Looking for Good Fantasy or Mecha Anime with Romance(read 1st post for exclusions)

[Fiery Diamond]

Hello everybody. Before I get to asking for some good fantasy, mecha, or maybe sci-fi anime with romance, I'll list things that I'm NOT looking for. As in, please don't post about them.

Please, NO anime that is hentai or echi (or anything like it) or harem. I don't like it. Also, no same-gender romance either, but I think that already falls under the hentai category.

Please, post the name of suggestions along with either what it's about (no spoilers, plz) or a link to what it's about. Also, here are basically all of the anime I have watched or am watching that fit in this category:
Crest of the Stars, Banner of the Stars (these two don't have lots of romance, though),
Dragonaut,
Elemental Gelade,
Eureka Seven,
Kaze no Stigma (a bit iffy with some of the content, but not too far gone),
Inuyasha,
Shakugan no Shana (and Shakugan no Shana II),
Sorcerous Stabber Orphen and the second season (sorta got romance, kinda).

I've also watched some anime that doesn't really have romance, of course, like Naruto, Bleach, and Night Wizard, but that doesn't do much other than suggest what kind of anime I might like.

I humbly request the aid of anime-loving forumites in finding more interesting anime that's fantasy/mecha/sci-fi with romance. Thanks very much in advance, everybody.

- Fiery Diamond

[Joran]

I'm a fan of Gundam: 08th MS Team. There is a romance with a sizeable amount of mecha on mecha action. This could probably be extrapolated over to any Gundam series.

Basic premise is that of two lovers on opposite sides of a war. It's much more of a grunts on the ground type of anime rather than the more high-level generals/aces of other Gundams.

[Redpieper]

Zero no Tsukaima, guy gets warped to a fantasy world as the familiar of a girl wizard. Two seasons out already, one still in the planning I believe.
Rahxephon, story driven mecha ish anime...difficult to explain but a good one
Karin, vampire anime with a twist
One that's still ongoing: Rosario + Vampire. It has a lot of fanservice though. It's about a guy who gets stuck on a school of monsters and befriends a vampire girl.

Hope it helps :smallsmile:

[Eita]

I'm a fan of Gundam: 08th MS Team. There is a romance with a sizeable amount of mecha on mecha action. This could probably be extrapolated over to any Gundam series.

Basic premise is that of two lovers on opposite sides of a war. It's much more of a grunts on the ground type of anime rather than the more high-level generals/aces of other Gundams.

All Gundam series are pretty much the exact same thing. Hell, Gundam Wing and the original series even has two guys with comparable masks.

[Hunter Noventa]

Martian Successor Nadesico, while more of a parody of mecha and romance anime, is a classic and made of awesome. it has plenty of action, and plenty of silly romance.

Vandread, has giant robots, a few men on a ship full of women. it's slightly harem-ish, in that there are multiple women and few men, but not in the vein of say, Tenchi Muyo.

[Lord Iames Osari]

Oh My Goddess - romantic comedy with a healthy infusion of loosly Norse-based fantastical elements; college student Keiichi Morisato dials a wrong number and gets the Goddess Help Line. Minutes later, the goddess Belldandy shows up in his dorm room to grant him one wish - which is to have Belldandy be with him forever. Romance (and hilarity) ensues.
As Joran said, Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team has the most prominent and plot-important romance, but pretty much all Gundam shows have romantic elements
Record of Lodoss War is a good one for fantasy, although the romantic elements tend to be only tangential to the main plot Basically, it's a D&D anime.


All Gundam series are pretty much the exact same thing. Hell, Gundam Wing and the original series even has two guys with comparable masks.
Well, duh they're all alike. Otherwise they wouldn't all be Gundam. :smallwink:

And yes, Zechs is a Char clone. Who cares? The differences are at least as important as their similarities.

[Cubey]

How about Full Metal Panic! ? (yes, the exclamation mark is a part of the title).

Non-hentai/non-ecchi: check. It has some fanservice, but nothing explicit - and what doesn't?
Non-harem: check.
Not an yaoi/yuri anime: check.
Romance: part of the main premise.
Mecha: second part of the main premise!

To summarize it shortly, it is a story about a high school student, Kaname Chidori, who is, and doesn't realise it for most of the series, one of the mysterious Whispered (I won't spoil), and therefore is a potential target for terrorist and foreign agent attacks. The second main character is Sousuke Sagara, a mercenary soldier whose mission is to protect her from the dangers mentioned above. The chemistry between them is strongly influenced by Kaname being, well, prone to bouts of anger, and Sousuke having no life experience outside the army, since he's been a soldier all his life.

