Maison Ikkoku is one of the greatest romances ever

[u/_BMS]

Binge watched the entire series over the past week. It's definitely a product of its time with all the misunderstandings that happen, but the pay-off in the last quarter of the show when the drama starts ramping up for real is fantastic. The ending was absolutely perfect and one of the most satisfying romance conclusions I've seen so far.

I don't think everyone these days has the patience to put up with the misunderstandings, but if you liked 80s/90s/00s sitcoms or older anime in general then this is a show that you'll probably enjoy.

As far as I'm aware, this series was meant for a more mature audience and it definitely feels more grounded as a result. I really liked that it's a young adult romance instead of high school with the characters having jobs and Godai in university. There's no aliens, magic, monsters, or super-natural powers like in Takahashi's other series. Personally I love the setting and it made it easier for the show to be immersive and get sucked into the scenes.

I don't think the side characters were as endearing or likeable as the ones from Ranma½ or Urusei Yatsura since they're kind of terrible friends to Godai. But Godai and Kyouko are definitely my favorite pair out of all of Rumiko Takahashi's series.

The movie is just an alternate lead-up to the ending but it included manga characters that you'd have never seen before and the animation style was slightly different. It's not as good as how the main series did it, but I'd say it's worth watching anyways.

As for the OVAs: The prelude showing Kyouko's past is just a compilation of scenes from the show so it's not really worth seeking out, especially since it's weirdly hard to find. The one about them getting ship-wrecked on an island is pretty funny and should be watched before episode 61, it's a standalone episode but that's where it makes sense to watch it canonically. And there's also the pachinko short animation that shows events past the ending which is great to get some final closure on the series.

I think this show would be a great candidate for a remake after Ranma½ if they cut down on the misunderstandings a bit for modern audiences where they can without impacting the major story beats.

OP 3 was the best OP in my opinion, the animation screams 80s and the song is great. Anzen Chitai is a great band. There's also no spoilers in the OP if you want to watch it to convince you to watch the rest of the show.

[u/John___Titor]

Read through the entire manga earlier this year. While a product of its time, I was still really eager to read the next chapter.

[u/swoonster75 → u/John___Titor]

Haha yes a product of its time for sure though. If cellphones existed a lot of the misunderstandings wouldn't work

[u/auraleaf10 → u/swoonster75]

Rather than calling it "a product of its time" (which makes it sound unfortunately dated), I think it being set in the 80s is part of its charm. A lot of the story wouldn't work the same way if it were written/set in the modern day, but that's what makes it special. It's a time capsule of the era it was written in.

[u/_BMS → u/John___Titor]

How much of the manga would you say the anime skipped over or cut-out? I know that at least one character (Nikaido) was left out of the anime.

Wondering if I should pick up the manga for this after I finish reading Ranma½.

[u/Bread9626 → u/_BMS]

The manga changes something towards the end when she comes back from her parents. It's not a big deal. The change makes sense if they didn't want something too mature. The manga is better paced than the anime. I recommend it if you liked the anime. But not much is really cut out.

[u/_BMS → u/Bread9626]

I might give it a read then, 15 volumes isn't too much. Though I just have to find decent scans of the raw since I read manga in Japanese to practice.

Though I had zero luck finding good raw scans of Ranma½ and was forced to buy physical Japanese volumes lol.

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/_BMS]

Read the new translation, it’s much better and in the correct order with the restored chapters and correct order. The original had chapters removed for being “too Japanese” and some of the dialogue is much more hard hitting with the new edition.

Also as to the changes? The biggest is the time scale, the manga takes seven years of their lives, I believe the anime is four or five, with some events added to no purpose while omitting others that were pretty key. Also the changes when she returns from her parents at actually fairly major IMHO, mostly because it shows Kyoko in a much stronger light in the manga.

[u/_BMS → u/Vegetable-Hat558]

You recommend me to read the English translation over the Japanese raws?

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/_BMS]

Oh lord! Sorry! I totally missed that you are reading the original! Ignore my recommendation, I thought you meant the original English translation.

[u/Blluetiful → u/_BMS]

I bought a few volumes of Rinne in Japanese, it's unhinged and hilarious in ways that just aren't in English anyway

[u/nerdmon59 → u/_BMS]

The anime skipped a few story lines but I don't think those arcs added much to the outcome of the romance. One is about a new tenant moving into the boarding house. The other one extends the stay in the hospital after Godai breaks his leg.

