Lovely Complex

lowell★ 10

I really, really, really loved LoveCom. It was cute, insightful, hilarious and endearing. It was my most anticipated episode every week. I always wanted more. I want more now even though I know it's over! The story is about the tallest girl and the shortest boy in class and their search for love in high school. It turns out they're both kooky, funny and energetic. They're also perfect for each other... too bad they don't see that. The story isn't complicated or new, but it was told so well that it crawled into right into that soft spot in my heart. Theromance is built slowly over time and by the end, you're head over heels for them because the creators did such a great job of laying down the foundation and actually showing you how their feelings grow over time. It's not like a lot of shows where all of a sudden in a haze of fuzzy lighting and rose petals, love magically sprouts out of nowhere. Instead, you see a friendship begin, a moment happens, interest blossoms, awareness grows... the whole nine yards. You really get to know Koizumi and Otani over the course of the show and I was rooting like crazy for them. The characters are so over the top and out of control that it's hard not to laugh. They exaggerate, make ridiculous faces and they over-react to everything. It's really kind of hammy, but that's part of the fun. And it's refreshing to see a female lead who isn't some stereotype of a dominatrix-in-training or a weak, helpless nitwit. She seems like a real human being with strong points and weak points. She isn't afraid to get ugly and imperfect sometimes and I think it's really great that they made her (and, really, him too) full of all these flaws and not-so-attractive traits... and yet so completely charming and loveable. It makes them really... human. I would say that if you like the relationship (without the music and with a lot more actual focus on romance) of Nodame and Chiaki from Nodame Cantabile, you might like this too because there's a similarity in the way that the relationships go both ways and the strength that each of them brings to the relationship. The art is great too. First of all, they took the time and effort to change the characters appearances day to day and give them all a sense of their own style, which I really appreciate. It's just really thorough and well-executed. I completely agree with YoshikoHatake, there is something about the style that brings Bokura Ga Ita to mind, even though the tone of the story is completely different (BGI felt a lot more serious and the colors and style reflect that somewhat, I think). Music-wise, it's also nice. I don't normally notice the openings and endings that much (I've always hated credits), but LoveCom's are really good in a perky, energetic kind of way, which suits the show perfectly, and I find myself singing along w/ the karaoke. ;) Enjoy! =) P.S. I really haven't seen very many romances that do this good of a job at being funny and sweet and tender and honest. If you have, I'd love suggestions!

