Best Romance Anime About Married Couples

Love and anime are old friends. Whether the series is horror, sci-fi, martial arts, slice-of-life, or anything else, romance almost inevitably rears its head at one point or another, even if it isn’t the show’s sole focus. Yet the relationships most often shown are young and new, with protagonists in school or on some great adventure. Rarely is a happy anime couple a married one.

Yet married couples in romance anime do exist, and their relationships are sometimes all the more profound for having made such a commitment. That’s not to say that these relationships are drama-free; often the best part of these romances is watching two people committed to one another struggle to love their partner’s quirks. In these anime, love might truly be eternal.

As
anime about married couples
are not that common, shows will be considered even if their leads are only pretending to be married.

Updated September 28, 2024 by Mark Sammut: Fall 2024 is about to start, so let’s take a look at its romance lineup to see if there are any anime about married couples.

Does Fall 2024 Have Romance Anime With Married Couples?

The upcoming Fall 2024 anime season has quite a few romance anime, so fans of the genre should be eating well. Now, the lineup only has one anime about a married couple, and it is a bit of a strange one; however, it also includes a surprising number of series that revolve around engagements. Obviously, these shows are not exactly the same thing, but they might be able to strike a similar chord with viewers.

• TsumaSho (If My Wife Becomes an Elementary School Student) – Fall 2024’s sole anime about a married couple is not quite the typical romance. Now, the title might seem off-putting, but it requires some expansion. A decade on from his wife’s passing, Keisuke is just going through the motions, unable to move on or connect properly with his daughter. One day, a young girl comes into his life who happens to be his wife’s reincarnated form. This connection pushes Keisuke to face his grief and start the healing process.
• 365 Days to the Wedding – With the threat of relocation hanging over them, Rika and Takuya pretend they are going to get married in a year to avoid being picked by their employers. Before this arrangement, neither person gave much thought to romance or marriage; however, that changes when they have to face it head-on.
• Yakuza Fiancé: Raise wa Tanin ga Ii – Yes, a crime romance anime is about to hit the scene. Used as a pawn to create a truce with a competing Yakuza family, Somei finds herself with an unwanted fiancé, a relationship she instantly wants to leave. However, she might have more in common with Miyama than she thinks.
• Tying the Knot with an Amagami Sister – Harem seems like the direct opposite of married couple romances, but this series is specifically about a pending matrimony. Uryuu must pick between three sisters in preparation for taking over the local temple. They all have strong personalities and reasons to live beyond their relationships.
• Ranma ½ – Technically, Ranma and Akane are engaged throughout the story, even if they might not be always on board with their situation.

12 My Wife Has No Emotion

MyAnimeList: 6.82

A Summer 2024 series, My Wife Has No Emotion kind of qualifies as an anime about a married couple, although that statement comes with plenty of asterisks. For one, Takuma and Mina are not officially married but rather agree to act like they are. More importantly, Mina is a housekeeper AI owned by Takuma, and she has little agency in the situation. While drunk, the male protagonist confesses that he would love to have someone like Mina as his partner, which the latter internalizes and sets out to fulfill the role.

My Wife Has No Emotion is weird. Most of the scenes are wholesome, with the main characters having a fun dynamic. Naturally, as the story progresses, Mina gradually picks up more human traits, although she continues to be presented as an android throughout. Despite being the best part of the show, she does not have the emotional range to carry a romance. Takuma goes through a few cute gestures that try to paint him in a somewhat OK light, but he can be really creepy at times.

While worth watching since there are very few romance anime with married couples (even pretend ones), My Wife Has No Emotion can be pretty off-putting at times. That said, the show improves as it goes along.

11 The World is Still Beautiful

MyAnimeList: 7.60

The World is Still Beautiful is a great choice for those who love romance and fantasy anime and want to watch a unique show with a powerful married anime couple who weren’t exactly madly in love when they got married. Nike and Livius are a young couple who had an arranged marriage, so their two kingdoms can form a strong alliance.

While Nike is one of the friendliest anime characters, it took her a long time to get used to and appreciate Livius’ behavior and decisions. The story follows their life and relationship as it changes and grows while the young couple has to overcome various difficulties together including personal and political issues. While the show is a fun fantasy romance anime, their relationship, and growing love for each other feels realistic because it develops in a bit slower but organic way.

10 More Than A Married Couple, But Not Lovers.

MyAnimeList: 7.59

OK, this one is a special case as More Than A Married Couple, But Not Lovers does not feature legitimate married couples. At a particularly strange high school, students engage in a practical where guys and girls are paired up and forced to pretend to be a married couple. Naturally, the ordinary Jirou is married off to Akari, a popular girl with a gyaru fashion sense. The two students’ crushes are also paired together, which adds some tension right out of the gate.

At first, More Than A Married Couple, But Not Lovers appears to be a fairly uninteresting fanservice-driven series, but the anime has more depth than is initially apparent. Akari and Jirou’s relationship blossoms nicely as their preconceptions of each other are challenged, and they begin to gradually become quite close. As this is just a practical, their “marriage” largely boils down to them sitting on the living room sofa together, but they have some genuine heart-to-heart conversations.

9 Love Is Like A Cocktail

MyAnimeList: 6.96

Outside the house, particularly when at her job as an assistant manager, Chisato is calm and collected, the face of professionalism. At home with her husband Sora, however, a different side of Chisato is revealed: one that loves to drink and unwind.

Both lead characters are quirky and interesting in their own right, but the chemistry between the two is what leads to all the anime’s best and funniest moments. The affection Chisato and Sora have for one another is clear, and watching the husband and wife try to make each other happy is a genuine pleasure.

