Starting off the list, we have Naho Takamiya from Orange. In hindsight, Naho Takamiya is probably the stereotype of what people might consider as a ‘nice girl’. She is very affectionate, cute-looking, kind and can even be considered to be a shy one, as lets out a little scream here when she is embarrassed.

Naho Takamiya secured a spot on this list thanks to her charming personality and she is portrayed in the anime. Her character fits ever so perfectly into the slice-of-life shoujo anime genre, and definitely, finds her way into the anime communities’ heart with her warm smile and personality.

On the number 9 spot on the list, we have Takane Tsubomi from Mob Psycho 100. With the rising popularity of the anime itself, we think one of the main protagonists of the series has to be on the list, hence, Takane Tsubomi!

Unlike the previous entry in the list, Takane Tsubomi is depicted to be a shallow middle school student in the series. Even so, she brings great impact into how Shigeo Kageyama or more commonly known as ‘Mob’ with his decisions. This perhaps is backed up by the fact that ‘Mob’ really likes Tsubomi. It comes down to how significant Tsubomi’s role in the series is and how her character affects the plot overall.

Next, we have Mumei or Hozumi from Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress! In hindsight, Mumei is like a ‘man-child’ at times, or rather a ‘woman-child’. In the series, you can see her acting out as a child. Playing with her toys, and often times disregarding serious situation as if it’s some sort of game. But do not be fooled, this female character is badass in her own way as well, all thanks to her Kabaneri abilities.

Several events in the anime have also shown a much ‘colder’ Mumei. It’s amazing to see how she, as a 17-year-old girl, perceives death as if it was nothing. This reasoning can be justified as she is shown to have a rather dark childhood, with the death of her mother when Kabane overran the city.

If you’re looking for an interesting character to laugh at, then Aqua from Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo! Is your best answer. She is known as the Goddess of Water in the series. What makes her such an interesting character and how she made it onto the list is thanks to her personality. You can expect every common trait a goddess should have; self-centered diva, ‘honest’, happy-go-lucky, and the most noticeable trait Aqua has is her love of being praised by others.

You may or may not notice that I’ve put quotation mark on the word honest in the paragraph above. Allow me to elaborate, Aqua, being a goddess has no concept of lying, therefore, she can be very stubborn to believe that other people might have lied to her, making her very gullible. This also made her extremely bad at lying to others as well. Overall, Aqua is very fun to watch as a character, and her relationship with the other protagonist of the series really draws out the comedic effects naturally and makes the series so enjoyable to watch.

Moving on to the number 6 spot on the list, we have Kayo Hinazuki from Boku dake ga Inai Machi, also known as ERASED! This is yet again, another interesting character to make it on the list. Kayo Hinazuki is one of the victims involved in a serial kidnapping case that happened in 1988. As a child, Kayo is known to be very quiet and introverted, as she never really spoke to anyone in her class.

It was revealed that her quiet and gloomy personality is caused by her being traumatized by the constant abuse from her mother. And as a result, making her an easy target for the kidnapping case. Will Satoru Fujinuma be able to save her from the kidnapping? Is a normal life ever be possible for her? Find out more in the mystery-themed anime, ERASED!

Now entering the top 5, we have Emilia from Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu! I think it comes to no surprise that this character will eventually end up on the list. Especially when Re:Zero has become the recent anime that everyone is hyped about. As for the character itself, Emilia is the main love interest of the protagonist, Natsuki Subaru. In terms of appearance, she is a half-elf that has silver white long hair.

What makes this character interesting is her kindness towards others, even when most of the time people might hate her for her appearance that resembles the Witch of Envy. You can see throughout the series that she is genuinely kind and wants to help everyone, an admirable personality which gained her popularity amongst the fans.

If you haven’t already noticed, this character is probably the same character that appeared in your Facebook feed a while back. Her most notable feature as a character is her one and only spell that creates explosions. Despite how powerful her spell is, she can only use it once per day and will collapse after casting it.

Explosions. Sound familiar? Yep, this character’s concept was created and directed by none other than the legend himself; Michael Bay.

Just kidding! In terms of personality, Megumin is known to have ‘chuunibyou’ tendencies, where she basically lives in her own imagination and perceives the world around her as a part of her own imagination. All of these combined, and there you have it, this character has become a living meme amongst the anime community.

Taking the number 3 spot on the list is Chizuru Hishiro from ReLIFE! Unlike most characters that gained popularity because of their shining personalities, Chizuru isn’t your typical happy-go-lucky girl. In the anime ReLIFE, the series indicated that Chizuru transferred schools a lot when she was young, rendering her unable to make friends.

Chizuru then participated in an experiment where she ingests a pill that made her look younger, then go back to high school to experience youth again and tries to improve her lacking interpersonal skills. Although she may be intelligent, she severely lacks the ability to empathize with others. What makes this character so popular is how she slowly learns to socialize with others, albeit how awkward it might turn out to be.

Next, we have Serinuma Kae from Watashi ga Motete Dousunda! This character definitely deserves a spot on this list thanks to her big personality. The anime introduced her as a ‘fujoshi’ which is a term for fan girls who are really into BL (Boys Love) or Yaoi and that kind of stuff. The plot starts when Kae’s favorite anime character died, and she plunged herself into starvation due to depression.

Thanks to her starving and shutting herself out, she naturally loses weight to the point where she became very attractive. So much so, that her classmates began to notice and try to hit on her. However, with her ‘fujoshi’ traits, she is inexperienced with love and doesn’t know how to react to it. Even with several guys trying to win her heart, she is still more interested in shipping the boys with one another. To sum it up, Kae is a very awkward and quirky personality which makes her really fun to watch.

The title of Best Female Character of 2016 goes to… Rem! Another character from the widely acclaimed anime series, Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu / Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-! This character became so popular to the point where you can easily spot out comments here and there saying, “Rem is best girl.” And for a good reason too.

If you haven’t watched the series, I highly recommend you to watch it as it will give you a better insight into why this character is so appealing to the fans. There are a lot of reasons, but the strongest reason why people crowned this character to be the best girl is from that one scene in episode 18, where Rem gave the most heartfelt speeches that melted the hearts of millions. Her unending support for the protagonist, Subaru Natsuki is the probably one of the most touching elements that solidify this character as the best girl. In conclusion, Rem is love, Rem is life.