Among romance anime, Hori-san And Miyamura-Kun, a.k.a Horimiya, is one of the most popular and iconic series, mainly thanks to its remarkable lead couple. The leading relationship in this romance is not only charming with unique quirks that make Hori and Miyamura stand out, but they are also one of the few anime couples in the romance genre whose story continues after they begin dating. Horimiya certainly breaks the mold in several ways, but it’s far from perfect and not entirely what the industry needs.
It’s become par for the course that anime romances build up the main couple until the bitter end of the series and never continue the story after a confession. At that point, fans are left with reading the original manga, which more often than not does a better job of showcasing a more complete and engaging story. This presents the question of why fans should take the time to watch romance anime adaptations in the first place. Few series have become famous simply for telling a story that avoids or limits the typical “will they, won’t they” trope, but sadly, many of these wind up becoming lackluster in plot and character development once confessions are had. The only series to subvert this negative critique is Horimiya, but even with a complete story, filled to the brim with development, engagement, and romance, the story of the best anime couple still proves to be a disappointment.
Horimiya‘s Attempt To Keep The Romance Going
Though fans love Horimiya for not holding back on the romance between Hori and Miyamura, the creators do manage to maintain careful pacing in the first few episodes to focus on properly developing characters. By extension, this builds a genuine romance that is beloved by the series’ large fanbase. Viewers have the chance to understand Hori and Miyamura—both the good and the bad—as they grow closer over time. It doesn’t take too long to understand exactly why these two belong together and why viewers should root for their individual happiness. They both hide one another’s true personas because they are afraid of how their peers will feel about them. Once Hori and Miyamura see and accept who they really are, they share a sense of comfort with one another and learn to rely on each other for the traits that they lack. Miyamura teaches Hori how to not be a people pleaser, while Hori helps Miyamura to come out of his shell and be more social. Long story short, they are perfect for each other and viewers have the chance to see their shared happiness as they begin dating.
Viewers only have to wait until episode 5 to watch Hori and Miyamura start officially dating. There’s no awkward tension or setbacks in their relationship like in other series like Say I Love You. The two simply begin dating without any reservations or regrets. The unfortunate part of this is that even though there is so much more story to tell with these two, the pacing and focus leave fans of the main couple wanting more. Still, this example of a more complete romance is much better than what romance fans have had before Horimiya.
Romance Anime’s Lackluster History
To list all the romance anime that cuts its fans off with only a confession would take far too long. Most anime romances end in this way with perhaps a few like Toradora and Kimi Ni Todoke that have one or two episodes showcasing the main couple actually dating. The few series that feature a dating couple typically run out of depth and romantic engagement after a few episodes. The series Wotakoi, for example, has the most lovable characters and hysterical comedic bits, but the initial romance between Hirotaka and Narumi is pushed to the wayside in favor of a simplistic slice-of-life format. Fans of 70x113m” title=”rascal does not dream of bunny girl senpai”>Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai could certainly argue that Sakuta and Mai’s relationship is given special attention even after they begin dating. At the same time, their relationship is also tied together with conflict, tension, and some concerning tropes that stand in the way of what could have been a perfect romance.
One of the few series aside from Horimiya that features a complete and wholesome romantic story is Sword Art Online, but most action-fantasy series are given a complete adaptation, so this isn’t much of a surprise. Sword Art Online’s main couple, Kirito and Asuna, date within the series, and their relationship becomes a critical part of the narrative. Like Horimiya, it’s one of the few anime romances given such special treatment and focus, but this is also tied to the fact that series like Sword Art Online are given special treatment. Pure romance anime are almost never given a full adaptation, most likely because they don’t sell as well as action and fantasy series do. Either the series thrives on only the build-up of romance or is given rushed pacing when the couple is actually dating. Sword Art Online is both an action and fantasy series that only happens to have a focus on romance. Given the special treatment for genres that sell, it’s only a happy coincidence that Kirito and Asuna are given a complete story of their romantic relationship.
Romance Fans’ Dependence On Source Material
While certain anime series are given fully detailed anime adaptations, the romance genre is terribly lacking. Drawn-out and multilayered series like Naruto, One Piece, and Jujutsu Kaisen, just to name a few, all have one thing in common: their genres sell. The industry takes careful time with these series that they know will make them the most amount of money, but when it comes to romance series that aren’t as popular, they cut corners in one way or another. The same unfortunate circumstance can be said about the shojo genre, which has the same issues of being cut short. Even in the case of Horimiya, which has both a well-written and lovable couple and shows them dating, fans still have to rely on original manga to see the best version of their story.
For Horimiya, the issue is rushed pacing and loss of focus once Hori and Miyamura begin dating. This is just one of many ways that lighthearted series like these are essentially neglected. Upon seeing how much plot they missed out on with Horimiya, a second season that animates all the missing scenes is currently being broadcasted. While this attempt to squeeze in the missing pieces of the first season is welcomed by fans, it is a bit late for that. This also falls in line with the trend of remakes, which happen to be for shojo and romance series alike. Creators are trying to right the wrongs of past adaptations and share the complete stories as they should, but there shouldn’t be an issue from the get-go. Unless there is a remake in the works, fans of romance, or the shojo demographic, will have to continue their deep dives into the source material. This means reading either the original manga or light novels that inspired the anime adaptation in the first place.
There’s no question that romance anime has a large fanbase, with iconic couples serving as the faces of the genre. Unfortunately, this genre has never been given the treatment it deserves in the anime industry. Publishers of manga and light novels do better to present complete stories of lovable and inspirational couples, but once there’s an adaptation viewers are left with disappointment more often than not. The series that comes closest to having a great couple and a complete story told is Horimiya, but given the anime’s competition—even in the past several years—it wasn’t a hard battle to win.