Kimi wa Houkago Insomnia

High schooler Ganta Nakami has trouble falling asleep most nights. As a result, he is irritable at school, always searching for an opportunity to find a secluded place to doze off. On the other hand, Isaki Magari is a free spirit who is well liked by her friends, but no one is aware of her sleep disorder. She makes use of the school's abandoned astronomy club observatory as her secret sleeping bunker when she needs to get some shut-eye.

As fate would have it, Nakami finds Magari napping in the observatory. When Magari discovers that she and Nakami have something in common, she offers to share her secret sleeping spot with her fellow insomniac. As the two find warmth in each other's company, the struggles they face start to become easier to confront.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Magari, Isaki Main

Tamura, Konomi Japanese

Nakami, Ganta Main

Satou, Gen Japanese

Shiromaru, Yui Supporting

Tomatsu, Haruka Japanese

Ukegawa, Tao Supporting

Yamashita, Seiichirou Japanese

Kurashiki, Usako Supporting

Noto, Mamiko Japanese

Kanikawa, Motoko Supporting

Lynn Japanese

Anamizu, Kanami Supporting

Fujiwara, Natsumi Japanese

Magari, Haya Supporting

Amamiya, Sora Japanese

Nono, Mina Supporting

Morohoshi, Sumire Japanese

Softball Club Advisor Supporting

Soumi, Youko Japanese

Sasaki, Reiko Producer

Nagai, Chiharu Producer

Kashimura, Emi Producer

Nishikawa, Kyouhei Producer

Reviews

Nov 9, 2025

keey_

Recommended

Insomniacs After School "A+" (9/10 MAL)

Story/Plot (9.5/10) - I would like to start off by saying that the romance genre is probably the genre I most heavily criticize in Anime. In a genre filled with over milked tropes and clones of one another, Insomniacs After School manages to set itself apart from any romance anime I’ve seen to this point. Insomniacs After School is incredibly well put together and refreshing using more or less somewhat common tropes in the genre and breathes fresh air into them. Even with this being a high-school romance the tone feels much more mature, something I can appreciate as I ... often abstain from the rom-com genre because of its lock of originality and troubles of falling within common barriers. Insomniacs After School follows two sleep deprived insomniacs, Isaki Magari, and Ganta Nakami as they find their way through restless days and anxious nights. Through their common insomniac struggles the two form a friendship and establish an Astronomy club as the two find warmth and comfort in each other's company in order to confront their nightly struggles. Personally I’ve never seen an anime approach a topic such as insomnia and be so interesting before while showing an interesting story to supplement or even work in tandem with said topic so well. One of the things I feel most appreciative of is that the pacing of the romance feels authentic and organic coming from the strong moments, chemistry, and surprising lack of filler. Even with the lack of filler the anime gives more than enough time to each plot point which does not diminish the value or development of story points or the characters at all in fact strengthening them. I feel that it's really hard to find these kinds of shows that feel as though every moment is important in driving some part of the story forward.

Characters (9/10) - Something that I super appreciate about Ganta and Isaki is that their personalities and interaction feel real, which is something I'm always looking for and often value the most in anime, being one of the biggest reasons why I love Lycoris Recoil so much. Because of their incredible chemistry it leads to an incredible romance with clear character development fueled by their contagious laughs, teasing of one another, fluid and natural banter, and emotional connection and care for each other. This is probably one of the easiest relationships I’ve ever watched to appreciate and come to enjoy with both characters feeling equal in their story, development, and interaction.

Animation/Art (8.5/10) - A huge driver within this anime is the emphasis on the Astronomy club as well as photography. Because of this, our story is going to hold more emphasis on the atmospheric side, something the studio absolutely lands, with its stunning night visuals and amazing atmosphere that only amplifies the story making key moments hit with so much more oomph. What the studio does so well as it pays attention to the vibe in the moment and supplements it with these moments.

Music/Sound/Audio (8.5/10) - To add on to the vibe and art we are given above, the audio throughout Insomiacs, is just as aware. Because the vibe lands on an atmospheric feel the important moments are able to hit just as hard with important attention to ensuring that moments feel right within the audio. Silent moments feel just as immersive if not more than those with audio attached with moments of importance, while moments in everyday life feel natural. The sound design is very good from what I noticed, with the silent/atmospheric moments feeling natural if not more impactful which is important considering the themes we approach with astronomy. Additionally moments of romance also feel natural and fluid. The last thing, I’d like to mention is the Opening and Ending which are both incredible with the music and animation being amazing supplements to the overall story and theming. Very rarely do I watch openings or endings, and maybe it's because I planned on reviewing this anime, however this opening I came to watch multiple times with the ending I had come to appreciate as I watched more.

