Mien's Blog

Most Captivating Love Stories in Non-Romance Manga and Anime

Posted on January 13, 2025 Updated on January 14, 2025

As a manga & anime fanatic, I figure I should have written more about the topic, but this is only my second blog after the Badass Women in Manga and Anime: My Top Votes. Can’t say I am a nerd who knows all series out there, but I sure do watch and read a lot. Below are my 7 personal picks of most captivating love stories (in non-romance series only), arranged in ascending order – that says, I hope you may find some surprising choices further down.

Those who haven’t read or watched these series, beware of spoilers, my apologies in advance.

Mikasa & Eren (Attack on Titan):

Let us start with a popular pick that everyone already knows about. There’s not much to write as the whole anime fandom must be lamenting their sorrowful love story by now. Love for themselves or responsibility towards others, they both choose the latter. It is sad but also logical. There’s probably no other choice for heroes once they have decided to embark on such a journey anyway.

As for me, I just wonder what it is like to love someone so much for one’s entire life like Mikasa’s love for her beloved childhood friend Eren.

Himmel & Frieren (Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End):

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End is my new favourite ongoing series (the manga is currently on a hiatus at 141 chapters as of January 2025). Frieren‘s storyline proceeds somewhat slowly with melancholy and sadness lingering in each adventure of the elven mage Frieren and her group to retrace Frieren’s past journey with Himmel’s Hero Party 80 years back.

In my opinion, the author of this series is on her own fearless quest to manifest ‘eternal love’ by decoding the emotional process of the long-living elves; and my guess is in the end, Frieren will finally understand her true feelings. However, put Frieren and her quest besides, what I am more intrigued about the story so far is how a person could hold strong feelings for someone throughout one’s entire life like what Himmel feels towards Frieren. Oh, am I repeating myself from earlier? Right… I guess it is because it’s difficult for the modern generation to comprehend ‘eternal love’. Can you? If your answer is yes, you’re probably the lucky one. 🙂

Spike & Julia (Cowboy Bebop):

I really love Cowboy Bebop and have watched it several times yet still can’t handle the finale. The series starts off as a comedy but ends up with some very sad departures. Even by the end of the final episode’s closing credits I still can’t wrap myself around what has happened, no matter how many times I watch.

While I am hoping for Spike to put his dark past to an end and begin a new relationship with his beloved comrade, he decides to jump straight to his presumed death to revenge for his deceased lover. Though Julia rarely makes appearance throughout the Bebop crew’s adventures, it’s her image and Spike’s love for her that lead the whole story. Spike and Julia’s love story is such a haunting one and the series’ abrupt ending just leaves audience further in puzzles and ‘what if’ perplexes.

Kenshin & Tomoe (Rurouni Kenshin):

Rurouni Kenshin is an old beloved series, and its live action is probably the only acceptable adaption thus far of any anime with Takeru Satoh fitting so well in the role of Himura Kenshin. Though packed with action, Rurouni Kenshin also contains an enchanting love story between the killer Kenshin and the revenge seeker Tomoe. Heart-breaking and full of inner conflicts from both sides, their love is still beautiful with much self-sacrifice, loyalty and devotion. Kenshin’s vow not to kill throughout the whole series is also a sign of his long-lasting love for Tomoe.

Even though Kenshin finally forgives himself and starts a new family with Kaoru, I would still like to think Tomoe is the one that makes Kenshin the hero that he is.

Kikyo & Inuyasha (Inuyasha):

Kikyo is forever one of my most favourite female characters in manga and anime, and I secretly disprove of her love for Inuyasha. How come such an absolute charming lady like Kikyo can fall for the annoying boyish half-demon Inuyasha? It’s still something I don’t understand. Nevertheless, because of that love this series happens. Even after death, Kikyo’s lingering wish to see Inuyasha again causes her spirit to reincarnate into Kagome and drag her back into the faraway past.

Inuyasha is a very worthy read, there are lots of ancient Japanese folklores, great plot twists and complicated emotions that promise to keep you overthinking long after the ending.

Michiru & Haruka (Sailor Moon):

“If I can be with you, I won’t hesitate to sell my soul to the devil.” – Haruka; “I can endure it if I’m with you, even if we’re burned in the flames of hell. I have no regrets.” – Michiru.

It’s hard to describe how much I adore Michiru and Haruka. They are definitely the couple I root for the most in any manga/anime series that I’ve known of. I don’t think such strong bonding in a relationship is possible in reality. They are two but they are practically one. The story of how they meet, how they share their life mission and how they accept to perish together is all too captivating it can’t be real.

Let this beautiful violin melody speak what I can’t describe (probably a good big deal of views to this below video is thanks to me so far):

Guts & Griffith (Berserk):

Let us now come to the last pick in my list and I understand that this one might be controversial. There has been much discussion around Berserk fandom whether or not there are romantic feelings between Guts and Griffith. People mostly agree that their relationship is larger than friendship, but some say it’s just a ‘bromance’. As for me, I don’t want to complicate. From a woman’s point of view, what happens between Guts and Griffith is definitely love, whether romantic or not, that is love. It is love at first sight even from Griffith’s part; it is this love that he values more than his royal dream and his own life, and it is also this love that leads him derail, corrupts him and drives him into a demon.

Berserk is a great series that one simply can’t pass, even though it is too dark, too painful, and too brutal to read. I don’t follow the story any longer after the mangaka passed away, but I remember how consumed I was when travelling with Guts from page to page, and how much I lament over the bitter end of their mutual journey. None other series has ever left me so emotional and perplexed as Berserk. Though I never read this series again and again like others because I can’t endure the brutality of the storyline, Berserk remains my number one favourite of all time. Respect to the late mangaka, he’s already a legend.