In recent years, anime has ventured into a world we rarely see. People with disabilities live in a world that might look similar but is inherently very different and as such deserve equally as much attention as we give to ours. In this article, I will be listing the Top 5 Anime with a Protagonist who has a disability, which enables us to appreciate their world.
The list below is in no particular order and each title is amazing in its own ways. If you like what we have to offer, subscribe to Spiel Anime’s Newsletter, to gain premium access to our finely curated recommendations and in-depth breakdowns of shows and their characters, twice a week!!
Top 5 Anime with a Protagonist who has a disability
5. A Sign of Affection
- Studio:Â Ajia-do
- Episodes:Â 12
- Genre:Â Romance
- Status:Â Ongoing
Itose Yuki lives in a world different than others. In her world, there are no sounds for she was born deaf. Unable to hear others, she always wondered about the other end of this world where sounds danced merrily to people’s symphony. Cue in the charming multi-lingual adventurer, Nagi Itsuomi, who gets fascinated and starts looking after her like how an extrovert picks up an introvert. Meeting through a chance encounter, a new world awaits this duo as they can’t help but continue to fall in love with each other.
A Sign of Affection is the best way to start your annual romance craving. With a wholesome connection followed by absolutely no stalling of a story, this show is bound to hit right in the feels with all the right timings. So what are you waiting for? Go watch it now!!
4. Josee, the Tiger and the Fish
- Studio:Â Bones
- Episodes:Â 1
- Genre:Â Drama, Romance
- Status:Â Finished
Suzukawa Tsuneo has a dream, to become a marine biologist. He tries his best to save money to study abroad, juggling multiple part-time jobs at once, when he encounters Josee, who hits him straight with her wheelchair. Beyond this unseen encounter lies Josee’s grandmother’s request to Tsuneo to take care of her granddaughter. What sounded like a great money-making scheme, soon turned out to be siphoning off his energy at unparalleled levels.
However, things too did not remain the same way as more about Josee unfolded. Now that’s for the movie to show you. It has a very engaging story paired with amazing visuals and well-crafted OSTs, which makes the rollercoaster ride of emotions a very very pleasant one.
3. Breakers
- Studio:Â Blaze Studio
- Episodes:Â 16
- Genre:Â Sports
- Status:Â Finished
If you like short stories that are interconnected, you are going to love Breakers. 4 stories of para-athletes who meet an outcast sports scientist named Narita Ren. The story covers 4 different sports: wheelchair basketball, track and high jump, goalball, and paralympic swimming. Centered around the struggles of para-athletes, the show is a brilliant way to enter into the world of experiences of these amazing individuals, allowing us to understand how they feel and think.
2. Ranking of Kings
- Studio:Â Wit Studio
- Episodes:Â 23
- Genre:Â Adventure, Fantasy
- Status:Â Finished
Bojji is a deaf prince who is mocked by his people as the “The Useless Prince”. He is physically weak, however, his heart is as strong as it could be. Befriending a shadow from a race of assassins, he ventures onto the world to grow stronger. Watch how Bojji and Shadow overcome their shortcomings in a place where they are surrounded by treacherous individuals, all vying to take them down.
Ranking of Kings has beautifully expressed how hard it gets for people with disabilities and that each of them has something that makes them unique, which also makes them incredibly strong. Bojji’s journey of growing out of his timid self to become someone who is stronger than all of the people who mocked him and choosing to save them regardless of the past is exactly what is so inspirational about this show. He is an amazing character who has consistently driven the measure that his disability does not make him any less worthy than the next perfectly healthy person.
1. One Week Friends
- Studio:Â Brain’s Base
- Episodes:Â 12
- Genre:Â Comedy
- Status:Â Finished
Hase Yuuki finally musters up his courage to confess to his crush, Fujimiya Kaori. Despite facing a blatant rejection, he does not lose heart and tries to her friend to know her better. She opens up to him the more they spend time together, however, she soon starts to distance herself when the week nears its end. It is then revealed to him that all of her memories of her close ones are forgotten and she begins the new week with a clean slate.
Realizing her ill fate, he is now determined to be more than one week of friends, asking her if she wants to be friends every week, understanding her desire to have friends. One Week Friends is a bittersweet story of Kaori’s unique amnesia situation. While it is not a physical disability like the other shows on the list, it surely is a disability that hampers her progress in life. Despite this, she is an independent and strong individual who is not shy to experience moments she wishes to.
Conclusion
Each show on the list is at a whole other level when compared to shows of other themes, with their unique approach to representing people with disabilities. While A Sign of Affection is a romantic paradise, Ranking of Kings is a fantasy action tale that goes deeper than simpler themes of courage and confidence. I hope your experience watching these shows is as amazing as mine. Do tell me how you feel about them in the comments and be sure to comment if there are other shows you know that fit the description.