If you liked
Kidou Tenshi Angelic Layer
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...then you might like
Selector Infected WIXOSS
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SIMILARITIES: both feature an almost predominantly all-female cast (with just 1 or 2 minor supporting male characters, all of whom are quite likable) battling in fantasy game tournaments with vague rules (i.e never explaining the exact rules of the game to the viewer, just showing the battles and you get a vague idea) using miniature female avatars as their companions in battle (in Angelic Layer, the Angel Dolls. in WIXOSS, the LRIGs) required to win or even just play the game for them. in Angelic Layer, the avatars have personalities somewhat "shaped" or "projected" upon them when they are created that reflect their owners and never speak, but in WIXOSS they are their own pre-existing independent selves with minds of their own and are able to speak to their selectors, however in WIXOSS the LRIG is still in some way usually reflected psychologically or has something in common with the girl commanding her. both shows despite having all-female casts, have little-to-no no gratuitous yuri/shoujo ai fanservice (almost no straight fanservice either). i really like yuri/shoujo ai but i have no interest in watching it in shows that feature middle-to-high-school age girls so this can be a positive or negative for you, but i view it as a positive which is why i bring up this similarity. Angelic Layer does have some minor fan service because it's a CLAMP show, but this is very subtle and tame and not very frequent (even in the beach episode, which has to be one of the least gratuitous beach episodes i've ever seen. WIXOSS has no beach episode). each girl in both series has a serious and heartfelt reason for battling, although the protagonist of WIXOSS takes some time to find her own reason as seems to be a common trope in "magic and wish granting shows aimed at girls" for some reason. however, unlike abominations such as GRANBELM (which might appeal to fans of both shows, however i did not like it, but make up your own mind if you watch it) the WIXOSS protagonist has a proper character development plot arc with a meaningful change in her personality and the plot direction once she finds it. DIFFERENCES: in Angelic Layer, the MC's beginning desire for winning the battles comes mostly out of enthusiasm and idealism, and is encouraged by those around her who she makes friends with, rather than being the victim of dark circumstances becoming even darker, as in WIXOSS. despite being in a niche sub-genre of the same battling anime tropes, WIXOSS is a complete deconstruction of that genre, whereas Angelic Layer, despite having many unique similarities, is the opposite and not a critique of the genre in any especially notable way besides a few of the usual "CLAMP" touches. both shows are incredibly tonally different, with Angelic Layer having a mostly light hearted, positive and carefree attitude to the concept, with rivals frequently becoming friends and hanging out or helping each other, or reconciling after battles. WIXOSS quickly devolves into the opposite of this. in WIXOSS, the opposite is the usual case, with some rivals becoming even worse or more twisted towards each other and doing more nefarious things as the show goes on. still friendship plays a very large theme in both anime and in WIXOSS the nuances of friends vs enemies is explored in a lot more fleshed out, adult manner, especially due to the dark secrets behind WIXOSS which can cause even more negative reactions, emotions and behaviors from the cast. Angelic Layer always tends to lean into themes of reconciliation, WIXOSS has both themes of allies and friendships battling *against* the situation of antagonization they're put in at a much higher level. if you want an anime that will make you feel good even if it has some tragic moments and backstories, watch Angelic Layer. if you want something dark and angsty (but not gratuitious with its angst-- most of it drives the plot) then watch WIXOSS. and if you are the kind of person who can like both moods or appreciate them, then you will probably like both shows. also SHORT WARNING: WIXOSS S1 runs for 12 eps and ends on a complete cliffhanger, so make sure you have access to S2 for continuation of the series. Angelic Layer on the other hand is about 24-26 eps (probably due to being an older anime) and contains a complete story within it.
If you liked
Shoujo Kakumei Utena
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...then you might like
Shadows House
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aside from the immediately obvious use of literal-to-metaphorical (sometimes both) shadow silhouette characters playing an obtuse and strange role in the storytelling... both shows have themes of a world where there is a conspiratorial or mysterious, occult hierarchy of "pseudo-nobility" and a strong hierarchy to the sprawling yet claustrophobic places that the characters spend most of their time in (the school in utena vs the mansion in shadows house) both shows have protagonists that, while completely different in personality and style, do not conform to the surreal expectations of the almost dark fairytale worlds they live in. (interestingly, there is 1 *supporting* character in Shadows House who would fit into the world of Utena flawlessly though) both feature very strong relationships between female characters, although Shadows House does not have yuri themes (in my opinion) as the MCs in SH are primarily children while the MCs of Utena are older. the 1 character i mentioned from Shadows House who would fit into Utena world, might be the exception to this, as they sometimes have what *could* be considered romantic yuri undertones to many of their interactions with other characters. however i will leave this up to the viewer to decide. there are also many rivalries of the same "tone" or feeling between the cast, distrust and decet, as well as elitism and causing pain either because of jealousy or the sake of it. overall, both ask why the strange and conspicious, sinister society that the characters exist in, came to be this why and what secrets may lay hidden. i may edit this rec if i think of more similarities with utena, as i haven't watched it for a couple years now and may have forgotten other aspects that the two shows share in common. they are certainly connected by many of the same feelings they evoke in the viewer as well as certain aesthetic tropes that they choose to employ, though.
