15 Best Mermaid Anime and Movies

So you’re obsessed with mermaids. Don’t worry, we are too! From drama to adventure, there’s something for every type of viewer in this list.

Each anime series brings its own take on the mythology of mermaids and how they relate to humans. So, without further ado here are 15 must-watch mermaid anime series for you to binge on.

15. Bermuda Triangle: Colorful Pastorale

• Logline: Daily Life of 5 mermaids.
• Year: 2019
• Genre: Fantasy
• Type: Series

The animation is lovely and with great music. The colors are vivid and striking.

This might be for older children or teens since the content isn’t too mature but regardless, it’s worth checking out if you have time to watch something new today!

Synopsis

The story revolves around the daily life of 5 mermaids. They run a movie theater together. They have fun together, eating cake, doing random things, and trying to live their lives to the fullest.

14. Adventures of the Little Mermaid

• Logline: A love story of a human Prince and a mermaid.
• Year: 1991
• Genre: Fantasy, Romance
• Type: Series

Adventures of Little Mermaid is the remake of one of the most popular mermaid stories and is still able to make a mark in the heart of the audience.

It is a sweet mermaid anime that’ll take you on a joy ride of this fantasy world filled with romance and adventure.

Synopsis

Marina is a mermaid and she saves a Prince from a shipwreck and falls in love with him. She requests the sea witch her to make human so she can win the Prince’s heart.

The story takes a lot of twists and turns and keeps its viewers hooked at all times.

13. Umi Monogatari

• Logline: It is a tale of two Mermaid Sisters who unwillingly releases an evil being after breaking its coffin. 
• Year: 2009
• Genre: Drama, Fantasy
• Type: Series

This unique anime is full of underwater sorcery and can be enjoyed by both children and adults. The animation quality is beautiful for its time, with breathtaking scenes of marine life. Several different storylines weave together to create one fascinating tale. If you’re looking for a well-established classic to watch this season, then Umi Monogatari may be the perfect show for you!

Synopsis

Tale of two mermaid sisters who dream of breaking boundaries of living underwater and exploring the ground and sky. 

One day the two sisters discover a beautiful ring falling into the sea. Amazed by the beauty of the ring, both sisters decide to return the ring to its actual owner. 

In an attempt to find the ring’s owner, they reach an unknown island and accidentally break a sealed coffin unleashing the evil Sedna. 

12. Mahou no Mako-chan

• Logline: Daughter of King of Sea falls in love with a human.
• Year: 1970
• Genre: Fantasy, Romance
• Type: Series

Mahou no Mako-chan is an iconic anime series that many mermaid lovers know. It’s a fun, lighthearted series based on manga of the same name.

This show is full of drama and adventure as well as comedy and adorable moments.

Synopsis

Mako is the daughter of King of the seas. One day she saves a boy named Akira from a shipwreck and falls n love with him.

With the help of a sea witch, she takes a form of a human and enrolls in the high school in which Akira is studying. 

11. Hans Christian Anderson’s The Little Mermaid

• Logline: A story of a mermaid who falls in love with a human.
• Year: 1975
• Genre: Fantasy, Romance
• Type: Movie

This mermaid anime movie is inspired by the same manga that inspired Mahou no Mako-chan. So if you are someone who doesn’t want to spend too much time watching the same story in a long-form can just go for this one.

The Little Mermaid is a sweet, innocent story that brings the original tale back to its roots.

Synopsis

The story revolves around a little mermaid who falls in love with a prince and longs to become human for him. She trades her tail for legs, but she quickly discovers how different and difficult life on land is. 

10. A Lull in the Sea

• Logline: A story of the conflict between people of the sea and land.
• Year: 2013
• Genre: Fantasy, Romance
• Type: Series

A Lull in the Sea is not technically a mermaid anime but about people who can live undersea. So I decided to put it on this list. 

The show has a great message about acceptance and love, which is reflected through the relationships between the characters of the series.

Synopsis

Once upon a time, the whole of humanity used to live undersea. But some of them moved to land and never returned and thus lost their ability to survive underwater.

Now there is a sort of hostility between the humans on land and those who stayed back in the sea. When 4 kids from underwater are forced to join the school on land they first-hand witness this animosity. 

9. Mermaid Forest TV

• Logline: An immortal searching for mermaids to become normal again.
• Year: 2003
• Genre: Fantasy, Horror
• Type: Series

Mermaid Forest TV is one of the most fascinating mermaid anime on this list. The story is so captivating that I am sure you won’t be able to resist watching it.

Overall the anime is good in all aspects and will surely be able to satisfy you.

Synopsis

Eating the flesh of a mermaid grants immortality to humans. Yuta accidentally ate the mermaid’s meat and has been living an immortal life for 500 years. 

He is looking for mermaids to become normal humans. When he finally finds a group of mermaids, he discovers that they have raised a human girl to eat.

He kills them all and saves the girl but she also eats the mermaid flesh and becomes immortal. Now Yuta along with that girl embark on a journey together to find more mermaids.

8. Muromi-san

• Logline: Adventures of a boy and a mermaid.
• Year: 2013
• Genre: Fantasy, Comedy
• Type: Series

Muromi-san is a funny series that brings an interesting twist to the usual mermaid stories. It’s perfect for people who want something lighthearted and comedic. 

This 13-episode series is a slice-of-life comedy about the daily life of Muromi, a saltwater mermaid and a teenage boy. 

