Whenever an anime airs, a ranking of popular characters becomes a tradition. Since "Shikimori's Not Just a Cutie" isn't a battle manga, but more of a youthful romantic comedy, ranking the characters can be challenging... but since I've taken this opportunity, I'll present a ranking of the most popular characters, incorporating a lot of my personal preferences! Please bear with me, as this ranking is heavily biased towards my personal favorite characters (lol).
10th Place: Isana Rika
Our pick for 10th place is Kujira Rika, a senior at Inutsuka's part-time job! To be honest, I personally like him enough to put him higher, but because he has so few appearances and it's unclear whether he will even appear in the anime, he's in tenth place. He has a cute, devilish aura in his private life and a cool, handsome aura, like an adult version of Shikimori-san. Personally, I like the laid-back Kujira when he's at home. What's great about Kujira is that he's a hard worker, and he himself likes hard-working people. For now, he and Inutsuka are not in a romantic relationship or anything, and they are not even aware of each other, but Inutsuka is also working hard and working part-time jobs while aiming to become a veterinarian, so perhaps there will be developments in the future...? He has only appeared in one episode of the original so far, so he is a character whose reappearance in the future is eagerly awaited.
9th Place: Izumi
My ninth place pick is one of the main characters, Izumi! You might be wondering why I chose the main character to be ninth! But the characters around him are all so charming, and this is just my personal ranking, so please forgive me... Also, I'm also jealous of Izumi, so I ranked him this way (lol). He's not particularly handsome, and there's a scene where the juniors gather around Shikimori, where he's treated rudely. However, he's not defeated by misfortune and has a kind personality, so everyone who gets to know him falls in love with him. He is admired by two beautiful women, Shikimori and Okamidani, which is truly enviable. He's also popular with men, including Inutsuka and Saruogi.
Eighth Place: Okamidani
In eighth place is Okamidani, who appears in this series as an even more handsome man than Shikimori! He's not good at socializing and always spends his time alone, but after meeting Izumi and Shikimori, his personality softens. He also begins to close the gap with the club members he'd previously kept his distance from. However, Ookamitani's destructive power is so great that she sometimes confuses those around her because she doesn't know how to close the gap. When she removes some dirt from the hair of a junior who has just started talking to her, the junior collapses on the spot, and when she accepts an invitation to hang out with her classmates, the atmosphere becomes abuzz. She also naturally attracts attention as a "beautiful girl," and sometimes tries to pick her up when she is walking alone. Among all these scenes, the one where Ookamitani looks the cutest is when she is grooming herself in front of the library where Izumi is.
Seventh Place: Shikimori (Brother)
In seventh place is "Shikimori's Brother"! His name and back have been mentioned here and there, but when he finally shows up, he's incredibly handsome, as expected! He looks just like Shikimori, but in a masculine version. The biggest difference between him and Shikimori is that he's extremely shy around women. He turns bright red and freezes up just by being spoken to. And the other thing is his steel stomach, which means he can eat anything delicious. Shikimori would sometimes ask him to taste food during cooking practice, but he would declare everything delicious, making him completely useless as a taster (lol). He's treated badly at home, and Shikimori would step on his butt when he was lying down. His imperfections are also one of his good points.
Sixth Place: Miyabi Shikimori
Our sixth place pick is Shikimori's mother, Miyabi Shikimori! She embodies all the cool things about Shikimori. Her eyes always shine with a sharp gaze, and people who meet her for the first time generally think she's scary. Even Izumi couldn't help but scream this in his mind, his eyes rolling back (Yamata was sweating profusely, Inutsuka hid behind Izumi, and Nekozaki's eyes were so powerful that they bulged into hearts). In reality, he just had a stiff expression, and according to Shikimori, he was "excited" when Izumi and the others arrived at his house (although it didn't look like it at all from those around him). He does everything efficiently and seems like a perfect superhuman, but in fact he is terrible at cooking. He creates a substance that resembles black dark matter.
