School Rumble

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To start off, this is one of those manga that's mainly concentrated on comedy. Trust me, if you read this manga it'll make you laugh. Of course if you're one of those looking for romances this isn't a bad choice either. Don't be fooled. Even though there probably won't be a lot of romantic situations or development till chapter 50 or so, each chapter is 5-7 pages long not even half the length of a regular chapter of 18-20 pages.

Story : 7
There really isn't a set plot. It's mainly girl likes guy that shows no response to her feelings while another guy ... has feelings for the same pure and honest girl, and the chapters revolve around both of them trying to confess and win the other person's heart. To be honest, drama isn't one of this manga's main points since there is rarely any chapters where the setting is connected (except like when someone's confessing or something) and usually you'll see a problem confronted a few chapters later rather than right away. Since this is a gag manga, the story won't always involve the main characters. There will be chapters involving their classmates instead but you won't be disappointed.

Art:8
Original. That's the best way I think to put it. Each character and setting is drawn in such a way that each person feels unique and the setting and situation really connects. You gotta love the artist's ability to draw their funny expressions and some characters' lack of expression.

Character:7
The main characters are what you expect them to be like. All of the personalities are there. Shy, timid, outgoing, smart, delinquent, beauty, pervert, and the misunderstood. However, I love the involvement of the other classmates in the story and it isn't like the other series where there's only the love triangle and the best friend involved.

Enjoyment:10
If I say I didn't enjoy this series, shoot me. Sure there is a lot of repetitive scenes where the guy is misunderstood but I think the situation makes up for it. It'll get you to say "BaHAHA!" rather than "CHEEEESY!".

Overall:8
I would prefer to rank it as a 9 simply because I think 1-10 doesn't fully acknowledges how much I enjoy this series, but I think it gets confusing at times when the chapter after a serious scene is completely random and totally unrelated. BUT I HAVE NO REGRETS AFTER READING SCHOOL RUMBLE.

[Spoiler Warning]

First time I have written a review in ages, first of a manga and first of this year. I actually intended to do one last year, but the "Part 2:" part refused to show up on MAL for some reason. Forgot what I even wanted to write about. This is not at all an absorbable review for newcomers to the manga. I am writing this with the mindset of those who have read it already. Names mentioned will go off what they were called the most in the manga. And this review is as fresh as can be, having just wrapped up the manga ... today after a month of reading.

This may come as a shocker. School Rumble has a very high score from myself and was one of the first anime I ever watched and was what led me to enjoying the types of anime I enjoyed. The comedy in the anime was robust, balanced and everything felt great to watch. Even with my distaste of abuse humor, I could laugh at the anime for the most part, though Eri got very difficult at times. The dub was even done pretty well, minus their decision to cut a literal story element from episode four at the twelve minute mark with nothing in its wake but long pauses.

But enough about the anime. This is a manga review, after all. I am here to specifically dart on the characters and a bit of a wrap-up at the end. And from what I could gather of it, there are a handful of extra scenes present that the anime left out. If this sounds absentminded, it will be due to how much extra stuff School Rumble has. It throws me out of the "serious" part of its story quite a lot and I always try my best to jump back into the story.

To begin, Kenji Harima, the character I always had the most interest in for having a great ending. Thought it was rushed. He continued onto the path of "incentive, tryhard, fails, gives up" rinse and repeat. This would not have been an issue if it was not for the fact it, more or less, continued on this way indefinitely across the even more serious parts and even his ending. He pretty much is stuck on a permanent Groundhog's Day loop with what he wants to do and his continuous pain of failing to impress Tenma really starts to feel like a burden on the reader as much as Harima himself. In this regard, I do respect a narrative that can really make the reader feel bad for a character and want to jump into the story themselves to help them and Harima has the highest mark for this easily.

I suppose well we are on this train, let us continue it with Eri Sawachika. I enjoyed the deeper parts of her character, but wish it had a bit less abuse humor with her developments with Harima. The whorish nature of her character is the biggest weakness in enjoying her development, even with the understanding that it stems from her tightwad aristocratic lifestyle. That does not automatically mean I should be the submissive reader going "oh poor rich girl she is my favorite" just cause she is, hands down, the biggest prick in the whole series in a lot more ways that are irredeemable. Without saying the events of it directly, one scene near the end of the manga made me disrespect Eri for the rest of the entire manga. Easiest way I can describe it for those who have already absorbed this was that it involved a snowman in the front yard.