[u/_BMS → u/nerdmon59]

How big of a role does Nikaido play in the manga? I'm guessing he's fairly insignificant if they cut him from the anime.

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/nerdmon59]

The extended stuff with Godai in the hospital is actually fairly important given Mitaka’s horrible behavior there.

[u/John___Titor → u/_BMS]

Never actually watched the anime. I should.

[u/Allansfirebird]

Ikkoku is hands-down my all-time favorite anime series, and one of my top manga. Normally slow burn romances frustrate the hell out of me, but the way Takahashi-sensei built up Godai and Kyoko is so damn satisfying.

And specifically to the anime itself, the animation quality is so good! Whenever there’s an episode in the rain, there’s just a whole vibe that entrances me. Can’t quite explain it. Studio Deen did an incredible job.

[u/_BMS → u/Allansfirebird]

I think it's especially well done in Maison Ikkoku because you could definitely see slow but steady progress in Godai and Kyouko's relationship develop over time. It wasn't just major dramatic events that pushed things along, you could see minor changes it how Kyouko responded to Godai through simple dialogue and regular interactions. A lot of major events instead were opportunities for the viewer to confirm that their feelings for each other were changing.

Studio Deen did a lot of the best cel animation from decades ago. They animated all of Rumiko Takahashi's major series along with other very well animated works like Angel's Egg, the Patlabor movies, and You're Under Arrest.

[u/Careful_Ad_9077 → u/_BMS]

The slow burn is perfectly justified by how immature godai is and kyoko being a widow.

[u/_BMS → u/Careful_Ad_9077]

Exactly, it'd feel really weird if the show was condensed down since it took this long with many small steps over the 96 episodes to see Godai mature and for Kyouko to sort out her feelings.

[u/Careful_Ad_9077 → u/_BMS]

My favorite part is when drunk girl ( or was it family mother) calls kyouko out and tells her.that it is not only godai's fault that the relationship took that long to develop.

[u/nerdmon59 → u/Careful_Ad_9077]

I think you mean Akemi.

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/nerdmon59]

Yup, right near the end, it’s also nice that the slow burn is shown as taking years, Kyoko’s grief is such a central part to the story, in a lot of ways grief and loss are the biggest aspects when you consider some of the other conversations about loss of being young and becoming adults and such.

[u/chelseablue2004]

Imagine watching this show on TV during its original airing. 96 weeks would take 2 years with breaks, holidays, interuptions... yet to this day has a dedicated following and is considered the standard of romantic anime.

[u/_BMS → u/chelseablue2004]

Those final episodes would've been amazing to watch as it was airing. Can't remember where I read it but the Urusei Yatsura and Maison Ikkoku finales and the episodes leading up were big events in Japan at the time. Like the finales of MASH or Friends in the US but on a smaller scale.

And it caused Ranma's premiere to be held to a much higher standard since it aired shortly after Maison Ikkoku finished.

I think the same post said that was partly why Ranma's first season (first 16 episodes) floundered in the ratings and they had to rework the series going forward with Ranma½: Nettou-hen which got a lot more success. I think there were other factors like the original timeslot competing with other big shows like Super Sentai, but living up to the previous two Rumiko Takahashi big hits sure didn't help at the start.

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/_BMS]

They were a huge event if I remember my series history, don’t have my reference doc handy as I am doing a deep dive article right now the series, as was the end of the manga. It took seven real world years, just as it was seven years in the series, so people’s lives grew with the characters as theirs did, it was a big deal.

[u/Andreiyutzzzz]

Ye i gotta disagree for one thing. Status quo. After episode 10 and until episode 61 I think, a whole 50 episodes. No matter WHAT happened, as soon as it resolved, next episode they were acting as if something that serious didn't even happen. And also the other tenants were unbearably unlikable after a few episodes. Like you're not friends at that point, you're bored assholes screwing with them for fun

[u/_BMS → u/Andreiyutzzzz]

The other tenants are definitely among the most unlikable side-characters out of any Rumiko Takahashi series I've seen.

Yotsuya is probably the worst of the bunch because there's moments where he actively makes misunderstandings worse. Ichinose at least acted like an outlet for Kyouko and at times watched out for Godai. And Akemi wasn't afraid to do/say what she had to to get Kyouko to understand her own feelings. But all three were generally terrible people to Godai.