8 Troublesome Old Man

MyAnimeList: 6.40

When it comes to exploring what love looks like when the decades have flown by and old age has arrived, no anime beats Komatta Jii-san. The one-minute episodes are gone in a flash, but the memories of them will linger long after the series is done.

Komatta Jii-san is about an old man flirting with his wife to make her happy. The abbreviated episode length gives the show a minimalist feel, each episode building like a comedy set before delivering the punchline. Seeing a husband and wife interact from a place of such love and comfort makes it easy for viewers to imagine the characters’ relationship when they were younger, which only makes the affection they retain more adorable.

7 I Can’t Understand What My Husband Is Saying

MyAnimeList: 7.28 (Season 1)

Good comedy is often built on contrasts, which is why in so many sitcoms the best friend of the tall skinny character is often short and round. Anime exploits this trend as much as any other genre, as I Can’t Understand What My Husband Is Saying demonstrates. Hajime is an otaku who works from home on his blog, and his wife Kaoru is an office assistant and rowdy drunk.

Most of the show’s comedy comes from each partner’s inability to understand or relate to the other despite their loyalty, particularly Kaoru’s struggle to grasp Hajime’s otaku interests. It’s simple, solid, and effective.

6 The Way Of The Househusband

MyAnimeList: 7.24 (Season 1)

Dragon is an impressive nickname. Immortal Dragon even more so. Legendary Immortal Dragon is a nickname so grandiose that even in anime, a medium where flowery character names are commonplace, a character with such a name would have to be something special.

Tatsu, aka Legendary Immortal Dragon, is a former yakuza member turned househusband. All he wants is to make his wife’s life easier, whether that means cooking, cleaning, giving her gifts, or otherwise doting upon and helping her. This “bad boy turns good for love” scenario is perfectly executed, and The Way of the Househusband flourishes as a result.

Once again,
The Way of the Househusband
is primarily a comedy, albeit one driven by Tatsu’s love for his bride.

5 Welcome Home

MyAnimeList: 7.78

Another Spring 2024 anime series, Welcome Home is set within the Omegaverse, a franchise that leans into erotic fiction. This particular story is primarily a slice-of-life romance revolving around a young married couple who are raising two children in a society that does not always view their partnership kindly.

The Omegaverse divides people into three additional gender tiers (Alphas, Betas, and Omegas) based on their reproductive capabilities. Omegas can give birth regardless of their gender, and they tend to be looked down upon by society.

As an Omega married to an Alpha, Masaki struggles with feelings of inadequacy in his relationship with Hiromu and also his children. Welcome Home balances adorable family interactions with sensitive commentary on Masaki’s trauma stemming from his childhood, reaching a middle ground that permits both aspects to shine. The main duo are great together, with their scenes regularly highlighting their history and supportive natures. At times, Hiromu can come across as a bit too perfect, but he complements Masaki well.

4 In This Corner Of The World

MyAnimeList: 8.22

The more subgenres an anime tries to incorporate, the more likely it is to fall apart, unable to make its many threads connect. That’s not the case here In addition to being a romance, In This Corner of the World is a historical drama about Suzu, a girl growing up in Hiroshima who is wed to a young man she doesn’t know when she comes of age.

The animation is top-tier, the emotional beats powerful, and some moments in the film are absolutely gut-wrenching. It’s a serious film interested in serious business, but that’s the backdrop for a serious look at romance.

3 Grandpa and Grandma Turn Young Again

MyAnimeList: 7.49

Spring 2024’s Grandpa and Grandma Turn Young Again delivered exactly what its title advertised. After being married for roughly 50 years, Shozo and Ine have an indestructible relationship built on trust, support, comfort, and devotion. Thanks to a supernatural intervention, their bodies revert to their younger selves, allowing them to enjoy their golden years while being at their physical peak.

While the supernatural element is not particularly interesting, Grandpa and Grandma Turn Young Again shines due to Shozo and Ine’s warm dynamic that highlights their long history together. Except for a few cute “embarrassing” moments that feel a bit too adolescent for a couple that has been together for this long, the pair’s interactions are wholesome and mostly ordinary. Their love and connection are so rock-solid that they do not see the need to constantly reinforce them, something that very rarely happens in romance anime with married couples. The anime even explores the duo’s generational relationships through scenes with their children and granddaughters.

2 Clannad: After Story

MyAnimeList: 8.93

If it doesn’t go without saying, Clannad: After Story is a story that takes place after Clannad, and watching that anime first is a prerequisite for this one. Series protagonists Tomoya and Nagisa decide to get married after high school, which is where this anime picks up.

Clannad: After Story does its best to present an authentic, rounded portrait of a marriage, the highs as well as the lows. One aspect of marriage that doesn’t surface much in romance anime is the prospect of growing older, changing, and watching one’s partner change with time. Clannad: After Story isn’t a perfect depiction of that process, and perhaps no series could be, but it goes further than most in exploring what love with age looks like.

1 Tonikawa: Over The Moon For You

MyAnimeList: 7.86 (Season 1)

Some anime plots are more realistic than others. Adding elves or space lasers is an easy way to steer a story away from reality, but even stories that take place in a world very much like the real one can sometimes go off the rails. Tonikawa: Over the Moon For You is an off-the-rails kind of romance anime.

Nasa Yuzaki, ranked first in the nation’s mock exams, is struck by a truck and saved a beautiful woman. When he asks her out, she accepts on one condition: they get married. The series then turns into an exploration of the new relationship, as two young people get to know the person they’ve just decided to spend the rest of their lives with. This is what a warm, endearing rom-com looks like. While certainly idealized, Tonikawa‘s protagonists are so charming as individuals and as a couple that they make everything work. This is the definitive married couple anime.