2.5-jigen Kareshi

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An otaku girl, who is obsessed with a particular otome game hero, moves in with a new family. They have a cute son who looks just like her 2D crush, but reacts violently around anything otaku. So, she decides to hide her true nature from him. You can guess what happens from there.

It's predictable and tries to cram a bit too much plot into it's eight chapters, but the characters are fun. If you like short, sweet, and vanilla shoujo, it's worth reading.

Story (6): The story starts off pretty solid--if predictable--but the second volume is very rushed. There is no ... time to explore anyone's feelings in depth (this is, after all, a shoujo romance). Also, one of the plot twists at the end is laughably unbelievable. Still, it's not a bad story.

Art (8): The art is quite good. The characters are easily recognizable, the clothes and interesting and varied, the action is clear.

Character (8): The characters are all likable. The whole "allergic to otaku" conceit isn't very well done, but otherwise both leads are likable (even if both are prone to melodramatic overreactions). And the side characters are all funny.

Enjoyment (7): If the plot were paced better, this would be a really fun series. As it is; it's pretty good.

Overall (7): The plot issues keep it from being great. But if you like short, sweet, vanilla shoujo romances, this fits the bill quite adequately.

This short manga really hit hard. It seems like it tackled some real issues and events that some people might have experienced. At least it sometimes felt like someone had read my diary or something!

An otaku girl who is in love with a 2D-character... We've all been there. But then BOOM reality starts hitting her! How can she manage relationships in real life?

What really made my heart warm and fuzzy was how Koino (the main character) starts to realize how "real" and strong real life romances can be. How holding hands for the first time is a big deal and all...
It's funny because I ... used to be about the same age as Koino when I got into my first serious relationship. Kinda similar-ish events occurred to me and it's really strange. It's so heartwarming (and heartbreaking) to nostalgisize about my younger-teen years through this manga.

So... Is it any good? Now that you see my rating, no, it's nothing special to be honest. I tried to lower the score and be more objective so my review could be accurate for you.
If you can't relate to the manga, or if you don't like Shoujo/romantic manga's, then this is just an okay read. It's definitely not bad, and it might make you laugh a few times how it pokes fun at the whole otaku -scene and all, but it's not a masterpiece. I liked it so much as I did because my personal feelings and memories mixed in there.
The overall story is alright, sometimes it felt a little bit rushed (the developing feelings and stuff), but this is a really short manga to begin with.
The art is alright. Pretty basic for a romantic shoujo -manga... I Don't think I'll recognize the artist anywhere since they don't have a style that stands out too much, but there really isn't any other complaint about the art. otherwise the art stayed consistent and there wasn't too many "weird mango animu anatomy poses" in there, so the art was enjoyable, too bad it's really similar to many other shojo-manga artists...
The comedy might be the biggest selling point of this manga. Like I said earlier, it makes jokes about otakus and it throws in a few misunderstandings that are a bit tragicomic, but the story is still not a 100% comedy, so if you came for the laughs, pick something else. Afterall, this is a romantic manga aimed at young teenaged girls so there is other stuff in there too than just comedy. It's about ones first love and relationship. (or a second love in this case? Eh.)

Should you read it? It's not a waste of time, and if you got the feeling that you could relate to the manga or you otherwise like short romance stories, this just might be the package for you!

This manga is SO. FLIPPING. CUTE!! Not only is it sweet and fluffy, but it also has a pretty good message about not hiding yourself and accepting others for who they are, so even though it's really short, I'd definitely recommend it!

Story: 7/10 (good)

The story is follows our heroine, Tsumugi, an otaku obsessed with her favorite otome game character, Tokki, and her developing relationship with a real-life Tokki lookalike named Tokio, who claims to be allergic to otaku. The premise of being an otaku with a passion is super relatable, and I loved seeing that represented. However, once Tokio confesses to Tsumugi, ... she feels the need to hide her true nerdy self from him in order to not make him mad at her, until the secret slips out... The story isn't as well-developed as it could be, but it definitely wasn't bad, even though some minor characters (like Renren) just come and go. The ending was sweet and heartwarming, too!

Art: 7/10 (good)

The art style for this manga was really cute! I loved how the mangaka drew the characters' eyes and the various outfits were drawn very cutely, too. Tsumugi was definitely drawn more expressive than Tokio, but his expressions were still done decently. The proportions weren't too exaggerated, like shoujo manga sometimes do, and the more active poses didn't look super stiff, which is always good to see. I did think the use of screentones could've been better (yes, Tokio is a sparkly guy, we get it), but overall the art was really cute and fit the vibe of the manga well.

Character: 7/10 (good)

When I say the characters were good, I'm talking about Tsumugi in particular, even though Tokio's development wasn't horrible. I liked seeing how Tsumugi coped with her first-ever 3D crush, eventually fought to stay true to herself, and learned a bit about love and honesty on the way. At first, she hid her otaku-ness from Tokio to not make him mad, but as the story goes on, she finds she cannot build a strong relationship with him or be happy about any of her own decisions if she continues to hide the truth, and eventually comes clean. I liked seeing her slowly gain the bravery to be proud of being an otaku. Tokio, the love interest of the story, starts off very prejudiced against otakus because of an experience from his childhood, and harbors many of the negative stereotypes held against otakus and anime/manga/game fans not only in Japan, but worldwide. However, as he falls in love with Tsumugi, he eventually comes to accept her for who she is and tries to learn more about the truth about otaku culture. Their romance was also cute, even though they're not one of my all-time favorite manga ships.

Enjoyment: 8/10 (very good)

This manga is really fun to read! It's short, so it's easy to finish in less than half an hour, and the story and art are fun and easy to understand.

Overall: 7/10 (good)

Overall, "2.5-jigen Kareshi" is not super deep, even though its messages are definitely meaningful, and the romance, despite its cuteness, isn't anything extremely unique, so if you just want a simple and fluffy romance, this is the manga for you! Don't expect too much from it, and it probably won't end up in your favorites list, but it's a good manga to pass the time with and make you want more husbandos (be they 2D or 3D). You can never have too many of those, right?