Aishang Ta de Liyou

Both "Maison Ikkoku" and "The Girl Downstairs" are romance dramas that take place in college, the character designs are pretty similar too. -the protagonists are both male college students who have trouble expressing their romantic feelings. -the main love interests are both women with long black hair who live in the same building as the male protagonist. -the main love rival and past girlfriend of the protagonist are women with short brown hair. -there's also a girl w/ red hair who lives in same building with the others and also acts as a love rival, although Akemi in "Maison Ikkoku" is more for comic relief. -in addition alcohol is a big plot device in both, with characters frequently partying and getting drunk, then saying/doing stupid things that progress the story. There are plenty of differences of course, the main being that "The Girl Downstairs" is currently airing right now (Spring 2023) while "Maison Ikkoku" came out more than 37 years ago. All said though, they both give off the same kind of vibe.  read more 

The main heroines for both anime are extremely similar to each other. Both in terms of looks and personality. Both Madoka Ayukawa and Li Shiya are mysterious or "kimagure" girls and are very unpredictable. Not to mention their character designs are extremely similar. Both are delinquents or troublemakers. They can get really violent if they need to. Both heroines love teasing the main characters in various ways while keeping their true feelings a secret. Besides the similar characters, the story is also somewhat similar, or at the very least, they give off the same vibes. Since both of them are romcoms despite a very different kind of setting.  read more