Maiko Sakuranomiya is a sweet girl who dreams of saving up enough money to travel the world, but every job she interviews for rejects her because of her severe case of resting b*tch face. Luckily, she happens upon a café that specializes in character waitresses, and she’s the perfect fit for a sadist role. Blend-S follows Maika as she goes on adventures with the other colorful waitresses, comes to terms with her fake sadist persona, and forms a sugary sweet romance with the Italian owner of the café who is just as obsessed with Japanese culture as she is with world culture. The relaxed patisserie atmosphere and quirky characters remind us of Nekopara’s setting, so be sure to check it out!

In this world, human/monster hybrids called “Demis” coexist alongside regular society and try to fit in as best they can. Schoolteacher Tetsuo is curious about their lives and struggles, so he arranges interviews with three of his students (a vampire, a Dullahan, and a snow woman) and a fellow teacher (a succubus) so he can understand them better. The writers have clearly put a lot of thought into how demis would actually live in modern society, and if you look closely, parallels exist between this and the real-world xenophobia Japan often wrestles with. Of course, if you’re just here for the cute monster girls without any of the unnecessary sexualization that tends to pop up in these kinds of shows, it has no shortage of that. If the societal differences of Nekopara caught your interest, you’ll love the intricately detailed world that Interviews with Monster Girls has created.

Kyoto Animation brings back the snuggly everyday coziness of K-ON and The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya with Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, a charming little anime about an overworked programmer and her apartment full of mythological maids. The excitable and endlessly curious dragon Tooru becomes Kobayashi’s “servant” after the woman drunkenly offers her a place to stay, and Tooru’s presence eventually attracts even more quirky dragon girls to the house. Like Nekopara, each character has their own personality quirks and charms, so it’s hard to pick just one as best girl. The show’s magnificent animation and memorable characters make it perfect fuel for reaction gifs and meme videos, but it’s also a wonderful experience in its own right.

This cat-rific kids cartoon may have come out almost 20 years ago, but it’s remarkably similar to Nekopara and may have even served as inspiration for the original visual novel. Taruto and the other food-themed catgirls are actually just regular cats, but since they think of themselves as equal to humans, that’s how we see them in the show. Besides the ongoing plotline about Taruto possibly being the magical princess of a long lost cat kingdom, the story mostly focuses on the day-to-day antics of the cats and their interactions with the humans who can’t understand them. It’s a great anime to share with the younger children in your life, so give it a shot next time you need to find something to watch together!

Similarly to Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, The Helpful Fox Senko-san is about a mythological monster girl moving in with a stressed-out adult for the sole purpose of making their life more bearable. Salaryman Kuroto is so tired and overworked that dark energy has begun to take root inside his body and will destroy him if it’s left to fester, so it’s up to the fox goddess Senko and her friends to make him feel better before the darkness swallows him whole. This is a premise that could easily go south if not handled with care, but it turns out to be so unrelentingly wholesome that you’ll feel your own anxieties melting away just by watching Kuroto give Senko head pats and fluff her tail. If you want the anime equivalent of having a soft, warm puppy curl up in your lap, this show is for you.

Is the Order a Rabbit has adorable girls who work at a rabbit-themed café, gorgeous backgrounds depicting an Italian-inspired village, and a talking bunny who has a habit of perching on people’s heads—what more could you possibly ask for? The outgoing newcomer Kokoa instantly makes friends with the café owner’s shy granddaughter Chino and her pet rabbit Tippy, as well as the other waitresses who work at the Rabbit House and its rival restaurants. It doesn’t have much in the way of plot, but the cuteness factor and surprisingly funny comedic moments (especially with the “military otaku” Rize) are more than enough reason to see this anime all the way through to the end.