Why Netflix’s Latest Anime Has Fans (And Critics) Calling It a Must-Watch Masterpiece
Anime lovers can’t stop raving about Netflix’s newest hit—and it’s not just hype; here’s why this series is dominating watchlists everywhere.
Netflix quietly slid one of the coziest fall anime into the lineup: The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity. It is a weekly release, not a binge drop, and yes, cake is involved. If you want something soft, funny, and a little high school messy, this one is worth a look.
The setup: two schools, one brick wall of gossip
On one side you have Chidori Public High School, the place everyone says takes in delinquent boys. Next door is Kikyo Private Academy Girls' High School, a prim-and-proper haven for wealthy, honorable girls. The campuses literally touch, but the students do not. The girls look down on the boys, the boys play tough to save face, and the rumor mill does the rest.
Boy meets girl (at a bakery, obviously)
Rintaro Tsumugi helps at his parents bakery. Kaoruko Waguri is a regular who can put away an impressive amount of cake. They meet, sparks happen, and she bolts, mortified. Rintaro assumes she is scared of him because he is tall and looks intimidating — which tracks with how his classmates misread him constantly.
Vibes and themes
The first two episodes are gentle and wholesome, very slice-of-life. It is less about grand declarations and more about teen realities: bullying, trying to connect, wanting to be seen for who you are. Rintaro is stuck under the weight of everyone else’s assumptions. Waguri is open-hearted and a bit naive — she even waits for him outside Chidori’s gates, which turns into a spectacle for both schools. A romance is clearly forming, and since these two are crossing a very gossipy border, the drama is baked in.
Why people already care
This is adapted from Saka Mikami’s manga, which has racked up award nods, hit high marks on popularity charts, and has 7.5 million copies in circulation as of September 2025. Translation: the source material has serious momentum.
Inside baseball: Netflix is going weekly on this one
Netflix did a mini two-episode drop to start and is shifting to weekly Sundays after that. For a service famous for binges, this rollout is the slow-burn approach — which fits a show that lives on small moments.
- New episodes hit Netflix on Sundays
- Episodes 1 and 2 are streaming now
- Episode 3 drops September 14
- Season 1 runs 13 episodes; the finale lands November 23
- Japan TV premiere: July 6, 2025 on Tokyo MX, Gunma TV, BS11, and Tochigi TV
Who made it, who is in it
Series creator: Saka Mikami (manga). Director: Jiro Arimoto. Writer: Honoka Katou. It is TV-PG and plays in the Animation/Drama/Comedy/Romance sandbox.
Voice cast highlights: Yoshinori Nakayama as Rintaro Tsumugi, Honoka Inoue as Kaoruko Waguri, Kikunosuke Toya as Shohei Usami, and Koki Uchiyama as Saku Natsusawa.
Should you watch?
If you want a calm, autumn-friendly watch with a warm art style and low-key stakes that still matter, queue it up. The show pairs suspiciously well with a hot drink and something sweet. The first two episodes are on Netflix now; if you are committing to the bit, make it cake.