Now then, the last part of this specific triangle, Yakumo Tsukamoto. No need to mention Haruki Hanai much. He was purely comic relief for Yakumo, but he had his moments where he was able to express some nice sentiments to Yakumo. I think I could probably count them due to how useless he is the vast majority of the time around her. And before I detail the ones that do matter, her character itself. Shy, reserved and tries to be as nice as she can be. She was previously a brat when she was a kid which is the primary factor in why she tries to be so nice. She really does not have all that much going on if we just count Yakumo herself. What really makes her character get more interesting is how much she grows around Harima. Ultimately, if I had to pick another character that is deserving of Harima, it is the other Tsukamoto in the family, Yakumo. She cares so much for him and I really enjoyed the dynamic of these two. Just about any romance fan would. She has something that happens within her heart that plays a major role in three specific moments, but I will leave it out since it would be too direct to explain.

Now then, the last one I will give a paragraph to, Tenma Tsukamoto. Outgoing ditsy character and primarily meant for comic relief to such a degree that even the fan service scenes would continue to draw her in a more comical matter, never once with definition. You can grow to love her humor as it arguably rivals Harima's a very fair amount of the time, especially in the first half. She is meant to completely extract the funnies from this series and she does a near-perfect job at doing so. For a main character in regard to story elements, she takes quite a long time to get into gear for serious elements, which show up near the end. She has ones I would deem subtle early on with how she feels about Ouji Karasuma and occasionally some really sweet moments with how she appreciates her friends. Out of everyone that Tenma knows in the series, I would say Mikoto is the closest to her. She always tried to understand her feelings, never judged her nearly as harshly as Eri and most people did and always enjoyed distressing with her due to their shared empathy of romance. Second would be Tenma's sister Yakumo.

Mikoto Suou. A character that honestly is more confused about love than Tenma is. I genuinely had no clue near the end who she truly liked and got so lost with her writing. I do not think I could even touch up on it without it being direct spoilers, so I will just leave it there. She was primarily meant to be poked at for her breasts, is outgoing and her strongest character strength was being able to whip Eri around when she was being too much of a degenerate.

Akira Takano, sporting a style of humor so unique it could almost be made into a spinoff altogether. Had some moments that genuinely had me dying from how good the timing was in them. Was also the only one in the entire series aware of Harima's feelings toward Tenma in the most direct manner.

Hiroyshi Asou, a potential "love interest" for two girls at specific points in the narrative, but I honestly forgot where either one began and ended. He is good at sports and has a major role in the basketball arc, but is ultimately a dry character.

Haruki Hanai, meant to be outgoing and unlikable for being, well, too outgoing. Develops two crushes across the series, but only one of them cares deeply, though the other is arguably more deserving due to her near-identical personality trait that I believe would make for a more fitting pair. English voice sounds oddly similar to Tenya Iida from My Hero Academia, despite the two being different voice actors.

Karen Ichijou, very adorable character. Am sad she did not have more scenes. Am also sad her romance did not flourish at all. She had a few serious scenes that I wish had "conclusion" style developments in them. Every big moment she gets is ultimately overruled by a joke setup.

Now then, quicker notes for everyone that has something I remember about them, going from top to bottom of the character page listing on this site which will make it easier to categorize.

