Apr 10, 2009
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.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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