The first season of My Happy Marriage arrived on Netflix in July 2023, and it didn’t take much time to become a fan favorite. With its gorgeous visuals and characters, it earned a place on the majority of viewers’ watchlists. Since the second season of the anime is far from its release date, I have listed the best anime like My Happy Marriage that come with a similar vibe.
1. The Ancient Magus’ Bride
- Genre: Supernatural, Romance
- IMDb: 7.7
- MyAnimeList: 8.1
- Created by: Norihiro Naganuma (S1), Kazuaki Terasawa (S2)
- Studio: Wit Studio (S1), Studio Kafka (S2)
- Episodes: 2 seasons, 48 episodes
The Ancient Magus’ Bride and My Happy Marriage both feature female protagonists who had faced a lot of hardships throughout their young age. Like Miyo from My Happy Marriage finds escapism in Kiyoka Kudou, The Ancient Magus Brides’ Chise Hatori chooses to go with Elias Ainsworth, who buys her at an auction. So, the lead characters for both series find hope through another person.
The Ancient Magus Brides’ story revolves around the high schooler Chise Hatori and the humanoid Elias Ainsworth. The former decides to sell herself at an auction to know her worth and find a place she can call home. Well, her life changes when she is sold to someone who looks more like a demon. To be precise, this love story involves a girl and a humanoid with a weird animal skull in place of his head.
2. Kimi Ni Todoke
- Genre: Romantic Comedy
- IMDb: 7.8
- MyAnimeList: 8
- Created by: Hiro Kaburaki (S1-2), Kenichi Matsuzawa (S3)
- Studio: Production I.G
- Episodes: 2 seasons, 38 episodes
Like My Happy Marriage’s Saimori, Kimi Ni Todoke introduces us to a girl named Sawako, who has very low self-esteem. That’s because her batchmates never leave any opportunity to make her realize that she isn’t pretty; in fact, she frequently gets to hear that she resembles Sadako from the horror franchise, The Rings.
Things around Sawako change when she is befriended by the most popular boy, Kazehaya, in school. The latter couldn’t resist falling in love with Sawako after learning about her real persona.
3. Romeo x Juliet
- Genre: Romance
- IMDb: 7.1
- MyAnimeList: 7.6
- Created by: Fumitoshi Oizaki, Reiko Yoshida
- Studio: Gonzo
- Episodes: 1 season, 24 episodes
Romeo x Juliet is highly inspired by the popular tragedy Romeo and Juliet. However, don’t judge the anime by its name, as it has nothing to do with the world created by Shakespeare. Like Miyo Saimori, the female lead, Juliet, also loses her parents at a young age. However, unlike the former, she decides to fight for her rights instead of letting others dominate her.
Juliet not only dares to fight for herself but she also works as a vigilante at night to protect the people of Neo Verona. One day she meets a boy named Romeo, and without knowing each other’s families they fall in love. However, their chosen path seems to be just the beginning of something hazardous.
4. Horimiya
- Genre: Romantic Comedy
- IMDb: 8.1
- MyAnimeList: 8.2
- Created by: Masashi Ishihama, Takao Yoshioka
- Studio: CloverWorks
- Episodes: 1 season, 13 episodes
Horimiya revolves around Kyouko Hori and Miyamura, who want to hide their real personality from the world. The former seems to be a cheerful and bubbly girl at school, but she has a totally different persona at home. She is generally seen doing the household chores when she isn’t taking care of her younger brother.
On the other side is Miyamura, who carries an introverted nature at school, but after school, he is charming and an extrovert who can make anyone go awestruck with a single glimpse. Horimiya’s Hori and My Happy Marriage’s Miyo don’t have a lot of similarities but the way the latter takes care of her loved ones is something that makes the two alike.
5. Bibliophile Princess
- Genre: Fantasy, Romance
- IMDb: 6.4
- MyAnimeList: 6.9
- Created by: Tarō Iwasaki, Mitsutaka Hirota
- Studio: Madhouse
- Episodes: 1 season, 12 episodes
Bibliophile Princess and My Happy Marriage’s female lead characters never went searching for love but eventually, it randomly comes their way.
Bibliophile Princess follows Elianna Bernstein, who can easily compromise human interactions if she gets to read books. However, things around her change when a charming prince asks her to be his fiance. He also promises to provide her with access to the royal library. Even though, initially, it was just an arranged marriage without a scope of love, as the story moves forward, we realize that the marriage has a lot of potential than expected.