If you liked
Durarara!!
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...then you might like
Mawaru Penguindrum
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like many other people (6 at this time) mawaru penguindrum immediately started to rememind me of durararara!! both are urban fantasy taking place in a "realistic but alternate tokyo" (along the lines of the Tokyo in the game The World Ends With You-- focusing heavily on specific districts/prefectures) with seemingly innocent starter episodes where a young 15/16 year old set of students is the initial focus, but quickly becomes to part of an ensemble cast with many different viewpoints. the 'innocent' beginnings quickly accelerate into a crazy plot full of multiple mysteries and strange truths where the occult is commonplace and exists for real -- despite most normal people never noticing it -- and while the teen student boys in both series are often the main POV, none of the other characters are neglected or forgotten about, some have entire episodes dedicated to their POVs, mysterious activities or flashbacks instead. all the characters in the cast tend to have a meaningful purpose that relates to the plots and are never just there for decoration....i cannot think of any "filler" characters in both series. both quickly take on a very uneasy and then sinister, dark tone that is juxtaposed with moments of light heartedness or over-the-top (often over exaggerated violent) comedy that is sometimes reminiscent of FLCL's style if you are familiar with that too. the plots get darker all the more because the fairly delicate, almost shoujo artystyle (Penguindrum has much more shoujo elements to the artstyle than Durarara but they are both similar) makes it all the more shocking when something really dark, twisted or insane happens. both series heavily confront the viewer with an almost black-pilled point of view of the claustrophobic city world which the characters inhabit, and both have themes that fester especially in that environment, not just senseless murder and serial or gang violence, but themes of human helplessness, the pointlessness of life, bad things happening to good people, stalking, r*pe and sexual assault (i actually had to put Durararara!! Season 2 on hold because i couldn't emotionally deal with some of the SA scenes in certain episodes at the time it came out...S1 was still twisted but also had a more hopeful whimscal feeling), and a kind of insanity and sense of loneliness and desperation, that can only exist when you are constantly forced to be around other people due to living in such dense packed proximity to each other. overall i think PENGUINDRUM is darker and more of a mindfuck than DURARARA S1. as mentioned, the fact that it has an even more "pretty" shoujo style aesthetic than the more neutral style of DURARARA really contributes to making you feel creeped out and crazy, because the story and plot that unfolds is made all the more uncanny by this inappropriate contrast of what is normally associated with shoujo art in our minds vs the actual content of the material which is absolutely not shoujo whatsoever despite the aesthetics. things that seem like little visual details early on turn out to be big clues or foreshadowing related to the plot. even what may seem like short filler moments could have some deeper meaning that you won't realize til much later in the stories. and, again, the occult and supernatural is real for a fact in both worlds, yet neither series feels any need to explain why, and only the characters involved in the plot seem to know this (or gradually realize this). this serves to make them become even more isolated from the alienating society they already live in. finally, DURARARA makes predominant use of twilight/night-time to increase the tension of its atmosphere, PENGUINDRUM makes heavy use of rainstorms and thunderstorms, especially at night for the same effect. it was no surprise to me to discover that the studio who created PENGUINDRUM also created DURARARA.