The series' mood changes from episode to episode: sometimes it's light and funny, and sometimes we have a dramatic terrorist-with-hostages or behind-enemy-lines situation. A good and spoiler-free description can be found here (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FullMetalPanic).

[Poison_Fish]

Please, NO anime that is hentai or echi (or anything like it) or harem. I don't like it. Also, no same-gender romance either, but I think that already falls under the hentai category.

Uh, what? Now, those shows aren't my cup of tea either, but you are utterly wrong about these classifications. Same Sex romance ≠ perverted/sexy/over 18 shows. Come on people.

That being said, these don't quite hit the romance category as you'd want it, as well as it being all gainaxy but Gurren Lagann for giant mecha.

Slayers, while primarily goofy and so on has a few good moments.

Spice and Wolf that's coming out seems to be somewhat close.

You could always watch *cough snort* G-gundam for romantic final attacks.

That's what I can think of off the top of my head.

[Fiery Diamond]

Thanks to all of you for the suggestions, and since I'm a quick anime watcher (for example, I watched the whole Shakugan no Shana first season in one day) I'll be happily ready for more suggestions! Keep up the helpfulness, and Thanks a bunch!

-Fiery Diamond

[Blayze]

Hmm. I believe that Starship Operators has romance in it. Then there's Nadesico and Vandread, as previously stated. The two of them are solid series, although Nadesico seems as if it was clipped a bit. Gurren Lagann you have to watch whether or not you want romance, as it's just that awesome and incredibly fun to watch. If you do give it a chance, please watch to at *least* episode eight before ditching it if you don't like it.

GaoGaiGar has... bits. These bits are vastly overshadowed by the awesome combining-transforming mecha combat, but it's still got bits.

[SurlySeraph]

As said above, every damn Gundam series ever. But especially Gundam Seed Destiny.

Or you could try Neon Genesis Evangelion. Oh, that certainly has romance in it. It's the most uplifting love story you'll ever see - and so happy! *snickers quietly*

[Rutee]

I can give you a Romance anime that has.. the trappings of a mecha show, if you'd like that. Kannazuki no Miko was pretty beautiful and had a happy ending. However, episode 7 is like.. traumatic and really can turn one off the show without.. you know, knowing that it somehow manages to work out.

But a mecha or fantasy anime first with a strong romantic subplot? I got nothing offhand.

EDIT: NEver mind. No same gender romance kills off my suggestion, which is a pity. It's a beautiful love story. Oh, and Revolutionary Girl Utena, but that's also same gender.

[Cubey]

Or you could try Neon Genesis Evangelion. Oh, that certainly has romance in it. It's the most uplifting love story you'll ever see - and so happy! *snickers quietly*

You, sir, are evil.

[Eita]

I wouldn't recommend Vandread. Pretty heavy on fan service there.

[Nerd-o-rama]

Phooey. I'm not the first one to plug Nadesico. It borders on harem, but is really more of a Love Dodecahedron that happens to revolve around the protagonist. It's also an excellent show overall...not as deep or tragic as a Gundam series, but smart and funny nonetheless. It's also one of the few shows where the dub is as good as the original. It did need another couple episodes (or a couple of episodes cut and replaced with plot advancement), or possibly another season. Oh, and for the sake of film everywhere, avoid the movie.

SurlySeraph exists in Bizzaro World. For the sake of your faith in humanity, don't listen to him (Evangelion: good show, so not what you're looking for).

Vision of Escaflowne (do yourself a favor and avoid the dub like I didn't) is fantasy and mecha. I'm not sure how heavy it is on the romance, but it seemed to have inclinations in that direction in the first couple episodes. Unfortunately, I haven't seen past that.

I can also suggest Revolutionary Girl Utena; unfortunately, even if you got over your hangup with same-sex romance, there's other stuff going on that'll probably squick you out more.

Cowboy Bebop has some (mostly tragic) romantic elements, and is just orgasmically good sci fi in general.

Oh! The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is sci fi. Sorta. Perhaps paranormal is a better word? Anyway, some good high school-style romance happening along with it.

Finally, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann has very minimal romantic sideplots, focusing more on the Power of Friendship and that sort of thing. It is still one of the greatest mecha shows out there, and should be watched by everyone.

[Kojiro Kakita]

Finally, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann has very minimal romantic sideplots, focusing more on the Power of Friendship and that sort of thing. It is still one of the greatest mecha shows out there, and should be watched by everyone.

Not only was it one of the greatest mecha shows of 2007, it probably was the greatest anime of 2007.

