Romance anime appeal to a wide range of audiences, leaving them on the edge of their seats as they hope that their favorite couple will finally end up together. If they are already together, then viewers hope to see where their journey in life takes them. However, there are many romance anime that leave fans wanting more.
While not all romance anime have disappointing endings, there are a handful of anime that stand out. The anime themselves may have been beautifully woven tales, but the endings fell short due to being unfinished or unsatisfying, especially for anime-only fans who might not want to turn to the source material.
10 Wotakoi: Love Is Hard For Otaku Ended Abruptly
Wotakoi: Love is Hard For Otaku centers around Narumi Momose and Hirotaka Nifuji as they begin dating, despite being coworkers and childhood friends. Although Narumi is hesitant about dating another otaku, she is relieved that she no longer has to hide her niche interests and can be herself. Hirotaka hopes to prove to Narumi that dating each other is a good idea.
While seeing adults in a committed relationship in anime is refreshing, especially for older fans, the show felt unfinished. Though Narumi and Hirotaka seem to be coming into their own as a couple, the show’s ending left a lot that had yet to be resolved.
9 Snow White With The Red Hair Postponed The Wedding
Snow White with the Red Hair follows Shirayuki as she runs from a lecherous prince. Nevertheless, she finds herself in the company of another prince, Zen Wisteria, who offers her lodging and a job. Shirayuki takes him up on his offer, and the pair start to form a romantic bond.
While Zen and Shirayuki are very open about their feelings for one another, the end of the show lacks the catharsis that fans wanted. Zen and Shirayuki agree to get married, but the show ends before everyone's favorite prince and herbalist can get the wedding of their dreams.
8 Yona Of The Dawn Only Set Everything Up
Yona of the Dawn is the story of a young princess who runs away after a coup in her kingdom. Yona and her faithful guard Son Hak set off on a quest to take the kingdom back with the help of four Dragon Warriors. Unfortunately, finding the dragon warriors becomes a daunting task.
This show has great humor and a blossoming romance that any anime fan would enjoy. The only downside is that it ended just as she gathered all the Dragon Warriors, leaving the story unfinished. Fans of the show have been begging for a continuation to the beloved story, so they can finally see the whole Dragon Warrior crew in action.
7 Toradora!'s Ending Was Lackluster
Toradora! tells the tale of Ruuuji Takasu and Taiga Aisaka, an unlikely pair who join forces to woo each other’s best friends. Yet, in the process, Taiga and Ryuuji begin to realize that their true affections are for each other.
After Ryuuji and Taiga announce their love for each other and elope together, they reluctantly come back to face their family and friends. Taiga even transfers to another school. Yet, on graduation day, the couple is reunited in a lackluster scene. Though Ryuuji telling Taiga he loves her was sweet, many fans were hoping for more of the passion they saw in earlier episodes.
6 Tsuki Ga Kirei Ended With An Unsatisfying Time Skip
Tsuki ga Kirei is the story of two middle-schoolers who fall in love for the first time. Akane Mizuno and Kotarou Azumi eventually begin dating, but a big move threatens to keep them apart. The two work together to find a way to stay together, against the odds.
Unfortunately, Kotarou’s plan to get into the same, far-away school as Akane goes awry, and they part ways. Yet, the show ends with Akane reading a story by Kotarou on the train about how he will always love her. The credits show adult Kotarou and Akane getting married and having a child, but fans were disheartened by how everything was glossed over in a time skip.
5 Kiss Him, Not Me Failed To Commit
Kiss Him, Not Me is the hilarious reverse harem romance anime about Kae Serinuma who finds herself at the center of a group of love-struck boys. Despite the attention, as a BL fan, all Serinuma wants is for the boys to fall for each other instead. The boys then try various methods to get Serinuma to realize that their feelings for her are genuine and attempt to get her to choose one amongst them.
Although the boys do succeed in getting their message across and even go on individual dates with her, Serinuna loses her courage and chooses to fantasize about her favorite anime ships instead. While the decision seems on-brand for her, fans could not help but despair at her lack of an answer.
4 Convenience Store Boy Friends Ended In Uncertainty
Convenience Store Boy Friends focuses on Haruki Mishima and Towa Honda as they navigate high school and romance. While Towa tries to convince Mamai Mihashi of his feelings, Haruki struggles to confess his years-long crush to Miharu Mashiki. Many obstacles get in their way on their path to romance.
Miharu has a dangerous heart condition that requires surgery. While Haruki and Miharu do confess their feelings for each other, the show ends without audiences knowing for certain if Miharu made it through or not. The show is a charming anime with lots of characters to root for, but the ending was too ambiguous for fans.
3 Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun Doubled Down On Nozaki's Misunderstanding
Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun is about Chico Sakura, who has an enormous crush on her classmate Umetarou Nozaki. When she works up the nerve to confess to him, he mistakes her confession for a job inquiry and offers for her to be his assistant for his manga. Sakura is so stunned by his suggestion, that she blindly accepts, hoping to get closer to him in the process.
In the last episode, audiences were treated to a romantic scene where Sakura and Nozaki watch summer festival fireworks. Sakura seizes her moment and confesses. Unfortunately, the fireworks were too loud and Nozaki misunderstands her again, assuming that she was referring to the fireworks. Fans typically love Nozaki’s blissful ignorance, but this instance was too much, especially for the end of the show.
2 Ouran High School Host Club Ended After The Confession
Ouran High School Host Club is about a young girl named Haruhi Fujioka and her time as a host in her high school’s host club. Although she was forced to join, Haruhi finds joy in her new role and forms strong bonds with the other members of the club.
While all the boys of the club fall for Haruhi, the leader, Tamaki Suoh, fell the hardest. Fans speculated on who Haruhi would end up with, and whether Tamaki’s affections would be reciprocated. To the fans' delight, Haruhi and Tamaki did confess their feelings for each other. The caveat was that nothing happened after they confessed and hugged, and fans have been left wondering what happened after ever since.
1 Hyouka's Ending Was A Bait-And-Switch
Hyouka follows Houtarou Oreki as he reluctantly joins his school’s literature club and is embroiled in a mystery about the disappearance of Eru Chitanda’s uncle. Though he usually doesn’t care about anything, Oreki cannot resist the look in Chitanda’a eyes, and the Literature Club begins its quest to solve mysteries.
In the final episode, Chitanda states that she will run her family’s farm, but that she would need help managing the business side of things. Coyly, Oreki offers to study business, hinting that he could help her run it and that they could be together. However, audiences were disappointed to discover that this exchange was in Oreki’s head. After watching the whole show, fans were itching to see Oreki finally confess his feelings, only for it to all be a daydream.