First Love Monster

First Love Monster

Cover of the first Japanese volume
初恋モンスター
(Hatsukoi Monsutā)
Genre Romantic comedy[1]
Manga
Written by Akira Hiyoshimaru
Published by Kodansha
English publisher
Demographic Shōjo
Magazine Aria
Original run March 2013 – present
Volumes 5
Anime television series
Directed by Takayuki Inagaki
Studio Studio Deen
Original run July 2016 – scheduled

First Love Monster (初恋モンスター Hatsukoi Monsutā) or Hatsukoi Monster is a Japanese shōjo manga series written by Akira Hiyoshimaru and published in Kodansha's Aria magazine. A television anime adaptation has been announced to air in July 2016.

Plot

The story follows 15-year-old Kaho Nikaidō as she leaves home to live in a high school dormitory. Almost getting hit by a truck, she is saved by a boy named Kanade Takahashi. She falls in love with him, only to discover that he is her landlord's son and a fifth grader.[2]

Characters

Kaho Nikaidō
Voiced by: Yui Horie[3]
The 15-year-old heroine of the story. She falls in love with Kanade after he saves her from an accident.[3] As the spoiled daughter of an elderly rich couple, she has found it difficult to make friends.[4]
Kanade Takahashi
Voiced by: Takahiro Sakurai[3]
A fifth grader and the object of Kaho's affections. He is in fifth grade, but looks significantly older.[3]
Tomu Kaneko
Voiced by: Showtaro Morikubo[3]
One of Kanade's friends and a delinquent.[3]
Ginjirō Sannomiya
Voiced by: Tomokazu Sugita[3]
A grade schooler and another of Kanade's friends.[3]
Kazuo Noguchi
Voiced by: Ayumu Murase[3]
Another of Kanade's friends, but of normal size.[3]
Jōji Takahashi
Voiced by: Kenichi Suzumura[3]
Kanade's cousin.[3]
Kōta Shinohara
Voiced by: Nobuhiko Okamoto[3]
A first-year high schooler who was in love with Kaho.[3]
Atsushi Taga
Voiced by: Kaito Ishikawa[3]
A college student and Kaho's rival.[3]
Arashi Nagasawa
Voiced by: Kenjiro Tsuda[3]
Kaho's strange neighbor.[3]
Daikoku Nikaidō
Voiced by: Hikaru Midorikawa[3]
Kaho's older brother.[3]

Media

Manga

First Love Monster is written by Akira Hiyoshimaru, who began publishing the manga in Kodansha's shōjo magazine Aria in March 2013.[2][5] Yen Press announced in October 2014 that it had acquired the rights to republish the series in English.

Volume list

No.Japanese release dateJapanese ISBNEnglish release dateEnglish ISBN
1 5 July 2013[6]ISBN 978-4-06-380638-021 July 2015[7]ISBN 978-0-3163-4367-1
2 7 January 2014[8]ISBN 978-4-06-380666-327 October 2015[9]ISBN 978-0-316-34610-8
3 7 July 2014[10]ISBN 978-4-06-380699-126 January 2016[11]ISBN 978-0-316-34611-5
4 7 January 2015[12]ISBN 978-4-06-380738-719 April 2016[13]ISBN 978-0-316-31488-6
5 7 July 2015[14]ISBN 978-4-06-380781-320 September 2016[15]ISBN 978-0-316-54526-6
6 13 May 2016[16]ISBN 978-4-06-358815-6——

Audio drama

The limited edition versions of volumes three, four, and five include an audio drama CD.[17]

Anime

An anime adaptation of the series was announced in the August issue of Aria.[1][5][17] The cast of the audio dramas will reprise their roles for the anime.[1][3] The series will premiere in July 2016.[18] Studio Deen will produce the anime, with Takayuki Inagaki directing the series and Mariko Oka designing the characters.[19]

Reception

Rebecca Silverman, reviewing the first volume for Anime News Network, gave it an overall grade of C-. She criticized the series for its attempts at serious romance in what was essentially a comedy, and also found fault with author's skill at drawing people. She was most heavily critical of the age gap between the two romantic leads, commenting that upon examination, "First Love Monster's comedy is overwhelmed by its creepy factor." She did, however, praise the series' dialogue, stating that "the way Kanade talks is a fun mixture of childlike and more adult."[4]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Green, Scott (25 June 2015). ""Hatsukoi Monster" to be Adapted into TV Anime". Crunchyroll. Retrieved 4 July 2015.
  2. 1 2 "Yen Press Licenses A Certain Magical Index, Trinity Seven, Chaika - The Coffin Princess, Prison School Manga". Anime News Network. 10 October 2014. Retrieved 4 July 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 "First Love Monster TV Anime Casts Takahiro Sakurai, Yui Horie". Anime News Network. 27 June 2015. Retrieved 4 July 2015.
  4. 1 2 Silverman, Rebecca (6 August 2015). "First Love Monster GN 1". Anime News Network. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
  5. 1 2 Komatsu, Mikikazu (27 June 2015). "VIDEO: "Hatsukoi Monster" TV Anime Confirmed". Crunchyroll. Retrieved 4 July 2015.
  6. ↑ "初恋モンスター（１）". Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved 4 July 2015.
  7. ↑ "First Love Monster, Vol. 1". Hachette Book Group. Retrieved 2 April 2016.
  8. ↑ "初恋モンスター（２）". Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved 4 July 2015.
  9. ↑ "First Love Monster, Vol. 2". Hachette Book Group. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  10. ↑ "初恋モンスター（３）". Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved 4 July 2015.
  11. ↑ "First Love Monster, Vol. 3". Hachette Book Group. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  12. ↑ "初恋モンスター（４）". Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved 4 July 2015.
  13. ↑ "First Love Monster, Vol. 4". Hachette Book Group. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  14. ↑ "初恋モンスター（５）". Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved 4 July 2015.
  15. ↑ "First Love Monster, Vol. 5". Hachette Book Group. Retrieved 2 April 2016.
  16. ↑ "初恋モンスター（6）". Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  17. 1 2 "First Love Monster Manga Gets TV Anime". Anime News Network. 26 June 2015. Retrieved 4 July 2015.
  18. ↑ "First Love Monster TV Anime Premieres This Summer". Anime News Network. 25 February 2016. Retrieved 25 February 2016.
  19. ↑ "Rosario + Vampire's Inagaki Directs First Love Monster Anime at Studio DEEN". Anime News Network. 26 February 2016. Retrieved 26 February 2016.

External links

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