If you liked
Mahou Shoujo Ikusei Keikaku
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...then you might like
Mahou Shoujo Site
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both anime have the magical girl powers granted by ominous/mysterious "online" entities they engage with (administrators behind a mysterious website vs admins behind a mysterious online "game") characters don't seem to be able to choose what their magical girl superpowers or weapons are, these seem to be mostly randomly decided for them, with some characters being very overpowered compared to others for no particular reason... although mahou shoujo site has an interesting twist on this doesn't exist in ikusei keikau. both lack significant plot structure or character development; most characters are defined only by their tragic backstories which are revealed at a pretty frequent and similar pace. very few of the (surviving) characters have had any character growth by the end of the anime, and the anime is not afraid to kill its characters off for almost any reason. very very few characters have plot armor. instead of any deep plot there is a lot of scenes of emotional or physical torture and violence that happens very rapidly, sometimes gratuitiously, under the simple guidance of the main premise. both are not afraid to and make a deliberate attempt to show fairly graphic gore, or at least implied heavy suffering. (this includes themes such as domestic violence, killing innocent animals, attempted rape, obsessive stalking, cutting/self harm and committing suicide. both shows dont share all the above, i'm just trying to give examples from both shows to give the idea of how explicit they are in their depictions of this subject matter) there is a contrast between sometimes very "cute" scenes and then something very dark happening often, either simultaneously, during a flashback, or immediately after the "cute" scenes. both have the magical girls being forced into or choosing to kill each other, either because they are manipulated into doing it by several various reasons, or because some of them simply have psychopathic character traits and tendencies. most of the characters, even the sanest ones, also suffer from some form of mental illness, have pre-existing trauma or develop trauma as a result of being a magical girl, or they fall into or come from a very tragic life circumstance. in both anime, the "main" or "first" magical girl in the ensemble cast is the weakest at fighting back, shyest, most weak willed etc and it takes a long time for this to change (magical girl site's weak MC actually has more character arc development than MSIK's MC which is...impressive given that neither has much) and both of them team up with another magical girl who they have deep friendship with and who helps them gain some confidence, as well as is stronger and better at being a magical girl, so they rely on this person to protect them. both shows tend to focus on the other characters just as much as the two "main" ones that are introduced in the first episodes and *some* of these characters are more conceptually interesting than the "main" ones. as i mentioned though, the majority of characters don't ever develop past their "concept": the ones that survive and have changes in their character by the end are the exceptions, and many characters die before they could even have a chance to have any character arc growth (if these were actually the type of shows to give them that). a lot of characters are most defined by their own deaths more than anything they did while they were alive, and how their deaths affect the other girls is often the main excuse to move the action forward and make the next shock or twist happen. additionally, some characters are deeply affected or changed by the deaths of other magical girls, whereas there are some characters who are not affected by the deaths in any way that changes their behavior at all. i would describe both shows as ensemble cast anime and within the ensemble, when they are not killing, betraying, or using psychological tactics on each other, they are forming strong alliances with each other or suddenly changing whose side of the battle they are on. both shows have clear themes of those girls trying to "follow the rules" of being a magical girl (no matter how f--ked up those mysterious rules are) vs those trying to "break the rules", or find out what the true mystery behind the dark administrators and bestowers of magical girl power is-- some characters will follow the rules no matter what, while others have a change of heart and thus a change of allies. some of the alliances make a lot of sense, while others do not make much sense at all and characters who should be enemies end up on the same side. "the enemy of the enemy is my friend" is certainly true but in the case of MSS some of the "alliances with former enemies" require more suspension of belief than in MSIK. both shows also have very clear but never main focused undertones of yuri/lgbtq, and at least 1 character (MSS has 1, MSIK has 2) that is heavily coded as being either into crossdressing/genderbending, or is meant to be trans or gay/lesbian. the coding remains somehow vague yet assertive in both cases so which of these labels you interpret them as exactly, comes down to the individual viewer. if you are into seeing these thematic concepts in an anime (which i am) and *IF YOU CAN STILL ENJOY AN ANIME* when if it focuses almost exclusively on showing you these concepts "play out" to tragic consequences, while it (mostly) ignores developing a cohesive, meaningful or original story, and does not have characters with much (or any) depth or development, then i would recommend both shows.
If you liked
Azumanga Daiou The Animation
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...then you might like
Mahou Yuugi 2D
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like another user said, the creator of Azumanga Daioh designed the main cast of characters in this anime. but this isnt just passive character design-- the fact that all three of the main characters in Magical Play wear costumes that actually turn out to be LIVING SENTIENT BEINGS is not only part of the character design, but a massive part of the absurdist bizarre and morbid humor, as well as many recurring jokes and memes. without his specific vision for the characters, even if he did not write direct or produce, Magical Play would not be the same kind of surrealist satire weirdness that it actually is, because his character designs actively create huge segments of the show's content. the show also would neatly have fit into a 4koma style of manga if it had ever been one, it has the same episodic-yet-still-overarching-plot-events feel of Azumanga, and despite many "lol so random XD" events at the start, if you watch the whole thing you will realize that it actually does have a plot, and that it's a hilarious satire anime with a dark side to its seemingly dumb and sometimes cliche, but at other times very unexpected and very out there, style of humor. TLDR: if you've ever laughed at Chiyo-Chan's dad (or been severely creeped out by it) then you will probably find both shows have something unnerving in common. also, the Shark Girl in Magical Play is basically a prototype fantasy version of Sakaki from Azumanga.