5 Anime Like Paradise Kiss for Fashion and Creative Drama

For anime like Paradise Kiss, try Neighborhood Story for fashion school, NANA for relationships and personal style, or Smile Down the Runway for runway ambition. Compare five picks below, without major spoilers.

The best follow-up depends on what stayed with you: the clothes, the creative friendships, or the tension between love and your own future. These five recommendations separate those reasons so you can choose the story that suits your mood.

Which anime should you watch next?

This is a match-by-interest guide, not a ranking of which show is objectively best. Someone who loved the atelier scenes may want a different next watch from someone who stayed for the romance.

1. Neighborhood Story: fashion school

Neighborhood Story, also known as Gokinjo Monogatari, follows Mikako, an art-school student who wants to become a fashion designer and open her own shop. The original work is by Ai Yazawa, making it a natural place to look after Paradise Kiss.

Choose it for: creative ambition that exists alongside friendship and romance. If what you enjoyed was being around people who care intensely about making things, this is the first title to try.

Expect a different experience: approach Mikako’s story on its own terms rather than expecting Yukari and George’s relationship again. The shared appeal is fashion as part of a young person’s identity, not an identical plot.

A styling idea to borrow: make one playful detail the centre of an outfit—a printed top, a colourful bag or an unusual skirt shape—then repeat one of its colours elsewhere. That is a practical way to bring creative-school energy into ordinary clothes without dressing as a specific character.

2. NANA: relationships and personal style

Also created by Ai Yazawa, NANA centres on Nana Komatsu and Nana Osaki, two young women who meet while travelling to Tokyo. Komatsu, nicknamed Hachi, hopes for a fresh start; Osaki is pursuing music. Their friendship brings together different ambitions and very different wardrobes.

Choose it for: the connection between what people wear, who they want to become and the relationships they build. It is a particularly good follow-up if the emotional choices in Paradise Kiss mattered as much to you as the runway.

Expect a different experience: music and personal relationships drive this recommendation. Do not choose it primarily for a step-by-step look at making clothes.

A styling idea to borrow: choose one character’s direction before assembling the outfit. Our Nana Osaki fashion guide develops the darker punk route. For romantic styling, our Hachi outfit ideas show how to use soft pinks, florals and simple layers.

3. Smile Down the Runway: runway ambition

Chiyuki Fujito wants to model at Paris Fashion Week despite being told her height makes that dream impossible. Her classmate Ikuto Tsumura has a talent for design. Their ambitions make Smile Down the Runway a direct match for viewers who wanted more of the work behind a fashion show.

Choose it for: the relationship between a garment, its maker and the person presenting it. It moves the recommendation list towards professional goals and the challenges of being taken seriously.

Expect a different experience: watch it for fashion ambition rather than expecting the same romantic atmosphere as Paradise Kiss. This is the clearest choice when “more fashion” means the pursuit of a fashion career.

A styling idea to borrow: judge an outfit in motion as well as in a mirror. Check how a hem falls when you walk, whether a jacket hides the waist you meant to emphasise, and whether the shoes change the balance. You can improve a combination by adjusting it before buying anything.

4. Princess Jellyfish: unusual inspiration

Princess Jellyfish connects Tsukimi’s love of jellyfish with fashion, with Kuranosuke helping turn that fascination towards dressmaking. That link makes it a strong choice if you liked watching an unfamiliar creative world open up around a protagonist.

Choose it for: an outsider’s entry into fashion and the idea that inspiration can come from something very personal. The connection to clothes is part of the story, rather than simply a cast wearing attractive outfits.

Expect a different experience: its comic, eccentric group dynamic is a change of pace. Choose it when you want creativity with a different social atmosphere, rather than a substitute for Yukari’s exact journey.

A styling idea to borrow: translate an inspiration into colour or shape instead of copying it literally. A sea-glass palette, a rounded skirt or a small pearly detail can suggest an underwater mood without turning an everyday outfit into a costume.

5. Honey and Clover: art-school life

Based on Chica Umino’s work, Honey and Clover follows art students, including Takemoto, in Tokyo. This is the recommendation for viewers drawn to creative friendships and the uneasy question of what comes after student life.

Choose it for: the wider creative-life side of Paradise Kiss. If you related to being surrounded by talented people while still working out your own path, its art-school setting is the relevant connection.

Expect a different experience: fashion is not the central professional subject here. Put it lower on your list if runway scenes and clothing design are your main priority.

A styling idea to borrow: build an outfit around something you can actually spend a day in: a useful bag, comfortable shoes and a layer you can take off. Add personality through one print or colour. This is our interpretation of a creative everyday wardrobe, not a claim about a particular screen outfit.

Turn the inspiration into an outfit you will wear

After choosing a show, choose a mood rather than buying a full character wardrobe. For example, black pleats can anchor a sharper look, while a pink floral print can soften simple jeans. Both can be styled with pieces you already own.

A piece for this look

A sharper base: black pleats

Use the skirt’s defined pleats to build a darker outfit around a plain top and one red or silver accent.

Wear it two ways: a black tee and boots; a soft knit and tights when you want more coverage.

Fit check: This is a short mini with integrated shorts. Check the listed waist and length before choosing.

View skirt & sizes

A piece for this look

A softer base: pink florals

A floral top brings colour into simple separates without needing a complete character wardrobe.

Wear it two ways: cream skirt and cardigan; straight-leg jeans and flats for a casual version.

Fit check: Compare bust, waist and length with a top you already wear comfortably.

View floral top & sizes

If you only choose one tonight

Choose Neighborhood Story for fashion school, NANA for relationships and style, or Smile Down the Runway for career ambition. Save Princess Jellyfish for a more eccentric fashion story and Honey and Clover for the broader creative-life question. Streaming availability varies by country, so check the licensed services in your region.

Take one detail you enjoyed and try it with your own clothes first. The linked pieces are there if they help complete a look you already want to wear.

Reference notes: Series premises and creators checked against Vertical’s Paradise Kiss introduction, VIZ’s NANA, Neighborhood Story and Honey and Clover pages, Toei Animation’s Neighborhood Story catalogue, and Crunchyroll’s official Smile Down the Runway and Princess Jellyfish episode descriptions. Recommendations and styling comparisons are our editorial interpretation. The cover is an original fashion illustration inspired by Yukari and Nana Osaki, alongside an imagined designer; it does not depict a scene from either series.