Natsume's Book of Friends - Recommendations

• DVD Special (2 eps)
• 2017

• DVD Special (2 eps)
• 2017

• TV (3+ eps)
• 2024 - ?

A rural town where youkai, people and gods live normal, everyday lives, mixed with a bit of warmth and occasional mystery. One summer, the twenty-year old cat Buchio suddenly evolves into a nekomata. Questioning the reason for his evolution, he sets out to learn more about transformation, together with the transforming kitsune Yuri. Muu-chan spies on the crow Tengu Jirou as he performs his Tengu duties, and begins to see Jirou in a new light. At that same time, rumors of a unfortunate Nue begin to spread...

• Web (1 ep)
• 2021

Join Takashi Natsume and Nyanko-sensei as they explore the Hitoyoshi Kuma area of Kumamoto, which served as the inspiration for the series, and enjoy the scenery and nature which is typical of the region.

• TV (108 eps)
• 1985 - 1988

There are many kinds of youkai in the world, some of which take on the form of scary, malevolent monsters that want to punish humans for their careless ways or even harvest them for their own nefarious plans. However, at the other end of the spectrum are the harmless spirits who simply wish to co-exist peacefully with mankind. Young Kitarou is one such ghoul who, along with his talking eyeball of a father and various youkai friends, has taken it upon himself to protect humans from the monsters that would do them harm – that is, if the mischievous and greedy Rat-man doesn’t keep causing trouble in the process…

• DVD Special (2 eps)
• 2008

The leaves are changing color and cold weather approaches. It's festival season, and the perfect time for Mitsuki and Shizuru to enjoy themselves with their grandparents. But unfortunately, the harsh wind leaves their grandmother laid up in bed sick, so it's time for the girls' mother to return and help around the house. With Mitsuki turning her back on Grammy and Shizuru becoming uncharacteristically angry with her younger sister, is there something more sinister at work in the Hibara household?

• TV (65 eps)
• 1968 - 1969

In a small, secluded hut far from town lives a young ghost boy by the name of Gegege no Kitarou and his tiny talking eyeball of a father. Despite his eerie nature, Kitarou spends his days trying to help the human world co-exist in harmony with the spooks and youkai that would otherwise cause them harm. From helping to retrieve a demonic baseball bat from a young boy to scaring off a hostile monster who is stealing children’s souls, Kitarou and his father do their best to maintain the peace with the help – or possibly hindrance – of the rodent-like Nezumi Otoko and the rest of his creepy friends.

• TV (24 eps)
• 2007 - 2008

Shizuru and Mizuki are two quiet sisters who have a foot in the world of the supernatural. While Shizuru can see the spirits and monsters who haunt mankind, Mizuki can't help but become possessed by them. Together, the duo live with their grandparents and are taught about the spiritual world from their grandfather, a powerful exorcist. In the serene countryside, the girls will learn about the ghosts and goblins that co-exist in our world, while also learning about themselves and their abilities.

• TV (12 eps)
• 2024

On her sixteenth birthday, orphan Himari Momochi inherits her ancestral estate that she’s never seen. Momochi House exists on the barrier between the human and spiritual realms, and Himari is meant to act as guardian between the two worlds. But on the day she moves in, she finds three handsome squatters already living in the house, and one seems to have already taken over her role!

• TV (12 eps)
• 2016

30 year-old web designer Souta Tawara takes a leave of absence from his job in Tokyo to return to his hometown and sort out his family's affairs. His recently-deceased father's udon restaurant is now closed, and the house Souta and his sister grew up in stands empty. Ridden with guilt over disappointing his father, Souta is beginning to doubt the choices he's made in life thus far. While trying to figure out how he should move forward, he meets what appears to be a small boy sleeping in one of his father's old kitchen pots, but who turns out to be a shape-shifting tanuki! Cute, playful and full of energy, Souta names him Poco and the two develop a strong bond. But now he faces a conundrum: should he quit his job in Tokyo and remain in the countryside, or will he again leave his childhood home in favor of the big city, leaving Poco all alone?