Customer Reviews

Love Com, Vol. 1 (Love.com (Viz Media))

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As an opening confession: I don't like anime/manga very much. Most of what I've watched, I didn't enjoy, with the exception of Black Lagoon - but I think that's about as opposite to Love*Com as you can get.

But I live with a guy whose true love is Japanese romance comedies, and he got me started on fan translations of the Lovely Complex anime. From there, he bought the books - and yes, I sort of stole them.

I don't have much experience with manga, but I thought the artwork was great and really suited the feel of the series. I've heard it compared to Ally McBeal, in that the down-to-earth storyline is interspersed with occasional brief fantasy sequences (usually when a character is shocked or upset). But I hated that TV show and love this series, so I can't really comment. The characterization here is marvellous, and the two protagonists are both unusual and very sympathetic. Risa is gangly, awkward and humorous, but her feelings are given weight - and Otani, even with his bravado and forced over-confidence, is engaging and good-natured. They spend most of the overall storyline antagonizing each other, but it's a love-hate thing that develops realistically and rather sweetly into a deeper relationship. The supporting characters are also well-developed, and a few of them might be even more engaging than Risa and Otani.

Not sure if the anime is ever going to be officially translated, but these books are well worth picking up. If you have seen the anime, you won't be disappointed with this. As for the live-action TV drama...well, can't win them all.

Love*Com, also known as Lovely Complex is one of the most hilarious manga series you'll ever pick up. Many shoujo series out there that are labled as comedies are really not funny. Love*Com is an exception with each chapter filled with those laugh-out-loud moments.

The manga starts out with Risa and Otani as friends. However their teacher and classmates see them as a comedy duo since they are always arguing with each other and for stupid reasons. They decide to help each other out in their love lives and make a bet on who can find a boyfriend/girlfriend first. However as time goes by, Risa sees that she begins to like Otani. How will their realtionship become in the future?

The charatcers in the manga are lovable and you will find that you will love Risa's best friend Nobu for her silly remarks and ideas. The story is a standard shoujo story set at a high-school. The charcter interactions and the art is what truly makes the story hilarious. I've never seen a series with so many funny facial expressions! XD

The manga was extremely popular in Japan that it was made into a live-action movie and anime series that is being shown in Japan right now. Both adaptions are also very funny and enjoyable.

So go ahead and give volume 1 a go. I'm sure you will be laughing all the way till the end (volume 16).

I've long been a fan of manga featuring love-hate relationships. When I saw that "Love Com" was one such manga, I knew I had to give it a try. I had my doubts about it, though. As much as I love arguing couples, I'm easily bored with characters who are always at each others' throats and relationships that don't mature. At first, I didn't see much that set "Love Com" apart. There was the usual pairing of quarreling and unexpected friendship, not bad, but nothing new, either. I kept reading, though, and before I knew it, I'd fallen completely in love with this wonderful little series.

First of all, the plot is pretty original. Risa Koizumi is unusually tall for a girl, and Atsushi Otani is unusually short for a boy. Because their heights are accentuated when they stand together, they hate each other and end up arguing a lot. However, their classmates think their fighting is hilarious, so they end up getting compared to famous Japanese comedic duo All Hanshin Kyojin. The story begins when both Risa and Otani get crushes on other people, and they team up despite their differences to help each other attain the objects of their affection. Some elements are traditional shojo, but I thought the height difference and comparison to a comedy duo were original. As the story goes on, you see some old cliches get some completely new spins.

But it's the characters that really make the story. Risa is a totally believable heroine. She wants to be in love, but she feels awkward and unfeminine because of her height. She's neither shy nor exceptionally strong; she's just a typical girl trying to deal with high school. Even when she's embarrassing herself, her feelings are very easy to understand. One thing I love is the spectrum of emotions she goes through, from joy to disappointment to heartbreak. Although Risa herself can be overly dramatic, the manga handles it all in a realistic and sympathetic way. Ootani makes a great love interest, too. He's embarrassed about being short, and he's got just a bit of an attitude. He's really a nice guy, though, which Risa soon discovers. Though their attitudes make them bump heads and they argue throughout the manga, Risa and Ootani can relate to each others' height woes. It doesn't take long for them to become friends.

And how about this: a relationship that actually changes and grows? What a great concept! Really, it's rare to find such a thing in manga, but "Love Com" has it down. Risa and Ootani start out supporting each other as friends, but it starts to turn to something more for Risa. One thing I really appreciate about "Love Com" is the realistic way it handles the romance. It's not all sparkles and flowers. Even when there is a romantic moment, it's handled in an understated way. I love how it shows the awkwardness that can occur between friends who may be something more. Instead of taking away from it, this makes it much sweeter and more realistic. The romance never takes itself too seriously or gets too mushy. It's the perfect balance of serious and humorous.

