Lovely★Complex

"You idiot! Big or small, as long as you have a ☆☆☆☆ you're a man, right?!" My initial thoughts when starting this series? "What am I getting myself into..." Those words were what ran through my head when I watched the first episode. It was ranked pretty high by the MAL Community, and I decided to give it a try. After the first episode, I couldn't help but press the next episode button... I mean, who wouldn't, right? Anyways, as I started watching the series, I hadn't noticed until around episode 17 that I had just spent 8 hours laughing my head off every episode. Strange,isn't it? We don't realize that we're doing something until we've been doing it for a long time or until someone points it out. What am I getting at here? Lovely☆Complex was probably the highlight of my month. I watched every episode in a matter of hours, and I enjoyed every minute of it. For starters, when it comes to good quality storylines, Lovely☆Complex might cross people's minds. True, it may not sound like anything special, but truthfully it is. Usually when it comes to Shoujo animes, the storyline is based around 1 plot, and that would be getting the 2 protagonists together in the end of the series. What makes this unique is that the male protagonists are often taller then the female protagonists. In this case, it's the other way around... by about half a foot. Risa, codename "Giraffe", is a whopping 172 cm tall, and Otani, codename "Midget", is a mere 156 cm tall. It's abnormal for either of them to be that height, so when people are trying to make romance come out of that situation, it might seem impossible, especially since the two of them are fighting constantly. But overall, the story was really well played to my surprise. There was good comedy, romance, and an overall feel to the anime. I was very happy about that. It's not often where you come across a Shoujo that hasn't copied a story from another shoujo... 2007 isn't that long ago, and for an anime that's over 6 years old, it had a pretty decent art style. I liked how the characters were portrayed, however it seems like everyone in Lovely☆Complex was either really short, or really tall. I don't think there was an average height person in this show... strange, but had good quality overall. One thing I did have a problem though were those creepy-assed faces that mostly came from Risa. It ranged from a chipmunk, to a rabbit, to a god-knows-what. It's hard to like her when her face is so misshapen like that. I still laughed though, at least when I wasn't shielding my eyes. Excellent cast for Lovely☆Complex. I really liked how they got the voice actress who played Nami in One Piece to voice Risa as well. She did really well in One Piece and transferred that profession into Risa. Then there was Otani. His voice was played by Akira Nagata. Haven't heard of him? Well neither had I until I looked up who voiced Otani. He's had 2 roles, one of them being Lovely☆Complex, so it shocked me to see him with a lack of roles. He voiced Otani so well that I was kind of sad, not being able to hear him again. As for all the other voice actors, they voiced their roles with professionalism and enthusiasm. I applaud that. I could go on forever about who I liked best and why, but I'll keep the text to a minimum here. I liked Nobu the best, but I'll get to her later. For starters, Giraffe-- er, Risa was really funny, she was pretty when she wasn't cosplaying as a beaver, and she had an overall likable personality. Otani-- er, Midget-- wait, yeah, Otani seemed really dense, and when I mean dense, I mean REALLY dense. You could literally send him a note telling him "I love you" with your name signed at the bottom and he'd think it was a joke or for someone else. Either way, he too had some really funny moments to him. Haruka was the bane of my existence as an anime-lover. His constant obsession over Risa was almost intolerable. But either way, he seemed to have a crucial role in the story, so he was needed, to my dismay. Nobu, yaaaay! Risa's best friend. Probably the most affectionate girlfriend you could possibly have in all honesty. Truthfully I'd like to see someone get in the way of her and Nakao (Nobu's Boyfriend, and also one of the funniest characters in the show), and trust me, that person would die. Then there's Suzuki and Chiharu. I'm lumping them together because they're basically the same person, only 1 is male and the other is female. They're both really shy, but they are really nice as well. Last of all, Seiko. I'm not gonna give you a rundown of what makes Seiko a crucial character, but all I'm going to say is prepare to have your eyes burned out of your sockets and your brain blown up, along with constant laughter. Enjoyment: 11/10. This is probably my favorite Shoujo out there today. I got my sister to watch it and she loves it as well, and she never watches any anime other than Angel Beats! and The World God Only Knows. She has a limited tendency to watch anime, but if I was able to get her to watch this, you should try it out for yourself as well. This anime had some great comedy, really good romance scenes, and an overall likableness to it. I urge you to watch it, and I really hope that those of you who have seen it can vouch for me in supporting me on how good this was.

