A mermaid is one of the magical creatures that we can only imagine in the real world. Therefore, in the anime world, our fantasy becomes true where there is a list of mermaid anime that we can watch, mesmerize and think of. In the world under the sea, there is still a lot of drama, and problems but also happiness. So without further ado, let us introduce you to our 14 best mermaid anime of all time.
Best Mermaid Anime of All Time!
14. Valkyrie Drive: Mermaid
This Mermaid Anime series revolves around girls who have been infected with a mysterious virus known as the A Virus (Armed Virus). To remind you, This is a shoujo, ecchi Mermaid Anime with mild nudity and element of sex, and romance. Valkyrie Drive is about a teenaged girl Mamori who has a very timid and shy nature at school. She is always teased and bullied because of her last name, Tokonome, which can also be read as, virgin.
At the school, these girls are divided into two classes; Extars who can transform into weapons when sexually aroused, and Liberator, who have the power to wield an Extar's weapon form, known as Liberator Arms, through a process known as Drive. These girls are brought to separate islands, mermaid island to spend their days completely isolated from the rest of the world. The island was observers, authorized by the government and Organisation AAA.
Mamori, our protagonist, is an Extar whose transformation is a large curved sword, though she later gains the power to transform into a double-bladed spear through the Valkyrie Effect. Unknown to herself, her power level is far greater than other Mermaid. Later Mamori was partnered with Mirei and we follow Mamori on her adventures on the Mermaid Island after she awakens her inner powers all due to this one passionate kiss from Mirei.
13. The Prince and The Coral Sea
The next on our list was a simple tale of a prince and mother nature. Sango no Umi to Ouji or also known as The Prince and The Coral Sea. This Mermaid Anime is a tale about a little prince who wants to do something about the destruction of nature, the sea, coral, and life around him.
The message of the movie is basically how humans should take responsibility for the destruction of mother nature that happens because of them. Our protagonist, ray later on meets a cute mermaid on his adventures who helps him understand more about the seas. The plot of this 30-minute movie is pretty straightforward, though it is still enjoyable to some extent.
12. Namiuchigiwa no Muromi-San
Takuro Mukojima is an angler boy. Teenage Takuro Mukojima spends his time fishing alone at the pier. One day, he catches something…or someone? It’s not a fish but he lands a ningyo a Japanese mermaid by the name of Muromi-san. This happens because Muromi and her mermaid friends decided to see the human world, the world upper the sea.
Muromi physically appears as a 16-year-old, however, in reality, she is an ancient legendary creature. Muromi and her sisters are both guardians of the Earth and much older than they appear. Takkun, as Muromi calls him, is a high school student who doesn't have a lot of motivation or care for all the attention Muromi grants him, yet, he still ends up getting involved in Muromi's adventures. There are a number of legendary monsters ‘Takkun' meet and almost get eaten by as their adventures pan out.
Muromi-san is a bit slow on the uptake, a bit crazy, a bit of a drunk, and very much unaware that she's a mermaid. The series title in English is Muromi-San and the Legendary Beasts. The Mermaid Anime is an amazing watch if you’re looking for a slice-of-life comedy with no overarching story elements as such.
11. Umi Monogatari: Anata ga Ite Kureta Koto
The story centers on Marin and Urin, two pure sisters who live alongside the fish in the sea but yearn to be in the world beyond the water and above ground. Although they don’t have the traditional mermaid tails, sisters Marin and Urin are sea folk that happens upon a silver ring and are determined to return it to its owner. They pop their head up to the surface and find high school girl Kanon Miyamori.
Kanon tells them she tossed her ring into the ocean when her boyfriend broke up with her. She throws the ring back into the sea, and Marin and Urin become separated when they swam down to find it again. Alone, Urin accidentally breaks the seal that unleashes the evil Sedna in the isolated island. Marin becomes the Priestess of the Sea and Kanon the Priestess of the Sky to protect the small island. Two girls from two different worlds must come together to save their shared world and defeat Sedna.
