiri takes a part time job in his family’s antique shop, Eiri touches a beautiful venetian glass cup and connects with a little girl named Cossette who asks for his help and starts showing him her life story and the developments that take her existence away. Cossette is gorgeous. Cossette is dark. A girl with an age that borders in the end of childhood and yet is always delicate and enticing. Depicting the essence of loli attraction, Cossette traps us in a story staged in the 18 century, where it wasn’t unusual to get engaged in the early teens with a much older man. Giving a cautionary tale of the results of an unhealthy romance, Cossette is a dark loli that will enchant you with her striking perfect features and haunt all the boys with the sadness of her dark blue eyes, because even as gorgeous as a French doll, this little girl hides an iron will to end her unresolved issues even if she has to sacrifice Eiri in the process. A true Dark Loli Queen!

We introduce you an exciting loli anime where the vampire sexiness is highly depicted: Dance in the Vampire Bound. In a world where the vampires are tired of hiding, true blood Queen Wilhelmina Vlad Tepes rises from the anonymity to create a bound of only vampires. The vampire bound called Tokyo Landfill #0 is the background in a power war where our brave protagonists Mina and her knight Akira Kaburagi fight to build a place where pacific vampires can live in peace and safe. Mina Tepes is one cute vampire with a very endearing “Dojikko” side. Mina and her frilly Gothic lolita fashion make this loli anime fun to watch. Mina is a mysterious girl that likes to act with the arrogance and overconfidence proper of the high class, even when in reality, Mina has a very fragile side that is shown only to those really close to her. Mina is a queen vampire that uses the fact that she’s been encased in a child’s body for thousands of years against the plots to enslave her, giving us an explosive action anime to enjoy.

Have you ever taken pictures with ghosts in it? Well, for our protagonist Morioka Kouhei, it is a frequent occurrence that spoils his desire to become a professional photographer. While sightseeing to an old castle in Germany, Kouhei unexpectedly ends bringing back with him an unexpected omiyage, the cute vamp Hazuki. Bringing out the playful side of loli, Tsukuyomi Moon Phase is series that use a lot of catchy phrases like “nekomimi modo”, showcasing many of the characters in super cute cat ears, mittens and tail. Thanks to its cute protagonist Hazuki, this anime shows too a great assortment of cute lolita and gothic lolita fashion. Lolita is the style that both Hazuki and her alter ego Luna prefer, both the followers of lolita fashion and cosplay can look forward to find and enjoy great inspiration in this anime.

Papa no Iukoto wo Kikinasai! is a loli anime that give us a peek into the life of the 3 cute sisters of the Takanashi Family who, after their parents went missing, starts their life under the care of the young Yuuta Segawa. Yuuta just began his college freshman life and to his dismay ends up as the responsible of his sister´s family. The show highlights how a family can became a family beyond blood relations, and how together we can overcome the difficulties of life, because no matter what, family will always be there. There are three loli in this loli anime. First we have the adorable and outgoing 3 year old Hina who calls Yuuta “oitan”. There’s 10 year old Miu who mischievously loves to get Yuuta in trouble. We can’t forget 14 year old Sora with a classic but charming tsundere personality. Papa no Iukoto wo Kikinasai! Is an anime that will make you laugh with the 3 different personalities of this charismatic Loli characters, who together with Yuuta will leave you with a special fuzzy feeling.

Strawberry Marshmallow is a loli anime shows the everyday life of Itou Nobue a 20 years old college student who adores her little sister Chika. Nobue dotes on Chika and ends up getting involved in the adventures and everyday occurrences of little Chika classmates and friends, Matsuoka Miu and Coppola Anna, and together, they will get into messy situations that will make you think Kawaii! In this loli anime, we get to see the everyday life of four loli. It will suck you in to share the occurrences of the typical elementary school and enjoy a lot of ridiculously weird situations that will make you laugh. There’s the cute tomboy Matsuri, who is Chika´s best friend and loves to compete for the attention of her big sister, the beautiful Anna with her blond hair and pinkish skin as beautiful as an English porcelain Dresden doll, and let's not forget the cheerful and “Majime” Chii chan. She is the center that reunites everyone in the group. Strawberry Marshmallow is a series will make you scream “Moe!”

