百瀬アキラの初恋破綻中。 2

百瀬アキラの初恋破綻中。 [Momose Akira no Hatsukoi Hatanchuu.] #2

by Shinta Harekawa, 晴川 シンタ

不器用美少女の恋愛計画…全部空回ります!

第1巻が 続々重版!!
『からかい上手の高木さん』『マネマネにちにち』の
山本崇一朗先生も激賞!
もどかしい2人の純愛ラブコメ、急接近です。

ド田舎の少年・久我山はじめの元に帰ってきた、
かつての憧れの同級生・百瀬アキラ――
実は彼女は、大好きなはじめと結ばれるため、
周到な計画を立てて帰ってきていた!!
が……超不器用な百瀬さんと、
超鈍感のはじめの恋は、すれ違いの連続!
ついに――百瀬さんへの恋を自覚し、動き始めたはじめ。
思わぬ急接近が訪れて…2人の関係が、
大きく、大きく揺らぎます。

【編集担当からのおすすめ情報】
第1巻が、発売後に続々重版!
「少年サンデー」で連載初日から話題のラブコメが、
ついに2巻発売です。
本誌掲載時、大反響のあった「お祭り編」が収録です。
超濃密で、超爽快な青春をぜひ。

なんと…
『からかい上手の高木さん』『マネマネにちにち』の
山本崇一朗先生も激賞してくださいました!
さらに…山本先生が百瀬さんをスペシャル描き下ろし!
そのイラストは、初版帯にてどうぞお確かめを!

Genres: Manga, Romance

208 pages, Paperback

First published March 18, 2025

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t often say this, but the dumber this series gets, the better I like it. This is very basic ‘guy and girl get together’ stuff, yet it has some comedic chops that shine as our leads continue to be really bad at getting together.

Full stop, the section where Hajime tries to teach Akira how to ride a bike is one of the funniest things I’ve read all year. It deploys a crazy visual as a running gag and then pays it off so well at the very end. This is some of the smartest stupid you’re going to find.

Now, it’s not always this good, but I think the art is very game for what the mangaka is trying to achieve and it somehow manages to make something as utterly basic as cramming a muffin into somebody’s mouth get a chuckle from me.

Not all comedy needs to be like this, but knowing the value of escalation really helps this along. In addition to the aforementioned bike sequence, there’s another scenario during the festival arc that just keeps getting wilder and wilder.

And, geeze, I think I might really be starting to come around on the romance. Not that I thought it was bad, but that festival arc ending was one heck of a note to end this volume on and I’m rooting for Akira and Hajime a bit more than I normally would be.

The countryside vibe of this is also ridiculous and gives it a bit of bonus flavour. The chapter intros have not gotten any less insane as we’ve gone on and the general mood of how things should be done when not in the big city (which has flying cars, apparently) is a clever choice.

We’ve also got a really strong friend group, from Hajime’s clueless friend who thinks he’s unlocked the secrets to women thanks to dating sims (I never get tired of that trope when done well) and Akira’s wild gal pals.

The latter get a terribly sweet flashback that is also incredibly stupid, in fitting with the series’ conceits at their best. I like that the story doesn’t forget to have a little sentiment to cut the darker bits.

That said, the giant and overly strong Urara is a character I can see getting tired of in large doses. She’s a newly returned friend of Akira’s who won’t listen to the latter and wants to confess to Hajime on Akira’s behalf.

Urara’s a bull in a china shop and isn’t as nuanced as the others (or nearly as funny, bluntly). That said, when she stampedes right through a different couple about to be tangled up in a whole other trope, it is clever enough that I can give it a pass.

This has definitely grown on me over its first volume, which was also pretty funny, but never got to the heights that this one achieves. I appreciate that this isn’t completely slow-burn romance (even if they walk back the ending, I like the slight progress our leads achieved) and also has tons of material to work with; it might know what it’s doing more than I thought.

3.5 stars - I think I will let this one have a rounded 4 just because that bike sequence had me howling. It’s doing much better than its genre might suggest was even possible.

[Ida · Rating 5 out of 5]

This volume was even better than the first one, and I hope it'll only keep going up from here! It's still just as lighthearted but cozy and warm, making this romantic comedy a perfect spring/summertime read. 🌺 Akira and Hajime are still oblivious most times, but finally are making some progress in their relationship. Although, just as Hajime thought, it's just as nice going slow and enjoying every moment.

Thank you to NetGalley, Shinta Harekawa and VIZ Media for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review. 百瀬アキラの初恋破綻中。 2 aka "Akira Falling in Love" Vol.2 will be out 12th of May 2026!

[Jack Goff · Rating 5 out of 5]

AHHHHHHH!!!

This one was even better than the first one. I love these characters so much. I love how hopeless both of them are at communicating and how things go so comically awry. But I also like that things work out for them, too. This is such a fun story. In this volume we continue with our two main characters and their overly complicated schemes to get closer to one another. We even have a festival scene in this one! My favorite kind of comedy is physical comedy and this volume continues to deliver. I was up at the desk at the library reading this and having to hold back my laughter. I am really hoping that this eventually gets an anime because amazing.

The art continues to shine. Expressive, delicate linework, all of those beautiful full spreads and close up panels with those romance manga bubbles and sparkles. Perfection.

Thanks to Netgalley and VIZ Media for the DRC! I hope they put up the next one soon because I need it. I need it desperately. (Especially with that ending! *happy squealing*)

[liz gopsill · Rating 4 out of 5]

I want to start by thanking NetGalley, Shinta Harekawa and Viz Media for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review. Akira Failing in Love, Vol. 2 will be out May 12, 2026!

Such an improvement from Vol. 1! Harekawa has really strengthened the set up of each short story and has found a much better balance between the main couple while also fleshing out some of the finer details of their friend group. Super cute and tropey with a gorgeous art style!

Interested to see how Harekawa adapts in the next volume and if this series will grow from short and silly vignettes to a tighter plot line. Love how silly both the main characters are and how each chapter opens with a short story about indigenous species in their small town.

[Lexi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for this title so that I can give an honest review.

Volume 2 of Akira Failing in Love keeps the same light-hearted rom-com energy going! The dynamics between Hajime and Akira are as funny as ever--with new settings providing the perfect opportunity for some humor and romance. Overall, volume 2 was filled with endearing relationships, wholesome characters, and charmingly awkward humor.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for the early access reading.

I enjoyed reading the first volume, seeing two hopeless students who crush on each other and awkwardly interact each other. It's always very cute seeing them in love when they assume the worst. This one just made it CHEFS KISS. Things are starting to coming together for the two of them and I can't wait to see the two of them grow and be continue to be awkward.

[Kait W · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series is so silly and adorable. It reminds me a bit of School Rumble, but in a softer way that's a bit more realistic. It makes me smile, I love both of our oblivious main characters, and I'm enjoying their friends and the way those side characters are being utilized and given their own personalities. This is a very quick read, and it's not very dramatic, so it's a perfect cozy read.

[Mityl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an adorable manga set in the countryside with the young adult main characters like each other but end up in comic situations as they struggle to confess their feelings to each other. It is a fun quick read. I will look into other volumes of this manga when I get a chance.
*I received an ARC from Edelweiss+ for my honest review. All the best to the team!

[c. a. · Rating 5 out of 5]

PEAK romance I loved that ending!!!