Top 10 Supporting Female Characters of 2017 [Best Recommendations]

2017 was a great year of anime that showcased some excellent supporting female characters so today’s list is meant to commemorate them. Many of them contribute in their own ways as a friend, leader, kouhai, senpai, mother, or love interest. Some have whacky abilities, others have intelligence, a good number are driven by their goals, and many just get by on their charm. So which female supporting characters made the cut? Read our list to find out!


10. Miu Amano from Blend S

  • Episodes: 12
  • Aired: Oct 8, 2017 – Dec 24, 2017

The Stile café is probably one of the most unique cafes a young lady could ever work at, and/or for a customer to ever visit. In this café, the waitresses are given roles to suit their personalities. While Maika, the main character, is given the role of a sadist, Miu Amano, one of the more attractive waitresses, gets to be the cute older sister and everyone loves her. In some ways, you can say Miu represents the audience.

Her role is that of being an observer due to her hobby of drawing doujinshi. She appropriately reacts to the situations as if she is watching it on TV. Due to her personality and career goals, she uses the relationship of Maika and Dino as inspiration for her doujinshi, and in many other instances, people would probably love to use such a unique relationship for their work of fiction. The fact that viewers can identify with her is why she makes the list.


9. Elf Yamada from Eromanga-Sensei

  • Episodes: 12
  • Aired: Apr 9, 2017 – Jun 25, 2017

Elf Yamada, aka Emily Granger, is a neighbor of the eccentric Masamune family. Despite only having an elementary education, she instantly became a successful novelist and one of her novels got adapted into an anime. Now she teams up with Sagiri, or the titular Eromanga-Sensei, in adapting one of her novels as a manga. Despite her professional success at a young age, some of her social skills can use some work. She’s not afraid to look down on other people and has a difficult time accepting whenever she is wrong. At times, her arrogance has a cute charm to it.

Her relationships with Sagiri and her brother are rather unorthodox and yet so innocently pure thanks to their youth. She’s a perfect example of the positives and negatives of finding success from a young age despite not having a secondary education, which is why she is a great addition to this list.


8. Sucy Manbavaran from Little Witch Academia

  • Episodes: 25
  • Aired: Jan 9, 2017 – Jun 26, 2017

From the Philippines, we have Sucy Manbavaran from Little Witch Academia, one of Akko’s best friends. In the realm of witchcraft, Sucy is a specialist with potions and poisons and uses poor Akko as her test subject. She tends to stay calm or is just oblivious to any severity in a tight situation. Due to this personality quirk, she can be seen as a comic relief of the series with her antics.

Thanks to her unique skills, she can kill anyone with her potions but her skills in other forms of magic are minimally adequate. But when Akko is in trouble, she will never hesitate to help her. Her presence brings a unique balance to the chemistry between her, Akko, and Lotte, which signifies her contribution to the crew and the series.


7. Ymir from Attack on Titan Season 2

  • Episodes: 12
  • Aired: Apr 1, 2017 – Jun 17, 2017

Though she can come across as naïve and whimsical, there is more to Ymir than meets the eye. Through a good portion of the second season of Attack on Titan, audiences get to learn about Ymir and her rather tragic life. Despite the circumstances of her childhood and how she was alone for many years, she finds a way to bounce back and find meaning in her life. But on the same token, her life experiences have understandably made her naïve and skeptical in certain situations.

When it comes to her friendship with Krista, nothing can break her loyalty and sometimes, having that one friend is enough to come back from a darkness that Ymir lived in for a good portion of her life. The fact she would go to Hell and back for Krista regardless of the truth about them individually is what makes her a solid addition to this list.


6. Kou Yagami from New Game!!

  • Episodes: 12
  • Aired: Jul 11, 2017 – Sept 26, 2017

Kou is the model senpai whose acknowledgement that most characters crave. While most of you readers have been exposed to the term senpai, or senior or upperclassman in a school anime, it is commonly used in a work setting, too. She is the lead artist of the anime’s game studio, Eagle Jump, and it was her art that inspires Aoba, the main character, to become an artist.

Thankfully, she is very easy going and supportive. Compared to her peers, she is rather relaxed and hardworking. She gets dedicated to the point that she would sleep in the office (mostly just a shirt and underwear) when she puts in the overtime. While Kou was there to support Aoba in the first season, Kou and Aoba now have an equal relationship due to the company’s competition in who can design a new character, and Aoba happens to win. Initially bitter at the loss, Kou learns from her past mistakes and continues to be of contribution to Aoba and the rest of the team, which makes her a great supporting character and senpai.



5. Kudelia Aina Bernstein from Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans Season 2

  • Episodes: 25
  • Aired: Oct 2, 2016 – Apr 2, 2017

Despite being born and raised in privilege, Kudelia couldn’t stand the site of regular citizens suffering and children fighting in war just so they could put food on the table. Even though she can never fully understand the pain that regular people on Mars or the orphans of Tekkadan have to suffer through, she still dedicates her life to want to give them equal opportunities. During her initial time with Tekkadan, she goes out of her way to help the children learn how to read and write so they can get better employment beyond private military companies.