10. Mermaid Forest
If you think all mermaids are cute and girly, you might want to avoid Mermaid Forest and its OVA Mermaid's Scar. The mermaids in these Mermaid Anime are portrayed as selfish and dangerous beings, who eat humans to stay young. It was believed that consuming the flesh of a mermaid can give you immortality. Yuta is living proof, having lived five centuries in Japan in hopes of finding a mermaid that can turn back into a mortal and die in peace.
After traveling across the country all alone, Yuta finally finds one mermaid, but it has a girl that it plans to eat to gain her youthful beauty. Yuta kills the mermaid and saves the girl, but she has already eaten the mermaid’s flesh. Now, Yuta walks the immortal plain with Mana, who takes joy in the little things Yuta has long since looked over. Together, the two find beauty and happiness in day-to-day life as they try to turn back into humans.
9. Orenchi no Furo Jijou
Or also known as Merman in My Tub. The episodes of this Mermaid Anime are short and sweet. The anime is perfect for fans of the shoujo genre. It has loads of amazing scenes for shoujo lovers. The story starts when Tatsumi gets home from a long day at school, Tatsumi didn’t expect to find a man who collapsed on the shore. But, on closer inspection, the man isn’t a man at all, he’s a merman!
Tatsumi decides to take the merman, Wakasa, home with him and stay in his bathtub while his home and area are ruined by pollution. With that, Tatsumi’s normal life has come to an end, and now he has to deal with having a merman as a roommate to invite his aquatic friends to join him. Wakasa is not a terrible houseguest, but it sure costs a lot to keep a merman happy.
8. Doraemon: Nobita’s Great Battle of The Mermaid King
Who doesn’t know Nobita and Doraemon with their adventure? This time, the robot-cat or fox, Doraemon, and Nobita play in the backyard when a mermaid princess named Sophia shows up. She becomes quick friends with them and their friends and is all invited back to her underwater kingdom.
While there, Doraemon and his friends get caught up in a clash between the mermaids and another tribe trying to drive them out of their kingdom. Like other stories of Doraemon, Doraemon, Nobita, and their friends must help Sophia save her people by finding a legendary sword! Their adventure as a mermaid begins!
7. Mermaid Melody: Pichi Pichi Pitch
Lucia Nanami, the mermaid princess of the North Pacific Ocean, sets out on land to find the boy that she had saved from a tsunami wave seven years before the beginning of the story, to whom she fell in love and had entrusted her pink pearl. She eventually finds the boy: a teenage surfer named Kaito Doumoto. However, Kaito does not recognize Lucia in her human form. She cannot directly tell Kaito who she really is otherwise, according to mermaid legend, she would turn into bubbles and disappear.
Lucia tries to convince Kaito into figuring out who she really is (since the legend doesn't say anything about the other person discovering a mermaid's true identity by him or herself. At the same time, Lucia has been told that a group of water demons has invaded the sea world and she must gather six other Mermaid Princesses and their pearls to bring back the legendary goddess Aqua Regina to stop them.
To fulfill this, she joins forces with Hanon and Rina, the Mermaid Princesses who came up to dry land, use their pearls, turn into singing Teen idols, and use their voices and music as the main power. After the water demons fail, the Black Beauty Sisters show up to steal the show. The Mermaid Princesses believe in themselves and believe they can defeat the Black Beauty Sisters, to protect the kingdom
6. This Boy Caught a Merman
This Mermaid Anime is also known as Kono Danshi, Ningyo Hiroimashita. Part of the Kono Danshi shounen-ai series. At first, Shima Kawauchi, our protagonist was losing his mind when he can only think his late grandfather falls into the sea. Then he jumps right in to get it without thinking.
He almost drowns but is saved by a man, a merman named Isaki! This installment features a tale of forbidden love between a merman and a high schoolboy. Long-distance relationships are difficult enough to maintain, but it's even more difficult when you literally live in different worlds.