Ah, Lovely Complex, you sneaky little gem! This 2007 anime is a masterclass in storytelling, character development, and music - it's like a time capsule of feels that still resonates in 2024. Risa and Ootani's unlikely romance had me hooked from the start. Their height difference (172 cm vs 156 cm) becomes a hilarious recurring joke, but it's their genuine connection that makes my heart skip a beat. Who wouldn't root for a couple that starts as best friends and blossoms into something more? The anime's portrayal of relationships is refreshingly real - the awkward moments, the misunderstandings, the butterflies... it's all so beautifully relatable. And thehumor? Top-notch! I snorted my coffee out my nose more than once. What truly sets Lovely Complex apart is its character growth. Risa and Ootani evolve from quirky teens to confident, vulnerable, and lovable individuals. The supporting cast is just as well-crafted, with Risa's friends stealing the show with their sass and wit. That soundtrack, though? The opening theme song is still stuck in my head, and I'm not even mad about it. In short, Lovely Complex is a must-watch rom-com that deserves a solid 9/10. If you haven't experienced it yet, grab some snacks, get cozy, and prepare for a feels fest like no other!

(This has been adapted from my reddit thread) There's a common phrase when it comes to love, "opposites attract." What does this mean exactly? Men fall for women? Innocent girls go for the bad boys? An outgoing person finds the quiet, reserved type attractive? Whatever the case, these types of relationships form all the time. And with the Lovely Complex, it is no different. But as an anime, the show is not as good as people make it out to be. STORY Lovely Complex stars Ootani, the short (and short-tempered) guy, and Koizumi, the tall (and equally short-tempered) girl. Due to their antics, they are usually seen asa comedy duo. But as their time together increases, Koizumi begins seeing Ootani in a new light. The show itself is comprised of about four separate arcs: All-Hanshin Kyojin (their nickname in school) acting as friends, Koizumi realizing her feelings for Ootani, pursuing him, and the conflicts that arise between them. The show starts off strong but by the halfway point, it devolves into repetition and ultimately weakens. The first arc helps to demonstrate the comedy of the show. Relying mostly on funny reactions and gags between Ootani and Koizumi, it worked to get a laugh out of me every now and then. Their relationship was filled with "idiots" and other relevant names. They seemed more like brother and sister with the way they acted towards one another; hostile yet you know that they care about each other. At this point, it is also becomes apparent how fast the shows pacing is. It should not be taken lightly when I say that the show progresses very quickly through events and time. By the end of the show, it has covered the entirety of their high school lives, meaning about one year per eight episodes. This doesn't necessarily hurt the show, but it does leave many details either left to narration or skipped over. The second arc deals with Koizumi coming to terms with her feelings for Ootani. This was the strongest part of the show for its sense of realism. The show doesn't have the couple come together immediately. Instead, it plays off the relationship they have currently and sets up a believable situation in which Koizumi learns that falling in love and having that person love you back are not the easiest things to have at the same time. The third arc consists mostly of Koizumi attempting to woo Ootani. However, it is at this point that the show starts to degrade. Where it had a nice sense of realism beforehand, it throws this out of the window in place of illogical choices and repetition. As stated before, the pacing of the show is quick. Therefore, Koizumi's advances actually last for quite a while. So long, in fact, it goes against sanity. I can believe having a crush on someone for a long period of time, but when that person doesn't reciprocate your feelings after having yours known for an extensive period of time, it starts to become a little ridiculous on the part of the confessor. Going back to repetition, much of this arc consists of the same thing over and over: Koizumi loving Ootani, attempting to sway him, her failing, her wanting to give up, then her realizing she can't. It gets rather annoying quickly that she comes to the same conclusion constantly while still holding out hope. The final part of the show involves many complications that arise between Ootani and Koizumi's relationship. By this point, I was getting perturbed at their sometimes stupid choices that they were making, and this portion was no exception. A lot of the comedy had been removed and was replaced by their high school romance drama. A part of me wanted to like the romance that was happening but their was just something about the relationship that just never really felt as if the two really cared about one another. Whether that is Ootani's apprehensiveness or Koizumi's baffling decision making, whatever it is, I never felt myself rooting for them to finally end up together. ANIMATION Watching Lovely Complex is somewhat rough. The art style for the show makes it look as if it was created in the mid-90s, despite being created in 2007. The environments and locations are pretty average and the character designs are pretty plain if not forgettable. In terms of animation, the show is also pretty bad. For the animation that is present, it is not executed properly and usually pretty choppy. Furthermore, the show loves to employ repetition even in its frames; it constantly uses previously aired material through flashbacks. Again, this starts to happen more in the second half where the show begins to go downhill. The show could get detailed when it wanted to, especially when drawing the character's faces during key moments, but for the most part this never occurred. Instead, the show mainly stuck to drawing the characters in joke poses or ways. CHARACTERS Something interesting I found about the Lovely Complex was that I actually preferred the side cast to the main cast throughout much of the show. Koizumi starts off being a rather loud and abrasive girl looking for love. And this is pretty much the extent of her character. Yes, her feelings for Ootani change over time, but beyond that, nothing else does. Having so much time elapse, there should have been more development on her part outside of "I can't live without him." It's sad because she is quite unique when it comes to main female leads; she isn't super nice and pretty. She's pretty much the atypical lead girl, both in personality and growth. The same argument can be had for Ootani. He begins as the hot-headed shorty but outside of coming to terms with his own feelings, he doesn't grow either. This is a big problem when you are the star of a show. While I found Koizumi and Ootani to at least be okay characters, I actually quite liked the rest of the cast. Characters such as Nobuko, Seiko, and Haruka not only provided more laughs than All-Hanshin Kyojin did, but they also were the ones to provide us with plot points and character insight. And while they may also have only one trait attributed to each of them, that's fine; being side characters, I wasn't expecting huge progress from them. But even so, the show does look at each of them, if only for a bit. And this was the issue with them; outside of Nobuko, the character was usually introduced, used for a few episodes, then discarded. He or she might make a cameo later on, but for the most part, he or she was forgotten. SOUND The first OP is at least okay. It sounds older than it probably intends to be, but it is fun and fits with the first half of the show nicely. The second OP, however, is not good. It has a mix of rap and pop to it that doesn't feel appropriate for the show. The first ED is actually pretty good. It has a jazzy and mellow feel to it that complements nicely with the antics that take place before it. But like the second OP, the second ED is just bad. It sounds like it came from a boy band; its too much pop and does not go with the shows feeling at all. The rest of the soundtrack is pretty bad as well. There is nothing memorable from it or even anything worth mentioning. As for the voice acting, Akemi Okamura's role as Koizumi and Akira Nagata's role as Ootani were nicely done on their end. Their voices sounded pretty unique and the different tones and inflections they used throughout the series were done well. ENJOYMENT You will be hard pressed to find another guy who likes romance in anime as much as I do. But as I said previously, I just could not get fully invested into this one. Perhaps I just did not like Koizumi and Ootani's characters enough to care about them getting together. The romance elements are definitely there but it just never felt as if they really had feelings that complemented each other. Koizumi would always let us know due to her narration but Ootani seemed as disinterested with everything as I did with the show. The comedy itself is good during the first half, as said previously. A lot of the jokes fall flat during the second half, and I distinctly remembering shaking my head at the "Grandma joke" for how completely unfunny it was, despite the characters thinking so. I think that may have been the problem that the show created for itself. By focusing so much on comedy to begin with, it becomes harder to appreciate the romance introduced later down the road. In the end, Lovely Complex's appeal comes from its characters, simply because it is lacking in almost every other department. But since I didn't particularly enjoy All-Hanshin Kyojin, my experience with the show was just not as enjoyable as it should have been. SUMMARY Story: Fine, experiences a harsh half-life Animation: Bad, art style is old and the animation is lacking Characters: Fine, weak main cast but strong side cast Sound: Fine, split on OPs and EDs, bad soundtrack but good VAs Enjoyment: Fine, better comedy than romance Final Score: 4/10