Thanks to her background and political status, she could negotiate with the Earth government to ease economic restrictions on Mars and stop an enemy platoon from attacking. While she does not believe in violence, she is willing to put herself in harm’s way to protect the people she cares about. The fact that she is willing to risk her life for what she believes in and never compromises her morals is what makes her an excellent supporting character.


4. Arisa Ahokainen from Akiba’s Trip The Animation

  • Episodes: 13
  • Aired: Jan 4, 2017 – Mar 29, 2017

Arisa is the ultimate otaku from Finland and is visiting Akihabara on a personal pilgrimage. However, a chance encounter with Tamotsu makes her a valued ally and a potential love interest. Speaking with a cute broken accent in the Japanese version and with a Finnish accent in the English dub, it really emphasizes her cuteness and brings out the humor this series offers. But do not let her age, her broken accent, and her excellently endowed body fool you.

Despite being less than twenty, she is already college educated and has her own company. While Tamotsu needs his strength as a modified Bugged One to save Akihabara from the evil Bugged Ones, Arisa is already naturally strong enough to go toe-to-toe with these overpowered foes to preserve otaku culture thanks to her martial arts training. Thanks to her advanced education and travels, she is reliable in just about any situation you can think of.


3. Otome Rokudo from Kyoukai no Rinne Season 3

  • Episodes: 25
  • Aired: Apr 8, 2017 – Sept 23, 2017

Up until season 3, audiences pretty much knew everything there was to know about Rinne Rokudo’s whacky family. His grandmother is an elite Shinigami (who doesn’t even look old enough to even be Rinne’s mother) and his father is the black sheep of the family by starting the Damashigami Company and forcing his debts onto Rinne. The only missing puzzle was what happened to Rinne’s mother, Otome. Considering the deadbeat his father is, no one can blame her for walking out on him but season 3 finally answers that question. It turns out she accidentally was forced into the wheel of incarnation by a stampede of wild buffalos and lived several lifetimes as various creatures. And now she lives life as Ichigo, a seven-year-old girl.

Thankfully, she has regained her memories as Otome and can show off her skills as a Shinigami. It turns out that prior to her accidental reincarnation, she was an elite Shinigami and possessed one of the best sickles in the underworld. Though having a mother reincarnated as a seven-year-old can be awkward, she is there to give loving support to her son and to Sakura, and to give her estranged husband a lecture when necessary. And the fact that she is voiced by the legendary Megumi Hayashibara (the voice of female Ranma, Jesse in Pokemon, and Rei in Evangelion) gives her 100 bonus points.


2. Kale from Dragon Ball Super

  • Episodes: 126 (as of Feb 3, 2017)
  • Aired: Jul 5, 2015 – present (as of Feb 3, 2017)

The Dragon Ball franchise has always been famous for being geared towards males with Android 18 as its exclusive female badass. However, that doesn’t stop it from having fans that are female and with the ways society and gender have been changing between the broadcasts of the original Dragon Ball series and Super, it was time to accommodate them.

In the recent universe tournament arc, we have the female Saiyan from Universe 6, Kale. While she is introduced as shy and unassuming, thanks to the support of Caulifla and Cabba, she finds her true power as a Super Saiyan. When she assumes her Berserker Super Saiyan form (as a reaction to the pressures she faces from her peers), she is obviously a female version to Brolly from the old movies, but with her own distinctions. Not only is she truly strong and can kick ass, she is a loyal friend to Caulifla and when she comes to embrace the infinite potential inside of her, she earns the respect of her peers and gains self-respect.


1. Meteora Osterreich from Re:CREATORS

  • Episodes: 22
  • Aired: Apr 8, 2017 – Sept 16, 2017

In Re:CREATORS, works of fiction (such as anime, manga, light novels, and video games) are bridging over to the real world and are combating one another. One of the characters that have crossed over from fantasy into reality is Meteora Osterreich, a wise mage from an RPG that Sota, the main character, is a fan of. In the game that she was created in, she is a wise mystic and something of a scholar and thankfully, those qualities are useful for our heroes. Upon being transported, she instantly analyzes and attempts to adapt to the real world, which not only shows how high her intelligence is, but that she never really panics whenever there is a crisis.

She tends to be withdrawn and monotone in her way of speaking, but she still expresses that she understands how high the stakes are and wishes to protect the real world. While she has no offense capabilities in combat, she makes up for it with her defense magic and intelligent mind. She plays a large role in coming up with combat strategies on how to defeat Altair and her minions. Though she may not know answers right away, she is willing to take the time to learn how something works and she can apply it to the task.


Final Thoughts

Like a good majority of our lists and other lists on many sites, we can admit that we may have missed some of your personal favorites. If you think there are other female characters from the anime of 2017 who deserve some mention, please feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments.

Elf-Yamada-eromanga-sensei-Wallpaper-1-700x394 Top 10 Supporting Female Characters of 2017 [Best Recommendations]

Writer

Author: Justin "ParaParaJMo" Moriarty

Hello, I am originally from the states and have lived in Japan since 2009. Though I watched Robotech and Voltron as a child, I officially became an anime fan in 1994 through Dragon Ball Z during a trip to the Philippines. In addition to anime, I also love tokusatsu, video games, music, and martial arts. よろしくお願いします

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