Murai no Koi

Murai is a second-year student at Takebe Gakuen High School enrolled in the college preparatory course. His homeroom teacher, Tanaka, summons him to her office after he declares that his post-high school plans are to marry her. Tanaka rejects Murai, telling him that she would never be interested in a boy with long, black hair. Secretly an otaku, she has eyes only for Hitotose, a character from an otome video game. The next day, Murai appears before Tanaka a changed man. Having cut his hair short and dyed it blond, Murai looks exactly like her beloved Hitotose. Tanaka is unable to hide her shock at this sudden development and tries to distance herself from Murai, while Murai presses on in his attempts to romance his teacher.

(Source: Disney+)

Murai Main

Takanashi, Kengo Japanese

Tanaka, Ayano Main

Hikasa, Youko Japanese

Kiriyama, Akifumi Supporting

Amasaki, Kouhei Japanese

Yamakado, Yoshiki Supporting

Matsukaze, Masaya Japanese

Fukunaga, Yayoi Supporting

Hirose, Yuuki Japanese

Nishifuji, Yuka Supporting

Gotou, Saori Japanese

Hirai, Shinri Supporting

Ishiya, Haruki Japanese

Nishifuji, Hitomi Supporting

Sasaki, Mikoi Japanese

Tanaka, Mao Supporting

Mizunaka, Masaaki Japanese

Oosumi Supporting

Oosaka, Ryouta Japanese

Kikuchi, Ruriko Producer

Matsuo, Kousuke Producer

Yamakawa, Yoshiki Director

Aketagawa, Jin Sound Director

Reviews

Jan 22, 2025

AnimeExplorer21

Recommended

If you're into quirky, heartfelt romances with a splash of hilarious antics, Murai in Love is an anime that deserves your attention. What really got me hooked was how much heart this series packed into its story, and the unique dynamic between Murai and Ayano kept me glued until the very end.

Murai is such a lovable character. His devotion to Ayano isn’t just superficial—it’s driven by his genuine admiration for her kindness. The flashbacks reveal that Ayano once stood up for Murai when he was being bullied, leaving a lasting impression on him. Fast forward to high school, and Murai's determination to win her over ... is relentless. When Ayano casually remarks she doesn’t like guys with long hair, Murai doesn’t hesitate. He chops it off and dyes it. Little did he know, this makeover would make him resemble Hitotose, Ayano’s favorite 2D character. Talk about accidental perfection!

The ending was bittersweet but satisfying. We see Ayano finally mature in her feelings, stepping into her role as a teacher and moving toward accepting the idea of love in reality, not just in fiction. Murai’s perseverance clearly made an impact, though the series leaves a lot open-ended. I’d love to see an OVA or sequel to show how their story progresses into marriage.

While the pacing felt a bit rushed toward the end, and some side characters could’ve used more development, the anime’s charm lies in its humor and the unique personalities of its leads. If you’re looking for a romantic comedy with a fresh twist, this is definitely worth watching!

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Nov 8, 2024

rvcvb

Mixed Feelings

Preliminary (10/12 eps)

This is the first time ever I make a review. I hope it's useful for someone out there looking for a short - somewhere in the middle of subjectivity and objectivity - review:

I think it's the most absurd anime I've ever seen, and I loved it. It's very funny, it leaves you with an extremely simple story, without complicating life too much, and you really think “I don't need more than this”. All the characters involved have their simple raison d'être, no deux ex machina, no complicated plot and pulled out of the cloth. In 10 episodes it tells you what it is and what ... it isn't, and that's it. They take a random cliché and make it comedy with a photographic animation.

Of course, its biggest disadvantage I dare say is both the animation itself (which understandably is intentional) and the writing of Tanaka's character which lacks of drive I think it collides with Murai. Th character of Murai lacks background and I sincerly hope that for the next season they give it to us so we can understand better his intentions and motivations.

Overall, an anime to watch when you have nothing to do and need some real quick dopamine discharge.

7.8/10

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Dec 27, 2024

Jozuwa-_-

Not Recommended

Preliminary (3/12 eps)

(Only 3 episodes in.)

This should've been either a 'Short' with only 10-minute episodes or had more than 2 bits/chapters per episode. Instead, it's tackles one whole thing for 24 minutes, which gets really boring due to the comic strip format.
The long form story telling approach isn't working well with this barely animated Anime. While it has a fairly good story concept, the show seems to deem itself weird when it doesn't come off as such; It's just a usual rom-com student-teacher situation with an Otaku theme. They do the typical shouty, screamy, rowdy act but often feels unnecessary or forced. And since it's a normal ... Anime episode length, it feels like the "comedy" are so drawn out, especially when it's stuck in one topic.

Way of the House Husband is one of the standards when it comes to this format of show. That show had comical bits out of exaggerating ridiculous little stuff but made it funny. This show on the other hand treated some of its not-so-funny topics as the funniest things in the world by having the characters laugh and scream so hard about everything.

As a non-reader, having the feeling of wanting to read this in Manga form instead of watching this Anime form says a lot to me.
And as a comedy fan, I'm quite dismayed that watching 3 episodes of this felt like a pity watch, especially when the main characters and the simple story itself are fairly appreciable anyways-- it's just not as 'wacky' as the show seems to think itself to be.

I'm gonna put it on-hold for now but, if I could get to reading it instead... I would do that instead.

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

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'Murai no Koi' Unveils Supporting Cast, Opening Theme, Second Promo

The official website of the Murai no Koi (Murai in Love) television anime unveiled three supporting cast members, opening theme, the second promo, and a second key v...read more

Aug 8, 2024 5:49 AM by Nioxys | Discuss (14 comments)

'Murai no Koi' Reveals Additional Cast, First Promo

The official website of the Murai no Koi television anime revealed additional cast, ending theme, the first promo, and a key visual (pictured) on Wednesday. The anim...read more

Apr 30, 2024 8:55 PM by Hyperion_PS | Discuss (3 comments)

	Poll: Murai no Koi Episode 12 Discussion KANLen09 - Nov 20, 2024	28 replies	by anikevin »» Jan 17, 4:16 PM
	Poll: Murai no Koi Episode 1 Discussion KANLen09 - Sep 4, 2024	39 replies	by narutosister »» Jan 12, 2:04 PM
	Poll: Murai no Koi Episode 10 Discussion Zaxphred - Nov 6, 2024	10 replies	by samimomo »» Jan 5, 6:55 PM
	Cover whole Manga ? xnub - Dec 1, 2024	3 replies	by xnub »» Dec 2, 2024 11:34 PM
	Second-Lead Syndrome for Yamakado Chami_Aster - Nov 22, 2024	1 replies	by WestOnAndrewAve »» Nov 22, 2024 10:20 PM