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Sometimes, romance anime enthusiasts just want a conventional story that focuses on two people falling in love with no prominent distractions, third wheels, or gimmicks, where the audience only really knows how one of them feels and hopes the other likes them in return. There can be strong hints of reciprocity, but nothing outright to eliminate doubt. Unfortunately, the start of Crunchyroll's 2025 winter season didn't have much to offer fans looking for this kind of straightforward romance, with the first two weeks debuting series that either didn't put enough emphasis on any actual romance or relied too much on these aforementioned distractions.

But then out of nowhere came Honey Lemon Soda. It now stands out from the other romance anime currently airing, as made apparent through an opening scene that identifies the story's two love interests with no unnecessary gimmicks. Luckily, the rest of its debut episode easily follows...

Voice actor Yui Ogura will release her new album "Bloomy" from Nippon Columbia on September 18, 2024. It will have been two years and seven months since the release of her previous album "Tarte" in February 2022. While playing many anime characters, including Priestess in Goblin Slayer and Nasse in Platinum End , since her voice acting debut in 2009, Ogura made her solo singe debut from King Records in 2012. Then she changed her record company to Nippon Columbia in 2022, releasing four CD singles to date. The 12-song album "Bloomy" is her first full album from Nippon Columbia (fifth in her total career) and includes all of the title tunes from her recent four singles from the company — "Love∞Vision," "Himitsu ♡Melody," ( Yuri Is My Job! opening theme), "Empty//Princess.," and "Kimiiro no Kiseki" . "Love∞Vision" Music Video "Himitsu ♡Melody" Music Video "Empty//Princess." Music Video "Kimiiro no Kiseki" Music Video Ogura also announced her...

In a recent survey conducted by Anime! Anime!, Japanese fans picked their top yuri anime series. The poll, which ran from June 12-16, garnered responses from 733 participants.

The gender ratio of those who participated in the survey was was approximately 50% male, 40% female, and 10% unspecified.

The age demographics showed that about 35% of the respondents were under 19 years old, and about 30% were in their 20s, highlighting the genre’s popularity among younger audiences.

Checkout the top 20 Yuri anime series as selected by Japanese fans below:

20. The Demon Girl Next Door 19. Wataten!: An Angel Flew Down To Me 18. Strawberry Panic 17. The Jellyfish Can’t Swim In The Night 16. Maria Watches Over Us 15. Kannazuki No Miko 14. Studio Apartment, Good Lighting, Angel Included 13. Yuri Is My Job! 12. My Next Life As A Villainess: All Routes Lead To Doom! 11. Gushing Over Magical Girls 10. The Magical Revolution Of The Reincarnated Princess And The Genius Young Lady 9. Sakura Trick...

The official website for the upcoming TV anime adaptation of Rikachi's fantasy manga, Nina the Starry Bride , released a new teaser trailer to announce its October 2024 premiere in Japan. The clip also introduces the voices of the anime's three main characters — Nina voiced by Minami Tanaka (Kanoko Amamiya in Yuri Is My Job! ), Azul voiced by Yuichiro Umehara (Goblin Slayer as Goblin Slayer ), and Seto voiced by Koki Uchiyama (Banagher Links in Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn ). Additionally, the anime's main staff members have been revealed as below: Director: Kenichiro Komaya ( Kizuna no Allele ) Series composition and script writer: Yuka Yamada ( My Unique Skill Makes Me Op Even at Level 1 ) Character design: Kyoko Takeya ( Yuuna and the Haunted Hot Springs ) Music: Natsumi Tabuchi ( The Quintessential Quintuplets ) Production: Signal M.D. ( The Fire Hunter ) Key visual Related: Nina the Starry Bride Fantasy Manga Gets TV Anime Adaptation The Nina the Starry Bride manga...

The first collaboration event between voice actor Yui Ogura (Hime Shiraki in Yuri Is My Job! ) and Hello Kitty will take place at Sanrio Puroland in Tokyo on Saturday, May 25 in 2024. The title of the special one-day event is "Yui-chan・Hello Kitty ~KiraKira Ribbon♡Dai Sakusen ( Shiny Ribbon Big Operation )." The event will be held three times at 12:00, 14:30, and 16:30, and will feature the first-ever joint appearance by the two, as well as Ogura's mini talk show and live performance. The 9,000-yen (60 Usd) participation ticket also includes a day passport to enjoy Sanrio Puroland for one day, and the ticket's fastest advance sales for her fan club members is being held from February 19 to 25. Related: Voice Actor Yui Ogura to Release Solo Travel-Themed New Photo Book in February 2024 Source : Yui Ogura official website © 2024 Sanrio Co., Ltd. Tokyo, Japan © Yui’s＊company...

