Teasing – it is the new big thing in a genre that has done love up, down, and sideways. Except it isn’t so new, is it? Everyone has been told that when you get teased as a kid, it is because that person probably likes you, but doesn’t know how else to get your attention. That is very much the case when it comes to anime, too. If those playful pranks and delightful ribbing that are taking over romance anime is your jam, then give these teasing romance anime recommendations a try.
Best Teasing Romance Anime
Skilled Teaser Takagi-san
This series is likely the series that made audiences realize that they kind of enjoy teasing romances. It follows a pair of desk mates in school where the titular Takagi constantly plays little games with Nishikata who always ends up losing but constantly aims to win someday. Since the characters are in middle school in the series, everything has a certain air of innocence to it and it really does well to capture a feeling of characters being unconsciously in love with each other.
How Clumsy You Are, Miss Ueno
Sometimes teasing romance anime can drift closer to the creepy and criminal rather than the cute and innocent. This is one that can perhaps got a bit over the line sometimes. It follows a brilliant inventor in the science club who falls for her club member who does not notice her affection. So, her plan is to constantly throw him into perverted situations so he gets flustered and realizes his feelings for her. It gets real weird, especially since they are middle schoolers.
Don’t Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro
Like Skilled Teaser Takagi-san, Don’t Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro is a master of unconsciously falling in love. It starts with a main character that is one more poor interaction with women away from being an incel essentially being bullied by a popular younger girl who laser focuses on him. Instead of that going poorly, you watch as they build a friendship with each other and get increasingly closer to each other. One of the most lovable things is watching Nagatoro go from somewhat malicious bully to someone that gets pretty flustered by her feelings.
Special A
Typically, in teasing romances a girl mercilessly teases a guy who tries really hard. Special A gender flips that. Hikari has tried since she was a child to beat her friend Kei at anything. However, now in a prestigious high school, what she doesn’t realize is that Kei is in love with her. That doesn’t mean he will let her win, though. While Special A is a pretty overlooked show, it is still a lovely shoujo-style romance without the usual drama.
Uzaki-Chan Wants to Hang Out
The most interesting thing about Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out is that I don’t think Uzaki really realizes that she is teasing the main character. The whole plot is about Uzaki being rather unconsciously in love with her senpai, so she wants to be around him always. He finds this lightly annoying and often resists, yet she wedges her way in there. The shenanigans are cute, but since no one realizes they are in love, it can be kind of a low payoff romance.
Class President is a Maid
Like Special A, Class President is a Maid is really the only other gender-flipped teasing romance of note. Misaki is a hardass at school, but she works at a maid cafe after school to support her family. One popular boy finds this out and spends every waking moment at her job in order to tease her. This series, however, drifts into more familiar shoujo romance territory and tropes as it goes on.
The Duke of Death and His Maid
This series is kind of clever as teasing romances go. The titular Duke can’t touch any living thing without killing it. His maid, who is in love with him, likes to provocatively tease him. The most refreshing thing about this series is that you can tell the maid loves him by the way she treats and teases him, but the Duke is also very straight-forward with his feelings, he simply can’t do anything with them. It is a bit melancholic in that regard, but innovative.
Magical Sempai
In a similar vein to Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out, Magical Sempai is about a girl that is kind of unknowingly annoying a guy she comes to enjoy. The romance in the show isn’t exactly there, though. This is definitely more of a comedy, but also an ecchi comedy since the whole joke is that her magic tricks end lewdly.
Spice and Wolf
Teasing anime series, because they are often purely romance, tend to be low on plot. If you are looking for something more hearty in the plot department, but still has that lovable teasing between the main couple, then Spice and Wolf is for you. It tends to be a bit exposition heavy sometimes, but it makes up for it in the overall plot of its various arcs and those lighter moments between Holo the wolf goddess teasing her grounded human companion.
Dusk Maiden of Amnesia
Romance and horror are hard to pair together, but Dusk Maiden of Amnesia dared to dream and pulled it off rather well. The plot is about a paranormal school club, headed up by a female ghost haunting their school, unraveling mysteries including how she died there. However, alongside that, you watch a romance form between the ghost and a student. While she enjoys teasing him in particular, a romance between a human and a ghost will always end melancholic.
Bakemonogatari
The Monogatari series is a special beast. Since there are so many similarly named entries, it can be difficult to get into. This is why watching the Monogatari series with a helpful watch order is highly recommended. However, that aside, if you enjoy females teasing their male peers, there are truly some masters here. While Bakemonogatari isn’t solely focused on romance, it is a major element.
Kotoura-san
This is kind of a complicated one. Essentially, the titular Kotoura is teased and flirted with by Manabe at her new school. However, Kotoura has had a difficult life because of her special power and she remains pretty oblivious to much of his clear affection. The teasing is rather low here, but the same type of affection is present.
Do you have more teasing romance anime recommendations that you think should be on here? Let fans know in the comments section below.
