Those are the words you hear often if you live past the year of 2020 mostly thanks to Twitter. This take is typically comes from western 'audiences'. Don't listen to those kind of takes for this anime/manga. Those come from close minded individuals who lack the understanding of context and most importantly, understanding that HUMANS ARE COMPLEX AND IMPERFECT PEOPLE. Especially in high school.
If you are of High School age and STILL don't understand that people have different opinions, then you are going to fail in the real world. Name one perfect human that has no flaws. I bet you $1 million you can't find one. Especially in anime.
And that's the beauty of Anime. Subtlety and context are what create a rich and varying story/character. In order for any slice of life anime to sustain itself it has to invest highly in their characters to create a compelling story.
The story revolves around two main characters Hori and Izumi. One is perfect, headstrong, and independent and the other has pretty much given up on the world and just going through the motions. Two extremes personalities of the spectrum "unexpectedly" cross paths and there is your foundation of this High School Slice of Life. The 6 supporting characters all fill in that personality spectrum in a good manner in my opinion. Like any HS Teen, they all have their strengths weaknesses and conflicts. It's so well rounded, you will most likely relate to 1 or 2 of the characters.
For me, I had my Izumi phase during high school (bullied into depression) But I also had my Yuki phase (being SO considerate of others that you're willing to sacrifice your own happiness). I had felt the most connection with these two and actually experienced some of these experiences during High School and college. Being my age, I could write a 1000 page book of the highs and lows of my High School and College life. That's for another time of course.
After being out of the Anime game for about 8 years, I wanted a soft hearted Slice of Life to ease me back in to the game. The website that i go to (not MAL) recommended this as apparently this is the most watched on their site. My all time favorite SoL is Toradora, and it completely has Toradora vibes.
The formula set forth from Toradora is a great template if you are into this kind of anime. I don't know if its the nostalgia factor or my desire to do-over my high school life and not be that depressed guy that never had a true friend-for-life in school, but it kept me up all night wanting to finish the whole series in one sitting.
That being said, the production value of the anime is pretty high and you can tell some serious money was invested in this series. I don't spoil myself by reading the manga first. Feel free to read the manga first if that is your thing, but as usual the anime not as fleshed out as the manga.
If you are open-minded person that is smart enough to understand context, intent, and A JOKE, I highly recommend this anime if you appreciate the Slice of Life RomCom genre. It's very light hearted and invokes that typical "I wish my high school life was like this anime" vibe.
If you are a closed-minded person that looks for reasons to be offended, don't come here. It's not for you. Read the 1 star "this is toxic" review for why. Its obvious they have never been in a relationship or ever had a human friend in real life. Don't be like this, it will make you a bitter and old. Learn forgiveness and find the good in everyone you meet.
Its the first anime I've seen in 8 years and it definitely did not disappoint. If you are looking for a date night anime or an anime to introduce to your normie friend that enjoys RomComs. I HIGHLY SUGGEST HORIMIYA
TL;DR - Not everything is perfect, and success comes through hard work. Relationships are not one sided and require support and compromise from both sides. Before quickly judging someone based on your emotions, understand the context and intent. Humans are complex animals.
