Mirza Aaqib Beg
‘Zombieland Saga’ is a supernatural anime that revolves around Sakura Minamoto, a young girl who dreams of becoming an idol one day. Unfortunately, her desires never get fulfilled as she passes away in a road accident. However, she rises from the dead a decade after her death and finds out a man named Koutarou Tatsumi is responsible for bringing her back to life. He explains how he has reincarnated girls from different eras to help revitalize the economy of Saga Prefecture, which is going through a rough time. Understanding his compassionate appeal, Sakura, along with the other undead girls, forms the idol group Franchouchou and begins to help Saga recover from economic distress.
With no memories of their past lives, the girls hide their zombie identities, but they slowly begin to regain memories about their past. The series has recently drawn the attention of anime lovers from around the world, who would probably want to watch similar shows. Here are a few recommendations that we have for you. Most of these anime like ‘Zombieland Saga’ can be streamed on Netflix, Hulu, Crunchyroll, or Amazon Prime.
7. Back Street Girls: Gokudolls (2018)
Kentarou, Ryou, and Kazuhiko, who are members of the yakuza group, are forced to undergo sex reassignment surgery after failing to accomplish one mission. They are trained for a year to form the Goku Dolls, an idol group, where they all must strive to become to best. The comical adventures of the trio who manage to retain the yakuza spirit despite months of feminizing brainwashing is a must-watch for ‘Zombieland Saga’ fans. Both the shows are comedies, and their main characters end up in an idol group.
6. 22/7 (2020)
Miu Takigawa is an ordinary girl who believes in the philosophy of less is more. Even though she has to do a part-time job to support her family, she never complains and is content with her carefree lifestyle. However, her life turns upside down when she receives a mysterious invitation and ends up joining an idol group, 22/7. Miu and other girls in the group must always adhere to all the orders given by The Wall, no matter how tough it gets. Both ’22/7′ and ‘Zombieland Saga’ revolve around idol groups, whose members face numerous conflicts as popularity begins to take its tolls on them.
5. Locodol (2014)
The life of Nanako Usami, an ordinary teenager, changes one day when her uncle asks her to partner with Yukari Kohinata and form the idol group Nagarekawa Girls. With the opportunity to become a local idol or Locodol in such a short time, Nanako grabs her chances and begins promoting her town. The protagonist of ‘Locodol’ joins the group to save her town just like the economic distress of Saga Prefecture brings together the zombies in ‘Zombieland Saga.’ Both the shows are comedies that are fun to watch.
4. Angel Beats! (2010)
‘Angel Beats!’ is a heartwarming story of Yuzuru Otonashi, a boy who finds himself in the afterlife, where he meets Yuri, the leader of Afterlife Battlefront. She convinces Yuzuru to take up arms against Tenshi, whose true intentions remain elusive. Although he joins Yuri’s forces, he always feels a strange attraction towards Tenshi. As the story unfolds, Yuzuru learns the reality of the afterlife and begins to truly grasp the gravity of the situation that he is in. ‘Angel Beats!’, like ‘Zombieland Saga,’ introduces us to an amnesiac protagonist with an identity crisis who learns about his tragic past and finally gets liberated from the pain of meaningless existence.
3. Kore wa Zombie Desu ka? (2011 – 2012)
‘Kore wa Zombie Desu ka?’ or ‘Is This a Zombie?’ follows Ayumu Aikawa, who gets murdered and is later revived by a necromancer named Eucliwood Hellscythe. Now, with immense powers at his disposal, he begins to look for his killers only to confront a girl known as Haruna in the cemetery. When she tries to erase Ayumu’s memories, her powers get absorbed by the zombie who now has to shoulder Haruna’s responsibility of hunting creatures called Megalo. ‘Kore wa Zombie Desu ka?’ is a story of a teenager who gets reincarnated only to be recruited by someone else to accomplish their mission; therefore, fans of ‘Zombieland Saga’ should watch the series to enjoy a similarly themed show.
2. Love Live! School Idol Project (2013 – 2014)
With Otonokizaka High School on the verge of closing its doors forever because of dropping popularity, Honoka Kousaka, a second-year student, vows to do something about it. Along with her friends Umi Sonoda and Kotori Minami, she decides to create an idol group to help boost her school’s popularity. Despite the numerous hurdles in her way, Honoka remains determined and begins to put together an idol group as time is running out for Otonokizaka High School.
‘Love Live! School Idol Project’ is not a story of zombies, but it revolves around girls chasing the elusive goal of forming an idol group. Like ‘Zombieland Saga,’ it also portrays the frustration that always accompanies failures and the never-give-up attitude one needs to succeed.
1. Magical Girl Ore (2018)
‘Mahou Shoujo Ore’ or ‘Magical Girl Ore’ follows Saki Uno, who is part of the idol duo named Magical Twins. Despite their unpopularity, she loves to work with her best friend, Sakuyo Mikage. Interestingly, Saki also has a crush on Sakuyo’s brother Mohiro and secretly wants to get closer to him. Her peaceful life turns upside down when one day, a mascot named Kokoro-chan reveals that Saki’s mother used to be a demon-hunting Magical Girl. The story takes an even more surprising turn when she is offered the same role as her mother.
Although initially reluctant, she readily accepts her role when she learns that Mohiro is also one of the demon’s targets. ‘Magical Girl Ore’ like ‘Zombieland Saga’ focuses on members of an idol group who face absurd life challenges. Both of them are comedy shows and are also parodies of the idol genre.
Read More: Zombie Anime
