Shows Like Children of the Whales
If you loved Children of the Whales's Animation and Drama storytelling, these series deliver a similar experience — chosen for tone, narrative quality, and viewer satisfaction. Each includes where to stream it now.
★ Top Picks

Urusei Yatsura
The invasion of an alien race known as the Oni begins a new life for Ataru Moroboshi, a lecherous trouble-making tenth grader in the small town of Tomobiki. After unwittingly proposing to the Oni princess Lum Invader instead of his sweetheart Shinobu, Ataru becomes a conduit for aliens arriving on Earth, causing all sorts of havoc for him and his companions, not to mention his own reputation!

Ascendance of a Bookworm
When a sickly young girl suddenly becomes obsessed with inventing new things, her family and friends are all puzzled. "What has gotten into Myne?" they wondered, never dreaming that the answer is not a "What" but a "Who": Urano Motosu, a book-loving apprentice librarian who died in an earthquake in Tokyo who somehow found herself in Myne's body! And since Myne's world is still in a medieval stage, where books can only be owned by the elite, the new Myne intends to do everything she can to bring her beloved books to the masses in the time she has left.

Fushigi Yûgi: The Mysterious Play
Junior high school student Miaka lives a normal life in Tokyo until she finds a mysterious book in the library, and she and her friend Yui are transported the Universe of the Four Gods. Upon arriving in this new universe, the girls are immediately attacked by would-be slavers and saved by a dashing young man. When Miaka isn't looking, both Tamahome and Yui vanish. Unbeknownst to Miaka, Yui has been sucked back into the real world. Back in the library, all she can do is read on as Miaka sets out for the city to find the mysterious young boy and save her friend. But what awaits for Miaka isn't what either of the girls expect—and now Miaka's only way back to her world is to become the Priestess of Suzaku and save their world.

Raven of the Inner Palace
The Raven Consort is a special consort living deep in the inner palace who, despite her title, does not perform nighttime duties for the emperor. Some who have seen her say she has the appearance of an old woman, while others describe her as a young girl. The Raven Consort's name is Shouxue. She can use mysterious arts and will accept any favor asked of her, whether it is to find something lost or to curse someone to death. The current emperor, Gaojun, visits her one night to ask a favor. Their meeting exposes a secret that will turn history on its head...

Kimagure Orange Road
It can be hard moving to a new school, and fifteen-year-old Kyosuke has it harder than most. He’s fallen head over heels for his classmate Madoka, a girl who won’t even give him the time of day, and unintentionally ended up dating her best friend, Hikaru, instead. Worst of all, Kyosuke and his family have amazing supernatural powers, but he has to keep them hidden from the rest of the world! How is Kyosuke ever going to balance the affections (or lack thereof) of two girls, schoolwork, and his secret abilities all at the same time?

KamiKatsu: Working for God in a Godless World
Yukito, the son of a questionable cult leader, lost his life due to the cult's ridiculous training practices. Now to his surprise, he was reincarnated into another world! It was an ideal world for him without the concept of "God" or "religion" BUT...! A unique "reincarnating in other world" adventure begins: creating a "religion" in a world without God?!

Rozen Maiden
Jun is a total recluse who won't take a step outside his house and only loves online shopping. When Jun winds up a doll that suddenly appears in his room because of his mail-orders tendencies, he has no idea what he's in for. The doll comes to life and proclaims herself to be 'Shinku'. She later binds Jun to her as a medium, her counterpart, and her magical power source, in an attempt to save his life. And so starts the beginning of a chaotic life for the Sakurada household as more Rozen Maidens arrive on their doorsteps. But what are the Rozen Maidens and why do they exist? And will Jun learn to open up his heart and face his fears? The main characters are: Sakurada Jun - The main lead of the story who has to learn to face his fears, thanks to the arrival of Shinku. The interaction between Jun and Shinku are often funny and at times, touching.

07-Ghost
For over a thousand years, two great countries shared power in the world. One,the Barsburg Empire, was protected by the Eye of Raphael. The other, the Kingdom of Laggs, was protected by the Eye of Michael. Until a brutal war between them saw the Kingdom of Laggs destroyed... Ten years later, an amnesiac young orphan named Teito and his best friend Mikage are attending Barsburg Imperial Military Academy, dreaming of becoming officers. Teito is plagued by disturbing dreams of Laggs Castle just before the fall... Of a man who speaks to him of his “true mission,” and an enemy wielding a blood-drenched sword... But when Teito meets Staff Chief Ayanami, his memories begin to return. This is the enemy from his dream. The man lying in a pool of blood, giving him that warning, was his own father... And Teito himself is the prince of the destroyed Laggs Empire! Teito must leave the army to find his true mission, and the secret of his past.
More Shows Like Children of the Whales

Black Clover
Asta and Yuno are two orphans who want the same thing: to become the Wizard King. Locked in a friendly rivalry, they work hard towards their goal. While Yuno excels at magic, Asta has a problem uncommon in this world: he has no powers! But, on the day they receive their grimoires, they surprise everyone. To reach their goal, they’ll each find their own path to greatness—with or without magic.

