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Description
From Viz:
Risa Koizumi is the tallest girl in class, and the last thing she wants is the humiliation of standing next to Atsushi Otani, the shortest guy. Fate and the whole school have other ideas, and the two find themselves cast as the unwilling stars of a bizarre romantic comedy duo.
Lovely Complex Plus is actually volume 17 with the final chapter called Love Com Final. The first two chapters are about before Koizumi Risa and Otani Atsushi met each other. The third chapter is about their first encounter and a little bit of what happens to them after the ending of Lovely Complex.
*Contains a side story called Hoshi ni Natte mo Aishiteru (Even When I Become A Star, I'll Still Love You) in vol 12: Reina wakes up surprisingly in her boyfriend's room. But it seems that she passed away three days ago...
In 2004 Lovely Complex received the 49th Shogakukan Manga Award for shōjo.
Lovely Complex is about a girl called Risa, and she's exceptionally tall for a Japanese girl. The second main character is a boy, Otani, he's exceptionally short for a Japanese boy. When people see them together, they are reminded of a comedic duo in Japan which has 1 tall member, and 1 short member. Because of this comparison, Risa gets mad and yells insults at Otani. Otani being as stubborn as Risa, yells insults back.
That's how they became friends. Risa and Otani are surprisingly suitable for each other, having friendly arguments constantly, and otherwise sharing their hobbies together. Aside from the insults to their heights, a real complex about their height issue is almost never touched upon. Maybe twice or something. Lovely Complex mainly deals with the budding friendship between Risa and Otani, and their constant arguments (but it's definitely not a love-hate relationship), while sometimes bringing in secondary characters to propel the storyline forwards.
Personally, to me, Lovely Complex is the best manga when it comes to realistically portraying a high school romance. Risa and Otani start out as friends, they don't suddenly start crushing on each other. The longer they are friends, the more Risa starts to like him, until eventually she does.
Spoiler (highlight to view)
But get this - Otani isn't quite there yet and still likes her as only a friend.
I have never read a manga that did that, and I'm pleasantly surprised how Lovely Complex deals with this issue, it feels so realistic.
Aside from the realistic portrayal of the character's feelings, Lovely Complex is downright funny. There's some nice jokes here and there, and some that will crack you up. I personally find Risa's 'ugly' faces hilarious, and it really adds to the humor.
I'm so glad that Risa isn't one of those generic shoujo girls who cry in every chapter and when they're about to get raped by gangmembers, the Jerk With A Heart Of Gold comes and saves her. Risa is spunky and funny, and none of those things happen in Lovely Complex (except for the crying part, which is completely acceptable when it happens), and Otani isn't the jerk with a heart of gold. Sure they constantly bicker, but never once has Otani said he hates Risa, he's always shown as having great fun with her.
I adore Lovely Complex, I really do. The perfect mixture of realistic romance and comedy, it's just an overall awesome story to read. Try and watch the anime if you can as well, since it sticks close to the manga, seeing those funny moments in action is double the fun.
this is handsdown my favorite manga..and I'm not just saying it. It actually is! Of all the mangas i've read in my lifetime, this is probably the one that brings the best memories. It's not the best story, but it's one that makes me smile and laugh.
There isn't too much drama, not too much love triangle stuff..and throughout the series, you can see the main characters develop without too mcuh interference which is very encouraging. Also, it's very realistic so it's not like some random hottest-guy-best-grades + pretty-innocent-dumb girl like many mangas I've seen. It's slice of life, very light-hearted, but at the same time - the comedy and likeable characters (no real "villain" in this manga) keep you going. Definitely love it
i like how it started and ended.. i've seen some comments before hating this manga (and it's anime) because..
Spoiler (highlight to view)
it was a long road before they started going out
but i think that's what cute about this story..... it was really fun, and this manga is unique (even though it has typical shoujo part) it's kinda fighting the trend and trying to make it's own impression to readers... i HIGHLY RECOMMEND this manga to those romance shoujo fans (^v^))
Japanese people must be really short. Like... really, really short because 5 feet and 5 inches is my ideal height. I mean, why would you ever want to be shorter. Five five really isn't all that tall. >< Ugh. I only wish I were her height. I don't know what her problem with it is... :<
I watched the anime and then read the manga and I was really surprised at how similar the two things are... several animes are quite different from the mangas they are based on. I loved the last 2 or 3 volumes in which new things (that weren't featured on the anime) start happening.
On the whole, this is a lovely story that gets you to read all the volumes without getting bored and loving the characters more and more as the story developes. I do believe this is a story in which the character's personality changes and gest better as the story moves forward.
I would absolutely recommend this manga to all shoujo lovers. ^^
Art (10%): 9 Nice clean art with characters that looks normal.
Story (40%): 9 The plot isn't remarkable other than the fact that it is realistic. One part I particularly like is that they didn't study a lot and didn't do well in school but their grades didn't magically become good because they decided to study a lot in the end. The manga is very realistic in both the relationships between the characters and the story in general (I don't want to spoil too much by giving examples). The story is also really funny and done well. This is a good manga to read if you want a nice laugh.
Character (40%): 9 The characters are all likable. The only problem with the characters that I had was that Risa pretty much remained a slacker to the end of the story. Maybe it's just me but I thought that she would try to get more serious with her school work. I love the chemistry between the characters and the relationship (how they always joke around) but a lot of times I felt that they were more friends than boyfriend/girlfriend. Although the characters are likable, some of them got annoying at times because they are so realistic. I got annoyed at Risa's reaction to Atsushi's declaration about his college choice (I don't want to spoiled) but the characters were good overall and pretty much stayed consistant.
Enjoyment (10%): 9 I liked reading the story but some parts of the story exaggerates the facial expressions (it is suppose to be funny but I personally think that its ugly). I would have enjoyed the story more if they focus more on issues like their future earlier on. I also didn't like the ending a lot but the story itself was funny.
I absolutely loved it! It has great humor in it and lovely, sweet characters. Also, I liked their facial expressions.. some of them really made my day I really recomend this one for ones who like happy, sweet high school manga. Enjoy!
i totally love this manga. i did an allnighter to finish it in one blow. i couldn´t stop laughing, crying and shouting moe or kawaii. the anime is also great (otanis voice let me melt) . i actually bought the first two volumes in France so I have to polish my French umibouzu folever X3
This manga has got to be one of the best shojo manga out there. It has a nice story plot with many funny scenes. It not exactly romantic as much but it's very funny. So if your feeling moody, this manga is guranteed to make you smile and laugh.
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I really recomend this one for ones who like happy, sweet high school manga. 
