suggestions for my mom's first anime? no sus stuff!
so I'm 14 (M), and I'm trying to get my family into anime, I've watched stuff like hunter x hunter, One piece, seven deadly sins, OPM, DanDaDan, and a few others. My little sister has watched a few like Komi can't communicate and some studio Ghibli stuff and she really likes it, my dad introduced me to Hunter X Hunter and it quickly became a favorite of mine. But my mom hasn't watched anime before and I'm trying to get her to watch some, but I want something all of my family can watch so that she's more likely to try it out. Her favorite genres are action, adventure, comedy and most stuff with just a little romance. any suggestions for her first anime?
TL,DR: tryna get my mom into anime, she likes action, adventure, comedy and romance. any suggestions for her first anime? (preferably something my whole family can watch without thinking anime is weird, so no sus stuff!)
TL,DR: tryna get my mom into anime, she likes action, adventure, comedy and romance. any suggestions for her first anime? (preferably something my whole family can watch without thinking anime is weird, so no sus stuff!)
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She watched the whole thing in one sitting and was disappointed when she found out how long she'd have to wait for the next season.
So yeah, Apothecary Diaries tends to be a hit.
Thats why i always recommend good 12 ep shows that got cancelled 🤺
Might try doing it this year too
Welcome to anime!
Netflix just released Love Through a Prism which period drama set in 1900’s London following a Japanese girl as she attends art school. It has some cute chibi moments like Apothecary Diaries and so for I haven’t had to explain anything uncomfortable to my daughter.
I don't know, it seems like a great age to have those conversations! I think even 8 years old should know about those concepts and the show does not go into graphic details about any of it.
It’s just generally a good show, has a good dub which can usually be helpful for getting people who aren’t as used to reading subtitles while watching to be able to follow along, and isn’t too “out there” in terms of subject matter or reliance on familiarity with tropes of the medium
Brotherhood is a perfectly fine show on its own (and I honestly prefer it over ‘03) and of the two it’s the better choice for getting someone into the medium rather than the hoops you have to jump through to watch it “correctly” (even worse if you were just gonna show them ‘03 and then go “alright that ending is actually fake we have to go watch this show now for the *real* ending”)
And no matter what you want to argue, it’s still much easier to convince someone to watch one show consistently from start to finish rather than one show either fully or partway before switching to another - giving them a complex “watch order” is much more likely to turn them off from the medium thinking that’s a common occurrence rather than just “hey watch this show”
Yosuga no Sora
Megami-ryou
Ikkitousen
Very nice
jokes aside hunterXhunter, JJK, demon slayer for action
romance the angel next door spoils me rotten an
comedy saiki k or GINTAMA
Spy x Family is an all-ages anime with humor and a very western-friendly setting (referencing the cold war spy games). It will probably easier to sit with his mom watching it. It also has a much faster pace and episodic nature.
If not I would say Saiki k cuz its funny as heck or Spy x family
If she doesn't mind darker themes i would recommend fmab
Chill and cute anime, doubt she will dislike.
Mushi-shi is also a very nice anime, each episode is a whole history.
Knights and Magic.
Ascendence of a Bookworm.
Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans.
Gundam: Witch From Mercury.
Frieren.
Spy X Family.
Fluffy Paradise.
Campfire Cooking.
loads more.
its like a detective soap opera with a beautiful Chinese aesthetic.
But if your looking for TV Shows, the two that clicked the most with my Mom so far are probably Spy x Family and Frieren, two Shows that would also fit the Tags you mentioned, so IMO those two could work.
(Gonna give my Mom NANA as her next Show, since she kind of annoyed me with her complains that she had to wait for new Seasons of Spy x Family, Frieren and The Apothecary Diaries, just that she learns how much pain it can be to wait for something that most likely never gonna return...)
I would also recommend giving cooking anime a go such as Campfire Cooking in Another World with My Absurd Skill, I showed the cooking segment which was based on a real recipe to my older relatives and they actually got interested in the anime. You can try doing the same and see how your mom react to it.
Frieren
Spy x Family
Apothecary Diaries
Sakamoto Days
Violet Evergarden
Bungou Stray Dogs (more adult in the sense of violence so careful)
Ya boy Kongming
Bocchi the Rock
City the Animation
Violet Evergarden
Apothecary Diaries
A Silent Voice
They are also both complex and interesting enough not to come off as 'kid stuff' to an adult viewer unfamiliar with the genre.
Spy X Family is another fun one - not quite so complex or story driven, but almost dangerously wholesome.
