If you say that you have never, never, in your entire life, wanted to be a princess, I officially refuse to believe you. Princesses are awesome, and lately, unlike the old fairy tales, they often get noticed more than princes. The list of memorable princesses from literature and cinema is long, but today we will focus on girls who are more than sweet in the anime world.
The anime is not far behind in the princess department, and there is a surprising variety of different personalities: from sweet to smart, from fragile to badass, from the kind that needs to be rescued to the kind who prefers to cope with things for your account, anything goes.
Not just the damsels in distress, in other words. In fact, princesses have been some of the strongest female characters we’ve seen in anime, and many of the characters on this list have inspired countless girls (and boys, too) to pursue their dreams and achieve their goals. regardless of what the people around you are thinking.
It is true that we take a bit of liberty with the ‘princess’ label: some of the entries are not recognized as princesses, but their roles fit perfectly with the ‘princess’ stereotype. But, please ignore that just this once and bear with us as we will offer you the top ten anime princesses!
10. Princess Ren Hakuei from Magi The Labyrinth of Magic
Inspired by the classic Arabian stories “Arabian Nights”, Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic unfolds in a fantasy world where if you manage to survive an adventure through one of many “Dungeons”, you can acquire the skills magic of the so-called Djinns.
Although not a main character, Princess Hakuei Ren stands out as an army commander who controls her own troops in the Kou Empire army, and as a summoner of powerful tornadoes using her Djinn.
His personality has a bit of several other characters that will appear in this list, Ren Hakuei stands out for his strong will and bravery, but he also has his doubts about being in command of an army because of his pacifist leanings.
9. Piña Co Lada from Gate: Jieitai Kano Chi nite, Kaku Tatakaeri
Named after the popular Puerto Rican cocktail made from pineapple, coconut, and rum, Princess Piña Co Lada lives up to her name – although it is unknown if she likes to get caught in the rain, feeling the ocean and the taste of champagne (dark song reference, look it up), it’s certainly sweet.
As the princess of a kingdom from another dimension that failed to attack today’s Japan, she attempts a diplomatic solution to the problem, thus playing an important role in this interdimensional conflict.
While most of the other princesses on this list are probably the objects of desire of many otakus, Pina Col is actually an otaku, and she fell in love with a certain brand of boy-love.
8. Princess May Chang from Fullmetal Alchemist
Brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric meet Princess May Chang of the Xing Empire, who in the series is the equivalent of ancient China.
May is small in stature and always carries with her a panda as a pet named Xiao-Mei (little sister in Chinese), but despite looking cheesy and being 11 years old- (and her tendency to be too over-imaginative), She is an independent character, also possessing powerful martial arts, as well as being able to perform Alkahestry, the Xing empire’s equivalent of alchemy.
It may seem that this character represents the view that some people have of Chinese girls who are more powerful, independent, and generally stronger than Japanese girls.
7. Princess Cornelia from Code Geass
While there are at least four different princesses in the 2006 version of Code Geass, Cornelia Li Britannia stands out as the most interesting. Originally an antagonist, she later takes on a more neutral role, characterized by her cool demeanor and brilliant military strategy. She also has one of the hottest vehicles among the princesses on the list – a custom Gloucester.
Known for her brute strength and for being cruel; he actually has a soft spot for his own soldiers, whom he holds dear, and he has a strong sense of honor. After her little sister, Euphemia was killed, she chooses to seek revenge and sacrifices her reign to solve the riddle of her murder.
6. Arima Ahiru from Princess Tutu
The princess who looks like she came out of a fairy tale, Tutu Ahiru is actually a duck – Ahiru means domestic duck in Japanese – but gains the ability to transform after receiving a magical ghost pendant from a writer who wrote the tale called The Prince and the Raven. She is enchanted by the prince who managed, together with the evil raven, to escape history and enter the real world. (Sounds crazy? Well, fairy tales aren’t supposed to make sense are they?)
Initially, she can only transform into a normal human girl, but she is able to take the form of Princess Tutu, a graceful ballerina, all because she desperately wants to see Mytho, the aforementioned prince, smile. Princess Tutu is, undoubtedly unlike other princesses, a very feminine magical girl figure, falling under the label of kind and helpful. As a fun fact, she maintains some duck features in her human form, adding a bit of comedy to it.