Using the setting of the 19 century England to give way to use gorgeous frilly clothes, a mysterious story develops amidst the world of occult books where we get to know the story of Hugh Anthony Disward, a young man that inherits an old mansion and its secrets after his grandfather’s death. Hugh finds in the basement of the mansion an enigmatic beautiful girl called Dalian, who explain to him the duties he has received with the occult library "Dantalian's bookshelf," which stores the prohibited books of the demons called “Gensho”. With a bit of a dark background, Dalian and Hugh struggle to resolve the mysteries caused by the "Gensho (Illusory Books)” with their ability to access the Dantalian bookshelf, and in their endeavors, we get to see an era where the written word had a real weight and diffusion into society. As fans of Loli, The Mystic Archives of Dantalian will give us a peek into the fashions that inspired Lolita and Gothic Lolita fashion. Wrapped in a very realistic portrayed setting of the Victorian era, the sweets lover Dalian, the blunt silver haired Flamberge and the cold and ruthless Raziel give us a lot of cute options of characters to admire and root for in this series.

Gosick is set at the end of the 19 century, in an imaginary country, where our cute protagonist Kazuya Kujou is swept off his feet by the stunning beauty of Victorique de Blois, even confusing her with a life sized porcelain doll. In reality, this doll is a genius young girl whose mind is so sharp that she helps resolve the most mysterious situations. Now, Kazuya has been unexpectedly involved in a world of murders and mysteries that’ll give a start to their adventures. Surprisingly, this anime with a mysterious dark setting, give us a warm feeling by sharing the development of the sentiments of the main characters, by getting to know the cute Victorique and her unbreakable mind despite her solitude and loneliness, Kazuya ends helplessly in love with her, making us empathize with both characters’ pureness and naivety.

We jump back from the romance, to a comedy, about the sweet story and adventures of a cute tomboy who will make you laugh out loud, Barakamon. With an interesting story set in the Goto islands at the south end of Japan, Barakamon depicts not only the real life places and manner of speech, but also it will show us the countryside charm of the far end islands in comparison with the bustling life of the urban places like Tokyo, where our protagonist Seishuu Handa has abandoned his upper class lifestyle, hiding away in a small island in search for the inspiration that will make his Japanese calligraphy art work finally be recognized. On the island, Sei gets to meet the first grader Naru Kotoishi who with her intrusions and frisky wild nature, changes not only Sei’s art style but inspires him into seeing the world more simply Naru makes a place in his heart with her constant intrusions, giving him for the first time a real sense of family belonging. With an unexpectedly deepness, Barakamon adventures show us that the essence of Loli is beyond frills, dresses and perfect doll like features, but it dwells in the inner beauty, innocence and purity of the young girls like Naru. Naru shows the purity of feelings and the passion for the discovery of the things for the first time. That is the main attraction of Loli!.

Featuring one of the most charismatic and representative heroines in Lolita fashion is Rozen Maiden. In a story where the trauma of being bullied made a boy named Sakurada Jun, a reclusive “hikikomori”, Shinju is the doll that magically appear in his room making of his life a fun mess to watch and an action drama to enjoy. With a proud and ephemeral beauty, Shinju is a gorgeous tsundere doll that behaves as a noble lady with a very tender and caring big sister side. After making a contract with Jun and making him his medium, Shinju ends up involving Jun in the middle of the mystic battle called the “Alice Game” where a group of dolls imbued with souls and magical powers made by the artificer Rozen, fight each other to become “the perfect girls” that deserve to be by his creator’s side. In a mystic story tinged with romance, Rozen Maiden is a series that attracts the same shounen and shoujo fans, by giving a myriad of characters from the beautiful dolls. There’s the aristocratic Shinju, the tomboy Souseiseki, the childish Hinaichigo, the sadistic Suigintou and the feminine Suiseiseki. Then we have the flesh and blood girls, the loyal Tomoe Kashiwaba and the joyful Nori Sakurada. Rozen Maiden is a heaven of Loli fashions and inspiration of sweet femininity that will make any fan of Loli to take its pick and enjoy their time admiring their beauty and strength.