The slice-of-life genre typically presents the life experiences of various characters. Sometimes, it's mundane. Other times, it's absurd. Most of the time, it's relatively pleasant. Usually, it is viewed from the perspective of a cast of characters and often lacks a prominent plot or conflict. These anime are great for viewers looking for a relatable or separate experience to change the pace of things and relax for a bit.
When it comes to anime, a seemingly normal slice-of-life show can have exaggerated comedic scenes. In other cases, random misfortunes occur in almost every episode. Nothing is off-limits and anything can happen, from the most absurd to the least expected. While from the slice-of-life genre, the anime here go from 0 to 100 real quick.
10 The Yakuza and Psychokinetic Abilities Merge In Hinamatsuri
Hinamatsuri introduces a fresh approach to the usual slice-of-life school comedy cliché. Yoshifumi Nitta is not your stereotypical yakuza member. He's sophisticated and has an interest in porcelain vases. One day, he is suddenly struck on the head by a strange capsule that holds a young girl named Hina, who has psychokinetic abilities. After seeing what Hina is capable of, Nitta decides to be Hina’s caregiver, and the new daily life of this unusual duo begins. Along the way, more characters are introduced, and daily life gets further and further away from what can be considered normal.
9 Life in Nichijou - My Ordinary Life Is Far From Ordinary
For the characters in Nichijou - My Ordinary Life, life gets a little bit absurd a little too often. The series focuses on the daily antics of 3 friends in high school, Mio, Yukko, and Mai, whose lives intertwine with those of a young prodigy, her robot caretaker, and her talking cat.
If that's not already absurd enough, even the side characters get up to bizarre activities in their daily lives. As it turns out, trying to keep up with these characters' extraordinary lives is actually quite enjoyable.
8 Kokoro Connect and Its Characters' Interesting Connections
Kokoro Connect tells the story of five students who create a club. It is a slice-of-life series that attempts to be more relatable by portraying real-life problems and struggles its characters experience. Things take a turn for the supernatural when two of the friends tell the other three that they have switched bodies with each other for no apparent reason. What begins as fun and games turn into an emotional rollercoaster ride as these friends are forced to become closer together thanks to the emotional scars and hidden secrets that are revealed when they switch bodies.
7 Students Must Fight For Their Afterlife In Angel Beats!
Another seemingly average slice-of-life series, Angel Beats! features students at a high school in the afterlife. There is a group of students that don't want to "move on," using guns and elaborate operations to get their way. Some scenes in the show get pretty wild but are ultimately hilarious since no one here can die. The comical deaths drastically get sad and very emotional once the characters' backstories get introduced.
6 Asobi Asobase Features Different (Extreme) Pastimes
Asobi Asobase looks like a normal slice-of-life series about three middle school girls doing cutesy things and enjoying their favorite pastimes. However, once again, it's the complete opposite. It centers around 3 girls, Oliva, Hanako, and Kasumi.
The show first introduces Olivia and Hanko playing an intense game of rock-paper-scissors. Kasumi is distracted by this but ends up playing anyway. Soon, this peculiar trio decides to create the "Pastime Club" where they are free to enjoy their strange and questionable pastimes.
5 Saiki K's Life Is Indeed Disatrarous... Sometimes
The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. is the story of a high schooler, Kusuo Saiki, who wants to live an ordinary life despite having psychic abilities. Desperately wanting to live a normal life, Saiki constantly tries his hardest to hide his abilities, or at least not use them as often. Unfortunately, he is forced to use them to avoid disastrous situations. Quite often, things for Saiki constantly go from 0 to 100 instantly thanks to the characters around him and the situations he finds himself in.
4 Welcome To The Life Of A Hikikomori And The NHK
Introducing 22-year-old hikikomori Tatsuhiro Satou. A seemingly usual slice-of-life series with the premise of isolation and relatable struggles. Welcome to the NHK appears quite ordinary, but that's before all the conspiracy theories and psychoanalysis come into the picture. Tatsushiro believes that his shut-in NEET status is due to an evil organization called NHK. This slice-of-life series becomes a psychological drama-comedy of Tatsuhiro striving to escape NHK while struggling to leave the isolation of his apartment and find a job.
3 Superpowers Come With Limited Abilities And Misfortunes in Charlotte
Charlotte introduces a slightly interesting approach to superpowers. At first glance, the series appears to be yet another slice-of-life series about high schoolers with supernatural powers. However, these powers come with several limits and drawbacks. The anime mostly takes place at Hoshinoumi Academy, a school for students with supernatural abilities, where the student council tracks down students who abuse their powers. The plot thickens once the president of the student council reveals the secret behind the powers.
2 Mob Psycho Literally Goes From 0 to 100
For this slice-of-life series, Mob Psycho 100, 8th grader Shigeo "Mob" Kageyama goes to school and lives an ordinary, everyday life. The catch? He has psychic powers. To effectively control his powers, Mob decides to be mentored by Arataka Reigen, a con artist claiming to be a psychic. Throughout the series, Mob tags along with Reigen on jobs that require him to use his psychic abilities to exorcise evil spirits. Over the course of the series, the more Mob uses his powers, the closer he comes to reaching his breaking point. If his emotions go berserk and he reaches 100%, his immense potential will be revealed.
1 A Classroom Of The Elite Is Far From The Utopia It Appears To Be
On the surface, Classroom of the Elite looks like a typical slice-of-life series but set at an elite school called Koudo Ikusei Senior High School. It is a utopia, and students get an unimaginable about of freedom. It's just that everything is determined by one's rank. Four classes, A through D, are ranked in order of merit, and the top students get even more privileges and better treatment. Students are forced to compete with each other to survive and make money as part of the school’s system and harsh rules.