360ken★ 3

I really have a lot of bad things to say about this show but I'll warn you if it gets too spoiler-laden. Here starts the review. STORY- 2 (Dreadful) Lovely Complex is about two high school kids, Risa and Otani. They are a comedy duo because whever they're together they fight, argue, make fun of each other, and cause a scene, which makes bystanders laugh. Risa is taller than most guys and that's a problem for her because she's desperately searching for a boyfriend. Otani is sort of a dumb jock/trouble maker. He's shorter than almost all the girls and he's also self-conscious about it.So two people with height complexes. Well the first 5 or so episodes of this are just filler-type comedy episodes which is pretty nice. Then Risa starts to like Otani for who knows what reason. He picks on her, argues with her, but the creators expect us to believe they're a match made in heaven because they both like this one rap group, Umibouzu. For the next handful of episodes Risa tries to confess her love to Otani but Otani is just SO DENSE he thinks it's a joke when she confesses to him. This is where the show takes a nose-dive in quality. Lovely Complex starts going in circles. Something along the lines of this: Risa confesses, Otani rejects her, Risa cries, Risa beats him up. Risa stops crying and says she gives up on Otani, but then Otani does something Risa finds sweet, so Risa cries, and beats him up. She says she's going to keep loving Otani. Does it sound stupid? Yes it does! It's very long-winded, it goes in circles, Risa must've cried 30 times in this show. The show also shifts from comedy to drama around this point. You may or may not like this, depending on your preference, but you sure as hell don't want to see Risa cry again. Episodes 1-5 were okay, but around episode 6 it was a steady decline to the awful, unbearable, disgusting episodes 8-12. The show became a chore to watch because everytime I finished an episode I was so frustrated, and multiple times I logged into MAL and almost clicked "Dropped". I couldn't bring myself to do it. I would have rather never laid eyes on Lovely Complex then drop it at 12 episodes. I will explain why later in this review. Episodes 13 on were watchable to my relief. Not as good as the first five but no where near as awful as 8-12. There is still the cycle of crying, beatings, motivations and what not, but their romance progresses slightly and new characters are added to the mix (which I will talk about later). I'm not going to dwell on the story any longer since I will spoil it for you. So you may be asking, looks like you hated the plot...why not give it a 1? 1 is what Lovely Complex would be if it weren't for some great moments later in the series that just made me go "Awwwwwwwwww :3". They weren't anything worthy of bringing my score up past 5 but they were cute sweet shojo moments, and I was happy Lovely Complex included them. But the story is still a horribly low 2, and that's fair. The last episode, though I won't spoil it for you, is horribly contrived and way too unrealistic and convenient for the main characters. All in all, Lovely Complex's story is a frustrating, long-winded, tedious, and boring one with not enough good humour for a romantic comedy. All of it is slapstick which isn't even funny. Risa kicks Otani probably as much as she cries her eyes out. It's a crappy story. CHARACTER- 1 (Pathetic!) Characters are unlikable and underdeveloped. The main characters...okay let's discuss them. Risa, awful as stated before. No redeeming qualities, just an all around annoying person. Otani, he's probably the best in the whole show, and that's actually sad. He's underdeveloped, stereotypical and dense. Side characters...well the main one here in Nobu-chan who is Risa's best friend and side kick. She's alright, nothing really irked me about her. She had no personality, she just loved her boyfriend and provided motivation and chances for Risa to meet alone with Otani. She wasn't awful but nothing was good about her. I'm not even going to talk about her boyfriend he's so underdeveloped and useless to the story. Also on the topic of side characters, Chiharu was friends with Risa in the beginning but never mentioned past the first episode. She's just a shy girl. The biggest problem, bigger than the character's being flat, is that they weren't put to good use. These names may mean nothing to people who haven't seen the show, but to those of you who have, Maity-sensei, Haruka, that blonde transvestite, Mimi, the red and black haired kid, and Otani's ex-girlfriend recieved no character developement and were brought into the series only to be forgotten. Ok, Mimi, red head kid, and Otani's ex weren't that important to the story, but all the other side characters were! Haruka most particularly, had brought a bunch of drama in the series and created tension between Risa and Otani in the beginning, only to be forgotten and useless to the plot, and never developed. He could've had a story arc about him but the creators didn't choose to go that route which was dissapointing. In the end, no side characters got any actual closure. Character in this show is pathetic, Risa is the worst mainly because she cries too much. Sound- 5 (Meh.) The "sad moment" music just made the scenes too melodramatic. The "happy, funny moment" music did it's job and fit in well with the scenes. The "good moment" music (ie, when something romantic happens between Risa and Otani) is probably the best. It makes the seens just that much sweeter and it puts a smile on my face. The OPs and EDs were forgettable and just not special. That's all I reall have to say. Art- 8 (Nothing to complain about here) The art I actually quite liked. The character designs were nice, the colour palette was bright and colourful, sometimes Risa's fish-face bothered me but overall I liked the art in Lovely Complex. It was nice to look at, I would probably call it unique but from what pictures I've seen from Kimi ni Todoke and Bokura ga Ita, the art is all the same. But still, it's good. Enjoyment- 2 Had some sweet moments but in the end this frustrating tedious mess of a romantic "comedy" made me want to bang my head against the wall and had little to no redeeming values. A MAJOR dissapointment. Overall- 3 Lovely Complex was a terrible, horrible, nauseating show that I wouldn't recommend to anyone. Unless you have a strong fetish for slapstick humour, you won't be able to sit through half of this. (Jokes) But seriously, it's a bad show.