Apr 13, 2024
This one is pretty hardcore. Possibly even the most hardcore "otaku loves male idol more than her parents and gets a boyfriend?!?!" shoujo romance manga. It does try to cater to people liking "mature romance" and older characters, both working quite well with how they balance their lives in an authentic and at times even relatable manner. This also results in some unsual gap moe. It is mostly generic in pretty much any other aspect.
Let's start with the otaku part in itself- it is endearing, wholesome, cute, dramatic and so much more. I did not think that there would be this many ways to use
...
that "I am fully obsessed with this male idol" shtick to write enjoyable events, outings, conversations etc.
BUT, big but, the otaku shtick is never properly used to its full potential when in tandem and related to the romance parts of the manga. There is so many questions and doubts that would be interesting to know about (it has been 30 chapters..) but there is only silence and I am still waiting; does she love the idol more than him? (she often does imply so in her monologues and solos even until ch30), would she leave him if the idol gunned for her? (a minor plotpoint that was not yet further pushed, she apparently has chances to meet him and it is a shoujo + implications related to last question), how far will she carry this insane obsession into the relationship/her stance on him doing it(e.g. the pillows)?
The every so uncommon non-otaku romance panel has the romance as a whole fall flat and feel like any other not properly explored and underdeveloped shoujo.
The romance moments that are not masked by otakuing are sparse. One can count all genuine love moments between both on two hands. Other than that, all questions asked before are applicable here. We are fed bits and pieces until the most recent ch30 (again, chapters are most often 5% romance, 85% otaku swoon and 10% (most often the last bit of the chapter) her monologuing how much she loves and obsesses over her idol).
Them being otaku is clear from the very beginning. We quickly get to know how deeply it really is rooted in him. We then, even quicker, get to know how insanely deranged deeply it is rooted in her. He is full on invested, a strong character trait of his, and set on his idol to a rather healthy degree, even if more than the usual otaku.
She is taking things a step or two further and we get to listen in on some heavy monologues at times. It every now and then is pushing past that "still healthy.." border even if done in a comedic and not too serious way. It can actually be cute and funny but it can also make the reader question her and the genuinity of her feelings (some things she said and thought had me step back and be like "did I miss something?", "who does she love more?", "is she taking pitty on him and saying this because her idol just is superior in every single aspect?"). But alas, that is what the manga is about and I am not too mad about it. The whole setting is just that overexaggerated.
As for anything non-otaku.. there isn't too much. Their daily lives are consisting of 90% "idol did this is doing that and going to do this then, catch you guys later, I need to watch the live in 30". The otaku stuff is the manga's strongest aspect but it can become overbearing when looking for some.. human moments, I'd call them.
This is where another major issue stems from- every new character has to be an idol otaku or look like one. True, you are mostly going to meet people with similar hobbies if said hobby is the most important thing in your life. I just would like them to more often do something together without talking solely about their respective god.
Many times all characters are on the same wavelength and the "story" somehow does move along but they all talk past each other and it boils down to "hey, oh wow your idol did what? nice merch. Anyway my idol this that this, wow you look like my idol, woah you remind me of my idol etc." -> "well, let's go".
I'd say that the stated above is in regards to the human moments. It can feel like they look past everyones mortal human self and they end up in his irl-discord call-mood, is what I would describe it.
Finally, the potential was there. Well, it still is but we are 30 chapters deep and none of the interesting and strong qualities of the manga were used to push to the next level and to pump out some interesting content that is not just rehashed soujo panel #100.
I will keep reading, this manga and its characters are enjoyable. I just can't rate this higher than a 6/10 as there just is too little that puts this apart from other run-of-the-mill shoujos.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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