Sarah Adiemus, hardly memorable past being one of Yakumo's close friends and sharing one good serious moment with her. The backstory with the church was cute, though. Tae Anegasaki, meant to give Harima abuse humor scenes and only stood out during her introductory. Fuyuki Takeichi, likes to take inappropriate pictures. Had two major focuses with the pool and Photoshop portions and possibly liked someone, but I never figured it out. Lala Gonzales, pure comical relief. Has some outrageously funny moments and a few warm ones with other characters. Primarily exists to make Imadori's life trash. Shuuji Harima, honestly forgot he existed multiple times. Kyousuke Imadori, comic relief for Lala and Mikoto. Miki Inaba, thrown into the plot to be a background love interest to another character. Harry McKenzie, pompous ladies man. Kozue Mihara, used to be fat. Nara Kentaro, was the only non-main character to figure out Harima liked Tenma. Mai Ootsuka, cute freckles. Itoko Osakabe, primarily eye candy, but has one notable serious moment with her backstory. Megumi Sagano, loves her grandma. Youko Sasakura, possibly lesbian. Junko Tonami, very cute. Shigeo Umezu, dating Madoka Kido and shenanigans are primarily around his anxiety with what she does when they are not together. Jirou Yoshidayama, picked on by Harima. Tsumugi Yuuki, looks much better without glasses and undone hair. Had two notable serious scenes that were nice.

That is it. That is everyone. Everyone that I cared to write about, anyway. I know I missed a few. In conclusion, the narrative kept me interested enough to see it to the very end. Though these would go on to have some of the best writing in the manga, occasionally, the overly extended comedy sequences could feel like a slog. I am not fully satisfied with its ending, but most will disagree with this sentiment. The ride was long, but I really wanted to read it due to how much I heard that the anime did not properly conclude the series and left out a few important things. Having now absorbed those as well, I definitely liked having the additional exposition. But, I would never reread this manga. The anime is more redeemable to me to come back to. That being said, I do not regret absorbing this manga. It felt nice to have the closure, regardless of my opinion on it.

No spoilers for the first part. There will be marked spoilers after the first part, for a bit of a longer read.

This is a romcom that does not have a satisfying conclusion.
For me, this is an absolute deal breaker. There is nothing I hate more than to read/watch an entire series, only to find out there is no resolution to anything that was set up throughout the series. There is no real payoff to any of the romance building. In a romcom.
So if you are anything like me, then don't bother with School Rumble. It isn't worth your time.

It's quite clear the author was just ... making it up as he went, and had no long term plans. He likes to write climactic scenes (to hook the reader), but doesn't like to follow through (that would require an actual plan), so everything is just misunderstanding on top of misunderstanding that never goes anywhere.

But it extends even further than that. The author can't seem to decide what genre he wants to write. It will change from being a standard romcom, to just a surreal gag based comedy series, over and over. Even the protagonist seems to be undecided. While the protagonist is supposed to be Tenma, her actual role in the story isn't that large, and at times it ends up feeling like Harima is the protagonist instead.

You'll have your climactic scene (imagine a love triangle, where one girl sees her love interest kiss another girl) only to be followed by several chapters of unrelated characters doing other stuff. Then, when it finally comes back to the continuation we were all waiting for of that scene, it is just played off as some misunderstanding and there is no real pay off. This is basically the entire series.

The comedy and characters are genuinely good at times, so it's really unfortunate that the series ended up like this.









[spoilers ahead]



The first problem, is Tenma and Karasuma. Tenma's affection is originally supposed to be some kind of gag. It isn't really that "serious", if that makes sense. Harima likes Tenma, but Tenma likes Karasuma. Karasuma though, is a completely plain, generic look character who doesn't talk or do much. He only exists to create the unrequited love of Harima for Tenma. Consider when early on in the story, when it is raining, and Tenma wants to walk home with Karasuma sharing an umbrella. Karasuma says he has a kappa (rain coat) and so turns her down. But then he is dressed like an actual kappa (the youkai), with a shell and everything.
Or consider when Tenma asks Karasuma which he likes more, her or curry, and he says curry.
Or consider when Tenma tries to ride to school on a bike, because she wants to go to school with Karasuma, but he is ridiculously fast so she is basically just chasing after him. Harima has the same idea, and is chasing after Tenma with his own bike. So you have Karasuma, completely oblivious, Tenma who wants to ride with Karasuma, and Harima who wants to ride with Tenma.
This is Karasuma's character and his relationship with Tenma.

Now, compare that with the other relationships in the series. Sawachika and Yakumo towards Harima, for example. These are taken more seriously, because they aren't gags. There is actual build up, and it is somewhat understandable why they might love Harima. Compared to the other relationships presented, Tenma's just feels like she is a kid who has a crush, and that's it.