I really, really, really loved LoveCom. It was cute, insightful, hilarious and endearing. It was my most anticipated episode every week. I always wanted more. I want more now even though I know it's over! The story is about the tallest girl and the shortest boy in class and their search for love in high school. It turns out they're both kooky, funny and energetic. They're also perfect for each other... too bad they don't see that. The story isn't complicated or new, but it was told so well that it crawled into right into that soft spot in my heart. Theromance is built slowly over time and by the end, you're head over heels for them because the creators did such a great job of laying down the foundation and actually showing you how their feelings grow over time. It's not like a lot of shows where all of a sudden in a haze of fuzzy lighting and rose petals, love magically sprouts out of nowhere. Instead, you see a friendship begin, a moment happens, interest blossoms, awareness grows... the whole nine yards. You really get to know Koizumi and Otani over the course of the show and I was rooting like crazy for them. The characters are so over the top and out of control that it's hard not to laugh. They exaggerate, make ridiculous faces and they over-react to everything. It's really kind of hammy, but that's part of the fun. And it's refreshing to see a female lead who isn't some stereotype of a dominatrix-in-training or a weak, helpless nitwit. She seems like a real human being with strong points and weak points. She isn't afraid to get ugly and imperfect sometimes and I think it's really great that they made her (and, really, him too) full of all these flaws and not-so-attractive traits... and yet so completely charming and loveable. It makes them really... human. I would say that if you like the relationship (without the music and with a lot more actual focus on romance) of Nodame and Chiaki from Nodame Cantabile, you might like this too because there's a similarity in the way that the relationships go both ways and the strength that each of them brings to the relationship. The art is great too. First of all, they took the time and effort to change the characters appearances day to day and give them all a sense of their own style, which I really appreciate. It's just really thorough and well-executed. I completely agree with YoshikoHatake, there is something about the style that brings Bokura Ga Ita to mind, even though the tone of the story is completely different (BGI felt a lot more serious and the colors and style reflect that somewhat, I think). Music-wise, it's also nice. I don't normally notice the openings and endings that much (I've always hated credits), but LoveCom's are really good in a perky, energetic kind of way, which suits the show perfectly, and I find myself singing along w/ the karaoke. ;) Enjoy! =) P.S. I really haven't seen very many romances that do this good of a job at being funny and sweet and tender and honest. If you have, I'd love suggestions!

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