君がキライな恋の話

KIMI GA KIRAI NA KOI NO HANASHI

Romance

MANGA

STATUS
COMPLETE
VOLUMES
2
RELEASE
March 13, 2018
CHAPTERS
9

DESCRIPTION

Good-natured Chihiro Hiyoshi takes being the class rep seriously, but her partner, Haruka Kisaragi does not. He's got too many rumors swirling around him, but when a chance meeting brings them into each other's lives for just a moment, they form an unsteady bond. But bad boy Haruka may be too much for a good girl like Chihiro to handle...but something in her may have just awoken a hidden softness in him, too.

(Source: Kodansha USA)

Note: The chapter count includes an extra story.

CHAPTERS

REVIEWS

RoseFaerie
71/100
I'm conflicted about this manga. At it's best it's cute and funny, but there's a darker side to the sweetness.
The Story of Our Unlikely Love is one of those manga that I enjoyed but ultimately have mixed feelings about. It's sort of how I feel about the Maid-sama anime. Maid-sama is funny and entertaining, but I could not stand the male lead and it generally made me uncomfortable. I didn't completely hate it, and I'd revisit it, but it wasn't something I'd exactly call great. I feel similarly about this manga. It's very funny, and I enjoyed reading it, but I was also frequently uncomfortable, just like with Maid-sama. It's kind of funny because there was a scene that was basically a copy-paste of a Maid-sama scene that I hated.

Anyways, enough of the Maid-sama comparisons. Let's get to the plot. Chihiro Hiyoshi is the class representative. She's very strait-laced and kindhearted, but she also can't say no to anyone. In a twist of fate, she becomes entangled with her classmate Haruka Kisaragi, who is known for constantly skipping class. These two high schoolers are polar opposites, but they can't seem to stay away from each other.

The story is a slice of life romcom, focusing on the two characters becoming closer and encouraging each other to improve. Kisaragi helps Hiyoshi stand up for herself and work on saying "no", and Hiyoshi helps Kisaragi care more and try harder. Kisaragi is also being chased around by delinquents frequently for some reason. I can't remember if that was connected to the basketball tournament or not. They threaten to rape Hiyoshi a couple of times, which was completely unnecessary. At least that isn't romanticized, and they use a recording of those threats as leverage to keep them from hurting others. I did appreciate that in the random fights with the delinquents, Hiyoshi helps to protect Kisaragi a few times, even though Kisaragi's usually the one doing the saving.

Other than the rape threats from the delinquents, Kisaragi also frequently tells Hiyoshi that he wants to do "whatever he whatever he wants with her". Stuff like, "I protected you so you can't complain if I do whatever I want with you". He says stuff like that like 3-4 times, which is impressive in a 9-chapter manga. There's a scene where he gives her a hickey to keep her from wearing her bikini in front of guys. It's a one for one copy of a scene in Maid-sama where Usui doesn't want Misaki to wear a bikini in front of other guys, so he gives her a hickey. I just hate the controlling aspect, and how it comes from a "protecting women from being assaulted" perspective, when their attire is not the issue. It's the guy's possessiveness and control issues. In The Story of Our Unlikely Love, he's just upset that guys are looking in her general direction. Her swimsuit was even a normal swimsuit and not even the slightest bit more revealing than the average two-piece. It just made me so angry.

As for the characters, we only really met our two leads. Hiyoshi is super relatable since I also struggle with turning people down and saying "no". I appreciated how despite having a challenging time with taking time with standing up for herself, she wasn't a shy or timid character. She's extroverted and independent. She was a refreshing character. As for Kisaragi, I generally liked him because he was very chaotic, and he made me laugh with his spontaneous actions. He's just so carefree and yet perceptive. However, he kind of ruined himself for me with the stuff he did that I detailed in the above paragraph.

The art was incredibly beautiful. I love the character designs. Hiyoshi's design kind of reminded me of the FL from Hayakku Shitai Futari, except in a different style. Both the leads were adorable looking. The art is definitely a strong point for this manga.

As I've said, I have mixed feelings about this. At its strongest, it's an adorable romcom, but at its worst we get to see some awful behavior. I generally enjoyed it, but I can't give it a higher rating than a 7/10 because it bothered me so much. It's a shame because I enjoyed reading it, and I appreciated the character dynamic.
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