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I've been away from anime for quite some time, but with a little help from Netflix streaming, and a little research I picked a couple anime series to watch, but wanted someone with some experience on the subject to point me in a specific direction, so I hope you can help!

Let me start off by telling you, I grew up cutting my teeth on shows like Speed Racer, Star Blazers, and Battle of The Planets, that was back in the '70s and '80s. From there it went to Robotech/Macross series. Being a young kid and artist I loved these series for what they were, and they hold a very special place in my heart.

Through high school and college, the interest of anime waned, though watching sporadically with shows like Ninja Scroll and Akira, these, I was pretty much indifferent to.

Now, a little older and a little wiser (in my '40's, married and child), I was looking for a series with a little substance, drama, and romance. It seemed like every suggestion pointed to Clannad and Clannad: After Story, so I watched and I was completely blown away by what I had viewed. I never knew something like this could move me, (thinking about it now, makes me tear up a little) made me think, and cherish the life I have with my own family. This series still haunts me, and gets me thinking about how lucky I am to have the people in my life-which is good!

To get away from the seriousness of Clannad, I was pointed in the direction of Shuffle!, which many said was a light version of Clannad, I would agree after watching. I liked the series, despite the gratuitous panty shots, but was really frustrated at how the series ended, or should I say how the main character Rin acted towards the end, that ruined it for me as a whole.

My question? is there another series on par with Clannad? and has a happy ending? and a main character that isn't a complete idiot when it comes to his feelings?

This may sound like a tall order, but even if you can give me one suggestion, I would appreciate it!

Thanks for your time,

Michael

Have you tried Kanon? It's made by the same people as Clannad
and seems to fit that description.

If a happy ending isn't that important to you I would definitely
recommend Air tv. It's my personal favorite romance. Beware
though, it's the saddest anime I have ever seen.

You might want to look at the sticky thread titled "Anime Hunting - NO Recommendation threads allowed!". It has an index of threads on specific genres, including Romance. That said, I like Ai Yori Aoshi, in which the romantic leads know they love each other, but have to hide it for various reasons.

Yes, please take DavidShallCross's advice on both points, as Ai Yori Aoshi may be right up your alley. Though many of its middle episodes get bogged down in typical harem antics, the sincerity of the love between the two leads, and the way it's built up, is well more than enough to balance out the silly distractions along the way.

And since separate recommendation threads are not allowed, this one must be locked.