And I haven't even gotten to the supporting characters yet! Risa and Ootani's friends are wonderful, and so are the rivals that come up. They all have distinct and likable personalities. Instead of just moving the story along, they bring new themes into the manga.

The humor in this manga is excellent, mostly because of the characters. You really get to know them, and the situations play off of their personalities is just perfect. The dialogue is sharp and witty. Also, the humor is mostly about the everyday drama we face in life. The familiarity of the situations that Risa, Ootani, and the others face just makes it that much more funny.

The art fits the story well. It's simple but distinct and well-done. You never confuse the characters, and their designs are a little more realistic than the sparkly eyed heroes of most shojo manga. I love all the faces Risa makes; they perfectly express her moods. Sometimes her expressions are truly ugly, but I was happy to see this. Most manga heroines manage to look cute no matter what happens, and it's wonderful to see one who sulks and grins so ridiculously. It makes Risa among the most human heroines I've ever read about.

My only beef with "Love Com" is the translation. It's ok, I mean, I don't hate it. "Love Com" was origially written in Kansai, the dialect of a region of Japan including Osaka, Nagoya, and Kyoto. The translator tried to give the feeling of this dialect by using words like "totally" and "like" a lot. It's not terrible, but it makes the characters seem a little shallow. But their personalities shine through anyway. It also becomes less noticable as the manga goes on.

"Love Com" is an excellent, excellent manga. It's one of the best shojo you can buy, period. Though it's written for girls, everyone should be able to find something to enjoy here. It has wonderful characters, the most realistic, dynamic romance I've ever read, a moving story that keeps you entertained the whole way through, hilarious writing... I cannot recommend this manga enough. Do yourself a favor and read it as soon as you can.

I have a twelve year old daughter who enjoys reading. We bought her a boxed set of this series (vol 1-9), and she loved them, reading them all in one weekend. For those not familiar with ainime/manga, they are not written like a typical "novel". Instead they have a series of illustrated comics, but with real life situations and comedy. The books are formated in Japanese fashion, where the front cover is on the right side of the book, and the "pages" are read from right to left, which made it fun and interesting. I should point out the "sentences" are written in english and are read from left to right.

The first volume of Aya Nakahara's shojo manga Love*Com takes us into the world of two teenagers who are vertically challenged...in different ways. Risa Koizumi is a girl who is much taller than most of her boy counterparts, and her classmate, Atsushi Otani, is a boy smaller than most girls. The rather predictable challenges that this forces the pair to face are treated in a refreshing and lighthearted way, making this a truly enjoyable read.

One thing that I appreciated about Love*Com was that, simply because Koizumi and Otani felt similar pain about their respective heights, they were not immediately sympathetic to one another. In fact, it initially seems the opposite: They are outright harsh to each other, an attitude that other students take for comedy. They both want to simply be normal teenagers, and while they wish that they were more average, they do not think twice about mocking each other's heights. This reflection that hardship does not always (or even usually) breed empathy is so realistic that it truly makes this series.

The mere fact that everyone always thinks they are joking together when they are fighting is another glimpse into one of their challenges. Because they look different than they are supposed to, it is assumed that they are never serious, never sincere. In a way, their personalities promote this, but it obviously bothers them as well. It will be interesting to see if this leads them to modify how they react to things, or if they decide to simply let their personalities be as they are, without worrying what others think.

This series starts out with Koizumi and Otani wanting stereotypical dates--Koizumi wants a quiet, attractive boy, and Otani wants a small, delicate girl. It gradually becomes clear that these love interests are not, well, interested in them at all. Moreover, it becomes clear that Otani and Koizumi have more in common than height: They share a lot interests, personality traits, and flaws. This will obviously lead to the road of friendship, and if the series follows similar shojo fashion, to love.

Aya Nakahara's art is open and guileless, its lightness reflecting the mood of the series. This is a manga that is easy to pick up and hard to put down. Not only will it appeal to general fans of shojo manga, but it will nearly scream out to those teens who look or act slightly different than they are expected to.

Love*Com Volume 1 is highly recommended to all teen fans of shojo manga.

-- Kyla Hunt

This manga will have you crying, laughing and going "aw" all at the same time. I highly recommend this.

Oh, and don't forget to watch the anime. You won't be disappointed.

I bought this first volume on a whim, on a very gloomy day. Not only is it ADORIBLe but it's FUNNY! It cheered me up on a day I really needed cheering! It centers around Risa, a very tall young girl, who feels like she's stuck in the middle of some comedy with a boy named Otani. He's one of the shortest guys in their entire school. In this volume, their very young and they fight all the time. No one seems to get under their skin better than the other! Though I think we all can see, these two need to end up together. It's a fun and addictive read, that will having laughing almost as much as the Ouran High School Host Club(Though come on, nothing can top that series! Or it's randomness!) I highly recommend it, if you're looking for an something that will make you laugh!

