Kimi ni Todoke (君に届け), or From Me To You in English, is one of the sweetest mangas I have ever read. I'll admit right now that I'm actually a big Yaoi fan in terms of love stories, I find that they're a lot sweeter than most Shoujo I've encountered, and they tend to get to the point quicker. I'm very biased as I haven't found much Shoujo to really capture my interest with the storyline or characters, but then I found Kimi ni Todoke when browsing Tumblr, and it's changed my whole perspective... or at least become the exception.
The series revolves around a girl named Sawako Kuronuma, nicknamed Sadako by her classmates as she resembles the girl from the film The Ring, and in fact tends to creep everyone out in general thanks to her looks and saying things that become misunderstood. However, the most popular and wanted boy in her year, Shota Kazehaya, somewhat unintentionally takes her under his wing despite the supernatural and scary rumours surrounding her. Thanks to him, Sawako breaks out of her shell little by little, and manages to make friends with the girls Ayane Yano and Chizuru Yoshida, as well as have her classmates recognise that she isn't scary or creepy.
Along the way, this shy but incredibly sweet girl finds herself in a world where she isn't feared or avoided by her classmates, and she can actually start to make friends, all thanks to Kazehaya. Sawako finds herself becoming more and more happy as she spends more time with Ayane, Chizu, and also Kazehaya. Before she even knows it, an innocent love for her idol Kazehaya has sprouted, but will she ever overcome her shyness and be able to tell him without being misunderstood?
There was too much text, so I thought I might as well stick the anime opening of it in here to break it up a little. It was my first time seeing Sawako animated ahahaha, it looks kind of weird to me! :') To start things off, I suppose, I should just come right out and say that I love this manga series. It's the absolute sweetest, I really care for all of the characters and I'm so glad it's an ongoing series, I don't want it to end! (Ignoring the fact that I haven't caught up yet). Each and every character is given back story, love interests, a complex situation to handle, etc., showing that they're not just back up for the main story arc. They each have their own lives, memories, and interactions, and I love that this manga takes the time to do this, as I now genuinely care deeply for how each character's lives are turning out.
This series really struck a chord with me. Sawako being given the chance to make friends and be liked by all her classmates thanks to the popular boy [idol] Kazehaya is kind of every lonely high school girl's dream. I was most definitely the awkward girl in high school, I only had one or two friends and my interests were a lot different from the popular crowd's. I've grown up kind of accepting that I will most often be alone, and I would have given anything for my own Kazehaya ahahahaha, which is probably why I like Kimi ni Todoke so much! Every lonely high school girl deserves a Kazehaya :)
One point I'd like to make is that it's slow in terms of plot development. That's the only frustration that's struck me so far. Hence why I'm recommending it as a manga series; you can choose the pace of the storyline. Storyline pacing can get really messed up with some anime, and you can waste a few episodes without the plot developing or the situation ever getting to the point, whereas with a manga you can read it as quickly as you want, and not have to sit there for twenty minutes shouting at the screen (not that I ever do that...).
Plot: ♥♥♥♥♥
Characters: ♥♥♥♥♥
Artwork: ♥♥♥♥♥
Recommendation: PLEASE READ THIS. This is probably my first experience with any Shoujo series, I normally go for either action-packed Shounen/Josei or intriguing Shounen Ais with incredible plots, so this is probably not the most experienced opinion, but I love it, I'm incredibly addicted and read some every day. My heart genuinely catches in my throat sometimes, and I would recommend the manga because I'm pretty sure the anime skims over a lot of the little things, and you should never skip the little things! It's beautifully drawn, it's heartfelt and interesting, and now on a pedestal for all future Shoujo series to be measured up against.
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On a side note, I would like to apologise for my lack of blogging this past week or so. I had a minor operation on my arm (superficial, nothing to worry about), and as such haven't been able to use it mainly. It's still sore, and it hurts to type after a few minutes, so I'll probably keep my blogging to a minimum until after I get my stitches out on Friday. Sorry for any of you who read frequently! :) I'm also currently whacked up on cold medicine, so another apology in case this post was written weirdly aahahahah :')
Have you read this manga? What do you think of Shoujo series?
Bye! x
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