Hatsukoi Limited - Reviews

Love is pestering. Love is the thump of the heart.

There are some moments that are endearing because of their weirdness--like Ayumi defeating Misao with a "kick," the Yoshihiko mask, and the meeting under the desk. But it also sometimes feels like it's trying too hard to mix that quirkiness into the drama, like with the Valentine's box or the beach-running, and it doesn't land very well. I appreciated how it would switch up perspectives between chapters and show multiple angles to things, especially as they were introducing the dynamics. The stories in general started feeling less interesting as the series went on and the relationships started to settle a bit more, and the ending is just kinda meh. The romances feel pretty straightforward, though not all of them lead to relationships. There's only a single person who starts out loving someone and then switches midway through to loving someone else (thus satisfying some of the tension caused by all the unreciprocated loves). Some of the pairings are more prominent and recurring than others. And one pairing--that of Uemura and Yuu--is only brought up a single time and then completely dropped.

The art style reminded me of Bakuman. Though worse. The hair doesn't look like it flows. There's a lack of noses that, combined with the lack of shading, gives the impression of being traced or something. The emotions are drawn kinda awkwardly. The faces can look very similar to each other, to the point that I wouldn't be surprised if people mistook Mamoru for Yoshihiko or some of the other characters for each other. There are some panty shots and other pointless-feeling ecchiness.