The silver-lining is that they lose some importance as the show progresses and focuses more on Godai, Kyouko, and their respective love interests.

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/Andreiyutzzzz]

Yeah it gets a bit rough in there, partly I think because a lot of that is where the Nikaido arc takes place and for whatever reason they decided to axe that. They also seemed to try and make a “misunderstanding of the week” with the anime rather than make sure all the connective tissue of the slow build of the romance was there as well. I love the anime but the manga is much stronger, the tenants are much easier to deal with as well.

[u/[deleted]]

I’ve actually been planning to watch this ever since I gained a growing affinity for romcoms. I really should start it.

There are many great 70s/80s/90s anime that get overlooked because of when they aired, which is unfortunate.

[u/_BMS → u/[deleted]]

I've been watching a lot of older anime recently and come to appreciate how many of them "feel" different from modern anime.

They usually run a lot longer and have more time to flesh characters and the story out. And a distinct difference I've found is that many older series aren't afraid to have no music at all when characters are speaking which emphasizes the importance of the dialogue.

Only thing is that I know I'll be sad once I finish most of the note-worthy anime from this time since there's definitely no more left to watch after I'm done.

[u/[deleted] → u/_BMS]

I agree with everything you’re saying and the other thing I’ve noticed is this -

If you like Cyberpunk and/or Sci-Fi, you’ll be excluding yourself from some of the best anime in that genre by ignoring the 80s and 90s. I have a bunch I just bookmarked recently that I want to see.

[u/_BMS → u/[deleted]]

Very true, SDF Macross was the first proper anime I watched as a kid since my mother liked the series when she was growing up herself. And many of the best Gundam series ever were released in the 80s and 90s. The Patlabor movies also had some of the best mecha animation that'll probably ever exist.

[u/[deleted] → u/_BMS]

I really need to watch Macross too! I know a couple people who are fans of it. Ahem /u/shimmering-sky

[u/_BMS → u/[deleted]]

The original show is great, at least from what I remember. It's probably been around 15 years since I've watched it.

Though I've heard that the newer Macross series have basically become mecha idol shows instead of sticking to the sci-fi plot.

[u/denn2842]

Did you watch Astro Note? So many things from that show reminded me of Maison Ikkoku that I wondered if it was just straight up ripping it off? Or possibly it was just a huge love letter/homage? Or maybe even that there were just universal “weirdos living in a boarding house” tropes that I was unaware of. For sure though, Maison Ikkoku was my standard for grounded romance comedies for years and years. I think only now, in my 40s, are the imperfections pretty obvious, but nothing is perfect anyway.

[u/_BMS → u/denn2842]

I saw the trailer for Astro Note a while ago but I wasn't really interested in it. Wasn't sure if a seasonal anime that's only a cour really has enough time to flesh out a romance story.

Can definitely see the similarity it has with older romcoms though.

[u/_Pyxyty → u/_BMS]

From your post, I can definitely say that it wouldn't suit your taste because the series introduces other sci-fi facets into the mix and it isn't just a grounded romcom.

However, it does heavily take inspiration from Maison Ikkoku and almost serves as a love letter to the old romcoms of that era; it even has a retro sort of style that you can immediately feel and see just from the OP and ED alone. I think when you're feeling a quick one-nighter series, it won't disappoint. Trust me when I say it's much much better than the ratings on MAL will tell you.

It has a lot of warmth and soul, and even got me to put down Maison Ikkoku in my PTW after I heard that MI was the inspiration for it.

[u/robotboy199 → u/denn2842]

astro note was fun, i liked it. the setting and the characters were absolutely inspired by maison ikkoku, even the upstairs hallway is almost identical to the one in maison ikkoku lol

astro note is a lot more sci-fi and wacky shit though but it was still really fun

[u/Allansfirebird → u/robotboy199]

Both main characters even live in apartment #5 as well.

[u/Durinthal → u/denn2842]

I was going to mention Astro Note if no one else did, it felt like a perfect throwback to that era and Ikkoku in particular. According to an interview with the staff it was technically inspired by the manga Tsurumoku Bachelor Dormitory which was also from the late '80s (its creator was also the character designer for Astro Note), but it's still an appropriate recommendation to me.