5. Himemiya Anthy from Revolutionary Girl Utena
Long before Frozen, we had Revolutionary Girl Utena, a series where the prince vs princess motif is used and critically explored, but sadly still overlooked in the rest of the world.
Although heavy scenes and symbols and sometimes dark themes were most likely what prevented this series from inspiring young women to be strong and independent like Frozen and Sailor Moon, its intriguing plot and characters challenged the way adults thought. on gender roles, among other things.
The main character Tenjou Utena is a girl with a tragic past, who, after being comforted by a mysterious prince as a child, later decides to become a prince herself. When Utena arrives at Ohtori Academy, a mysterious high school, she meets – Himemiya Anthy, the so-called Bride of the Rose, who is doomed to be the slave of the school’s dueling sword league champion.
Utena joins the competition to protect the mysterious Anthy, who represents the submissive and passive girl often found in these kinds of fairy tales, but does she really wish to be free?
4. Angelise Ikaruga “Ange” Misurugi from Cross Ange
The first few episodes of this Mecca anime left many wondering if there was something more to Cross Ange than fan service and blatant exploitation, but ultimately most people agreed that there was more to Princess Angelise Ikaruga “Ange” Misurugi than what was initially thought.
In a world where ” Norma ” – people who cannot use magic – are abused and oppressed, Angelise dethrones after it is revealed that she cannot use magic or ” mana ” as she is called in the series.
Dethroned and exiled, forced to live among the pawns, Angeline “Angie” is forced to reflect on issues related to her identity, as she now belongs to the group of people she used to hate when she was a princess.
3. San / Princess Mononoke from Princess Mononoke
The protagonist Ashitaka, the last prince of his tribe, meets a puzzling girl, who is later revealed to have been raised by wolves and is nothing more and nothing less than the princess of the wolf gods. She fights for the sake of nature, putting her at odds with the film’s main antagonist, Lady Eboshi from Iron Town.
Miyazaki’s other iconic princess, San, or Princess Mononoke clearly resembles Nausicaä, in that both films have a strong female character who demonstrates a strong love for nature, feisty, and brave.
While Nausicaä got its name from an idealistic character in Homer’s Odyssey, “Mononoke” is similar to Yokai, a kind of monster in Japanese folklore, and his personality differs in that: in contrast to Nausicaä who focuses on the ” humanity “, San is concerned with protecting nature and identifies more with nature than with humanity. Her role in the film also differs from that of Nausicaä, and it is ultimately Ashitaka who is in charge of making peace between the human world and nature.
2. Tsukino Usagi / Princess Serena from Sailor Moon
This series, much to my frustration, did not reach the particular corner of Europe where I was born and raised, I get very jealous every time I hear Americans share their childhood memories, memories of Sailor Moon.
The protagonist Tsukino Usagi was an ordinary high school girl until she met the black kitten named Luna, who tells her that it really is her destiny to be Sailor Moon, and therefore, she must protect the Earth from all evil.
Unlike the princesses of Studio Ghibli, Sailor Moon was not the feminist idol from the beginning, at first she was quite reluctant and often full of insecurities, and had to be rescued by the man in the suit more than once. Gradually, she matures and develops, inspiring many girls of all ages around the world.
1. Nausicaä by Nausicaä
Hayao Miyazaki has brought us some of the best girls in anime, ones that we will remember for a long time, whether they are princesses or not. It is clear that those who are princesses have been included in this list.
Nausicaä is the ideal heroine of all Ghibli girls: she can fight and even kill if absolutely necessary. All she wants is for humanity and nature to be able to coexist in peace, and those are the values for which she fights. He has an almost diplomatic leadership, saving the world from the clutches of a devastating war.
Nausicaa is often regarded as the first Studio Ghibli film (although the studio had not yet been created when the film was made), Nausicaä formed the blueprint for future characters in the Ghibli films, and princesses or not, girls or not, they follow. being one of the most memorable anime characters of all time.
Final words
There you have it, if you need more evidence that princesses are not just weak little girls, I really don’t know what else can convince you. Sure, there are some that escaped us, if we did not go to the castle where your princess was, let us know in the comments!