Anyway, these technically are slice of life more that fantasy, but still contain fantasy like elements:
Clannad
Seto no Hanyome (so great)
Kannon 2007

[SurlySeraph]

You, sir, are evil.


SurlySeraph exists in Bizzaro World. For the sake of your faith in humanity, don't listen to him (Evangelion: good show, so not what you're looking for).

Oh, come on. Anyone could tell that was a sarcastic post. I even noted that I was snickering quietly.

[Rutee]

Now, I haven't seen Clannad, but isn't it Clamp? 'cause, Clamp has tons of girl-girl romance or romantic subtext, so it'd be bad for the OP, I guess.

[Tengu]

Oh, and Revolutionary Girl Utena, but that's also same gender.

Utena is shojo, yes? Isn't it a bit weird that a shojo series has a girl's love romance as one of the main themes? But then, I don't know anything about shojo so it might actually be normal.

[Artemician]

Clannad? No.. it's not Clamp, not by all means. It's by Key. No LGTP within a ten-mile radius. No mecha though.

TTGP and FMP have been suggested already, so I'm going to talk about somethign that I'm astounded hasn't been suggested so far. Code Geass. Code Geass.

Okay fine, it deconstructs the hell out of Gundam, but it also plays straight with enough of the giant mecha tropes that it can be said to be a mecha anime. There's also a fair bit of romance, although... it might take a seat to the bloodbath at times. Heh.

The nice thing about it is that it has two main characters; Lelouch appeals to the members of the audience with a more jaded worldview, while Suzaku is popular with the idealistic optimists.

[Rutee]

Utena is shojo, yes? Isn't it a bit weird that a shojo series has a girl's love romance as one of the main themes? But then, I don't know anything about shojo so it might actually be normal.

It's not weird. It's not the /norm/, but it's not that weird.

And, uh, Code Geass has Nina x Euphemia. As canon. Not that I mind, but.. OP.

[Kojiro Kakita]

Now, I haven't seen Clannad, but isn't it Clamp? 'cause, Clamp has tons of girl-girl romance or romantic subtext, so it'd be bad for the OP, I guess.

How can you confuse the greatest visual novel (non-ero by the way. Who would have thought), with the mediocre to legendary works of Clamp? It is an insult to the great Jun Maeda (who I considered to be the greatest of the visual novel authors, although Nasu comes close).

[Lemur]

I'm a bit surprised no one's mentioned Rurouni Kenshin yet (or maybe I have terrible reading comprehension). Although I'm usually kinda tepid towards it, it should be right up your alley, based on your list. Not so much fantasy as historical fiction set in the Meiji era, the swordplay still has the wuxia-style supermoves that you'd probably expect. It's got romance stuff and fighting stuff. I'd advise to only watch it up through episode 61 or 62 something, but maybe the filler that the series goes into and ends with won't bother you if you haven't read the manga.

I'll throw in a second to Full Metal Panic! The spinoff Full Metal Panic! Fumoffu is also pretty damn funny. The episodes in Fumoffu are more self-contained (there isn't really an overarching story) and it focuses more on the comedy aspects instead of the mecha aspects, but don't let that make you think it's not worth watching.

[Mikeavelli]

When I saw the title of this thread I immediately though, "You mean Escaflowne?" - So I heartily second the suggestion above. I never saw the dub, but pretty much everything that got dubbed around that time was atrociously done, see the subbed version.

Other than that, go for FLCL. To put things in perspective, Portal is probably the best thing in entertainment since FLCL.

[Isak]

I can't recommend Evangelion enough.

It's not considered one of the greatest (FOR THE PAST 13 YEARS) for nothing.

Mecha: Big Check.

Mecha Sized Baddies: BIIIG Check.

Romance: Si Senior.

Great story: CHECK.

The show may be a bit confusing your first time watching through if you really aren't paying attention; so watch it a few times, and really listen to what they're saying during the "Psycho-babble" parts :smalltongue:

Also, get "The End of Evangelion" while you're at it. It's a remake of the last two (highly confusing) episodes of the original series. Much more action orientated, unlike the original which is more like an hour of brain-melting.

Both endings are great, though; Just takes a lot of... Thought, to be put into watching it.

I take no responsibility for the possible side-effect of depression from watching "Neon Genesis Evangelion", nor it's counter-part movie "The End of Evangelion".

Great show, may be a bit much for most people to really understand though.

(You mention you've seen Eureka Seven. It's more or less a "rip-off"/"Homage" to Neon Genesis Evangelion. They made it VERY similar in many aspects.... Just not nearly as good! (But twice as long...)