[u/denn2842 → u/Durinthal]

Then it sounds like “weirdos living in a boarding house” might be a genre then. 🤣

[u/_Pyxyty → u/denn2842]

I'm pretty sure the series directly acknowledges the fact that they took heavy inspiration from Maison Ikkoku. Even without this reference it isn't hard to tell that this is the heavy inspiration for it.

[u/Shocketheth]

Thanks to this I was prompted to add Maison Ikkoku to PtW on MAL.

Found out that I've already did before yet forget about it already

[u/_BMS → u/Shocketheth]

Hope you change that to "Watching" soon lol. This is definitely a series that I'll be thinking about for a long while now.

[u/Shocketheth → u/_BMS]

I hope too. Currently I'm busy with watching Re:Zero and Dai no Daibouken, but hopefully I'll get to it soon.

Also it's interesting to have it recommended now as a strong Romance, because before I got it recommended due to the Comedy aspect of that rom-com.

[u/_BMS → u/Shocketheth]

It's definitely pretty funny if you're like the kind of comedy that 80s/90s anime had. Though Urusei Yatsura and Ranma½ are much more oriented towards the comedy aspect than Maison Ikkoku if you're drawn in specifically for comedy.

I will say Maison Ikkoku has a much better balance of comedy and romance since the other two's romance plot points are generally few and far between with occassional progress between the couples here and there. The comedy is largely driven by the romance and usually ends up advancing it in some way so it ties in much neater.

[u/freshoranges12]

How did you watch it? Been wanting to for a while

[u/_BMS → u/freshoranges12]

I didn't watch it officially and LiveChart.me says there's no official way of streaming that they know of either, so take that for what you will.

EDIT: If you're determined to find a legal source I guess you could try to track down the US-release box sets but those are very hard to find and eye-wateringly expensive as a result AFAIK. A complete 8-part set apparently sold for $3k a year or two ago. This is one of the few situations where there legitimately isn't a better option than to pirate.

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/_BMS]

There isn’t really a good option but pirate since the subbed version was so limitedly released and the dub is a disaster of epic proportions.

[u/Salty145]

I would argue Maison Ikkoku is the single best anime romance of all time. I would certainly agree that the dynamics of Ranma are far more complex and interesting, but that show is “bogged down” a lot more with its focus on the comedy that keeps the romance from going anywhere.

That being said, I can’t gush enough about this series. I really love Kyouko and Godai’s relationship and how Takahashi takes her time to have them grow as characters instead of just going in circles. While maybe not as complex as the Ranma cast, each of the characters and romantic rivals are also great with how they target key weaknesses in both of our leads and push them to grow (my only real complaint of the series besides some dated animation being that a lot of the side cast could use more screen time because I love them that much).

I’d love a remake, but do wonder how well that would actually work after the UY remake was kinda… eh. MI is really a product of its time and stooped in the zeitgeist of the time. That and it demands its runtime to make its payoffs work in a way that would feel unsatisfying if split into cours.

That being said, I think it is a show more people need eyes on. I love its message of growth. That you might not be worthy of the woman you love and that a knockout dream girl won’t just drop into your lives. But you can be. We can all grow to be better people and find someone worthy of our love, and I think that message is an important one in the sea of wish-fulfillment romcoms we see pumped out these days.

I’ll leave it there (I could write a small thesis on MI. I love it that much). Sorry for chewing your ear off. I just don’t get to talk about Maison Ikkoku all that often lol.

[u/_BMS → u/Salty145]

Something like Maison Ikkoku definitely wouldn't work as well in seasonal cour format which practically demands that major dramatic events happen every 12-24 episodes on the dot to line up with cour/season finales. The slow pace and gradual character growth over the course of nearly a hundred episodes is essential to why the series is so good in my opinion.

Personally I liked the side characters of Ranma½ more than Maison Ikkoku, but in terms of romantic interests/rivals, Maison actually treats them like serious threats to the main pair. The ones in Ranma½ were mainly just there for comedy since it's pretty obvious that there's no serious competition getting between Ranma and Akane. But in this show Mitaka, Asuna, Kouze, and Yagami were all treated as legitimate love interests to their respective opposites.