6. Taisho Otome Fairy Tale
- Genre: Historical Romance
- IMDb: 7.6
- MyAnimeList: 7.8
- Created by: Jun Hatori, Hiroko Fukuda
- Studio: SynergySP
- Episodes: 1 season, 12 episodes
The first thing that makes this anime similar to My Happy Marriage is the pretty kimonos that the characters wear. Secondly, the female character’s fate resembles Miyo Saimori’s journey. She also gets ready to marry someone not because of love but for duty.
After getting his right arm paralyzed in a deadly accident, Tamahiko Shima gets boycotted by his own family as they start seeing him as worthless. While the poor boy believes that he will die alone, a girl named Yuzuki Tachibana shows up at his doorstep. The anime explores the journey of both individuals who were meant to be together from the beginning.
7. Violet Evergarden
- Genre: Coming-of-Age, Romance
- IMDb: 8.4
- MyAnimeList: 8.7
- Created by: Taichi Ishidate, Haruka Fujita
- Studio: Kyoto Animation
- Episodes: 1 season, 13 episodes
The element that makes Violet Evergarden similar to My Happy Marriage is the vibrant theme and the dreamy characters. This anime isn’t your typical romance story as it is so much more. Violet Evergarden will take you into the gorgeous world of an ex-soldier named Violet and Gilbert, her mentor, whom she falls in love with.
Violet Evergarden, an ex-soldier, struggles to socialize because of her upbringing, which forced her to suppress every human emotion inside of her. That’s why she comes off as a mere tool trained to support the military during wars. After the wars, she started working as someone who would write letters on her client’s behalf. By doing that, Violet begins to recognize and embrace every emotion she left behind. Her heart starts to crave true love that is far beyond her reach.
8. Fruits Basket
- Genre: Supernatural, Romantic Comedy
- IMDb: 8.6
- MyAnimeList: 7.7
- Created by: Akitaro Daichi, Higuchi Tachibana
- Studio: Studio Deen
- Episodes: 3 seasons, 63 episodes
Fruits Basket’s main protagonist, Tohru Honda, loses her parents in childhood like Miyo. However, unlike Miyo, she is taken care of by her grandfather and doesn’t have to spend her childhood days in misery. This is a supernatural romance-comedy anime series that can melt your heart with a brilliant narrative.
Fruits Basket revolves around Tohru Honda, who gets to see a peek into the world of supernatural beings after meeting the relatives of her best friends. When Tohru meets Shigure and Yuki’s cousin, Kyo Sohma, she learns that the Sohmas are cursed. They transform into a Chinese zodiac animal whenever they are scared, exerted, or weak. So, instead of running, Tohru decides to lend them a helping hand.
9. The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten
- Genre: Romantic Comedy
- IMDb: 7.5
- MyAnimeList: 7.8
- Created by: Lihua Wang, Keiichirō Ōchi
- Studio: Project No.9
- Episodes: 1 season, 12 episodes
Like My Happy Marriage, this anime also lets the main characters grow closer to each other at a steady pace. With the beautiful visuals and the incredible character designs, The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten does not let you feel bored even for a second. Well, that was the case with My Happy Marriage Season 1 too, wasn’t it?
The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten revolves around Amane and Mahiru, who never spoke to each other despite being in the same class. After the latter shows up in Amane’s neighborhood, an interesting chemistry between the duo starts to blossom.
10. Toradora!
- Genre: Romantic Comedy
- IMDb: 7.9
- MyAnimeList: 8.1
- Created by: Tatsuyuki Nagai, Mari Okada
- Studio: J.C.Staff
- Episodes: 1 season, 25 episodes
Toradora doesn’t share similarities with the show’s plot, but the reason I made it sit on this list is the complex storyline and the character growth that is rarely seen in any of the modern anime shows or films.
Toradora features two protagonists with complicated personalities, making the storyline even more complex for every viewer. We follow the journey of Ryuji Takasu and Taiga Aisaka, who decide to become a temporary couple so that they can become closer to each other’s best friends.
So, basically, they try to find common ground not for any personal gain but for the love they share for their friends.
My Happy Marriage is one of the most beautiful modern-age anime series, and it can be difficult to come across equally good shows today. I hope this list offers some of the best alternatives that you can watch while waiting for the series’ return with Season 2.
Ajith Kumar