Kokkoku, Moment by Moment
In order to save her brother and nephew who have been kidnapped by a mysterious religious group known as the Genuine Love Society, Juri and her family cast a spell using a stone hidden by her grandfather to enter the world of stopped time known as Stasis. However, when they infiltrate the kidnapper's base, they're met by other people who can also move about freely. With grotesque creatures lurking about, will they be able to escape the parallel world and return to their normal lives?!

Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya
Illyasviel von Einzbern is an ordinary elementary school student who becomes a magical girl when the magical Kaleidostick Ruby deems her a more suitable master than the sorceress, Rin Tohsaka. Rin, who had been tasked by the wizard Zelretch to collect the seven Class Cards containing the spirits of Heroic Spirits from legend, finds that she is unable to change Ruby's mind and must supervise Illya in completing the task of collecting the Class Cards. During Illya's adventures, she receives a friend and rival in a girl named Miyu, the contracted master of the Kaleidostick Sapphire, which similarly abandoned its original master and Rin's rival, Luvia Edelfelt.

Chained Soldier
Destructive monsters from the Mato dimension threaten the earth, while women gifted with powers from Peaches try to stop them. But to save the world, Yuuki must be willing to become Chief Kyoka's servant both on the battlefield and at home.

Sugar Apple Fairy Tale
Anne Halford is on her way to fulfill her dream of becoming a confectionary artisan, a Silver Sugar Master—however, the road to her destination is filled with a world of danger. To protect herself, she reluctantly buys Challe, a fairy forced into a life of servitude, but she seeks friendship more than a lackey. Torn between his freedom and her needs, she must confront what the sweet life is worth.

The Qwaser of Stigmata
When Mafuyu Oribe and her adopted sister Tomo rescue a strange wounded man, they have no idea what they’re getting involved with or what the consequences will be. Alexander Nikolaevith Hell is an Iron Qwaser, one of many opposing factions of super-warriors.

KADO: The Right Answer
Kojiro Shindo is a highly-skilled negotiator working for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As his plane at Haneda airport prepares to take off, a huge mysterious cube appears from the sky. 'It' expands rapidly, and absorbs the passenger plane and its 252 passengers. The cube's name is "Kado." A strange being called Yaha-kui zaShunina appears from within Kado and tries to make contact with humanity. Shindo, who was been absorbed by Kado, ends up taking on the role of mediator between Yaha-kui zaShunina and humanity. Who is Yaha-kui zaShunina? What does he want?

Seikimatsu Occult Academy
Occult Academy is a Japanese anime television series produced by A-1 Pictures and Aniplex and directed by Tomohiko Itō. The 13-episode anime premiered in Japan on the TV Tokyo television network on July 6, 2010. Occult Academy is the third project of Anime no Chikara. It was shown by Crunchyroll an hour after the Japanese broadcast. A manga adaptation of the anime is currently serialized in Media Factory's Monthly Comic Alive. A series of DVD/Blu-ray releases are made over six volumes. Volumes one through five each contain two episodes from the series and comes with extras, such as bonus songs sung by various voice actors for the characters. The final volume covers the last three episodes There are also four spinoff episodes, the first of which is included with the second volume. The series has been picked up in North America by NIS America, who released the series on Blu-ray on May 8, 2012.

Why Raeliana Ended Up at the Duke's Mansion
Living inside a fairy tale may sound like a dream, but for this heroine, it’s more of a nightmare. After her mysterious death, Rinko is reborn as Raeliana—a loved and wealthy character in a novel. But she knows the ending: her murder at the hands of her fiancé. So, she hatches a plan to stay alive, one that involves a devilish duke and a phony engagement. Can she rewrite her story?

As a Reincarnated Aristocrat, I'll Use My Appraisal Skill to Rise in the World
Ars Louvent is reincarnated in another world as the young son of a minor noble who owns a small domain. Ars is not particularly strong or intelligent, but he was born with the Appraisal Skill that's able to see others' abilities and statuses. He uses his skill to find the best hidden talents in the world to make their small, weak domain into the best.

A Certain Magical Index
Touma Kamijou is a student living in Academy City, a highly advanced place in terms of technology. Despite being gauged as a level zero esper (no powers), he possesses on his right hand the Imagine Breaker, an ability that negates any power whatsoever. Touma finds a young girl named Index who is trying to run away from Necessarius, a powerful magic organization that she is member of. Blessed with the skill of memorizing any sort of information, she holds 103,000 forbidden magical books within her head. As science and magic cross paths, Touma must face several dangers amid espers and magicians who appear in the exciting scientific town.

Fate/Apocrypha
There was once a Holy Grail War waged by Mages and Heroic Spirits in a town of Fuyuki. However, one Mage took advantage of the chaos of World War II to steal a Holy Grail. Several decades have passed, and the Yggdmillennia family, who took upon the Holy Grail as its symbol, defected from the Mages' Association. Furious, the Association sent forces to deal with the Yggdmillennia, but were defeated. With the Holy Grail system changed, war at an unprecedented scale breaks out.
Why These Shows Are Similar
These recommendations share core qualities with Children of the Whales (2017): Animation and Drama themes, similar pacing, and comparable production quality. NoBadPicks uses TMDB collaborative filtering, genre matching, and AI analysis to surface series most likely to resonate with fans of Children of the Whales.
See full details for Children of the Whales (2017)