[Prustan]

Noien and Law of Ueki is all I can think of. Romance is quite understated in both, and Noein can get really confusing talking about quantum physics and stuff, but they're both good. And Law of Ueki has quite a few really funny parts.

[Poison_Fish]

Not only was it one of the greatest mecha shows of 2007, it probably was the greatest anime of 2007.

Anyway, these technically are slice of life more that fantasy, but still contain fantasy like elements:
Clannad
Seto no Hanyome (so great)
Kannon 2007

The problem with those is the are also harem.

Also, have you people not seen Baccano!? Now there is a good contender for great shows of 2007. To bad it's barely known. Also, I loved Gurren Lagann as well, but I just don't want to give it that top champions belt. Eh, that's for another thread.


(You mention you've seen Eureka Seven. It's more or less a "rip-off"/"Homage" to Neon Genesis Evangelion. They made it VERY similar in many aspects.... Just not nearly as good! (But twice as long...)

Eh, it could be said about a lot of things. I disagree greatly with that assessment though.

I think you should direct your attention to RahXephon for a more carbon copy here.

[Artemician]

And, uh, Code Geass has Nina x Euphemia. As canon. Not that I mind, but.. OP.

Now that you mention it...

Damn.

Personally, I think Nina's just getting her feelings of gratitude get mixed up with romantic love, tho' I guess some people could choose take it that way.

Not that it matters in the end, of course. Nina x Euphemia is.. pretty one-sided. And we all know who Euphemia's real love interest is, don't we *rollseyes*


I think you should direct your attention to RahXephon for a more carbon copy here.

Seconded. RahXephon is Evangelion, except with an ending done right. A good watch, by any standards.

[Rutee]

Now that you mention it...

Damn.

Personally, I think Nina's just getting her feelings of gratitude get mixed up with romantic love, I guess some people could choose take it that way.

Not that it matters in the end, of course. Nina x Euphemia is.. pretty one-sided. And we all know who Euphemia's real love interest is, don't we *rollseyes*

Given what trope Nina fulfills later on, I disagree.

Not on the one-sidedness, but..

[Ashtar]

I like Sakura Wars (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=582), it's got steampunk mecha in a 1920's alternate japan.

I also liked Vandread, but there is some fanservice.

And then in mecha we also have: (But spoilered because loads of fan service and maybe not to OP's taste...)
Gravion (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=1835) and Gravion Zwei (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=2853)

Finally, Gundam: 08th MS Team, if you have to watch only one gundam in your life, watch this. It's really really great. I find it quite different from other gundam styles, focusing on grunt soldiers. Recommended!

[Artemician]

Given what trope Nina fulfills later on, I disagree.

Not on the one-sidedness, but..

I do see what you mean.

While Nina is the quintessensial Psycho Lesbian... I must say that I don't really consider her as such. Code Geass deconstructs the heck out of a lot of tropes, Psycho Lesbian included. In Nina's case.. it desconstructs it by showing us how this state of affairs comes about.

Nina, after being rescued from a life-threatening situation, is naturally grateful to her benefactor. However, being mentally unstable, she misinterprets the signals her brain is sending her as signs of romantic love.

At least, that's how I see it. Of course, I don't see eye to eye with the rest of the world very often.. Heh. If it's official canon though, I can't dispute that.

[endoperez]

Scrapped Princess

I thought it was Very Good, but that's just my opinion. It's well-done, and is a nice fantasy anime which tells a story in 24 episodes. I haven't seen that much anime, but it worked well for me.
Also, it's fantasy, but the magic has impressive amount of destructive power, and there are certain sci-fi elements later in the series, like a controlled swarm of probably-not-organic insects called BUGs.


However, romance isn't on the spotlight. The main character, the scrapped (abandoned to die) princess, is prophecied to doom mankind. Despite this most of the people who she meets can't help loving her. The most obvious are her adopted brother and sister, who are ready to sacrifice their own lives for her. People do more for her than they'd do for even close friends, but the love isn't romantic, and the romance there is never at the center. I think you'd like the relationship between the three main family members.

It had fanservice, but I don't remember nudity. EDIT: Actually, there are bath scenes with no important parts shown, so depending on OP's tastes, this could be out.



I saw an episode of Chevalier once. Does anyone here happen to know more about it? Seems to be fantasy, and the gender-confusion seems like it would be worked on to some kind of a romantic problem, but the show could continue into horror as well.

[kamikasei]

Vision of Escaflowne (do yourself a favor and avoid the dub like I didn't) is fantasy and mecha. I'm not sure how heavy it is on the romance, but it seemed to have inclinations in that direction in the first couple episodes. Unfortunately, I haven't seen past that.

