Review of Horimiya

I picked up this series on the strength of the recommendations and the high rating it has here. The show started off strong in the first 3 or so episodes, so I thought the hype was really justified. However, it started to fall off by the middle and it just ran out of steam by the end. The problem with the series is that we begin with the main protagonists, Miyamura and Hori, but then we get introduced to so many side characters that the main love plot sort of gets pushed into the background. The main hook for me was the atypical love storywhere the lovers confess their feelings relatively early rather than dragging it out for 1 or more seasons. This twist on the trope was squandered by having to develop about a dozen story lines in 13 episodes, which is not really feasible. The result of that was that I didn't really care for most of the supporting characters, given how rushed their stories were made (some of them didn't even have satisfactory resolutions). Plus, not all of the characters are distinguishable from one another; I was confused many times, trying to figure out who was who and why I should care. Another puzzling aspect is that Miyamura, the boy protagonist, starts off as the typical kuudere high-schooler, but then does a 180 and is barely recognizable as a normie on the last episode. Because so much screen-time was given to side characters, we do not get a gradual and plausible transition for him. He has some moments of self-reflection, but they are very cliché, and leave so much of his personality unexplored. Lastly, as another reviewer commented, the vibe of the show is very saccharine: all the characters are over sentimental, some have deep issues with each other, and yet they all end up being best buddies by the end. I believe this is the main reason for the high rating: its over-the-top, feel-good scenes. But the manipulation was obvious to me, and I sorta resent that. It's not so bad that I would recommend against, though. It's just... whatever. 7/10.