Best Romance Manga Recommendations

Misaki Takamatsu

Drama, Ongoing Series, Romance, School, Slice of Life

Skip and Loafer is a heartwarming coming-of-age story featuring Mitsumi Iwakura, an earnest and straightforward girl raised in a rural town in Ishikawa Prefecture. Upon graduating middle school, Mitsumi moves to Tokyo with ambitious dreams, enrolling at the prestigious Tsubame-Nishi High School as the top of her class. However, reality hits hard on the first day when she encounters urban challenges like crowded commuter trains and getting lost on her way to school. Amid this early struggle between expectation and reality, she is helped by Sousuke Shima, a charming and cheerful classmate. While Mitsumi excels academically, she struggles socially with urban norms, often misreading situations or making charmingly awkward mistakes. Yet her sincerity and natural charm gradually endear her to classmates, leading to meaningful friendships with a vibrant group of peers. As time passes, Mitsumi navigates universal teenage experiences—first loves, decisions about the future, and anxiety about growing up—developing steadily into her authentic self. This uplifting school-life comedy warmly portrays a country girl’s determination to thrive in a big city, highlighting irreplaceable friendships and the joy of everyday growth.

Hachi Nishika

Drama, Ongoing Series, Romance, Seinen, historical

In the spring of 1936 (Showa 11), 20-year-old Natsumi Sekiya is suddenly informed by her father that her marriage has been arranged. She accepts an engagement with Takimasa Ebata, a lieutenant in the Imperial Japanese Navy. However, on her wedding day, Takimasa is absent due to naval training, and Natsumi ends up having her wedding ceremony with just a photograph of him. When Takimasa finally returns after his military exercises, their first meeting is awkward. Despite feeling unsure about her quiet, reserved husband, Natsumi earnestly strives to support him as a wife. Neither experienced in household chores nor familiar with married life, the couple gradually grows closer, navigating their awkwardness and building trust. Due to Takimasa’s frequent long-term deployments at sea, Natsumi feels lonely but communicates her feelings through letters, strengthening their bond with every reunion. Amid occasional misunderstandings, jealousy, and interactions with family and friends, the two steadily mature as a couple. Set against the backdrop of pre-war Japan, this gentle, warm-hearted story portrays the pure and slightly frustrating romance of a newlywed couple, capturing their everyday life as softly as the ocean breeze.

Gosho Aoyama

Anime Adaptation, Mystery, Ongoing Series, Romance, Shonen

Detective Conan follows the story of Shinichi Kudo, a brilliant high school detective who witnesses a secret deal involving a mysterious organization known as the "Black Organization." Captured and forced to ingest a poison, his body shrinks, transforming him into a child. To hide his identity, Shinichi adopts the alias "Conan Edogawa" and lives with his childhood friend Ran Mori and her father, detective Kogoro Mori, all while solving complex criminal cases using his extraordinary deduction skills. As Conan seeks a way to return to his original body and uncover the true nature of the Black Organization, he faces numerous dangerous plots with help from allies and informants. The storyline skillfully intertwines everyday crime-solving, intense confrontations with the organization, and Conan’s bittersweet relationship with Ran. With characters who know Conan’s true identity and others like Ai Haibara, who also escaped the organization's grip, Detective Conan delivers suspense, deep human drama, and intricate mysteries in a long-running detective series beloved around the world.

Shinpei Funatsu

Comedy, Completed Series, Drama, Romance, School, Seinen

Todai Revengers follows Michitake Itei, a graduate from the prestigious University of Tokyo ("Toudai") who, despite his elite education, lives a dull, part-time-worker lifestyle. After learning that Yuuki Hayase—his former classmate and unrequited love—has married a man from rival university Keio, Michitake is so devastated he dies in an accident. After his death, Michitake encounters an angel named Yariel and wins the "Life Do-Over Satisfaction Plan," allowing him to time-leap seven years into the past, right after starting his life at Toudai. Determined to rewrite his university years and save Yuuki, Michitake embraces his second chance. Back at Toudai, he encounters quirky classmates and becomes entangled with the mysterious club known as the "Toudai Manji Gang." Using his passion and pride for his university, Michitake navigates through various comedic scenarios, relatable college dilemmas, exam-based humor, and youthful challenges. Packed with laughter and parodying the original manga Tokyo Revengers, this manga is a relatable and humorous take on getting a second chance at youth and university life.