Best Ecchi Anime of 1997

After a devastating earthquake caused Tokyo and many parts of the world to sink beneath the sea, Aika works as a salvager, recovering artifacts from the flooded remains. Her normal life changes when she takes on a risky assignment to find and recover the enigmatic Lagu, learning that multiple groups are chasing after the same objective.

A Keio University (one of the top three colleges in Japan) exam candidate, Touma Inaba, is interrupted when a cute young girl, Urara Kasuga, arrives at his hotel room door. She later turns out to be his cousin who he barely remembers from his childhood. Urara, who had felt something special for him (an other-than-cousinly-love), invites Touma to live with her since he has no place to stay other than the hotel room. Before taking the test, Touma meets Meiko Yotsuba, a beautiful, sophisticated woman also trying to get into Keio. Meiko gets into Keio but Touma does not, due to a cold Urara had given him shortly before. Although he did not make it, he pretends he does to earn the respect of Meiko. Touma is caught up in a love triangle with Urara and Meiko, while struggling to keep Meiko believing he's really a Keio student and still be there for Urara at the same time.

In the world of Photon Earth, a kind-hearted young man with incredible physical strength bears the word "Baka" (meaning "idiot" in Japanese) carved into his forehead, likely done by his playful companion Aun Freya. His life grows more complicated when he becomes engaged to Keyne Acqua, a beautiful runaway pilot, after he marks her forehead with the same word. His troubles escalate as he must shield both Aun and Keyne from Papacharino, a malicious figure seeking to steal the secrets of "Aho" (another term for idiot) energy hidden within Keyne's grandfather's spaceship.

In "I Dream of Mimi," Akira Takaoka—the sole member of the Electric Brain Study Society who doesn't own a computer—is thrilled when an electronics store advertises a sale on a PC9821 for ninety-eight thousand yen, limited to the first five customers. But when he arrives, the PCs are already sold out. A mysterious stranger then approaches him in a back alley with the identical offer. Akira agrees, only to discover that the computer he gets is a PC2198 rather than a 9821. This PC2198, called Mimi, is an advanced bio-computer that requires a constant supply of sperm to operate. Now Mimi must protect Akira from the sinister Apple Nacintosh sisters, who aim to dominate Japan's PC market. Can the embarrassed Akira provide Mimi with the necessary sperm to win their conflict?

On her sixteenth birthday, Honey Kisaragi goes to meet her father, only to find him wounded and being chased by attackers. A gang and a monster soon confront them, but Detective Seiji Hayama intervenes. Despite his efforts, the monster manages to kidnap her father, leaving Honey heartbroken. Returning home, she discovers her house has been demolished. A mysterious and attractive stranger then appears, giving her a device that allows her to transform into various forms to battle the monsters responsible for her father's abduction. Honey uses this power to combat Panther Zora, the mastermind behind these malicious acts.

A young schoolgirl meets a strange dancing old man, at first believing he is part of a bizarre dream. This encounter, however, draws her into a series of fantastical, fanservice-filled magical girl adventures. She is joined by Ongo, a small creature whose true motives may be sinister, and Nami, a quiet girl who possesses mysterious abilities.

In the year 4999, humanity has set aside warfare and now channels its competitive spirit into intergalactic sports tournaments. Among these is an all-female competition where participants vie for the prestigious "Cosmo Beauty" title. Akari Kanzaki enrolls at the University Satellite with the goal of becoming the next Cosmic Beauty—a honor her mother once held. During her initial days at the university, she makes new friends, faces tough rivals, and works hard to rise to the top among the Battle Athletes.

Honey Kisaragi appears to be an ordinary high school student until the criminal organization Panther Claw kidnaps her father, a renowned scientist. In his absence, he leaves her a gadget that allows her to transform into Cutey Honey, a valiant warrior with red hair and a sword.

A school is plagued by spirit infestations, and the captivating student Kocho Enoki employs her alluring charm and supernatural abilities to defend it. Alongside her sister and Kosaku, who serves as their human shield, Kocho strives to rid the school of the ghostly onslaught. But they come across a female spirit who remains unaffected by Kocho's seductive tactics.

Cacao and Parfait are dispatched on a mission across time and space to locate the Fourth Warrior, Lamunes, in order to prevent the galaxy from falling into destruction. However, when they find him, Lamunes is commanding the marauding Giga Genos invasion fleet. Determined to subjugate every world under his tyrannical rule, Lamunes pushes forward with his conquest. With the aid of a plucky orphan, Cacao and Parfait must stop Lamunes from seizing control of the universe.

Originally released on VHS at the 53rd Comiket in Winter 1997.