Honestly, the trope of a princess waiting in a high tower for some knight in shining armor is basically dead. It’s boring. What’s actually interesting—and what has been quietly taking over streaming charts—is anime about a princess who fell in love with a girl. People are tired of the same old "Prince Charming" routine. They want messier stories. They want political intrigue mixed with genuine, sometimes forbidden, queer romance.
For a long time, the "Yuri" genre (girls’ love) was tucked away in a corner of the industry, often relegated to niche audiences or hyper-stylized "Class S" stories where the girls just held hands and then forgot each other existed after graduation. That is not what is happening anymore. We are seeing a massive shift toward high-stakes fantasy where the crown is on the line, and so is the heart.
The Magical Revolution of the Genre
You can’t talk about this without mentioning The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady. It’s a mouthful, yeah, but it’s basically the gold standard right now. Anisphia, the princess, is a total chaotic mess. She can't use magic traditionally, so she invents "magicology." But the real hook? She literally crashes into a ballroom to "kidnap" Euphyllia, a noblewoman whose engagement was just cruelly broken.
It isn't just a fluff story. It deals with the crushing weight of royal expectations and the way society tries to box women into specific roles. When we talk about anime about a princess who fell in love with a girl, we are talking about rebellion. It’s not just about who they're dating; it’s about who they are allowed to be in a world that wants them to be ornaments.
Why the "Villainess" Trope Changed Everything
The Isekai boom—where characters get transported to another world—accidentally gave the girl-meets-princess genre a huge boost. Specifically, the "Villainess" subgenre. In shows like I'm in Love with the Villainess, the protagonist, Rei, doesn't want the prince. She wants the "evil" noblewoman, Claire.
It flips the script.
💡 You might also like: Songs by Tyler Childers: What Most People Get Wrong
Usually, the princess or the noble lady is the antagonist to the main girl's romance. Here, she is the romance. It creates this delicious tension because you have a commoner (or a lower-ranked girl) pursuing someone who is literally untouchable by law. The power dynamics are skewed, and watching them level out as the two characters find common ground is why people stay glued to the screen.
Revolutionary Girl Utena: The Blueprint
We have to go back to 1997 for a second. If you haven't seen Revolutionary Girl Utena, you're missing the DNA of every single show mentioned above. Utena is a girl who wants to be a prince, and she ends up winning the "Rose Bride," Anthy, in a series of surreal duels.
Is it confusing? Absolutely. Is it a masterpiece? Yes.
Director Kunihiko Ikuhara didn't just make a cartoon; he made a critique of the patriarchy using shadow plays and talking monkeys. It established the idea that a "princess" doesn't need to be saved by a man. She can be saved by another girl, or better yet, they can save each other from the system itself. This isn't just subtext; it’s the text.
The Evolution of "Class S" to Real Romance
In the early 1900s, Japanese literature had this concept called "Class S." It was basically a "phase" where schoolgirls could be intensely close, but it had to end once they grew up or got married. Early anime like Maria-sama ga Miteru (Strawberry Panic! too, though that's more explicit) flirted with this.
📖 Related: Questions From Black Card Revoked: The Culture Test That Might Just Get You Roasted
But modern fans are over the "it's just a phase" nonsense.
Today's anime about a princess who fell in love with a girl actually lets the characters commit. We see them struggle with the reality of a royal lineage. If a princess falls for a girl, who carries on the bloodline? This is a real plot point in many manga and light novels that are currently being adapted. It adds a layer of "real-world" stakes to a fantasy setting that makes the payoff feel earned.
Notable Titles You Should Actually Watch
- The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady: Pure joy, great action, and a very clear romantic progression.
- MagiRevo (for short): It’s the one everyone is talking about for a reason.
- I'm in Love with the Villainess: High comedy that turns into high drama. It’s deeper than the title suggests.
- The Executioner and Her Way of Life: This one is darker. It’s about a girl (the Executioner) who has to kill a girl from another world (the "Princess" type figure), but they end up on a journey together. It’s tense.
- Utena: For the history buffs and those who like a bit of weirdness with their romance.
Beyond the "Princess" Label
Sometimes the characters aren't "royalty" in the literal sense, but they occupy that space. In Lycoris Recoil, Chisato and Takina aren't princesses, but Chisato is treated like the "elite" of an underground society. Their bond is the driving force of the show. Fans argue endlessly about whether it's "officially" a romance, but if you have eyes, you can see it.
The industry is still a bit scared of the "Yuri" label because they think it limits the audience. They're wrong. The success of these shows proves that a good story about two women falling in love while trying to survive a magical war or a political coup has universal appeal.
Why This Subgenre is Booming Now
Social media changed everything. Back in the day, a studio could release a show and nobody would know if it was popular except through DVD sales. Now, fan art on X (Twitter) and TikTok trends can make a show a global hit overnight.
👉 See also: The Reality of Sex Movies From Africa: Censorship, Nollywood, and the Digital Underground
Studios like Tsumugi Akita Animation Lab and Diomedéa are realizing there is a massive, underserved market for these stories. It’s not just a "guy's fantasy" anymore. A huge portion of the audience for anime about a princess who fell in love with a girl is actually women who want to see themselves reflected in high-fantasy roles.
Common Misconceptions
People think these shows are all "moe" fluff. They aren't.
Many of them are incredibly violent or politically dense. You’ll have a scene of two girls sharing a quiet moment over tea, followed immediately by a discussion on how to prevent a coup d'état or how to manage the national budget. It’s this blend of the mundane and the monumental that keeps the writing sharp.
Actionable Steps for New Viewers
If you’re looking to dive into this world, don't just pick the first thing you see on a streaming site. Start with MagiRevo if you want something modern and high-quality. If you want something that will make you think for three weeks after it ends, go find Utena.
How to find more:
Check out the "Shoujo Ai" or "Yuri" tags on sites like MyAnimeList, but look specifically for the "Fantasy" or "Isekai" sub-tags to find the princess-themed ones. Also, keep an eye on "Villainess" adaptations; almost half of them are moving toward queer or "subtext-heavy" relationships because that's what the readers are buying.
Support the official releases. The more we watch these shows on Crunchyroll or Netflix, the more the studios realize they should keep making them. We are in a golden age of queer fantasy, and the best way to keep it going is to stay loud about it.