10 best anime to watch if you like Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus

Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus, adapted from the popular light-novel series, captivated viewers in 2025 with its blend of romance, mystery, and exploration of adolescence. Its surreal tone and focus on emotions taking strange physical forms created a uniquely compelling watch.

The story follows college freshman Sakuta Azusagawa as he confronts “Adolescence Syndrome,” supernatural phenomena triggered by emotional distress. Chaos begins when Touko Kirishima shows up in a summer Santa outfit, spreading Adolescence Syndrome through her online music act.

Fans who enjoy this blend of emotion and surrealism can find more anime that pair thoughtful themes with quirky supernatural drama. Here are ten of the best anime to check out next for viewers who enjoyed Rascal’s mix of relationship drama and metaphysical weirdness.

Note: the opinions expressed are solely those of the author.

10 must-watch anime for fans of Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus

1. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (Image via Kyoto Animation)

Much like Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus, this classic 2006 anime explores supernatural phenomena linked to a high-school girl’s emotions and ideals. Haruhi Suzumiya has little interest in ordinary life and unknowingly warps reality to introduce strange events into her world.

The story follows the SOS Brigade club she forms to investigate mysterious happenings that she hopes will be more exciting than normality. These inexplicable occurrences endanger her acquaintances, especially the cynical narrator Kyon, who tries to keep Haruhi’s powers under control.

Over fourteen brilliantly inventive episodes, the show examines alienation, mental health, creativity, and being true to oneself through sly humor and unpredictable plotting.

2. Your Lie in April

Your Lie in April (Image via A-1 Pictures)

A beloved coming-of-age drama from 2014, Your Lie in April puts an emotional lens on creative passion. It follows depressed pianist Kousei Arima as he struggles to rediscover his love of music with the help of a free-spirited violinist named Kaori Miyazono.

Like Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus, the show depicts emotion as a tangible force, in this case, allowing characters to visualize musical notes and hear their souls resonating. With vivid colors and musical interludes, it builds an immersive experience of youth, loss, and human connection.

While Your Lie in April focuses more on relationships than the surreal, its resonant emotional storytelling parallels Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus's tender yet eccentric perspective on the heart.

3. Monogatari Series

Few anime are as avant-garde yet meaningful as this supernatural fiction saga. Through abstract dialogue and shifting visual styles, Monogatari analyzes the social and psychological hang-ups of its large cast.

The show personifies anxieties as apparitions afflicting stressed students – supernatural beings, it simply calls “oddities.” Protagonist Koyomi Araragi aims to save these ghosts’ victims while weighing moral questions about societal pressures that manifest this pain.

Like Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus, the story looks at how unresolved feelings warp into troubling external forms. Its visual invention and razor-sharp writing create a hypnotic experience for viewers drawn to vibrant cinematography with philosophical undertones.

4. Wonder Egg Priority

Wonder Egg Priority (Image via CloverWorks)

This dark fantasy, released in early 2021, focuses on creative animation on serious issues. It follows traumatized teenager Ai Ohto as she tries to ease others’ emotional scars while neglecting her own.

When a mysterious voice offers her eggs that can release girls in need of rescue – the monsters she fights are called “Wonder Killers” – she enters their dreams to free their souls. Like Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus, the blurring lines between dreams and reality reflect internal turmoil.

With symbolic visuals and shifting allegiances, Wonder Egg Priority is an emotionally piercing ride. Its stylish rendering of personal demons makes for an ambitious crossover between Rascal and highbrow arthouse.

5. Iroduku: The World in Colors

Iroduku: The World in Colors (Image via P.A. Works)

Iroduku’s Japanese title translates to “rainbow,” fitting its vivid visual splendor. This 2018 fantasy romance has a creative sci-fi twist on Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus's core themes.

The story sends teenage girl Hitomi back in time from gray-scale 2078 to 2018, when she befriends youthful painter Yuito and learns to see the radiant beauty of the world. Mixing time travel, magic, and personal growth, Iroduku finds supernatural connections between memory, emotion, and color.

Like Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus, the show blends excitement with atmospheric color palettes that reflect its psychological depth. The result seems almost like a magic-tinged sequel to Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus's time-jumping narrative style.

6. ReLIFE

2016’s ReLIFE instead changes its protagonist’s age in the present day, letting 27-year-old NEET Arata experience high school again after taking an experimental drug that makes him look seventeen. This sci-fi rom-com brings fresh chaos back into his uninspired life while letting him guide shy student Chizuru.

The show insightfully examines how small moments shape who we become in atmospheric slice-of-life vignettes. Like Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus, ReLIFE anchors its supernatural thought experiment to captivating characters and relatable social drama.

7. Clannad: After Story

Clannad: After Story (Image via Kyoto Animation)

This acclaimed 2008 sequel continues one of anime’s most beloved adult dramas while focusing its fantastical elements around parenthood.

As protagonists Tomoya and Nagisa build a life together, mystical connections emerge between generations through supernatural orbs of light that represent accumulated happiness capable of triggering miracles.

After Story insightfully grows its characters into maturity while retaining Clannad’s trademark weird sci-fi magic linking souls across time and space through empathy. Like Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus, Clannad’s mix of sentimental spirituality and youthful bonds shines a poignant light on the rigors of growing up.

8. Kokoro Connect

Centered on a high-school club whose members abruptly start swapping bodies, Kokoro Connect thrives on both sci-fi absurdity and genuine drama. Protagonist Taichi and his friends grapple with privacy invasion and emotional manipulation as strange phenomena sweep them along unpredictably.

Like Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus, Kokoro Connect sells its outlandish premise through insightful character writing, using its bizarre concept to unlock hidden anxieties and attractions its ensemble didn’t realize lay beneath the surface.

Surreal yet down-to-earth, it’s perfect for fans seeking Rascal’s adventurous emotional spirit.

9. Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day

Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day (Image via A-1 Pictures)

Past tragedy resurfaces supernaturally when the ghost Menma mysteriously reappears before her estranged childhood friend Jinta in this tear-jerking 2011 series.

Fully aware that she is dead, Menma’s presence spurs Jinta’s group of drifted-apart friends to reconnect and uncover old feelings of guilt and grief while they try to learn her forgotten final wish. Anohana shares Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus's specter-fueled adolescent drama and bittersweet low-key sci-fi vibes.

Its resonant storytelling and fluid animation erase genre boundaries, making sci-fi a vehicle for a larger message about lost connections and new beginnings.

10. Orange

Orange (Image via Telecom Animation Film)

Would you change the past if you got letters from your future self? That’s the dilemma facing future-seeing protagonist Naho in Orange, a romantic ensemble drama with a tinge of time travel.

When letters warn her to watch for future classmate Kakeru’s depression and survivor’s guilt, Naho vows to save him by bringing friends closer instead of letting bonds break.

Like Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus, Orange grounds fantastical elements in rich coming-of-age portraiture while highlighting regrets and trauma that linger from high school. Its sincere look at depression and support makes a thoughtful pairing with Rascal’s youthful spirit.

Conclusion

With resonant stories that use supernatural quirks as insight into the teenage psyche, these anime all strike tones harmonious to Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus's signature science-fantasy drama.

Whether emphasizing creative visuals, atmospheric music, time-bending plots, or empathetic character writing, they aim for the same effect – depicting strange phenomena to better understand the mysteries of emotion and the human heart.