The second problem is the overall lack of attention towards romance, even though this is a romcom. While there is some drama and relationship building in the series, it generally just comes off as clickbait (for lack of a better term), and never really goes any where. There are too many side characters introduced, just to act as filler, when really a lot of that time should've been spent on Sawachika, Tenma, Yakumo, and Harima. There is too much attention focused on misunderstandings instead of actual romance.
Consider when Harima accidentally confesses his love to Sawachika, thinking it is Tenma. Or how Sawachika sees Harima and her name written on the piece of paper. These misunderstandings are never actually addressed or resolved, so throughout most of the series, she thinks Harima is in love with her. In reality they should've been resolved very quickly, to create romantic drama between Tenma and Sawachika (there is a tiny bit of this, but only near the end). Even better, they should've never happened in the first place, and Sawachika could just fall in love with Harima through his actions. Throughout these encounters, Harima himself could open up more to Sawachika, and realise she is actually a good girl and fun to be with (he doesn't necessarily need to fall in love with her here).

The final problem, is the ending, which is a culmination of these problems.
First, Karasuma. You can't just suddenly decide to make Karasuma and Karasuma x Tenma a serious thing. He was a gag character and plot device throughout most of the series. He even disappears for large parts of the series because he is ultimately a boring character and there isn't much to do with him. The sudden revelation that he is actually in love with Tenma but has a serious illness so he can't respond to her feelings and has to leave the country, is absolutely terrible writing. You can't suddenly make me care about this relationship, when you haven't worked for it the entire series.
It doesn't even make any sense. If Karasuma has some incurable illness where he will lose all his memories, then why does he have to go to a hospital in the US? If there is no cure it doesn't matter whether he is in hospital in Japan or anywhere else. There is literally no reason for him to go to America.
What's worse is Tenma follows him and stays with him in America to look after him. Why? How? She is a minor. Did she drop out of school or what? What visa could she even possibly be on? She says she is going to become a doctor to cure his illness. How? She is an idiot. It is established throughout the series. She is just going to leave Yakumo and everybody else behind, drop out of school, and stay in a foreign country she can't speak the language of or anything? Yeah, I'm sure that is exactly what Karasuma would've wanted.
It should've ended as unrequited love for Tenma, and that's it. None of this nonsense. She could realise that she was just a kid and maybe her feelings for Karasuma weren't what she thought they were. Even better, this could've been built up throughout the series. Maybe she could've slowly gotten closer to Harima, but because of her obsession with Karasuma, not have been able to see that.

Second, Harima and Sawachika.
As I said earlier, Harima could've slowly grown closer to Sawachika throughout the series, but this never happens. Almost everything in the series is Harima to Sawachika, be it misunderstandings or otherwise. Lots is done to make Sawachika fall for Harima, but nothing the other way around. Because of this, in the ending, Harima still does not understand Sawachika at all and is very cold to her. This is resolved in an emotional exchange between the two. But... why now? Why not earlier in the series so we could've had a more interesting romcom? Then it immediately jumps to some nonsense about Harima being her fake fiancé so she can stay in Japan. Please note, this doesn't actually go anywhere. This is literally amongst the last few chapters of the manga. Also, there is still no confession from her.

Third, the ending itself.
After Harima decides to be Sawachika's fake fiancé, he realises he has no place to stay. So he ends up moving in with Yakumo. But what is the purpose of all this? Literally nothing happens. There is no confession or anything from Yakumo. There is no romcom with Harima, Sawachika, and Yakumo. There is nothing.
I kid you not, in the next chapter, there is a time skip of some undefined amount of time into the future (probably a year or two). The characters are no longer in school, and Harima is no longer around. What happened to Harima's engagement with Sawachika and their relationship? What happened with Harima living with Yakumo? If you aren't going to do anything with it, then why did you set it up in the first place?
The entire ending arc of the series, feels like the author just went, "Screw it, I don't want to write this any more" and just defecated out the crappiest, laziest, non-committal ending he could think of.