*don't get booty hurt about this write up. I still gave it an 8/10 and a spot on the lower end of my favorites

SPOILERS FOLLOW

After 7 years of publication and 281 chapters released, Aka Akasaka’s Kaguya-sama: Love is War has finally met its conclusion. Now that it’s over, I am left with just one question: How much did I enjoy the experience? I have some qualms with the manga but it is a great series, make no mistake. I like it quite a lot and consider it one of the better rom-com manga I’ve read. It’s not quite 10/10 material but certainly one that I enjoyed coming back to time and again.

I particularly like the non-romantic relationships that span the entire cast. Each of the student council members have unique bonds with each other, ones that develop over time and are maintained throughout. Akasaka clearly gave this relationship web a lot of attention, making sure to highlight each string with dedicated chapters or hilarious ongoing gags. There’s no weak link here—every combination of any two characters has some sort of engaging connection, whether that is story-driven or not. The start of every volume emphasizes the importance of the character relationships, even the non-romantic ones, with a relationship diagram with tons of arrows. As more time is spent with these characters, their individual bonds change and the group dynamic evolves. Kaguya and Miyuki are the main characters, sure, but the star of the cast is their collectiveness—the cohesion between all of them—which is why the middle section of the story might be the strongest of the manga. By then, the cast has been built out into a small community and the narrative is yet to focus entirely on Kaguya and Miyuki’s conflict, which is exactly what happens in the later volumes. Even the handful of supporting characters that aren’t a part of the student council are made to feel important by giving them influence within the story and meaningful connections to the student council members. This style of writing is what drew me into the manga. It isn’t exactly sophisticated nor are the characters overtly complex but their dynamics are detailed and fully realized. This believable and well structured group synergy is integral to what makes Kaguya-sama work.

The comedy is stimulated by the numerous character interactions and possible outcomes from each one. The chapters dedicated to Chika attempting to teach Miyuki a new skill highlight the strength of simple but effective character relationships. I appreciate how the gag develops over time, with each lesson further damaging Chika’s perception of Miyuki. I didn’t expect that their relationship would be so much fun, but his absurd lack of talent is counterbalanced so well with her unhinged temperament that it becomes hysterical. Kaguya-sama manages to be genuinely funny at most turns of the page and, when it doesn’t hit the mark for me, there’s always another gag or character to pick up the slack. There’s a good bit of variety because of the aforementioned relationship diagram and the healthy amount of personalities that fill it, which helps to keep the comedy fresh despite Akasa’s pension for reusing gags endlessly. The characters were charming and the banter sparked between them was consistently funny. Even when not gut busting, the comedy rarely fails to be at least amusing. I enjoyed every minute spent with these characters and their antics. That is at the heart of why I continued to read chapter after chapter for its entirety. This all leads me to say, Kaguya-sama excels in comedy and slice of life.

Is it a good romance, though? Well, that depends on what metric you want to use. Do the characters have believable feelings? Is their chemistry good? Do they meaningfully change each other? There’s numerous angles to ask the question and just as many ways to answer it. Generally speaking, Kaguya-sama manages to succeed in all those categories. As I talked about previously, the character dynamics are well-thought out and that extends to the romantic bond between Kaguya and Miyuki as well. If there’s any aspect of the romance that is truly unique, it’s their back and forth battles that set them apart from the crowd. Trying to constantly one up each other in intelligence, manipulating social situations, and forcing the other into a corner—those battles of love are what make their chemistry immediately entertaining. Their personalities complement each other exceedingly well, both in and out of battle, which sells the idea these two are meant for each other. They are both charming and wholesome, their relationship is cute and endearing; I don’t have any complaints about the existence of their romance. Yes, I did want to see Kaguya and Miyuki have a happy ending because I like them as characters and they have great chemistry. Yet, there is a cold, harsh reality that prevents me from being totally won over: I have never liked when two characters are so socially inept they can't just confess their feelings.

The conceit of Kaguya-sama—my own personal shortcoming with it—is within its very premise: Two characters who don’t want to confess their feelings. While the romantic implications of the premise is fun on paper and their battles can be entertaining, it relies on the two characters being softlocked out of a romantic relationship for a significant portion of the story. This leads to awkward flirtation, failed romantic moves, and crippling social anxiety, some of which even continues into their relationship after they start dating. Sometimes it might result in worthwhile comedy but, as far as the romance goes, it is a truly and utterly tiresome situation. Unfortunately, and hopefully understandable to those that don’t feel the same, those embarrassing, dorky elements of their blooming romance slowly chip away at my ever thin patience. Suddenly the race between Kaguya and Miyuki seems irrelevant when it becomes a race to see what comes first: them getting together or my composure finally cracking. I understand it's a slow, down-to-earth rom-com that's meant to be comfy and, in that regard, yeah, it is comfy. Yeah, I do enjoy my time with these characters. Yeah, I like seeing them be cute. At the same time... yeah, I do wish they'd just get on with it already. This is not an issue of whether it is good or bad pacing, it is a deep seeded personal issue between the premise and myself.