I have seen it all, and it rates highly on all three of the OP's criteria. Also, it has the most hilarious ending/climax I've seen in a romance show... but maybe that's because I'm a bastard.

[Ashtar]

Yes, Scrapped Princess another good one.

Also Last Exile (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=2294) is absolutly fantastic. Give it a try.

[Kojiro Kakita]

I can't recommend Evangelion enough.

It's not considered one of the greatest (FOR THE PAST 13 YEARS) for nothing.

Mecha: Big Check.

Mecha Sized Baddies: BIIIG Check.

Romance: Si Senior.

Great story: CHECK.

The show may be a bit confusing your first time watching through if you really aren't paying attention; so watch it a few times, and really listen to what they're saying during the "Psycho-babble" parts :smalltongue:

Also, get "The End of Evangelion" while you're at it. It's a remake of the last two (highly confusing) episodes of the original series. Much more action orientated, unlike the original which is more like an hour of brain-melting.

Both endings are great, though; Just takes a lot of... Thought, to be put into watching it.

I take no responsibility for the possible side-effect of depression from watching "Neon Genesis Evangelion", nor it's counter-part movie "The End of Evangelion".

Great show, may be a bit much for most people to really understand though.

(You mention you've seen Eureka Seven. It's more or less a "rip-off"/"Homage" to Neon Genesis Evangelion. They made it VERY similar in many aspects.... Just not nearly as good! (But twice as long...)


You Sir, are evil.
I don't think it is possible to watch the movie without getting a downer. Although, if you end with the TV series it ends ona a somewhat happy note.

[Nerd-o-rama]

Pro tip: If you are going to watch Evangelion, I recommend heavy doses of Nadesico or Gurren-Lagann to counteract it. Or Prozac.

Nadesico also works to counteract the feeling of rage at the dub, if you have to watch it, since it features several of the same actors doing a much better job.

[Swordguy]

Wha...?

How on earth has MACROSS not been mentioned yet?

If you can't find it, Robotech is an acceptable substitute.

Also, EXOSQUAD isn't bad. It's not "anime" in that it was made in the US, but the production values are excellent. Really, it was simply made before its time.

[Tengu]

Pro tip: If you are going to watch Evangelion, I recommend heavy doses of Nadesico or Gurren-Lagann to counteract it. Or Prozac.


Or FLCL! It's as much of a mind screw, but in the opposite way, so your mind returns to normal.

Yeah, who am I kidding. But FLCL is a mandatory viewing for everyone anyway.

[Swordguy]

Or FLCL! It's as much of a mind screw, but in the opposite way, so your mind returns to normal.

Yeah, who am I kidding. But FLCL is a mandatory viewing for everyone anyway.

Og. I remember watching (over a whole weekend devoted to such) FCLC and Excel Saga back-to-back...

My mind... :smalleek:

[Tengu]

How would you compare the acid factor of Excel Saga to FLCL? Because I heard FLCL is more wild, and therefore I might be disappointed with Excel Saga when I finally get to watch it.

[Blayze]

I can't believe I forgot one! This one I watched at the tender age of nine.

Tekkaman Blade/Teknoman.

Any anime with two Beatles references in the main characters is good in my book.

[Swordguy]

How would you compare the acid factor of Excel Saga to FLCL? Because I heard FLCL is more wild, and therefore I might be disappointed with Excel Saga when I finally get to watch it.

Well, Excel Saga has 26 episodes compared to FLCL's 6, so there's more room for variance between episodes. Pretty much ALL of FLCL is good, while I'd say there's a solid 20 equally awesome episodes in ES.

ES is also a spoof series, in that most of the eps are spoofs on a specific TV genre (sci-fi, romance, etc). The last few epsisodes (22-25 IIRC) kinda mush everything that's happened into a semi-plot and runs with it. The last episode was intentionally made too graphic for Japanese TV, and so didn't air.

It's a great, frenetic, high-energy series, though it kinda starts spinning its wheels around episode 14-16 (where the not-so-great episodes are). It picks back up for the big finish, though. The trick to enjoying the series is to be familiar with lots of different TV and film genres - otherwise you won't get the jokes. The first episode, for example, centers around Excel assassinating comic book artists in order to provide ideological purity for Japanese youth (as part of a city - then world - domination plot by her parent organization ACROSS). Naturally, she goes after Rikudou Koushi. Excel Saga is written by Rikudou Koushi. Does she suddenly cease to exist? Go watch!

[Rutee]

"And the bullet of justice caps evil's ass!"

Excel's pretty awesome, yeah.