Story (3/10):
The concept behind a dramatic rom-com involving a trashy dude and a rental girlfriend is one that I can get behind. It's a setup that would lead to some interesting developments. That is to say, the story by itself isn't terrible, but the plot progression and pacing are excruciatingly slow. I do not mind a good slow-burn, but this story absolutely meanders and drags its feet. Things that feel like they should take a few pages end up taking several chapters, leaving the reader unsatisfied. That being said, there are genuinely pretty decent moments in the story where emotional beats land. They are just few and far between.
Art (8/10):
The art is pretty fantastic. Aside from the protagonist, the characters have gorgeous designs which reflect their personalities quite well. The line art is remarkably clean and stylish, although the panelling can be sort of bland at times. The amount of times the artist draws Kazuya with a wacky flustered blushing face can get very annoying to me, but objectively, the art is quality.
Characters (4/10):
While I think the story is the worst part of the manga, I think the character writing is the actual downfall. I can read and enjoy 2/10 story as long as it has great characters, and this is crucial in romance stories in particular. Unfortunately, KanoKari does not have great characters. This is a problem, because if I don't want the characters to end up together, what's the point of reading a romance manga? Everyone dogs on the MC Kazuya, and I have to agree. Coming from a person who enjoys "bad" protagonists, Kazuya is unbearably annoying. He's cowardly, creepy, and charmless protagonist who sees little to no development nearly 160 chapters in. Mizuhara makes for a decent female lead, although I personally find her a little bland. The other major characters are either irrelevant, unlikable, or drag the pace down further.
Enjoyment (4/10):
This is a manga with very little charm. It's really a lot of the little things which bother me. If I had a penny for every time a random bystander made a comment about how cute or pretty or sexy the girls were, I would be a millionaire. There are tons of filler chapters with the girls doing normal stuff and Kazuya completely overreacting like a complete monster virgin. The comedy is pretty one note as well and usually relies on Kazuya being the butt-monkey of every joke. The real killer for me is the lack of chemistry between characters. I never get the feeling that any of these characters actually like each other.
Overall (5/10):
For what it's worth, I find KanoKari a completely average romantic comedy. It's got a loser protagonist getting tons of bland gorgeous women piled onto him for no discernible reason, a meandering story line which tries to pad itself out with tons of filler, and a general lack of any special qualities. I know it's unfair of me to judge a work based off of its contemporaries, but it just really doesn't scratch any itches that other mangas won't. 5-Toubun has likeable love interests, Kaguya-sama has solid comedy, BokuYaba has strong romantic chemistry, 100-Girlfriends has a total chad protagonist. KanoKari doesn't really offer anything of special note to me.