I did want to be fair to Kaguya-sama so I asked five friends of mine, who are fans of the series to varying degrees, how they felt about the pacing of the romance and the social awkwardness. I think the results give an accurate range of opinions that contrast my own, which helped me understand why I feel the way I do and how others might not feel the same. Friend #1 commented that they didn’t mind slow burn romances, which meant they felt no annoyance or impatience. They also mentioned that the social awkwardness felt realistic and served to benefit the character writing and comedy. Friend #2 claimed that the pacing did feel slow to them but the characters’ shenanigans helped alleviate the awkwardness. Friend #3 said they actually found the social awkwardness endearing and that the pacing might have only felt slow because of the manga’s focus on supporting characters while it put the main character’s romance on the back-burner.

Friend #4 sent me a book’s worth of an answer so it’s a tad difficult to paraphrase but I can try. He didn’t mind the progress of the romance because of the show's dialed-up extreme take on the whole “will they, won’t they” trope. The comedy kept him engaged while Kaguya and Miyuki’s constant failures were funny because of the presentation and framing of the situations. He also noted that he took the series to be comedy first and romance second, leading him to not particularly watch Kaguya-sama for the romance. He did mention that there were a number of hindrances that kept both parties from confessing and that it should be expected that Kaguya would have a difficult time with feelings of romance because of her upbringing. Ultimately, he didn’t mind the slow pacing or the social awkwardness because of who the characters are. Friend #5 suggested that Kaguya’s inner battles with overthinking and the psychological effects of being near a crush are what made the romance enjoyable. He pointed out how, from the outside looking in, it might seem as though no progress is being made but that it’s a constant inner-battle of an introvert. Perhaps most relevant to myself, he pointed out that having feelings of awkwardness while reading Kaguya-sama could be sourced by a situation that the reader may have faced before, thus, unpleasant memories are brought back, or they have never encountered the situation and cannot relate. That last part stood out to me because I am, without question, a prime example of the latter.

Not to delve too deep into my own history but I think it’s important to at least reveal this much about myself: In all the relationships I’ve been in, the most time I’ve ever liked someone before dating them was under 2 weeks. If I’ve already decided that I like someone, I’m going to either shoot my shot or move on. That’s how I’ve personally operated my entire experience with relationships throughout my teens and adult life. I’m not keen on being friends with someone I have a romantic interest in nor have I ever been in love with someone before dating them. I especially don’t feel like hiding how I feel for prolonged amounts of time. Maybe that isn’t the best way to go about romance—that’s neither here nor there—but I’m currently in a 6 year relationship with someone I barely knew beforehand, so I guess it works for me. I only mention this because I understand that this is uniquely a “me” problem. For some fans, especially those of us who don’t immediately jump into a relationship, the romantic build up might be endearing or the most thrilling part. Nevertheless, I can’t help how I feel: The constant waiting around is not fun for me. I am a straightforward person when it comes to romance, whether it is fictional or not, because I can’t stand the tedium of crushes, which are just not interesting to me in any capacity—even less so now that I’m in my mid-20s and in a long term relationship.

Don’t misunderstand any of this as me saying Kaguya and Miyuki’s relationship is poorly written or that they somehow didn’t make a good couple. That’s not at all what I’m aiming for. I’m only trying to say that this form of relationship building is not my cup of tea. My favorite romances, Twin Star Exorcists and Kare Kano, are favorable to me partly because they move past the crush stage of romance without much hesitation and dive into the meat of relationships. In both instances, crushes aren’t what’s important nor is it about how they like each other but can’t admit it. It’s more about how they influence each other to grow and change as people while overcoming new challenges that arise because of their relationship. I think it’s important to remember there are two general kinds of romance: romance that precedes dating and romance that succeeds dating. Between the two, I much rather explore a real relationship than follow a puppy-love story, if that wasn’t obvious enough already.

While I’ve spent the better portion of this video explaining my dismay with the romance’s pacing, my frustration with the slow tedium of crushes is limited to the first half of the manga. Kaguya-sama actually shows both the before and after in equal parts, with the relationship starting at the midway point of the story. To be fair to Kaguya-sama, the volumes leading up to the confession are some of the best—especially because I love the comedy—and they do get together before the end of the series, which allows for them to grow as a couple. For a little while, the awkward clumsiness of their new relationship can be grating but it does eventually take some rewarding directions and my emotional investments start to pay off. If the story ended with the confession, I might be less inclined to give the slow pacing of the first half a pass but it’s hard to hold a grudge when they’re a couple for half of the total volumes.
Luckily, their relationship is explored in mostly satisfying ways. The manga does what almost any good romance should do: A) focus on how their relationship changes them as characters and B) test their resolve in being together. On that first point, it should be noted that this change is most noticeable for Kaguya. Volume 15 delves into her various personas and how being in a relationship, or even liking someone, challenges the person she’s been built up to be. It’s somewhat reminiscent of Neon Genesis Evangelion, although not quite as existential, or maybe even a touch of Yurikuma Arashi. Despite her inner conflict being nothing I can relate to, it is welcomed. Just because Miyuki is now her boyfriend does not mean that everything is perfect; she still has hurdles to overcome as a person. From her earliest interactions with Miyuki to the very last, she goes through a complete metamorphosis, enough so that her family points out how much she has betrayed her upbringing.