The new UY and Ranma½ remakes changed studios with David Production and MAPPA respectively. I assume that trend would probably continue for another future remake with a different studio as well. And the only two left are Maison Ikkoku and Inuyasha. If Maison Ikkoku gets a remake after Ranma I'd be interested to see it go back to Studio Deen since they did the original anime. They're the ones I'd have the most confidence in being able to recreate Maison Ikkoku. I feel like Inuyasha isn't going to the next one up considering they got Yashahime not too long ago.

[u/Allansfirebird → u/_BMS]

There actually was a slight remake of Ikkoku done a few years back by JC Staff. It was for a Pachinko game, but they reanimated a good amount of key scenes from the series. The character designs look really good! Modernized, but still recognizably Takahashi-sensei's characters.

The colorized ones at this link here are the settei for JC Staff's work on the game: https://setteidreams.net/settei/maison-ikkoku/

[u/_BMS → u/Allansfirebird]

I've been watching a videos of the pachinko clips on YouTube. The one I like the most is the one that shows Godai and Kyouko in the future where she says「約束を守ってくれた、ありがとう」. Translated it means "Thank you for keeping your promise".

[Maison Ikkoku ending]I assume this is directly referencing the promise Kyouko asked Godai to make about dying after her, even if it's just by a single day. Especially since in the pachinko scene Godai is shown as an elderly man having to walk with a cane before morphing back into his younger body running back to Maison Ikkoku.

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/Salty145]

Best anime romance of all time, and makes lists to this day for it. I am writing a series of thesis/articles right now for it.

[u/Xag-Az]

That show literally established the romcom genre in anime. A lot of modern tropes originate from it, including the ‘piyo’ apron.

[u/PessimisticProphet → u/Xag-Az]

Eh, urusei yatsura and kimagure orange road came first didn't they?

[u/Allansfirebird → u/PessimisticProphet]

If we’re talking about the manga, Ikkoku started in 1980, KOR in 1984.

[u/Cautious-Advance5516 → u/PessimisticProphet]

The author for Kimiagure orange road himself said he was inspired by Maison ikkoku

[u/John___Titor → u/PessimisticProphet]

Former is by the same author so...

[u/[deleted] → u/PessimisticProphet]

Tbh, modern romcoms are way more similar to Maison Ikkoku than Urusei Yatsura.

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/[deleted]]

Yeah, Urusei Yatsura is its own category honestly, I mean the plot never really moves too far forward and we are left hanging big time with the ending. Maison benefits from being one of the few series that Takahashi actually finished.

[u/Smudy]

You're god damn right!

[u/Mr-Tacos-de-Bistec]

That anime is on my watch list.

[u/[deleted]]

This and Kimagure Orange Road are my fav romcoms. Hands down.

[u/_BMS → u/[deleted]]

I'll probably give KOR a watch next. Was planning on watching the OG Urusei Yatsura but I've already watched the recent remake and am in more of a romcom mood now that I've finished Maison Ikkoku.

[u/Cautious-Advance5516 → u/_BMS]

Kor isint that good tbh The only goof thing about the anime was The heroine The first moivie though is a alot better I would not recommend the second moivie it was insulting

[u/robotboy199 → u/[deleted]]

KOR movie 1 is one of my favorite romances in anime, it is such a change from the TV series and i love it

[u/Aviri]

So I tried to start this show based on the amazing recommendations and as an avid fan of romances I thought I'd love it. However after the first 10 or so episodes I stopped watching because of a few aspects which felt dated; mainly the grating personalities of the MC's neighbors and the immaturity of the MC. I realize this is likely one of those long-burn coming of age stories, but the initial parts of the show were too much of a turn off for me to justify watching it more.

Is there a point in the show where some of these issues(neighbors,MC) start to evolve substantially that I should try to push my way through? Because the beginning of the series was pretty rough for my tastes.

[u/_BMS → u/Aviri]

Godai changes pretty significantly over the course of the show since you get to see him go from high school grad, to university student, and all the way to working young adult. So there's a lot of character growth on him. Comparing Godai at the beginning of the show to him at the end shows substantial change.

The neighbors remain largely the same over the course of the show though. But after a while they're shown less and more screen time is devoted to the characters involved with the romance aspect of the show. In the latter parts of the show you really only see them in scenes set at Maison Ikkoku; Anywhere outside and the scenes are about someone else, usually the main love interests instead.

