Love Roma

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I decided to write my first review to Love Roma because it's a story that captivated me at first sight.
To begin with, Love Roma is a very rare gem in the industry. I'm pretty sure it isn't the best written one, the best drawn one... even I can't say it's an outstanding title between the genre, but its charming is beyond that.

WHAT MAKES LOVE ROMA SO UNIQUE?
Instead of being a conventional love manga which principal plot is the blossom of love (with the classic love confession almost at the end of story), Love Roma focus on the growth of that love:
"Yeah, these two now ... are a couple... so what?"
From the very first page, Hoshino and Negishi start to learn a lot of things from each other, their friends, and family, while walking the path of a young love.

ART
Also, I'd like to mention its original artstyle. I've heard many times that Toyoda Minoru's art looks silly or childish, but I actually think it's so refreshing. Even though it may not seem like a "manga style", the designs of literally everything are way distinctive and full of personality... Manga covers and the color pages have beautiful color schemes that fit perfectly with the tone of the story: youth, hope, love, friendship and a bright future.

OVERALL
The story is simple but worthwhile, with funny and charismatic characters. Since LR only has 5 volumes, please don't expect an incredibly deep character development or something. However it's really ok considering its "few" chapters.
This is a story about people, their bonds, love, growing up and life. I really enjoyed it so much. Please read it. I'm sure I will re-read it several times.

(If you liked Love Roma as much as I do, then I'd like to recommend "Takeo-chan Bukkairoku" to you, another work of Toyoda-sensei. Bet you'll love it).

At first glance, the art may put you off as it did with me initially. But within the first chapter, I couldn't stop laughing out loud at the interactions between our two MCs and everyone else in their world.

This is definitely more of a comedy to me but the comedy stems from the romance that is developing between our two lovely MCs. It's everything I wanted in a romcom! They explore their differences in a healthy way, develop their relationship despite it and have the most enjoyable group of friends to be around.

I recommend this series highly to romcom readers. You won't go gaga ... over Hoshino for his hotness or anything like that nor will you be fanning yourself cause Negishi is such a babe...nah, none of those things. But you'll find yourself immerse in their love story from the start to...their new beginning at the end.

In most romance anime/manga, it can take a pretty long time before the guy/girl asks out the one they love. This of course is the main thrust behind the plot, and the main drive behind the character's actions. Clearly none of them have taken lessons from Love Roma's main character Hoshino, who confesses his love on the first page. In the first speech bubble. ON THE FIRST FRAME.

Love Roma then already starts out unusually compared to your typical romance manga. This isn't a story where the end is the relationship, but rather it is a story about the relationship.

It is hard to define this ... manga as shonen/seinen or even shoujo; to be honest I don't think this matters as it has a very 'neutral' target audience in that anybody could read and enjoy it. Of course this means there are not going to be any super-dramatic relationship troubles (pregnancy, cheating, not putting the lid down after business in the toilet etc). This manga will not stir up 'strong' emotions; rather it is very relaxing and you will feel 'happy' and 'pleasant' after reading it (no I'm not high). It will give you that 'warm, fuzzy feeling' inside.

So now to the art. You can tell by the front cover this is not your typical manga either. Please don't let it put you off. Trust me, it will grow on to the point where you couldn't imagine the story being presented in any other way. A good way to describe the art-style would be (and oh boy I hate this word) 'indie'. And to be honest, it was a breath of fresh-air compared to lots of other manga art-styles. Minoru Toyoda's characters are bold and very stylistic (if a bit simple), but his designs convey his character's emotions just as well as more highly-detailed artwork.

In addition, the simple yet functional backrounds along with just the right amount of dialogue (no epic walls of text covering half-the artwork here folks) make this a very easy manga to read. Love Roma is an excellent choice for anyone looking for a slice-of-life/romance manga. Don't come to it expecting the greatest story ever told. Just let is whisk you away to a world with non of the evils of our own. You may even learn something about your own relationship from it.