10 Popular Shoujo Anime

Shoujo anime are aimed at young woman but are not exclusive to that demographic. The main focus of shoujo anime is character relationships and development. Thus making them entertaining for multiple audiences. They depict awkward moments as well as times where characters misunderstand or have misinterpreted one another. Their main focus is to depict how a character works their way through those moments and find closure from past hurts.

Below is a list of 10 popular shoujo anime. If you would like more you can also check out my post on what shoujo means.

Sailor Moon

Usagi Tsukino is an average 14-year-old school girl. She stumbles upon a stray black cat, Luna, and after removing a strange plaster on the cat’s forehead it is revealed that Luna is able to talk. After a strange series of events, Usagi needs to step up and accept the role of a magical girl and save the world. Over time she finds fellow magical girls like her, defeating villain after villian. While saving the day she struggles to balance being a magical girl and her school life, family duties and love life after meeting the love of her life.

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Kiss Him Not Me

Kae Serinuma is slightly chubby and in her second year of high school and is a devoted otaku. After the heartbreak and shock of her favourite character dying she wakes up and realises that she has lost a lot of weight. Going to school she suddenly attracts the attention of her male classmates, the very ones that she had been shipping in relationships with one another to her fujoshi heart. Oblivious to their sudden interest in her, she still tries to set them up with one another.

Fruits Basket

After losing her mother at 16-years-old, Tooru decides to live by herself in a tent. She is soon discovered by her classmate, Yuki Souma, who is known as the “prince” of her school. She ends up moving in with him and his uncle. Not long afterwards she discovers his family secret. When certain members of his family are hugged by members of the opposite gender, they are forcibly transformed into their zodiac animal.

Cardcaptor Sakura

Sakura Kinomoto at only 10-years-old notices a strange light. After giving into curiosity, she accidentally releases magical cards upon the world. The cards hold immense power and have a form of intelligence and like to act independently. She is then tasked with the retrieval of the cards before they can fall into the wrong hands or cause havoc on the world. Her best friend quickly discovers her secret and steps up to provide Sakura with photo-worthy outfits for each mission.

Kaichou wa Maid-sama!

Misaki Ayuzawa earned the nickname “Demon President” after enforcing the rules in her school that had recently turned into a co-ed school. She does everything she can to make her fellow school girls feel safe but she has a secret. She has a part-time job as a waitress at a maid-cafe. However, her school does not allow their students to have jobs. One day the most popular boy at her school, Takumi Usui, discovers her secret. Rather than destroying her reputation and getting her in trouble by revealing her secret, he decides to use this as an opportunity.

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Ao Haru Ride

Futaba Yoshioka had a less than great reputation amongst her fellow middle-school classmates. However, she did not mind it much, as long as her crush Kou Tanaka liked her. However, after a misunderstanding and the disappearance of her crush, she decided to change the way she was perceived by her classmates in high-school. She changed herself and made herself seem clumsy and unladylike so that she would get along with her new female classmates and hopefully have some friends. Yet her would-be high school life is turned around when a changed Kou comes back into her life.

Kamisama Hajimemashita

Abandoned by her father and left to face all his debt alone, high schooler Nanami Momozono loses her home. Homeless and depressed, she is suddenly offered a new home by a strange man she had rescued from a dog. Feeling she has nothing to lose and takes him up on his offer. Upon arrival, she discovers an abandoned shrine and comes face to face with two shrine spirits and an angry fox familiar, Tomoe, who happens to be a demon with a rather risky past. It is revealed that Nanami has suddenly become the new land god of the shrine and is expected to answer the prayers made to the shrine. How will she handle the responsibilities of her newfound role when all she wants to do is go to school and be a normal student?

Gakuen Babysitters

Recently orphaned, Ryuuichi Kashima struggles to adjust to suddenly being the sole caretaker of Kotarou, his younger brother who is too young to know what is going on. At their parents’ funeral, they are approached by the chairman of an elite academy. In order to have a roof over their heads and be accepted into the academy, Ryuuichi Kashima must look after the school teacher’s kids. Thus the start of the babysitter’s club.

Tokyo Mew Mew

Ichigo Momomiya finally had a date with her crush, Masaya Aoyama. However she was disappointed to realise she had fallen asleep after having a vision of a cat entering her body. Following the dream she starts to display cat-like behaviour and the next day, she is attacked by a monster. Two scientists approach her and inform her that they had experimented on her (without her knowledge or consent – but for the good of the world) by injecting her with Iriomote Cat DNA. Thanks to this she could transforms into the cat-eared magical girl, Mew Ichigo. Now it is up to her and 4 other girls to save the world and Masaya Aoyama from Aliens.

Natsume Yuujin

Left alone in the world, 15-year-old Takashi Natsume, only has a strange book his grandmother left to him, a rather odd and self-proclaimed bodyguard and his secret. Natsume has always been chased by youkai (spirits). The book his grandmother left for him has the names of spirits and he now has the ability to bring the spirits chasing him under control. All Natsume wants is a peaceful home and a place he can call his. He is joined by the feline-spirit, Nyanko-sensei claiming he will keep Natsume safe.

Which Shoujo anime have you really enjoyed?