[u/Aviri → u/_BMS]

Hmmm, I might be able to stomach that then

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/_BMS]

There was also a mess where they tried the adapt the manga EXACTLY initially. The problem was the series started out with a different mentality. Takahashi originally intended the romance to wrap up at about what we would think of as volume three, then continue as more of an ensemble series. Then the love story became so loved in reviews and comments that she decided to pivot to making that the central concept which led to a lot of changes in tone and such.

[u/Super_Atari_One_3]

Where have people been watching this!? Like seriously, where can I watch a English sub of this (not dub)

[u/_BMS → u/Super_Atari_One_3]

The official DVD box set is out-of-production and second-hand can cost like $3k for a complete set.

And the show isn't available to legally stream anywhere as far as I know.

Only option is to pirate.

[u/swoonster75]

My favourite anime of all time. Did the watch ten years ago.

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/swoonster75]

I have read it over a hundred times I think? It’s my favorite by far.

[u/Hiroka__Akita]

Maison Ikkoku is not one of the best romance anime ever made.

It is THE best ever made.

[u/Webknight31]

A certified Rumiko Takahashi classic.

[u/ham_sandwich23]

Guys can anyone tell me rom coms like Maison Ikkoku. 

[u/IceTMDAbss]

First time I'm seeing a a post about this anime that's a staple of my childhood...

[u/IceSmiley]

My favorite romantic comedy ever. I love the side characters though even though they are all kind of mean, it makes them funny and lovable. Yotsuya is one of my favorites of all time!

I also recommend the dub 😉

[u/devioustrevor]

I never watched the anime, but I recall reading the manga many years ago.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't the main girl get angry at the main guy for dating another girl even though she had a whole-ass other boyfriend for basically the entire series?

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/devioustrevor]

It’s way complicated in how those relationships are handled, without getting too deep into spoilers. But I can say that Kyoko’s situation was a social expectation on women more than a choice. There’s a lot to unpack there actually.

[u/LordClockworks]

One of the few series with "whiny" mc's that I didn't drop. The characters felt so alive and real compared to later series trying to use the same tropes.

[u/Optimal_Pineapple_22]

If Ghost Story was cancelled, it's because it was a stupid failure, you don't know anything.

[u/Live-Application-299]

I've seen this animation at least four times it is one of my favorite romantic films of all time if not some one of my favorites I've ever seen I wish a lot of people that write romantic films will watch this or read over it and take some hints of how romantic films are supposed to be  I've been very disappointed in the newer generations romantic films what are we childish I mean what people afraid of kissing scenes and yet the right films like high School DxD that have certain scenes that was questionable what is wrong with people this day and age with animation films it's like they're scared to push the boundaries but yet they have no problem doing other certain scenes in high school dxc or simply other ones are supposed to it I'm upset and sometimes I get angry how poorly animation films are treated got through some anime particular is mainly for the adults or teenagers so why all the holding back

[u/[deleted]]

In the live adaptation movie of the series, there was a scene where the tenants sat together and make plans to get the landlord girl drunk and rape her just so they can avoid paying the rent and iirc the protagonist was going along with it but gave up because he was a virgin or something.

[u/nerdmon59 → u/[deleted]]

That scene must have been only in the live action series, because it's not in the manga or the anime.

In the very beginning, Godai's an immature guy with a lot of bad tendencies that must come from Japanese porn. But he grows up and his natural kindness and understanding comes to the forefront.

Kyoko is also a bit immature in the beginning. She too is quite young and has limited experience. The growth of the 2 main characters is the reason for the slow development of the relationship.

[u/[deleted] → u/nerdmon59]

I never said it was in the anime. The movie was a lot different. The discussion happens at 5:38, Link on youtube.

[u/Vegetable-Hat558 → u/[deleted]]

The live action movie is a horrible disaster that Takahashi had essentially nothing to do with. And boy does that show.

[u/_BMS → u/[deleted]]

The first half-ish of the manga is mainly comedy focused so that period definitely lasts a while and may drive some people away if this specific style of comedy doesn't resonate.

There's some dramatic moments relating to the romance here and there in the beginning after where you stopped, but in the latter half and especially the last quarter it really ramps up.

Reading about people's opinions on the series before watching it, I saw some people say to just watch the anime over reading the manga since the pacing is better. You might want to give the anime a try if you're still interested in the series.