Belle
Bubblegum Crisis
Older code, but it still checks out. :)
psycho pass,
the fragrant flowers bloom with dignity,
attack on titan,
one punch man,
jujutsu kaisen,
nichijou,
vivy fluprote eyes song,
violet evergarden,
cowboy bebop,
Sakamoto days,bocchi the rock,
Delicious in dungeon,
And demo slayer.
Just to name a few.
When her editor told her to add fanservice to the books, she added big dumb muscly mercenary guys!
It’s about robots running a hotel on Earth waiting for humans to come back after fleeing into space
One I haven't seen mentioned yet is A Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity, if you think a high school romance might go over well. It's on Netlix so it's easily accessible, it's very chaste, and emphasizes the friendships and family relationships in addition to the central romance (the MC's mom is a particular stand-out character so it's possible your mom could connect with that).
Joking aside, the anime that got me into anime as an adult was a comedy called A Place Further Than the Universe. High school girls go on an adventure to Antarctica. I loved it and it's very wholesome and family friendly.
who doesn't like sheep? or old school animation? you can find a copy on YouTube
Moribito guardian of the spirit
for ongoing Frieren, Apothecary Diaries, and Blue Period are all good.
Spy X Family. Although there's a character that is obsessed with his sister who is one of the main characters of the series. People misinterpreted his character when he's just overprotective of her.
Hits those, no real fan service outside of the main females leads design, but they make it a point Red (male lead) is protective and respectful of her.
Comedy, action, romance Slice of Life
Other options would be Ascendance of a Bookworm, Mushishi, Mob Psycho, Frieren, Journal with Witch (not finished but beautiful storytelling!), Campfire Cooking..., The Fated Magical Princess..., Natsume and the Book of Friends, With You and the Rain, Ping Pong- The Animation, Somali the Forest Spirit, or Yakuzas Guide to Babysitting, though some of these might not be very interesting to younger viewers.
Or these if there are no younger kids watching: Apothecary Diaries, Spice and Wolf, Magical Girl & the Evil Lieutenant, Dungeon Meshi, Grave of Fireflies for a good cry. Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu for a wonderful storytelling period drama, The Ancient Magus Bride for fantasy romance, Generic Kowloon Romance for mystery romance.
Best of luck in sharing one of your interests with your family and I hope it works out for you!
Very action fighting witches
Very adventurous discovering the hidden truth of themselves, the magical girls
Ofc it's a comedy since ep3 with mami
Incredible romance between the main character nadoka and homura.
The second movie sequel is also coming soon this February (2026). 10/10 definitely worth watching for the stunning experience.
Nana
Anne Shirley (based on Anne of green gables which will probably be more familiar to her too)
Violet Evergarden
A sign of affection
- It’s a common theme everyone can get invested in and has seen before probably once. (murder mystery… if you have not seen it don’t look it up)
- NO FAN SERVICE
- Single season with conclusion
- Just enough anime flair to make it unique
It's pretty good so far. Not totally sure it is something a mother would like, but it has mech suits, a solid plot line, and no weird porn stuff that I have seen yet.
The promised neverland feels similar to made in abyss. Cute cover but dark and unsettling things underneath.
* Frieren
* Sing yesterday for me ( maybe?)
* Spy x family
* Cowboy bebop ( is almost a secure hit; I am yet to find the first person to hate this one)
* Trigun stampede/trigun ( if you have seen it you can judge if she can take it, apparently there are topics or stuff that can hurt some beliefs? I would not go with it first with mine, but I do see it as a good start on some cases)
* Apothecary diaries
* To be hero x
* ACCA 13
* Fugo keiji balance unlimited / the millionaire detective balance : unlimited
* Psycho pass
* Zatsutabi ( chill )
* Magus bride (MAYBE, I have not watch it in a long while and it was pretty cool, I do not remember anything heavy or sus, but I might be wrong)
* Kaguya sama
* The elusive samurai
* Death note... ? ( i mean, is a good anime, but maybe too much for some people... Specially people with a religious background... and misa does raise some eyebrows)
* Inuyasha
* Ranma 1/2
* Kings ranking (or something like that)
* Solo leveling
* Kaiji
* Kimetsu no había
* Durarara (?)
* Inuyashiki
* Eureka 7 (I do not remember anything weird on it...)
* Saint seiya
* Kabaneri of the iron fortress
* Keep your hands off eizouken
* Death parade
And as much as I love witch from mercury please do not start with it, a lot of parents still hate LGBTI stuff and I can see them hating it just because of that and ignore the whole rest
Really cute anime where a guy Isekais with his mom and she's the actual hero protecting him
In my opinion, it's a masterpiece.