Gripes: My only gripes do not take away from the show. Overall this is an incredibly well put together anime, however I do wish that the animation and audio could have been more special. I might be getting spoiled by the amazing scores and animation of other amazing shows and other details however where the score gets deducted stems from its lack of powerful score and animation. It's not to say that they are bad however. There's nothing wrong with these details as it already feels natural, however there can always be stuff to strike the right emotion. This is honestly what truly sets me away from declaring this an S tier show with a 10/10 on MAL. If this anime gets a season 2 I could really see this show moving into the S tier bracket easily.

Overall & Resonance (9.3/10) - Overall this anime is probably a top 5 romance anime from what I’ve seen behind the likes of A Silent Voice and sitting at a table as equals with anime like Blue Box, Horimiya, and The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten. Sadly I’ve yet to find a Yuri that can sit at this table. Something especially important to me is if an anime manages to connect with me or leave me feeling a certain way, something that Insomniacs After School manages to do with ease. During my watching experience this anime left me with goosebumps in certain moments while also leaving me inspired and provoked. I felt as though this anime shared lots of moments that I personally connect with when approaching topics like hobbies and sleep. If you're looking for a good quality romance watch, containing characters with good chemistry that feel real, personalities and interaction that can resonate with you, and a feel good yet impactful viewing experience, then I’d recommend giving Insomniacs After School a watch. I've only recently gotten into manga with the likes of Chainsaw Man, however this watch makes me really want to get into the manga. Getting a season 2 would be amazing!

Hi, this is my first review. I might do more of these, and I might not. Its still pretty rough but this was a fun write.

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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Aug 31, 2025

UserWithaName

Mixed Feelings

This show evokes a weird feeling out of me while thinking back about it, kinda of like a false sense of nostalgia. Every time I see screenshots or frames of this show I feel like it was a cool, dramatic, really interesting show but every time I think about it I can't ever remember anything being that interesting. I liked the ending but its no heartstring-puller. Nothing of this show particularly stands out as great but it is in no way a bad show. I was pretty invested in it for a day or two but I really don't know why. I can't say this ... is worth a watch just because it feels like it was supposed to be so much better than it was. I'd say it's the absolute middle road of romance animes. The romance is good, prolly somewhere between high 6 and low 8 out of ten, but that is geniunely the only theme ever explored. The insomnia thing is more or less irrelevant and just a means of initial bond between the two mcs. And astronomy club is essentially a larger off shoot of the same bonding purposes. I'm like 70% sure I finished the show disappointed, but I would still consider it nothing less (or frankly more) than solid. Maybe its my fault and I was just like "space cool stars cool very awesome interesting amazing 9/10 anime" but honestly coming in to the show without knowing what it was about (somehow) I woulda prolly clicked off of it during the first episode.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Jun 29, 2024

Hachiman010

Not Recommended

Inconsistent, Plotless, Complete waste of time.

There is literally no story, the romance is also pretty bland without any drama. Honestly pretty disappointed by the poster. I thought it would be some kind of cool astrologist typo anime with a little bit romance here and there but in reality it was just a sad life story of a highschooler who cant sleep and then he somehow gets into taking idle photos of sky while trying to find a sleeping place in an abandoned club .Would not recommend this to anyone who has this kind of perception going into the anime because you're gonna get your ... time wasted. And it doesnt even deserve 7 let alone 8, maybe the beach scene got people to rate it higher

Even scum wish was better. atleast it had some story

Reviewer’s Rating: 3

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	Poll: Kimi wa Houkago Insomnia Episode 13 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) KANLen09 - Jul 3, 2023	186 replies	by Beguni »» Nov 29, 10:10 PM
	Poll: Kimi wa Houkago Insomnia Episode 3 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) KANLen09 - Apr 24, 2023	123 replies	by Beguni »» Nov 28, 8:50 AM
	Poll: Kimi wa Houkago Insomnia Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ) Pre_Yum - Apr 10, 2023	230 replies	by graciana »» Oct 15, 9:03 PM
	Poll: Kimi wa Houkago Insomnia Episode 7 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) KANLen09 - May 22, 2023	145 replies	by Lucifer2601 »» Oct 6, 6:17 AM
	Poll: Kimi wa Houkago Insomnia Episode 12 Discussion ( 1 2 ) KANLen09 - Jun 26, 2023	95 replies	by NameLessMofo »» Sep 24, 3:54 AM