Hatsukoi Zombie

So, I think this is my first real review on MAL. I won't lie, it's been like a year since I binge-read the series in one night, and even still, the art captivates me. You've already read the synopsis, so honestly, it's a banger: the character design and motivations are well done, Eve is obviously best girl for most of the series, although the twist towards the end is somewhat predictable. If this were to be adapted into an anime, it has to have the color vibrancy and gradients like Nisekoi, NonNon Biyori, or Mushoku Tensei. Its good, trust me bro

tl;dr: A manga that starts off amusing and lighthearted with great comedy and art while not really dealing much with its overarching plot, but does a good job of dealing with it in it's second half, though it's overtly drawn out and overtly serious to the point it's somewhat of a drag. This is a manga that starts off incredibly amusing. It establishes its setup of what First Love Zombies are and introduces and characters and the connections between the main trio Kurume, Ibisuki, and Eve really quickly and then moves on to what are essentially episodes of the trio playing matchmaker for the various peoplein their class in order to stop their love zombies from being major distractions. These stories are pretty solid in and of themselves and produce pretty solid couples, which is in and of itself pretty satisfying. There isn't a lot of drama, at least not serious drama, but what there is is good. What there is more of is a lot of comedy, which is excellent in and of itself and decently varied. These stories also do a good job of fleshing out the characters more too. Kurume has a really strong personality that's quite a bit different from most protagonists in that he really isn't bothered by a lot of things, wherein throughout the story there are various false traits that other characters assign to him that most protagonists would likely object to and fight against, but he either ignores them completely or he leans into them because they actually help him out. Ibusuki also has really complicated circumstances that involves keeping a lot of secrets, so the resulting strong internal reactions to things that can't show to others at all was amusing and resulted in a pretty likable character. Eve didn't have that strong of a personality, but she's adorable enough to be really likable as well. The pacing also felt pretty fast at first in that there's always something happening that feels like it matters, even if it does just deal with side characters because it feels like there's progress in terms of character development in the main characters as a result. Just all around, it's a pretty light hearted and casual romp that's just kind of fun all around. Still, from the beginning the premise and mechanics that the author sets up are ones that are kind of screwed up in a sense, and it's clear from the start that unless the author does something like not giving a proper ending or pulling out a deus ex machina that changes things tremendously, that at best the only reasonable ending the manga could have despite it being one that feels so lighthearted at first is one that is at best bittersweet. The author pulls neither of those tricks, and thus eventually the manga begins going down the path of actually tackling its core issues, though once it starts down that path it takes quite a bit longer than I expected to get there. It feels like it's starting to get more serious about half way through, but truly gets completely serious during the last third. At this point the comedy dries up pretty much completely, instead focusing solely on the drama which gets quite intense. The general tone which was so happy go lucky becomes incredibly dreary. Things certainly progress and things are brought to an ending that seems reasonable, although incredibly predictable. However, it felt like it took too long to get there and the drama was heavily drawn out, though in part that may be because to a degree it felt so out of place considering how different it is from how the manga started. And while the ending is reasonable and did manage to have a good amount of impact emotionally, I can't say I'm completely satisfied with it, only so-so satisfied, though to a degree I expected that I would feel that way about the ending from the beginning. The art is high quality from the beginning, wherein the premise and tone allow the author a lot of opportunity to really use it well and they certainly do, making the artistic quality for the first half or so downright excellent. However, it felt like that too took a turn for the worse as it got more serious because going completely crazy with the art wouldn't really fit the tone, and thus is becomes much more subdued and in general not as pleasing to look at in and of itself.