Risa Koizumi didn't ask to be a giant, but she's been blessed with extreme height. Unfortunately, she's a Japanese highschooler, so extra-tall girls are even more unusual than they are in the US. And she can't even make use of the spare inches in sports because she's not athletic--she likes video games, hanging out with friends, and listening to rap music. She's a perfectly happy underachiever, but there's one person who can make her angry: Otani, the shortest guy in her grade. They bicker like crazy, partly because everyone keeps pairing them up for various activities because they think it's hilarious to stick the tall girl and the short guy together. The two of them make matters even worse by always insulting each other. But their arguing soon leads to an unexpected friendship, and Risa starts to wonder whether her height-challenged nemesis is as bratty and one-note as she once believed.

The two main characters are enjoyable to watch because their fussy, adversarial interaction is very realistic. They come across like 10-year-olds half the time, but at 15, they're not all that far past their childhoods and they often make up for their immaturity by doing unexpectedly selfless things. Their main reasons for disliking each other are irrational: each one is bothered by the fact that the other person highlights the very thing they're already insecure about. High school is about the last time where people are this concerned with things like relative height, but in that environment it's a very real concern. Risa's worried about how girly she seems and Otani's worried about how manly he seems, but all they really need is to be themselves--they're both very cool when they're not trying to compensate for their perceived flaws, and they caome across as more flawed when they're trying to look good.

The main plot of this volume is a scheme where Risa's trying to date a tall guy and Otani's trying to date a really short girl (yep, both of them are trying to flatter their own egos, here. It's highschool.) while overlooking the fact that the intended objects of their affection are kind of dull, and not at all suited to Risa and Otani's raucous, fun-loving personalities. The dialogue here is fantastic. When Otani's trying to act smooth, but his words are also supposed to come across as sounding forced, the translators have him slip into this "hey, yo, homegirl" slang that's adorably awkward. Applause to the translators. Adapting one language to another is never easy, but to give each character the kind of expressions and verbal quirks that would be at home in a regular YA novel is a big achievement. This manga is actually funny, which is another rare thing.

The biggest problem I remember having with the series is how long it takes Risa and Otani to get together. It's 7 or so volumes (35 or so chapters) into the series before we get any hint of resolution. So if you check out the series be aware that it's a Long Runner.

The story revolves around Risa and Otani, two high school students in the same class. Risa is taller than the average girl and Otani is shorter than the average guy -they both thus have a bit of a complex about their height.

In terms of plot, we pretty much just follow Risa & Otani and watch how their relationship develops over time. That being said, the story really manages to remain interesting and engaging as the series progresses. All the characters are also very well developed, including Risa and Otani as well as their friends. The artwork is lovely too- don't let the covers put you off.

The tone of the series is completely light hearted- it really is hilarious at times. That being said, the series can still be pretty moving when it wants to be!

I really really love this series- there's just something very special about it. It's completely absorbing and is just a brilliant, entertaining read. If you're looking for a solid shojo manga look no further- I just can't recommend this series enough!

A couple of months ago, quite by accident, I ran across a mention on the internet of the Japanese manga, "Love*Com" (AKA "Lovely*Complex") by Aya Nakahara. I'm fascinated by anything, that has to do Japanese youth culture and the premise of this teenage comedy/drama/soap opera for some reason left me quite intrigued. I gave it a try and absolutely loved it!

In the first book we meet 15 year old Risa Koizumi, who at 5'7" is rather tall for a Japanese, female, high school student. She is constantly at odds with her school mate, Atsushi Otani, who is a small guy standing only 5'1". The two are constantly (and hilariously) at each other's throats using insults like "Jumbo-Gal" and "Little Shrimp". The two argue so much, that the whole school refers to them as "All Hanshin-Kyojin", a popular, two person stand-up comedy act with a height difference. The two are constantly getting stuck together. So much so, that many people at school just assume they are a bickering romantic couple. Eventually an epithany occurs to Risa. What if she really is in love with the diminutive, Otani? Risa, wrestles with her feelings and over the next seventeen volumes tries to make the oblivious Otani understand how she feels about him.

To be honest, I'm pretty much a novice, when it comes to Japanese manga. But I know a good story when I see one. From the start, I was instantly hooked on this teenage soap opera, which is both equal parts comedy and drama. The story line keeps you constantly interested in finding out the next plot developement and the characters are endearing and fun to spend time with. Aya Nakahara's fine line artwork is simply beautful and I can't get enough of it.

One thing I love is that throughout the book, Nakahara writes in the margins and gives the reader various short asides about her personal life. It almost reads like an internet blog. Also helpful are explanations to the reader about Japanese cultural references, that are found throughout the story. They talk about everything from Japanese music to school traditions to holidays. It's fun and my interest in Japanese youth culture makes me a total sucker for this sort of thing!

As of this writing, I'm up to just starting book 6 (out of 17). I've had such a good time reading about Risa, Otani and their friends. Their story is almost addictive and I can't wait for more! Highly recommended!