The romance genre of anime is filled with bad tropes, tough subjects, and a litany of areas where an anime can make a mistake. When it's done right, however, romance series can be some of the best to watch. They're filled with wonderful relationships, great side characters, and believable worlds any viewer can relate to.

There are a few romance anime series that get close to the top. They have a lot of elements that a good romance anime needs to succeed, but they either have too many negative elements working against them or don't capitalize on what is best for them. Some romance series are flawed due to no fault of their own. These series suffer from issues that happen off-screen, leaving behind a solid romance series that doesn't get fulfilled because of something entirely out of the fictional characters' control.

7 Rent-a-Girlfriend

Animated By TMS Entertainment, Based on the Manga By Reiji Miyajima

Rent-A-Girlfriend could have been a great romance series. The premise is odd in the best way possible. Kazuya Kinoshita is a freshman in college going through his first heartbreak. To deal with the loss of his (one-month long) relationship, he decides to use the titular girlfriend rental service instead. The service goes too well, and Kazuya starts blaming his rental girlfriend for all of his problems. His problems snowball from there, as he involves his fake girlfriend in too many aspects of his life to back out.

Instead of looking inward towards the root of his problems, Kazuya blames the universe or himself and doesn't undergo any legitimate change

Rent-A-Girlfriend could have been an amazing anime series if, after renting Chizuru for the first time, Kazuya stopped using the service altogether and began to work on himself. Instead of looking inward towards the root of his problems, Kazuya blames the universe or himself and doesn't undergo any legitimate change. He's one of the most hateable characters in anime because he never really takes ability for his actions, which is disappointing because Rent-A-Girlfriend could have been a great series if he did.

6 Kimi ni Todoke

Animated By Production I.G, Based on the Manga By Karuho Shiina

Kimi ni Todoke is often regarded as one of the best romance anime of all time. It has a lot of strengths, so it's easy to see why. The story is set around a socially awkward girl named Sawako Kuronuma who develops the nickname of "Sadako" due to her uncanny resemblance to a Japanese monster. She just wants to make friends, but her social awkwardness makes it hard for her. The series showcases her trials and tribulations to fit in, a relatable story for most people.

Sawako's nickname, Sadako, is a reference to the main antagonist of the The Ring franchise.

Kimi ni Todoke struggles because of Sawako's awkwardness. There are plenty of characters within and outside the romance genre that have a hard time in social settings, but Sawako takes it to an entirely unrealistic level. She's so awkward socially that she doesn't seem real at all. It's hard to believe someone could be that unaware of human emotions unless they have a social disorder that prevents them from understanding the people around them. Her interactions are frustrating because of how little she understands, making the series as a whole hard to watch.

5 Our Last Crusade or The Rise of a New World Season 2

Animated By Silver Link, Based on the Light Novel By Kei Sazane and Ao Nekonabe

Our Last Crusade or The Rise of a New World is a solid romance anime that can be a bit cheesy at times, but it appears to be aware of that fact. It's a fun series filled with great characters, an interesting world, and two fun protagonists on either side of the battlefield. Iska and Alice should be enemies. They fight for two opposing forces, but when they're together, they can't help but get along like they've been dating for quite some time. It's a great, fun premise that only gets better as the series progresses.

The second season of Our Last Crusade or The Rise of a New World had four solid episodes before it was put on hiatus. The manga has plenty of material to be animated, but the studio animating the series had to take a break to work on other series and to ensure that Our Last Crusade or The Rise of a New World could receive the high-quality animation it deserved. It was a disappointing end in the middle of the second season that the series itself couldn't do anything to fix.

4 Banished From the Hero’s Party, I Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Countryside Season 2

Animated By Wolfsbane and Studio Flad, Based on the Light Novel By Zappon and Yasumo

Banished From the Hero’s Party, I Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Countryside has a wonderfully simple premise. One of the of the hero's party, Red (also known as Gideon), was banished. He decided to pack up and head to the countryside, starting a small shop and an honest life in the meantime. It's a great, straightforward premise that only gets better when Red meets his love interest Rit. They start a wonderful life together, becoming devoted of their small community and growing their shop in the meantime.

The second season of Banished From the Hero’s Party, I Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Countryside could have been just as good as the first if they stuck to the script. Instead of exploring more of Red, Rit, and Ruti's quiet life in the countryside, the story throws more unnecessary conflict their way. It's a disappointing change of pace the series never needed. If it delved deeper into Red and Rit's relationship, the second season would have been at least as good as the first.

3 Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets the Wise Wolf

Animated By A-1 Pictures, Based on the Light Novel By Isuna Hasekura and Jū Ayakura

Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets the Wise Wolf is one of the most frustrating series to come out in the past decade. At its core, it seems like a wonderful romance story about a merchant and a mythical creature that takes the form of a young woman. The two travel together, grow together, and eventually fall in love. While the world they live in is difficult for them to say the least, the two cling to each other when they need to and are all the better for it.

Unfortunately, the merchant, Lawrence, is less than a good romantic partner. He gambles with Holo's future more times than anyone can count. He treats his traveling partner and love interest more like a piece in a game than someone he cares about. While this might be excusable once or maybe even twice, Lawrence can't stop putting his and Holo's futures on the line for next to nothing. It's an odd, frustrating series because Lawrence's actions can't fully be understood, and Holo is left picking up after him too often.

2 The Ancient Magus’ Bride

Animated By Wit Studio, Based on the Manga by Kore Yamazaki

The Ancient Magus' Bride has a lot of things going for it. It has some of the best animation in anime history, a solid world begging to be explored, and a decent cast of main characters. The premise of the story is set around Chise Hatori, a 15-year-old girl who has given up on life. She allows herself to be sold at an auction to whoever wants her. Her new "owner" is Elias Ainsworth, a powerful mage and a man feared by all. While the background of the show doesn't seem bad, it's a little too much just underneath the surface.

Chise Hatori is only 15 during the events of the series, making her relationship with a much older man uncomfortable at best. While she grows to like and eventually love Elias, it's not great that their relationship started with Elias purchasing Chise. The series never really addresses these uncomfortable issues, and they're two big problems that an interesting world and wonderful animation just don't make up for.

1 Domestic Girlfriend

Animated by Diomedéa, Based on the Manga By Kei Sasuga

Domestic Girlfriend is an uncomfortable romance anime that could have been great. There are plenty of romance series that deal with controversial topics well, and Domestic Girlfriend isn't one of them. There are some lines that shouldn't be crossed in romance anime and this series crosses a lot of them a little too comfortably. The series is centered around Natsuo, Rui, and Hina's disturbed love triangle. Natsuo has a crush on his teacher Hina, and while that is fairly normal, she reciprocates those feelings. Even worse, Natsuo and Rui have a romantic past as well, and the trio all live together.

Domestic Girlfriend misses the mark because it treats taboo moments with complete sincerity. A 23-year-old teacher falling in love with his 16-year-old student is just uncomfortable, especially after they become step-siblings. It's a weird plot point that the show treats way too seriously. If Domestic Girlfriend was a comedy, it might make a little more sense, but it isn't funny in the slightest waty.