Ah, yes! A romantic comedy in a school setting: a combo utilized by successful anime series. Even though there are tons of romance anime out there, each series would differentiate themselves from each other through the premise, story arcs, and the occasional drama and action elements. Rent a Girlfriend is one anime that touches on a relatively new premise in anime.
The Story:
Kazuya is a 20-year old college student who has just been dumped by his girlfriend, Mami. Heartbroken and lonely; he hires a rental girlfriend from an online app to soothe the pain. His partner is Chizuru Mizuhara, who through her unparalleled beauty and cute demeanour manages to gain his affection.
Kazuya’s first impression of Chizuru was that she had a warm and caring personality, but after reading about other customer experiences with her, he gives her a poor rating on the app. Kazuya believes those traits were all an act to toy with his heart. Chizuru is having none of this hypocrisy, and she sets him straight. She reveals her true self to be a hot-tempered girl who doesn’t take any crap from anyone. The one-sided exchange was cut short, however, when Kazuya learns that his grandmother collapsed.
Kazuya and Chihiro hurry to the hospital only to find Kazuya’s grandmother already in good condition. The grandmother asks who this girl might be; Kazuya declares that they are lovers on impulse, forcing Chizuru to play the part. Still hung up on Mami, Kazuya becomes a diffi client to this reluctant rental girlfriend.
Rent-A-Girlfriend is a light, fluffy romantic comedy that will keep you entertained for hours with its witty and fun dialogue. It has its moments, but it also touches on some very serious and relatable struggles that don’t have easy answers. Whether you liked the representation of abnormal relationships or using humour as a coping mechanism for heavy subjects,
6. Love and Lies
In Japan, a futuristic society has implemented the “Red Threads of Science” system to encourage successful marriages and combat increasingly low birth rates. Based on compatibility calculations between young people at 16 years old, they are assigned marriage partners by the government with severe repercussions for those who disobey their arrangement. For Yukari Nejima – an average teen in every way- this might be his best shot at living a fulfilling life.
In a moment of passion, Yukari confesses his love to Misaki and the two are happily in love. Unfortunately, before they can further their relationship, Yukari receives his marriage notice. He is entangled in a mess of love and lies when Ririna Sanada becomes fascinated by him after finding out about his illicit romance with Misaki.
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5. Wolf Girl & Black Prince
Erika is determined to become a popular and enviable girl. To make her ‘friends’ jealous, she fabricates a handsome boyfriend! After being forced to show some sort of proof he exists, Erika uses the image of the first good looking guy she finds not knowing he attends the same school but is also very popular! Erika is in deep trouble. To spare her reputation and avoid humiliation, she begs Kyouya to pretend he’s her boyfriend for the time being–but it turns out that this angel may not be as nice as Erika originally thought him to be!
Erika is certain she’s never going to be Kyouya’s type. Sure, he might agree to make a deal with her but that doesn’t mean anything- and even if it did, things would definitely change when the novelty of their relationship wore off.
Kyouya and Chizuru may seem cold but a lot of that has to do with protecting themselves from being taken advantage of. For example, Kyouya is working overtime as Erika’s devoted boyfriend so she can save face instead of getting money for his troubles. At first, he gets joy out of watching her suffer for her lies which sounds like Kazuya begging Chizuru to lie far beyond normal dating sessions in order to protect himself also. However, they both develop real feelings towards those who were normally misunderstood or used which makes a more interesting watch.
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4. Bloom Into You (Yagate Kimi ni Naru)
Yuu and Touko are both lonesome individuals, but they find each other when it matters most. Yuu has always loved the happy endings in her favorite romance novels but never felt love for anyone in real life until she met Touko; who also never felt the pangs of love. It’s a strange sensation to find someone that feels like they understand you. Touko confesses her love for Yuu, and wanting to cherish the feeling and wanting to understand the love; the two enter into a relationship for the sake of convenience.
A different take on one-sided relationships, Yagate Kimi ni Naru is a beautiful show that portrays how important it is to pay attention to romantic feelings. Like Rent a Girlfriend: the very unconventional nature of a relationship that allows the partners to show everything and to know exactly expected of them; made more unconventional.
3. Scum’s Wish
Hanabi Yasuraoka and Mugi Awaya are the perfect couple, but to each other, they’re just holding onto a secret: they love other people they cannot be with.
For as long as she can remember, Hanabi has been in love with Narumi Kanai: her childhood friend. To her surprise, Narumi is now her new homeroom teacher. But a romantic relationship soon blossoms between Narumi and the music teacher, Akane Minagawa, leaving Hanabi with a heavy heart.
Mugi fell madly in love with Akane during middle school. A chance encounter brings these two lonely hearts together and they start a false relationship, using each other to fill the void in their hearts. Sharing intimate moments to fend off the loneliness.
Although touching on similar themes, Kuzo no Honkai is more dramatic than Rent-a-Girlfriend. In both anime, a fake relationship is used to stave off loneliness and unwanted attention. There are also similarities between Mami and Akane, both pretending to be sweet, cute girls to manipulate people.
2. The Quintessential Quintuplets
Fuutarou Uesugi is the nerdiest of nerds. One day, Uesugi is confronted by a female transfer student who has claimed “his seat” and they both dislike each other. Later that same day he’s presented with an opportunity to clear his family’s debt from their private tutoring gig for the wealthy Itsuki Nakano girl but it turns out she was the transfer student! Uesugi’s new problem is that Itsuki turns out to be a quintuplet, so she has four other sisters who also need tutoring. They want nothing to do with studying and they’re in danger of failing all their classes! But Uesugi knows he needs them on his side if he wants any chance at saving the family business from going under. He pushes through their dislike for him and tries hard to make sure each one passes her final exams before graduation day arrives!
Itsuki and Fuutarou are both reluctant to pursue this tutor/student relationship for a variety of reasons. However, outside familial factors make them at least keep up pretences similar to Kazuya and Chizuru with their grandparents. With Fuutarou’s little sister Raiha’s smile on the line, and she is also unwilling to disappoint such a cute girl and would do anything she can-including studying without Fuutarou and letting him receive his nonetheless.
1. My First Girlfriend is a Gal
Junichi Hashiba is a healthy high school student. Junichi’s life is changed forever when his fellow friends force him to ask out the super-hot gal, Yukana. Despite rumors, she’s not an easy score yet she finds himself taken with Junichi’s inability to hide his true intentions. While initially hoping only for a quick lay, her acceptance of Junichi’s strangeness despite refusing relations make him want to be loyal. but why are these girls throwing themselves at him so suddenly?
A show about the problems of wanting to be intimate for the first time. The similarities? Junichi and Kazuya are both lonely and resentful towards happy couples! If it weren’t for friends intervening, this comedic anime wouldn’t have progressed as far as it does! With an extremely hot girl making all the calls, Rent-a-Girlfriend has its rival- but lucky we’re not forced to choose which one you want to watch because they are amazingly different yet equally hilarious!
The genre of romantic comedies is one that’s always been popular because you never know when laughter will come in handy. What would we do without a good comedy to break up the monotony? There are a number of Romantic comedy anime to choose from. We’ve listed the closest ones here but we know that these aren’t the only ones out there! We’re sorry we missed your favourite Romantic comedy anime like Rent a Girlfriend and would love to know what you think in the comments below. As always, enjoy!