The official website for the upcoming original TV anime Astro Note released a new trailer featuring its theme song, "Hohoemi no Oto" ( The Sound of A Smile ), by voice actor/singer Ai Furihata. She is best known as Ruby Kurosawa in Love Live! Sunshine!! , and as well as her solo singer career beginning in September 2020. In addition to the previously announced cast of Soma Saito (Yoshikazu Miyano in Sasaki and Miyano ) as Takumi Miyasaki and Maaya Uchida (Catarina Claes in My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! ) as Mira Gotokuji, seven more voice cast members, including the theme song singer Ai Furihata, were announced: Ren Wakabayashi voiced by Rie Kugimiya (Alphonse Elric in Fullmetal Alchemist ) Tomihiro Wakabayashi voiced by Tomokazu Sugita (Gintoki Sakata in Gintama ) Shokichi Yamashita voiced by Shinichiro Miki (Stardust in Shy ) Teruko Matsubara voiced by Ai Furihata (Ruby Kurosawa in Love Live! Sunshine!

Kubo Won't Let Me Be Invisible showcases "softly aggressive" cuteness and explores the duality of wanting to be seen and overlooked. (Hidive) The Girl I Like Forgot Her Glasses explores a fresh spin on romance tropes with a cute and absurd basis for the relationship. (Crunchyroll) The Dangers in My Heart subverts stereotypes and deconstructs typical tropes in a dark premise, offering a unique take on romance. (Hidive)

2023 was an amazing year for romance anime. Popular series like My Love Story with Yamada-kun at Lv999 and Yuri Is My Job! might have been so beloved for a reason, but put the true romance on the back burner. Some series like Endo and Kobayashi Live! might deconstruct popular otome and "villainess" Isekai while others like Our Dating Story might tear down tropes, but when up against long-running series like Rent-a-Girlfriend, they fall short.

Ironically, some returning series were negatively affected by...

Despite its misleading title, Yuri Is My Job! takes its yuri aspect seriously, featuring genuine sapphic romance and actual relationships. The relationships among the all-female staff at the café are not legitimate and are strictly prohibited, with the season finale addressing the importance of maintaining a PG atmosphere for customers. The most anticipated relationship is between Hime and Mitsuki, with intense emotions and a complicated dynamic that is further complicated by the salon's format and past history. The authenticity of their interactions remains uncertain throughout the season.

Warning: The following contains spoilers for Yuri Is My Job! episodes 1-12

Yuri Is My Job! was originally written and illustrated by Miman.

Although eye-catching, the title of Crunchyroll's Yuri Is My Job! unfortunately created the false impression that the series doesn't take itself seriously, or that the yuri aspect is superficial, like the yaoi facade in Ouan Host Club. However, this...

Warning: Spoilers for Yuri Is My Job! episode 1The yaoi aspect of the classic anime series Ouran High School Host Club is getting a yuri spin in an exciting spring Crunchyroll romance called Yuri Is My Job! Almost everything from Ouran, down to the protagonist getting roped into an odd role as a result of an accident, happens in Yuri Is My Job! except there are higher stakes. As part of Crunchyroll's Spring 2023 lineup, Yuri Is My Job! is about a girl named Hime getting guilt-tripped into covering shifts for a café manager whose arm she accidentally breaks. An important part of the cafe's gimmick is its waitresses pretending to be more than friends.

This storyline originally by mangaka Miman is almost exactly the same as Ouran High School Host Club. In that famous series, scholarship student Haruhi Fujioka accidentally shatters a wildly expensive vase and is forced to...

2023 is only halfway over, but it’s already working out to be anime’s best year for LGBTQ+ representation. While anime still struggles with LGBTQ+ representation, both depicting it positively and depicting it at all, recent years have seen a notable uptick in representation. LGBTQ+ anime like Bloom Into You, Yuri on Ice, Banana Fish, and Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid are all relatively recent hits that managed to gain mainstream appeal. Gundam even made a same-sex couple the main couple for The Witch from Mercury, and that likely played a big part in The Witch from Mercury’s sales being the highest in the history of the franchise.

LGBTQ+ has steadily been made a larger part of anime, and 2023 is shaping up to be the best year for it yet. Far more yuri and yuri-esque anime are either airing in 2023 or being announced in 2023 for later releases than is usually the case,...