I truly love this manga to bits. It's a story that leaves you depressed when it's over and you have to say goodbye to beloved characters at the end of their saga, comforting yourself with the few bonus drawings you got as an epilogue. I made this account just to write this rave review of a lovely and IMO somewhat unfairly maligned series. The story starts off light-hearted and funny as any romcom does, as the MCs grow closer, solve problems together, go on outings, and engage in the requisite hijinks and misunderstandings and accidentally-intimate-situations of the genre. Their dynamic is a tried and tested one,that of "two huge dorks with infinite chemistry and who love each other to an outrageous degree and should just get married already if only they could just admit it to themselves and each other". The romcom aspect is a completely adequate comedy, and if it isn't anything groundbreaking, it's still solid and it uses the title conceit (the First Love Zombies) aptly to create interesting predicaments and subplots. The obstacles in the way of the MCs grow unexpectedly large and daunting, and a very large last part of the manga has a surprisingly heavy tone as all of the characters wrestle with a severe dilemma. It's still "just a romcom", but it does have a dark undercurrent and some tricky themes, which is unsurprising from the mangaka behind the much less cheerful and more psychological Himegoto: Juukyuusai no Seifuku and Shounen no Abyss. The art by Ryou Minenami is wonderful. The characters' faces are expressive and cute and funny, and I still never get tired of looking at them. The characters are lovable and adorable, in particular one MC who is utterly incapable of controlling or hiding her emotions, and who is near-constantly in a state of flustered embarrassment. Watching her try and fail to hide her blushes is sublime, and her face is without a doubt one of the highlights of the manga. This is an ecchi series, so you have the expected boobs and panties and costumes for fanservice, which isn't too major an aspect or the biggest draw, I hope. I'll address some common criticisms of the manga in this review, from the admittedly biased perspective of an extremely rabid fan. First, your enjoyment of the manga may hinge heavily on how much you really like the main characters. The most common complaint in discussion circles is that the third-party "best girl" loses, and is generally not a focus of the story. If you are drawn to that character (who is plenty appealing and sympathetic and likable) and decide to follow her and root for her side in the love triangle, you will probably be disappointed as most chapters continue to focus on developing the other characters and it becomes obvious from very early on that she will not "win". You may find the MC to be "too tsundere", gratingly mean and rude, and prone to cause problems unnecessarily. All of this is fair, and liking a character is very subjective, and some people are well past tired of the tsundere trope. But if you do read this story, I encourage you to try and look at the MC sympathetically. If nothing else, her reasons for being angry are shown to be very justified. Another common criticism is that the plot drags on, no tangible progress is made for dozens of chapters, and the plot could be resolved by a simple conversation and the revelation of a single fact. I truly think these are unfair, mostly colored by being disinterested in the MCs and their internal conflicts, and wanting someone else to be the focus. In each arc, the main characters learn about each other, grow closer, and grapple with their changing feelings. They build a rapport and memories and moments that become critical during the conclusion when their relationship is tested. If you like the MCs, the chapters aren't a slog at all, and I would have happily taken even more slice of life chapters where the characters just get time to be with each other. Finally, regarding the simple conversation/single fact that could solve their problems: after a certain point, it's not fully explicit, but there's a very clear reason both characters are avoiding the conversation. They aren't stupid or capricious, they're scared of the result and heavily in denial. The key conflict of the final third of the story is exactly what prevents them from moving forward. That's it for my long-winded review. I need more Hatsukoi Zombie. It's cute, it's wonderful, it's funny, and it's heartwarming. It deserves a spinoff, an anime adaptation, loads more fanart. If you're interested in forming a fan club, please send me a letter.

One thing that I find hard to read is how I hate the central heroine and love her appearance at the same time. Story (9): At first the concept of first love zombie feels like another weird romcom thing but changed my thoughts that it slowly turned into a good drama material. Some reader might find this hard to enjoy in early chapters because it will focused more into protagonist helping side character's love, but then it changed into protagonist's personal matter. And that's the best part where the reader should not skipped. It's not a story with tense or suspenseful atmosphere. Yes it sometimes hurtmy feeling as typical love triangle story, but it has a good pace. Just, I wish the author could create the ending into two different chapters because I personally as the reader need the longer good feeling. More importantly, just believe me you'll hate the ending arc but will forget about that in the last page. It's just how clever the author played reader's feeling. Characters (9): I hate the central heroine, because despite all of the things, she played victim over the protagonist even Eve herself (it's not a spoiler since you'll know it around the beginning). I hate her more than Runa in the common route of Hatsukoi 1/1. But even so, it is kinda amazing but sucks at the same time. Tarou at the latter chapters will sometimes change his hairstyle and he looks super cool that way. Every character has their own thing that you'll love, even Tarou's father that will only appear near end of the manga. Some minors don't felt like left out from the story, even were involved. I don't usually care with side character but Kyouko and Tarou's great grandfather whoever his name is, I love them so much even how short their appearance is. Side story (8): Aside from main story of drama around Tarou & Ririsu & Eve, there's not much side stories that I remember because it all somehow connected to each other. But if you ask, the dragon princess festival, where the very minor character like Kyouko and Tarou's great grandfather appeared, is the best part of all. It's a tearjerker like every romcom must have but feels more than just that. It's also a kind of turning point important for the main story. It's all not just a side but also part of the main one. Art (9): To be completely honest, I didn't get any interest when looking at the cover, first chapter's character designs. But it changed over time. It's just that good. Male & female characters are all great in terms of art design. Their cinematic illustrations are amazing. Even more with the colored page/illustration where you can see in color, it all so pleasing. Enjoyment (10): All that lacking feels like nothing. It just that good.