Akira Failing in Love / 百瀬アキラの初恋破綻中 – Volume Three Manga Review

Akira wants nothing more than for Hajime to confirm his feelings for her, but will Hajime ever see himself as worthy of a relationship with Akira?

You can check out a sample of this series for yourself below!

ENG Sample (Kindle)

JP Sample (Mecha Comics)

My thoughts on this volume (Spoilers!)

While I am still enjoying this series, I’ve begun to notice a pattern with the newly introduced side characters. Perhaps because this is a shounen romance series, but all of the prominent new side characters just so happen to be girls. First, in volume two, we were introduced to Konoura. Her introduction made her look like a bull in a china shop, speeding over to let Hajime know Akira has feelings for him the second she thought she confirmed it. In volume three, we are introduced to Kajiyashiki, the head of the track-and-field team. Her introduction made her first look like a Spartan warrior, but she quickly devolved into a girl who falls over the second the topic of romance is brought up.

Perhaps it’s because there are only new girls constantly being introduced, but I’ve begun finding these extras to be less than enjoyable. While every character in this series is silly with their own unique characteristics, there are really only two goofy boys given the spotlight—our male lead and his best friend. The male lead is impossibly shy only when it comes to Akira, and his best friend has difficulty talking to women. There traits are enough to find them silly and endearing, but not so over the top that I find them to be too much to handle.

The girls on the other hand are a different story. To start, we have Akira and her two friends. While Akira is impossibly shy with everyone, it kicks up a notch when Hajime is involved. Her two friends don’t have any overwhelming quirks, and they do their best to egg Hajime and Akira on, knowing they’re both too shy to be able to progress in a timely matter on their own. When it’s just these five characters, the story has good balance.

I dislike Konoura and Kajiyashiki’s characters as they feel like caricatures rather than quirky classmates. Konoura has no tact and runs to do what she wants if she thinks she’ll be helpful, whether the recipient wants it or not. She has to be physically tied up to stop her from doing something ridiculous, and won’t hesitate to blurt out sensitive information. Kajiyashiki literally falls over herself at the mere thought of romance, leading to her being put in many embarrassing situations and poses. She will literally fall over into a bin mid-run if someone mentions watching a romantic drama, that’s how bad it is. With their introductions, the balance between somewhat sane but silly characters and silly to the point of being unrealistic is put off balance, and I found myself not enjoying their contributions to the story.

Thankfully Hajime and Akira’s relationship is able to make slow progress in this volume, and we even see Akira taking initiative and inviting Hajime to her house! We get to meet Akira’s mother, and we learn a bit about exactly where Akira gets some of her traits from. As I’m enjoying watching their relationship progress, I hope the next volume will focus more on the two of them. I don’t want any more silly side characters, I want Akira and Hajime to be silly together!