Fifth Place: Toru Nekozaki
In fifth place is Toru Nekozaki, an indispensable member of the group! It's no exaggeration to say that the current close-knit group is made possible thanks to Nekozaki. Nekozaki's strength is his ability to quickly become friends with anyone. He became friends with Shikimori after a heated basketball game, and Nekozaki invited him to lunch afterward. He even remembers the obscure Saruogi, even giving up his seat to an old lady on the train. He also relentlessly reached out to the isolated Ookamitani, and they became close friends. He's sensitive and easily moved, and can easily burst into tears when he's happy or moved. While he tends to be overshadowed by Shikimori and Okamidani, Nekozaki is also a very handsome character, and his juniors often have fans who ask for handshakes and polaroid photos.
Fourth Place: Hide Inuzuka
In fourth place goes to Izumi's best friend, Hide Inuzuka! He's the top male character! At first glance, he may seem a bit of a modern-day playboy, but the more you get to know him, the more you'll realize he's a really nice guy, which is one of Inuzuka's great points! He doesn't lie and always speaks his true feelings, so he can say some incredibly cool things with a nonchalant look on his face. He's often treated as the butt of teasing, but he's a reliable and supportive character when it really matters. He aims to become a veterinarian in the future, and is a hard worker who is currently working multiple part-time jobs so as not to put a strain on the family finances. Because he doesn't lie, he makes honest and harsh comments about the coffee that Kujira makes, and Kujira liked this so much that he had to help him with the prototypes until he could make a delicious coffee.
Third Place: Yaman Yui
Our third place pick is the somewhat mysterious Yaman Yui! Yaman's great point is that she's a free-spirited girl whose thoughts are hard to discern. While she's not particularly beautiful, she often behaves in a completely unexpected way, making her an indispensable first-person presence. One time, he was riding alone on a 100 yen children's ride, another time he was so exhausted he collapsed on the spot after zero steps, and another time he was inhaling his food as if he was breathing while eating...his behavior is so inhuman (lol). Because his facial muscles are dead, he basically always has the same expression. For this reason, his rare expressions on the rare occasions he does show are captivating. When choosing a present, he quickly shopped on instinct, and Ookamitani called him "Sensei".
Second Place: Shikimori-san
My second choice is Shikimori-san, the protagonist and main heroine of this work! I was debating whether to put her in first place, but since this time I'm including my personal preferences, I chose her as second place. She's both cute and cool, and excels in both academics and sports, demonstrating exceptional abilities, especially in sports and reflexes. She's saved Izumi from danger countless times, and without Shikimori-san, I wonder if she would have died? There are also scenes like this... While she generally teases Izumi and makes her blush, she also has a sensitive side, and sometimes blushes and is left speechless by Izumi's naive attacks. People tend to like the cute Shikimori and the cool Shikimori, but personally, I like the cute Shikimori who gets embarrassed while on the receiving end.
First Place: Izumi Kyoko
Beating out the main character, Shikimori, for first place is Izumi's mother, Izumi Kyoko! She's a mother packed with moe elements: airheaded, clumsy, and airheaded. While she seems even more laid-back and laid-back than her son, she also shows a motherly side, making her a character full of many charms. Her youthful face makes you want to exclaim, "How could a high school student have such a young mother?", and she has an even more outstanding figure than Shikimori's (this is not official, but she is taller than Shikimori, who is 162cm tall, so she is probably over 170cm tall). If Shikimori's mother is a character who is brimming with "cool," Izumi's mother is a character who is brimming with "cute." We also see her younger self in a past episode with Izumi's father, and she has a different, more charming vibe from her current self! The serious expression and tone she displays on rare occasions are also a highlight.
Popular Character Ranking Summary
So far, I've introduced the popular character rankings for this series. What do you think? I actually considered putting Shikimori-san in first place out of curiosity, but I couldn't give her up (lol). That being said, they're all equally attractive, so ranking them is really difficult... Which character was your favorite?
