Manga Monday: My Little Monster

 I have been wanting to read My Little Monster for a long time now. I watched the anime series (that was never completed) sometime when I first got my Netflix subscription. Since we never received a proper ending, I have wanted to watch the conclusion on Haru and Shizuku and the crew. I bought a couple of the manga volumes but have always seemed to put other manga ahead of it. The latter part of 2022, I decided to go through it all and I've finally finished it so here are my thoughts.

About the Mangaka (Author)

Before we get into my thoughts, let's take a look at our mangaka, Robico. Robico is our authors pen name, and her name is uncertain at this point. Robico attended vocational school with the thought of becoming an illustrator. In 2005, Robico made her debut with Demekinikku published in the May edition of the shojo magazine Dessert. She then went on to create My Little Monster in 2008 where it was serialized in Dessert until 2013.

About the Manga

Shizuku Mizutani is a self-absorbed overachiever, concerned only with maintaining the highest grades in school. Haru is an impulsive short-tempered brute, who scares everyone with his explosive bursts of violence. Haru gets suspended on the first day of school when he encounters some bullies harassing a student and dispatches the bullies with great bloody violence. Shizuku is tasked with delivering school materials to Haru who interprets this as an act of friendship and latches on to Mizutani, much to her dismay. And so, begins a strange and potentially combustible relationship!

 

Anime Vs. Manga 

 First off, the anime ends before the manga can even finish. I believe the anime ends at about chapter 16, so there's quite a few more chapters to go. There has been no update for a season 2 and I doubt we will ever get one, as most Shojo genres tend to not get a second season. Maybe a remake, but we can only home.

 Because of the anime stops so early on, we get kind of an ending, but not really. When you watch, you know there has to be more of the story, but unfortunately, we just never see it.  

My Thoughts

 

I enjoyed this manga from beginning to end. Even though I'm well beyond my teen years, reading and living through Haru and Shizuku (Mizutani) was a nice way to decompress from the day and dive into. It's not a shonen manga by any means, there are no power ups, there aren't really antagonist per-say as well. This story is about life, love, and learning to grow-up. It's also about learning that the true antagonists in your life, is yourself. This is nice coming-of-age story if you will, which I'm always a sucker for these kinds of stories. 

 Shizuku and Haru seem like very opposite people, and while they are, our mangaka does a good job of showing readers just how similar they are. Just like in real life, people tend to be going through difficult tines and sometimes those things can be similar, but we choose not see it, which is exactly how Haru and Shizuku are. They both refuse to see a little piece of themselves in each other, because they are essentially opposites personality wise. So as the manga progresses, it's nice to see the two of them learn how similar they are with each other and with the rest of the cast and learning that they aren't alone in this big world.

There are some points of concern while I was reading My Little Monster. For one, watching this as an adult, I thought Haru's behavior in the beginning of our story was laughable. Reading this as an adult, I felt that Haru was a little shit that needed to grow-up in the very beginning, but he comes around. 

I am also not a fan of the character Natsume. She is a high school student who, for a large chunk of time, is in love with Haru's adult cousin, Misawa. It's this weird thing that takes up a quite a bit of chapters. Misawa never reciprocated these feelings, which is great, but Natsume keeps it up and I found myself skimming through this plot, knowing full well that she would end up with Sasahara at the end.

 Overall though, I enjoyed my time reading this manga. I felt like some story lines I could have gone without, but the main story line kept me reeled in, so I didn't completely mind. It's a true coming-of-age story that has it's moments of adorable banter that you know will be resolved by the end. I recommend this manga, especially if you are a more of Shojo reader, as it seems that most Shojo readers tend to like this one. 

You can watch my full review on my YouTube channel here!