Shima and Isaki become quick friends despite being total opposites and well as opposite species. Although they want to be together, the border between the land and sea might be difficult to overcome.
5. Tropical-rouge Pretty Cure!
This Mermaid Anime was magical shoujo anime. Our protagonist, Manatsu Natsuumi is a fashionable and energetic 13-year-old excited about moving some a small island to a big city. Exploring the vast city, Manatsu finds someone she never expected, a mermaid named Laura! They later become friends
When her home, the Grand Ocean, was in danger, Laura came to the human world in search of legendary warriors known as Pretty Cure! Manatsu becomes one of the Pretty Cure when she awakens something special in the Cure Summer! Now, she will help Laura, her missing teammates, and save both of their worlds from the evil threat that lurks in the ocean.
4. My Bride Is a Mermaid
Or also known as Seto no hanayome. The story of My Bride Is a Mermaid revolves around a young teenage boy, 14 years old named Nagasumi Michishio. One day during his summer vacation at the Seto Inland Sea, Nagasumi is saved from drowning by a mermaid named Sun Seto. Under mermaid law, however, either the mermaid whose identity was revealed or the human who saw the mermaid must be executed.
In an attempt to save both Nagasumi and Sun's lives, Sun's family, which is the head of a mermaid Yakuza group, reluctantly decides that the two are to be married. Seeing no other option, Nagasumi accepts. Sun's father, Gozaburo is enraged about his daughter's sudden marriage. Between Gozaburo's constant attempts on his life and the madcap antics of a slew of antagonists, Nagasumi has a hard time transitioning into his new married lifestyle.
3. Lu Over The Wall
After his parent’s divorce, Kai Ashimoto who has a pessimistic personality lives from the big city to a small fishing village, where he works as a sun-umbrella maker with his father and grandfather. Kai writes songs and uploads them onto the internet to sort out and let out all of his complicated feelings. One day, he’s asked to join his classmates’ band and follow them to their practice spot on Merfolk Island.
It’s there that they meet Lu, a mermaid! Although mermaids were believed to bring disaster, Kai finds himself growing close to Lu, enjoying her silly songs and dances. But when Kai’s town is in danger, does he have to strength inside his own heart to save them. This Mermaid Anime was a story about the friendship between two different creatures
2. A Lull in The Sea
Also known as Nagi no Asukara. Since long ago, human civilization had lived on the ocean floor, developing a scale-like layer on their skins called Ena, special protection in their skin that allows them to breathe underwater to allow them live underwater. However, there were many humans who wanted to live above the surface and they moved to land creating a fundamental separation between the two.
After their school Nami Middle School closes down, four 14-year-old middle school students from the sea village, Shioshishio, have to attend Mihama Middle School on the surface. What follows is their struggles to adjust to a new environment and the relationships between the sea and land people, while dealing with their own newfound feelings that have just started appearing with the end of their childhood
Although they don’t have mermaid tails, they still find it hard to adjust in the surface. There they have a moment of fate when they meet classmate and fisherman Tsumugu Kihara. Their new friendship begins to mend the hatred of the past and bridge the gap between the people of the sea and surface.
1. Ponyo
A female goldfish escapes from home and gets stuck in a glass jar. It washes up on the shore of 5-year-old Sousuke’s house, who finds her. Sousuke names her Ponyo, and the two become friends. When he gets some of Sousuke’s blood from healing a cut on his finger, Ponyo decides that she doesn’t want to go home and wants to be a human!
However, her release of magic causes the Moon to fall and begin a dangerous flood that could destroy Sousuke’s home! It’s up to Sousuke and Ponyo to restore the Moon, save their world, and make Ponyo’s dream of becoming a human come true. Even she is not technically a mermaid, but the story itself rotates around sea creature with the heartwarming plotline
Michael launched Wealth of Geeks to make personal finance fun. He has worked in personal finance for over 20 years, helping families reduce taxes, increase their income, and save for retirement. Michael is passionate about personal finance, side hustles, and all things geeky.