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Produced by Comix Wave Films, 5 Centimeters Per Second is one of the most well-received masterpieces of Makoto Shinkai. Though the director rose to fame with the release of Your Name back in 2015, 5 Centimeters Per Second is one of his earliest works comprising of several themes which frequently appear throughout his oeuvre.
The movie follows the story of two middle school students, Takaki Toono and Kanae Sumida, who forge a beautiful friendship during their childhood years and later fall in love with each other. However, as fate is a fickle mistress, circumstances beyond their control tear them apart. Like every Makoto Shinkai movie that conveys unique hard-felt messages, this anime talks about growth, how things change between people, and taking control of life.
5 Centimeters Per Second is one of the most heartwarming anime movies that is loved for its realistic portrayal. On that note, this article will list eight other similar anime that resemble the movie's essence in great variety.
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From Voices of Distant Stars to Tsuki ga Kirei, here are 8 anime that fans of 5 Centimeters Per Second shouldn’t miss
1) Voices of Distant Stars
Voices of Distant Stars is another excellent work by Makoto Shinkai that premiered on February 2, 2002. Unlike 5 Centimeters Per Second, Voices of Distant Stars is comprised of sci-fi elements. However, what is common in both the anime is that their storylines follow long-distance relationships. Voices of Distant Stars takes place in the dystopian future of 2046 when an alien attack wreaked havoc upon the world.
Noboru Terao and Mikako Nagamine are two close friends who eventually develop feelings for each other. However, after the attack, their lives turn upside down when Mikako gets selected for a UN military space expedition to retaliate against the aliens. Despite the growing distance between them, Mikako and Noboru try to stay connected with each other via cell phones.
2) Your Lie in April
Like 5 Centimeters Per Second, this movie also captures the struggle between the character’s relationships. Both anime portray a romance that never continued. Your Lie in April follows Kosei Arima, a piano prodigy who was regarded as a “human metronome.” But after his mother’s death, he loses the ability to hear his own notes, which makes him quit playing the piano.
But things start to change after Kaori Miyazono arrives in Kosei’s life. Being a selfless person, Kaori tries her best to fill Kosei’s monochromatic life with colors and revives the brilliant pianist in Kosei with whom he parted ways a long time ago. However, the protagonist’s life turns upside down when he learns the actual truth behind Kaori.
3) Garden of Words
Two years before the release of Your Name, Makoto Shinkai garnered a lot of praise with the release of Garden of Words on May 31, 2013. The anime is still praised for its bewitching animation and exceptional artwork. Garden of Words follows Takao Akizuki, an aspiring shoemaker who is more inclined toward designing shoes than attending school.
One fated day, Takao meets Yukari Yukino, a beautiful woman who becomes another reason for him to skip classes. Takao eventually offers Yukino to make her a shoe. They grow comfortable around each other, which helps in alleviating the worries hidden within their hearts. Like Takaki and Kanae from 5 Centimeters Per Second, Takao and Yukino in Garden of Words are also enveloped with hardships.
4) The Girl Who Leapt Through Time
Similar to 5 Centimeters Per Second, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time’s storyline follows a love story between two people who weren’t meant to be together. The anime follows Makoto Konno, a free-spirited high school student who is having trouble choosing her career. However, to keep herself happy, she plays baseball and catches to kill time.
However, everything in Makoto’s life changes the day she gains the ability to leap through time. She initially plays around with her newfound powers but soon realizes that every action has its consequences. Later, Makoto learns to use her powers to save the people precious to her.
Makoto falls in love with her best friend Chiaki Mamiya, who is later revealed to be someone who came from the future. Unlike Takaki and Kanae from 5 Centimeters Per Second, Makoto and Chiaki in The Girl Who Leapt Through Time remain painfully separated by time.
5) The Place Promised in Our Early Days
The Place Promised in Our Early Days and 5 Centimeters Per Second are similar in many aspects. For starters, both the anime are by the same director. This particular anime centers around two friends, Hiroki Fujisawa and Takuya Shirakawa, who falls in love with the same girl, Sayuri Sawatari.
With the sudden disappearance of Sayuri, Takuya and Hiroki’s life becomes more complicated. Unbeknownst to them, Sayuri falls victim to a sleeping disorder that leaves her in coma for three years. The Place Promised in Our Early Days features a complicated relationship that explores the notion of overcoming the space between lovers.
6) Into the Forest of Fireflies
Into the Forest of Fireflies’ plot revolves around a girl named Hotaru Takegawa, who gets lost in a forest rumored to be inhabited by spirits when she was six. Luckily, a forest spirit named Gin approached her out of nowhere and helped her. Hotaru soon learns that due to a curse, Gin shall disappear if he ever comes in physical contact with a human being.
Gin urges Hotaru to never return to the forest, but she does the total opposite. Every summer, Hotaru visits the forest and looks for Gin, and they both spend their time together wandering around the forest. One common theme that both 5 Centimeters Per Second and Into the Forest of Fireflies have been successful in portraying is the same core theme, where distance becomes the point of conflict for the lovers.
7) Flavors of Youth
Flavors of Youth has a similar setting to that of 5 Centimeters Per Second. For starters, both the anime are split into three separate chapters, each telling a different story. Flavors of Youth is produced by Comix Wave Films, the same production studio that produced 5 Centimeters Per Second. The only distinctive feature of Flavors of Youth is that it introduces six individual characters, two for each chapter.
The Rice Noodles, A Little Fashion Show, and Love in Shanghai are the three chapters of the anime. The tripartite anthology is heavily inspired by Makoto Shinkai’s works that are deeply ingrained in Chinese culture and customs.
8) Tsuki ga Kirei
Tsuki ga Kirei would seem like an extended version of 5 Centimeters Per Second since it is comprised of 12 episodes. Both anime portray realistic romance, with distance being the main issue. Aspiring writer Kotaro Azumi and track team runner Akane Mizyazuno somehow end up in the same class, where they eventually become good friends.
Gradually their feelings for each other unravel within them, but confessing their love is not easy for either of them. However, after Akane moves to Chiba, Kotaro finally gathers up his courage and confesses his feelings. He even publishes an online story promising to love and cherish her forever. Just like 5 Centimeters Per Second, Tsuki ga Kirei shows that distance can’t subjugate true love, albeit in a more realistic way.
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