Reviews

Soredemo Ayumu is a manga that some may criticize for its lack of progression. I believe that a series should be judged as a function of the goals that it sets for itself, how effective it is at achieving those goals, how worthy the goals are in the first place, and comparison to other series with similar goals. Soredemo Ayumu follows in the footsteps of series like Kaguya-sama: Love is War and Teasing Master Takagi where conventional progression is subverted in favor of an emphasis on character interactions. With these types of series there are two goals: getting the other person to confess their love first and successfully making the other party feel embarrassed. It is obvious from the start that once the goal is achieved, the story is over (unless there is something to indicate otherwise). So, in lieu of a large amount of romantic progression, we get small bits of romantic progression and a more episodic approach to storytelling. I say all of this to let you know what to expect from the series.

Story: 7/10

Soredemo Ayumu takes a simple premise and executes it beautifully. It is a series in which our protagonist Tanaka Ayumu is in love with his senpai Yaotome Urushi who is a master shouji player and "president" of the shouji "club". Tanaka wants to confess his feelings to Yaotome but has made a pact with himself that he will only do so after he beats her in a game of shouji. As the audience, we get to see Tanaka be completely direct about how much he likes Yaotome without saying "I'm in love with you" while they play shouji together and go through their daily lives. Because of Tanaka's directness, Yaotome has a pretty strong suspicion about his feelings for her and often tries to get him to confess but usually ends up flustered by how smooth Tanaka is.

Art: 7/10

The art in this series is pretty decent. There is not much attention given to backgrounds, but the facial expressions are really well done. The style is pretty simplistic overall which really fits this series.

Characters: 10/10

This is where the series really shines. Unlike many other protagonists in these types of series, Tanaka is very direct and quick on his feet when it comes to flirting, making it seem natural, and not drawing any attention to it himself. Yaotome is adorable when she gets flustered and there are actually moments where she is able to make Tanaka flustered himself. It is basically a role reversal when compared to Teasing Master Takagi except in this case, both characters are very perceptive. It is really refreshing to see how direct Tanaka is about his feelings. He consistently spells it out (i.e. "the men of this world must be lacking to have overlooked your charm" or "you're good at shouji, you're so smart, not to mention super cute and...") without directly saying that he is in love with her. From the audience's perspective it is obvious that Yaotome also has feelings for Tanaka but she is embarrassed and sometimes wonders if he's just flirting to mess with her. The dynamic is a truly fun time. There are also two supporting characters who are Tanaka's friends and it is obvious that they are in love with each other as well. The chapters that focus on the two of them are always wholesome and fun.

Enjoyment: 10/10

If it isn't obvious, I really enjoy this series. It is ongoing and has had a high re-read value for me. It is essentially a similar dynamic to Kaguya and Shirogane from Kaguya-sama: Love is war but less intense in terms of the mind games. Perfect combination of wholesome and funny.

Overall: 9/10

Well executed slice of life romance that draws upon the conventions of a particular niche within those genres and puts its own spin on it. If you are expecting a big overarching narrative you will be disappointed. The character interactions are what drive this series so if you aren't a fan of the characters or the premise, you won't enjoy this series.

My personal rating for this series is a 9/10 but even outside of my personal enjoyment I think this series deserves a 7.5/10 to an 8/10.