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I will start with addressing the elephant in the room, the rushed ending. I don't know why this was done, but I disliked it, I guess everyone did. This story deserved a better, proper ending; but I guess we will not get it. That's what stopped it from becoming a great romance/Yuri manga. Thar being said, I still want you to read this manga. And allow me to explain why.

Lets focus on the good part, the drama in this story is top tier. You really feel for the characters and get invested on the story. There is a lot of angst and sadness, all stemming ... from our protagonist Uta falling in love with her brother's wife (who is happily married). But the tension, the angst and Uta's attempts of reconciling with her love that she understands will not be answered are all told in a grounded manner. The pacing of the story is really good too. Throughout the story, Uta tries to come to terms with her unrequited love for Kaoru (her sister-in-law), Kaoru deals with her trauma and abandonment issues and Uta, Kaoru and Uta's brother all live under the same roof constantly being bounded by the shackles made from kindness. Uta's heartbreak is made even more visible through the side characters and the story leads towards it's untimely end.

This story might seem to be raising flags (forbidden love, age gap, ntr(!)) I can say without spoiling that the story has nothing that feels out of place. Uta readily understands just how bad her position sounds like and the age gap is pretty acceptable. In terms of Yuri with good drama, this is top shelf and if the author could just flesh out that ending, I would not hesitate a second to call this the best Yuri drama I have read (and I have read my fair share). Not even as Yuri, just a romantic drama this is really good.

This is a really, really cute story and a very comfortable read.

I can end the review right there, and it would still convey the central feeling we get from the story. It's a story about playful Kubo befriending the socially invisible Shiraishi, and they are mad cute together. Now, what do I mean by socially invisible?

Shiriashi Junta has no presence, so people never seem to find him/notice him. Apart from his classmate Kubo Nagisa. She was wondering what we are all wondering, how much can Shiraishi do and get away with. Kubo finds out that Shiraishi is a normal, polite boy who is ... just socially awkward because nobody talks to him (because they can't seem to ever find him). So she decides to tease him a little, but very wholesomely.

Now, this premise seems familiar, but there's some differences that makes it different. One, no sexual trope that we usually see in these kind of stories. No fan service, sorry (Kubo family does have a legendary pout though, which is to die for). Second, though very ridiculous, there is some explanation about the Male MC being dense. He is just not dense because he is an anime protagonist, he is dense because he has no social interaction with people. And even if he is dense, there is hint of a budding relationship. So Shiraishi is a more loveable MC compared to many other generic MC. And Kubo despite being a bit mischievous never comes of anything other than playful. The interactions between them and the side characters are always cute and wholesome.

No, there is no unnecessary drama. No, there is no ***** NTR or such bullshit. No, there is no full-fledged romance (yet). It's a very sweet and wholesome SoL with romance. You have been warned. If you are looking for dramatic romance with 5-way harem, this is not gonna be your cup of tea.

* Dead fisheye, ultra smart protagonist saving the day on every occasion- check
* Tsundere main girl with long hair who wants to do everything on her own - check
* Shallow and generic side characters who does the same thing again & again, mostly just there for plot convenience and nothing else- check
* Gag characters that only has one joke - double check
* Cliché "not-at-all-overused" plot and absolutely piss poor antagonists - double check

An aggressively mediocre anime trying to throw in edgy quotes here and here and trying to act smarter than they are, the anime equivalent of a 2nd semester Philosophy major. I ... wanted to drop this after 5 episodes but didn't because I tried my best to see through it, hoping there might be some payoff in the end. None. I had the worst cocktail of the year still saw that ending coming. The characters, the dialogues, the setup were so cringey....it's as if the studio bought them from the dollar store bargain bin.

It has a second season for some reason, won't watch it unless I get paid.

I heard some praises about the manga after the anime was announced, and picked up the manga after watching a couple of episode of the anime. I expected the manga to be better and it was, question is....how better?

The main element of the story is as the name suggests, Hori and Miyamura. It's a rather simple love story between our main characters, no overly dramatic fabricated tensions, no "will things ever happen" trope like your average romcom anime. For most parts, it's a straight as arrow love story, our main characters meet, like each other, falls in love even though they are quirky and that's ... it. And, as a couple they carry the story nicely, they are cute together, their chemistry is nice. But, that's the first part of the story or rather the main part of the story. Once the side storylines begin, the writers treatment of our main duo, specially Hori, becomes inconsistent and weak. Inconsistent because the author does not address the questions that arises from Hori's transformation. It's possible for the readers to understand the change, but the story on every other aspect has been a no-brainer, so this part remains inconsistent from the rest of the story. Spoiler: As other people might have mentioned, Hori is a Masochist for Miyamura but because Miyamura is a sweet guy by nature, he doesn't entertain her indulges. So Hori later on becomes overtly violent which betrays what was established earlier. It's not difficult to think about, but still this development was not necessary in my opinion.

The side characters are given ample attention, too much at this point, and their stories are also fleshed out. But as a reader, I am more focused about the story of Hori and Miyamura, and it feels like the author is basically holding us hostage. It's a good read, the characters are lovely, and the story is sweet. But, at this point the story is a slice of life and that's not what we signed up for. It would be better if the story is not unnecessarily drawn out and Hori-Miyamura is given the a proper ending that doesn't feel out of place.