Modern Japanese anime follows a number of trends, and longtime anime fans know that many of the most relatable characters can be found in high school comedy, romance or drama shows. Many slice-of-life anime titles take place at high school, providing a setting that most intended viewers can relate to personally.
Even if all these works are set in high school, they may tell very different stories, from involving beautiful monster girls to magic users or even deities like Suzumiya Haruhi, and these series often have a love triangle as well. This is a classic romance plot device to drive the conflict and give the three main characters some serious personal stakes. Five high school titles in particular are notable for their passionate and memorable live triangles.
Nisekoi Has A Love Triangle & A Mysterious Locket
Nisekoi is a 2010s-era anime series based on the original manga of the same name, which spans 25 volumes. The story stars Ichijo Raku, the good-hearted scion of a Yakuza crime family who soon finds himself in the middle of a harem, complicating his otherwise ordinary high school life.
While Nisekoi keeps throwing more and more girls at Raku, the core of the story is the love triangle between him, his blonde false girlfriend Kirisaki Chitoge and his longtime crush, the homely deredere Onodera Kosaki. The comedy, drama and sometimes tears between these three characters is what really drives Nisekoi's plot forward, and only one of them might have the key to the locket around his neck -- and his heart.
Girlfriend, Girlfriend Lives Up To Its Name
Girlfriend, Girlfriend is a recent anime that takes place in high school, and the male lead, Mukai Naoya, is determined to be the ideal boyfriend for his doting partner Saki Saki, but there is room in his heart for more. He is committed to his girlfriend, but he also appreciates the amorous feelings of his dandere classmate Minase Nagisa, and he can't bring himself to reject her.
Instead of dumping Saki Saki or secretly cheating on her, Naoya makes a gutsy move -- he openly invites Nagisa into the relationship, meaning he now has two official girlfriends and divides his attention evenly between them. Other girls pop up in the story too, but the beating heart of this series is this amusing love triangle, where Naoya's polyamory is sure to raise a few eyebrows. Nonetheless, he sticks to his guns, determined to spread the love fairly.
Toradora! Has A Loose Love Triangle
Toradora! is a light novel series adapted into an anime series and an ongoing manga, and it should appeal greatly to fans of Nisekoi or Maid-Sama!. This popular story features the gentle but scary-looking Takasu Ryuji, who has a serious crush on his playful and energetic classmate, Minori.
His grouchy tsundere classmate Aisaka Taiga at first promises to help Ryuji get together with Minori, but soon, Ryuji is conflicted between his feelings for both girls, creating a sort of love triangle in the process. Eventually, Ryuji must choose one of them and decide what his heart truly desires -- and it doesn't help that his other classmates, such as the vain Ami, tend to complicate things.
Fruits Basket Has A Tangled Web Of Romance & Drama
Being a quintessential shojo anime series, the 2019 Fruits Basket anime features not just a love triangle, but an entire web of romances, rivalries, unrequited love and far more, although things are a bit simpler where the main characters are concerned. Fruits Basket's heroine, the gentle Honda Tohru, stumbles into a love triangle when she befriends the troubled Cat spirit of the zodiac, Kyo, who is already involved with the rambunctious Kagura.
Already, Kagura is head over heels for Kyo and won't hesitate to show it, but Kyo finds it irritating, while he is also afraid to get his friend Tohru involved too deeply with the cursed Sohma family. Kyo tries to push both girls away and dissolve the love triangle, but Tohru and Kagura are committed to him for their own reasons, and Tohru just might be the key to Kyo's salvation after all.
Horimiya Has A Love Triangle Too
The charming series Horimiya is best known for its wholesome and innocent main pairing between Izumi and Kyoko, but even this series has room for just a little drama. Set in an ordinary high school, Horimiya teaches viewers that there is always more to people than meets the eye, and that is also true of the shy library girl, Kono Sakura.
People rarely give her a second glance, but when she develops unrequited feelings for her male classmate Tooru, who's involved with the goofball Yuuki, things may get a little messy around here, and even Kyoko might not have the solution for this unexpected love triangle.
