This summer, don’t miss these five Japanese animation series, available on the Netflix platform, perfect for watching with the family, and especially with your children!
It’s (finally) summer! While the season rhymes with the word vacation, many parents are wondering which series to recommend to their children, or which programs are best suited to family viewing? This is particularly the case with Japanese animation, which is widely represented in the catalog of the Netflix platform.
You do not know which series to recommend to your child, for fear of choosing a program that will not be suitable for his age? Are you looking for advice, and would you like to find THE nugget that will appeal to both young and old? So here are our five Japanese anime recommendations, addressed to the whole family!
RADIANT #1
Made history by becoming the very first Japanese anime adapted from a French manga, Radiant is the work of the author/designer Tony Valente (Ankama editions). This series mixing fantasy and fantasy follows the adventures of a young wizard, ostracized from society because of his “infected” nature, but determined despite everything to destroy the demonic Nemesis to bring peace to Earth. During his adventures, the latter will explore a world larger than it seems, and meet allies ready to do anything to help him complete his heroic quest.
From the age of 8
What they will like:
- Adventures told at a fast pace
- A hero who gains in power – and in maturity – over the episodes
- Action yes, but also a lot of humor!
What can scare them:
- The presence of monsters and creatures with potentially frightening aspects
- Fights with sometimes uncertain outcome
- A heavy context (war) and a merciless hunt for our heroes
PRINCESS SARAH #2
Some have never forgotten the first broadcast of Princess Sarah at the end of the 80s. If it does not offer any scenes of violence strictly speaking, the adaptation of the novel The Little Princess (by author Frances Hodgson Burnett) remains nonetheless a trauma for viewers of the time, because of the abuse – physical AND psychological – inflicted on the young heroine by the other children of the boarding school run with an iron fist by the tyrannical Mademoiselle Mangin.
From 10 years old
What they will like:
- The realistic tone of this story
- An endearing heroine, with whom we go through the worst trials of life
- A resolutely dramatic tone, but also full of hope
What can scare them:
- The abuse suffered by the young heroine
- An awakening to the most dramatic passages of existence, especially death
- Scenes of raw and realistic brutality
SOLO KOTARO #3
Adaptation of the eponymous manga (unpublished in France), Solo Kotaro follows the adventures of a little boy, moving into a residence mainly inhabited by young single people. Over the course of the episodes, his neighbors with whom they become friends guess Kotaro’s complicated and painful past… You will therefore have understood it, under its air of fake offbeat comedy, this anime is in reality a drama exploring the childhood wounds.
But dramatic situations are most often defused by Kotaro’s atypical personality, possessing the naivety of childhood, but who also knows how to be more mature than his older friends. You will love laughing and crying as a family in front of this short series of ten episodes.
From the age of 8
What they will like:
- Kotaro’s serious yet innocent personality
- Focus on real life issues
- Each of the neighbors, and their personal stories
What can scare them:
- Learn about the abuse Kotaro suffered
- The themes tackled frontally by the series
- The loneliness of the characters, and the idea that life does not necessarily go in the expected direction
CAROLE & TUESDAY #4
Little nugget of Shin’ichirō Watanabe to whom we owe the excellent cowboy bebop, Samurai Champloo or Terror in Resonance, Carol & Tuesday takes us to the apogee of the colonization of Mars, where two young singers who are in total opposition decide to create a musical duo and turn the universe upside down. But in a world where culture is produced by artificial intelligence, it is sometimes difficult to make your voice heard.
From 10 years old
What they will like:
- The colorful and original universe of an alien planet
- Two heroines as different as they are complementary
- Original and superbly performed songs
What can scare them:
- Racial injustices, sometimes unresolved
- A spotlight on the quirks of the world of music
- Themes like mourning, manipulation, and abandonment
TIGER & BUNNY #5
Fans of superheroes and animation? Tiger & Bunny is the perfect series to devour for a moment of relaxation with the family! Follow the adventures of Kotetsu and Barnaby, their real names, a duo of supermen worlds apart but ready to do anything to save Stern Build City from the bad guys. Laughter and strong emotions guaranteed!
From 12 years old
What they will like:
- A range of endearing characters with atypical powers
- His quirky humor and his incredible situations
- His moral and his messages of hope on the ambitions of the future
What can scare them:
- Sometimes bloody fight scenes
- The scary look of his anti-hero, Lunatic
- The vengeful motives of its protagonist