Speaking of, that second point is mostly in reference to her family’s disruption. This becomes the central conflict of the manga’s last arc, as her brother tries to marry her off to a rival branch of the main family in an effort to recover the Shinomiya family’s reputation. I don’t mind this direction, but I would rather focus on the Shinomiya family’s active dislike of Miyuki for his lack of social or economical status. That would be more effective in communicating their inherent differences and creating a wall for them to overcome together. As it stands, this business driven conflict only serves as a narrative tool to split the two apart, almost like an excuse to create drama rather than being a fundamental part of why the two can’t be together. If it weren’t for the Shijo group, what would have separated Kaguya from Miyuki? It’s all just one big excuse to create a divide when the difference in capital and family values would have been sufficient and, dare I say, a more engaging conflict. Perhaps I’m asking for too much because it would make the Shinomiya family even more antagonistic but that’s kind of what I wanted: A genuine attack on their relationship solely because the Shinomiya family disapproved of Miyuki being Kaguya’s partner. Alas, that isn’t the direction the story took and critiquing it for what it isn’t rather than what it is simply isn’t worth the effort. For all intents and purposes, this is an artificial conflict but one that still challenges their resolve in being a couple. Regardless of why they are separated, Kaguya-sama goes to great lengths to show Miyuki’s unwillingness to let Kaguya go and that’s hard to not appreciate.

Admittedly, while the back half of the manga does its job in developing the romance far more than the first half—I can’t say I prefer it on the whole. While my frustration with the first half’s cock teasing and social awkwardness occasionally boiled over, it was only on occasion. The comedy took centerstage for a majority of chapters, but those priorities shifted over time. While the romance did improve after the confession, it also meant that drama started to take up more page space. All in all, I enjoyed both halves for different reasons but that’s why the experience I had with Kaguya-sama was kinda unfortunate. When the relationship was making progress, I found myself more convinced by the romance and when the comedy was at its peak, I found myself having a blast. The unfortunate part is that I never had those two experiences concurrently. At no singular point in the story was I fully satisfied by the two genres—with the middle section of the story coming the closest to achieving that goal. Often, I was either annoyed by the slow paced romance or the comedy was taking a back seat to everything else. But… that’s okay, isn’t it? The reason I say this is kinda an unfortunate experience is because I did enjoy a lot of what Kaguya-sama had to offer, it was only marginally held back by reasons that are limited to who I am. It probably sounds like I didn’t enjoy this manga but that’s not true. I wasn’t thrilled about how everything was handled but I still liked its characters, the comedy, hell, parts of the romance and… Ishigami?

Ishigami is my favorite character and the one whose story captivated me more than any other. Rather than finding love, eventually dating, and changing because of it, Ishigami becomes a better, happier person through his own willingness to improve and the friends around him. He eventually is able to find his place to belong, not only in the student council room but within his Cheer Club. There are people that are able to see him for who he really is, no matter what he may look like, what his hobbies are, or the malicious rumors circling his past. While he entered the story as a pessimistic downer, his kindness and ability to empathize with anyone is revealed as the layers begin to slowly peel one by one. His checkered past is riddled with troubles for him and it’s only after he has begun to put himself out there that he is able to meet people that don’t judge him—people who want to get to know him—and Tsubame Koyasu. Ishigami’s love for Tsubame was the only crush in Kaguya-sama that never once got under my skin because I never felt their relationship was only restricted by social anxiety. Confessing to her, going on trial-dates, awaiting an answer, and eventually being rejected; it was always an uphill battle for Ishigami but he still was willing to make the effort. He tries his hardest, and despite the rejection, Tsubame managed to be an incredible influence in his life. Ishigami’s character arc is about accepting her rejection but also accepting help from others, including Tsubame, all while trying to better himself. I can’t say I love everything about Kaguya-sama’s drama but Ishigami was the exception. I’m glad I was able to come out of this series with something more than finding it funny, even if it wasn’t because of the starlit romance of Kaguya and Miyuki, and there’s nothing unfortunate about that.

…Now, if only Ishigami and Miko would get on with it! Argh! I can’t win!