New Manga Impression: Hananoi-kun to Koi no Yamai

Synopsis

Hananoi is a young man who searches for true love… and finds it in a girl who offers him her umbrella one snowy day. Hotaru is the complete opposite. This is their clumsy and dramatic love story.

The Good

After reading so many shoujo works that have similar takes on romance, it’s nice to see a series give a different take on it and falling in love for the first time. What makes the aspect well though is in the character portrayal of female protagonist Hotaru. While she does have a certain part of her that’s similar to other unique female protagonists in shoujo, the way that she deals with the relationship and doesn’t have huge changes to her or her personality is rather nice. What’s more, with how low key the tone of the series is and refreshingly lacking the usual cliches, it really brings out the characters.

Hotaru is not the only who makes as a compelling character for the story though as Hananoi. More than not being the typical male lead, he’s got an interesting twist to him and it’s always interesting to see the guy chasing/courting the girl without being too extra or go over the top basically. Other than the two the side characters also helped in bringing the story and the scenarios that happen between the couple is a nice change of pace as well.

The Bad

While Hananoi makes for an interesting character, he can also be a little too intense and that’s one of the downfalls of the series. Sure, it added a little spice to the character’s relationship along with some tension but at the same time the third chapter of the series brought the relationship to a rush when it had the characters go to Hananoi’s house. There’s still a chance for the series to work this out and pan out the pace like in the beginning. Other than this there is no real issue to be found with the series.

Conclusion

This is a shoujo that gives a refreshing change of pace in terms of a pair falling love with one another. It doesn’t over exaggerate things and for the most part, it manages to go without any major cliches and bring in a rather sweet and light-hearted work. The latest chapter seemed to have rushed things a little but for the most part the characters were given a lovely framework and there is still room for growth and development for the rest of the series.

Rating: 7/10