This is another seasonal series that I left behind last year and I wish I didn't. But looking through my list of anime from last spring, my most was pretty full. At the same time, it just wasn't on my radar so I blatantly ignored it completely. When it started to explode, it was already too late in the season for me to start my watch because it was too far gone. As I keep saying with seasonals, you either get on the train when it starts or you have to rush to catch up and jump onto it. I missed this train until now but I am glad that it stopped at the station where I could watch it at my leisure. Every seasonal series is a train that picks up steam every week until it's over.
My Love Story With Yamada-kun is an adorable and relatable romantic comedy focusing on a relationship that formed based on players of the MMORPG Forest of Savior meeting in person. This is where our protagonists Akane Kinoshita and Akito Yamada meet and start an interesting relationship. That and there is a whole unit of really cool characters that come with that group and Akane and Yamada are the two that group wants to form a relationship. I should say that Akane is a 20 year old college student and Yamada is a professional gamer but is in his last year of high school.
So there is that small age gap where Akane can drink and does and Yamada is not there yet. At the same time, Akane is living in an apartment with her best friend Momoko she is going to college with and Yamada-kun is a professional FPS gamer that also lives by himself. So that sense of emotional maturity isn't that far behind from Akane at all. In some cases, Yamada is a bit more emotionally mature than Akane who spends money on clothes she can't afford in the first episode to show up the person who just dumped her. A part of the show is Akane gaining some more maturity while hanging out with Yamada and her guild offline.
I am continuing to gush on the pair a bit, because they are so multi faceted. Akane can be petty and is a lightweight when she drinks, but she is very straightforward and friendly too. She does get caught in an awful prank in the middle of the show and she realizes that the kid behind it didn't want this stranger to suddenly break into their group. Akane also worries consistently if she is actually ready for a relationship with Yamada or anyone and she doubts herself constantly because she doesn't know why her previous boyfriend dumped her. What I am saying is that I really like her.
Yamada-kun himself isn't as complex or intriguing as Akane at first. He is someone that has trouble connecting with people. Girls have a crush on him because he is very attractive, but he doesn't know why because he has a lot of trouble connecting with others. So clearly, this straightforward and somewhat clumsy girl does start causing him to open up a bit more. I really like seeing those moments where it seemed like it would be aloof and in his own zone and he actually does see and notice Akane. Or those moments where he would untie his shoes to tie them again while Akane was talking to him. Also, he was the one to confess to Akane in the end. The whole show builds up to that moment and its so good guys. This shoujo is wonderful.
It would be mean to start closing out this post without mentioning the side cast because this show has a good, smaller cast of people around it. I really like Momoko, Akane's roommate, who gives out some good advice while continually failing to find a significant other herself. She is hilarious and very soft and comfy. Eita is another person in Akane and Yamada's guild because he is the leader and he can be mature but also very excitable while designing his avatar to look like his sister. Haruna, his sister, is a very lonely middle schooler who likes keeping her small bubble of people she trusts until Akane starts to open that up a bit. The best boy herself is the business owner Kamota who is the soft older guy who keeps it all together. All of that is a simple run through of all of them, but they are all so multifaceted. I appreciate them.
I don't know what else to say here besides to say that My Love Story With Yamada-Kun kind of rocks. I am glad that I didn't have to wait week after week for each episode because the cliff hangers are really good and make you want more. I'm glad to just have that more available immediately except for season two that we are all waiting for. I think the fact that it looks like Chihayafuru with some scenes story boarded the same way helped it too because this was produced by Madhouse too and I am sure there has to be a lot of the same crew working on Chihayafuru that worked on this one too. I know a lot of people who have watched it already, but yeah, I highly recommend it. It's such a good shoujo series.
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