Synopsis

Takurou is a lonely teenager, one day while fishing at sea he comes across Muromi, a mermaid.

She is a dimwitted and crazy mermaid who spends her days lazily living in the sea and getting into all sorts of trouble because she has nothing better to do. Together the two have some crazy adventures.

7. Mermaid Melody: Pichi Pichi Pitch

• Logline: A mermaid princess is on a mission to save her kingdom.
• Year: 2003
• Genre: Adventure, Comedy
• Type: Series

Mermaid Melody: Pichi Pichi Pitch is a show that teaches children how to deal with their difficulties in a fun setting. It’s a show about friendship and how it can overcome anything – even being different from others.

Synopsis

Lucia is the Mermaid Princess of one of the seven kingdoms of the sea. She is kind, cheerful with a lovely voice.

When the evil forces try to harm her kingdom, she along with her friend try to save the kindom with the help of magic and music.

6. Doraemon Movie 30: Nobita’s Great Mermaid Naval Battle

• Logline: Doremon takes Nobita and his friends on an amazing adventure in the ocean.
• Year: 2010
• Genre: Adventure, Comedy
• Type: Movie

Doremon is one of the most popular Japanese anime franchises in the world. There are dozens of Doraemon movies made to date and this one specifically deals with Doremon and Nobta’s adventures with mermaids. 

It is a fun mermaid anime movie made for kids which even adults can watch.

Synopsis

Nobita requests Doremon to take him on an undersea adventure. On their excursion, they come across a mermaid princess named Sofia.

Nobita becomes friends with Sofia and he along with his friends decides to visit Sofia’s Kingdom. Upon reaching the kingdom they are faced by a villain who wants to harm Sofia and her people.

5. Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea

• Logline: A story of a little goldfish who wants to be a human.
• Year: 2008
• Genre: Adventure, Fantasy
• Type: Movie

For children, this is the cutest movie out there about mermaids. It is the story of a little goldfish who wants to experience life beyond the sea.

It’s not a fast-paced movie but it is still absolutely wonderful nonetheless. The story is amazing and full of life lessons.

Synopsis

Ponyo is an adventurous 6-year-old girl who lives underwater with her father, the great sorcerer of the sea.

When she makes friends with a 5-year-old human boy named Sosuke, she goes to great lengths to be able to stay on land and live with him–even if it means risking everything!

4. Orenchi no Furo Jijou

• Logline: The anime explores the lives of Tatsumi and his newly found merman roommate.
• Year: 2014
• Genre: Comedy
• Type: Series

This anime breaks the stereotypes of a mermaid genre being all about drama and fantasy. It is a series of comical mishaps and hysteric subplots that provides for a perfect time killer series. 

Synopsis 

Tatsumi is a regular high schooler. One day while passing by the lake he discovers an unconscious man nearby. When he inspected him closely he discovered that he isn’t any normal being but a merman. He brings him home and makes him rest in his bathtub. 

Tatsumi’s new roommate, Wakasa is no ordinary being to deal with. His witty humor makes him one of the funniest anime characters. If you look for a short, quick-finish anime with a not-so-extensive plot, the is the perfect show for you.  

3. Lu Over the Wall

• Logline: A young boy named Kai discovers a secret sea urchin 
• Year: 2017
• Genre: Adventure
• Type: Movie

This is an animated movie feature from Japan that’s been getting rave reviews from critics as well as viewers alike. It might not score very well on popularity meter but it definitely deserves to be discussed in this mermaid-specific list. 

Synopsis

It tells the story of an introverted young boy named Kai whose life changes when he encounters the mermaid Lu from another world who comes ashore to escape her pursuers. 

Kai befriends Lu and helps her to return home by showing her where she can find materials for making a new tail to replace the one she lost when she was captured by humans. Along their journey together, they encounter both challenges and allies—including fellow mermaids—and must overcome various obstacles if they hope to succeed in time.

2. Tropical-Rouge! Pretty Cure

• Logline: Four Magic Girls who fight off evil to save the world.  
• Year: 2021
• Genre: Fantasy
• Type: Series

Pretty Cure is a long-running magical girl anime franchise. It has grown in popularity with each new series, and the most recent season, Pretty Cure Tropical-Rouge! is no exception.

Synopsis

The show is about four girls from the tropical country of Flower Garden who transform into Pretty Cure warriors for the first time. Together, they fight against the evil forces that threaten their home and protect those who are dear to them. Though it sounds like a typical children’s show at first glance, there’s more going on behind the scenes than meets the eye. 

1. My Bride Is a Mermaid

• Logline: Nagasumi’s savior becomes his unwanted mermaid wife.  
• Year: 2007
• Genre: Comedy
• Type: Series

If you read through the plot, you will discover that the same plot has been performed a million times before. However, this show is a prime example of how to use a cliche to its advantage. I am not a hardcore rom-com fan but this anime has surely made me develop some liking for the genre. 

Synopsis

Nagasumi Michishio had no idea that a swimming session would end up changing his life upside down. When a sudden leg cramp drowned Nagasumi in the ocean, he is saved by a mermaid named Sun Seto.

Unfortunately for Nagasumi, the mermaid law forbids leaving any human alive who becomes aware of mermaids. To avoid such a situation, Sun’s family came up with a proposal: Nagasumi must marry Sun or face death.

What follows next is the chronicles of a newlywed couple struggling to keep their relationship hidden from the world.