Horimiya was developed by Studio CloverWorks in January of 2021 up to April of the same year. Based on the popular Webcomic of the same name written by HERO, later adapted into manga form by Daisuke Hagiwara. The anime follows the story of Kyoko Hori and Izumi Miyamura and their relationship through high school. Their story is typical for romance anime within this genre. Boy meets girl, girl meets boy, boy is actually way hotter when his hair is tied up and wears his piercings… Ok so maybe not entirely typical for this romance genre. But, Horimiya does something that a lot of romance anime can’t get right more often than not.
It’s grounded and relatable.
What I mean by this is while watching, in DUB mind you yes, I’m a degenerate I know, I noticed how easily the conversation flows between characters. The writing isn’t forced or comes off as abstract and out of the blue. It follows the strict rules of relatable dialogue while having it look as organic as possible. And when they do spout out some nonsense about the weather, they typically call each other out for saying such odd things unprovoked.
It plays out like how a conversation with a friend would. It feels real as if these characters aren’t just thousands of frames moving like puppets on a string. The writers, both in their literary and media forms, knew exactly how to make a character relatable.
When I watch anime, I look to shut off more often than not. It’s something I put in the background and just relax with while playing some Video Games. However, when it comes to shows like Horimiya I can’t. I adore how the plot and all that encompasses. It isn’t the shallow “guy gets the girl at the end and they live happily ever after” type of deal.
Within the first six episodes, they’re already dating! They confess in Episode Five! FIVE! Do you know how many episodes of anime I slog through just to see the protagonists get together? Like the whole series and movies included! It’s ridiculous how often a show will never give the viewers satisfaction and just keep the true romance out of reach.
Little tangent aside I understand why writers do this. There are not always enough situations they can organically put their characters through so they create this back and forth of romantic tension to keep the audience engaged. But Horimiya does it differently. You get the confession early and you watch the couple actually do a couple of things at an organic and understandable pace. Then they focus on other minor characters who have their own romance stories like Yuki and Toru… Who then have the exact same back-and-forth romance just out of reach situation… I swear I AM GOING TO FREAK OUT!
So, after having some tea I feel a bit more calm to explain how fun the characters are with their intricate personalities. Miyamura will sit in class and look lonely or depressed and yet we see just how worked up he can get over little things, not often thinking of the consequences. Hori seems all put together but when confronted with complex emotions she shuts down struggling to get her feelings across.
This however takes a complete 180 when she gets jealous going from standoffish and cold to breaking down into a crying mess. It’s very funny to watch please trust. And this is just two characters out of a cast of 10+ people. Each character has some amazing depth with intricate details that make them shine as individuals while working synonymously with their fellow characters. All in all, Horimiya is so well written, and the characters feel so alive. It’s a must-watch for hardcore romance fans and those who are just dipping their toes in.