English Dub Season Review: My Love Story with Yamada-kun at Lv999 Season One

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Akane Kinoshita (Abby Trott), a female college student, faces the absolute worst situation when she ends up breaking up with her boyfriend after he has an affair with a woman he met playing an online game. While relieving her stress by rampaging through the open hunting grounds of an online game, Akane spills everything about her heartbreak to “Yamada” (Stephen Fu), a player she met by chance who happens to be in the same guild. “I don’t care,” is his curt reply. But when Akane gets a makeover and joins an offline event to get back at her ex-boyfriend, she hears those dreadful words again, and that was Akane’s fateful encounter with “Yamada”—!

Our Take:

My Love Story with Yamada-kun at Lv999 is an anime adaptation of a manga series written and illustrated by Mashiro. It is directed by Morio Asaka and written by Yasuhiro Nakanishi. It is produced by Madhouse, with character designs being handled by Kunihiko Hamada. The music is composed by Mito and De De Mouse. The opening theme song is “Graduation” by Kana-Boon featuring Yūho Kitazawa, while the ending theme song is “Trick Art” performed by Ryujin Kiyoshi.

Going through a typical breakup is one thing, but breaking up with a gamer who has an affair with another is about as heartbreaking as having your game crash repeatedly. Sadly, that’s what poor Akane Kinoshita felt when she ended her relationship with her boyfriend, Takuma, after he had an affair with another woman. Fortunately, Akane unexpectedly gains an extra life in this love game when she meets Yamada, an emotionless yet handsome pro-gamer who’s a part of her “Chocolate Rabbit” guild in the online game Forest of Savior (FOS). As Akane befriends and learns more about the guild led by “Rurihime” (Michelle Marie), later identified as Eita Sasaki (Landon McDonald), Yamada’s childhood friend, Akane finds herself getting closer to the emotionless gamer.

The first time I’ve heard of this series was through social media. It reminded me of the previous rom-com anime I’ve experienced, but with online gaming elements. Since I’ve enjoyed some of those romantic shows and done some gaming in my free time, it didn’t take me long to see if it lives up to the expectations from its online images. After watching the first episode, it’s easy to see that it offers exactly what it’s given regarding the genre. Boy meets girl, they get into several comedic scenarios, and they eventually fall for each other. If you’ve watched the other romantic comedy anime, it’s evident that you’ll get what My Love Story has offered. So now the only question remaining is whether it’s as enjoyable as grinding for experience points with the guild members. While it’s far from “best rom-com anime” material, I was pleasantly surprised at how entertaining and cute the series turned out.

While My Love Story features fantasy elements involving characters playing FOS, they don’t appear as much as the drama happening in the real world. So, if you expect it to resemble something like Bofuri, you might feel disappointed with its concept. However, when we do visit the world of FOS, those scenes are fun and light-hearted enough to compensate for the show’s lack of fantastical gameplay. Lucky for me, the same goes for its rom-com plot, which has a suitable balance of heart and comedy to gain some experience points. Throughout the series, we see Akane and Yamada struggling to overcome their pasts and learn to love again, with Akane reeling from her sudden breakup. As for Yamada, he avoids talking to girls, which seems cruel at first, but the later episodes show that it’s due to a childhood classmate being bullied for liking him. Yamada’s encounter with Akane sets him on a path to regain his confidence around women, especially in relationships.

Akane is best described as a generous yet emotionally naive college student whose conflicts often result in embarrassment but compensate for her kindness. Abby Trott, best known for voicing Nezuko in Demon Slayer and Eleonore Bianca in The Misfit of Demon King Academy, seemed like a suitable choice to voice Akane before I started watching the series. She’s got the voice of someone who’s sweet but also slightly nervous, which almost fits Akane’s personality. After viewing the first few episodes, I can safely say my assumption was correct. Abby Trott did a great job making Akane one of the genre’s most enjoyable and relatable characters. I will also credit Stephen Fu for manifesting Yamada’s emotionless state that’s more well-rounded than one would assume.

The supporting characters also have their moments regarding the humor, although some are more likable than others. The best of the bunch has to be Takezo Kamota, a middle-aged man who owns a strawberry farm, with his avatar being a tiny, cotton-like monster. Kamota is such a lovable person who cares for Akane as much as others, making him frantic whenever she’s in peril. This is mainly shown in “How About You Give Us an Explanation”, where Kamota hysterically attempts to rescue Akane from Runa’s (Michelle Marie) prank. Speaking of which, Runa Sasaki, the young sister of Eita, is my least favorite character in the series. Aside from her rushed character development, I’m not a fan of spoiled brats in movies and shows, especially when she pulled that harmful prank on Akane. Michelle Marie was respectable in her role, and the series showcased why Runa became selfish toward Akane. However, even after she sees the error of her ways, Runa still acts childish regarding her friendship with Akane. If it moves forward with a second season, I hope they make Runa less intolerable by acting more maturely.

Madhouse has provided plenty of good content regarding its presentation, like One-Punch Man season one, Hunter x Hunter, Takt Op. Destiny, and the recently released Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End. Considering that My Love Story with Yamada-kun has plenty of vibrancy in its environments and characters, it makes sense why this studio was chosen to bring the manga to the screen. While periodically limited, the bright and lively presentation is simply appealing for its designs and wacky humor, especially when it involves the characters’ chibi expressions, despite being a bit overused sometimes. I would even say the animation works well for the show’s game, “Forest of Savior”, regarding its fantasy-like settings and chibi-like avatars.

Overall, My Love Story with Yamada-kun at Lv999 levels up enough plot and charm skills to deliver another diverting addition to the anime rom-com department. The lack of gameplay involving FOS can be disappointing for unsuspecting gaming anime fans. Fortunately, it easily compensates for this flaw with an enjoyable albeit formulaic rom-com scenario filled with likable characters, vibrant animation, and entertaining humor. If we’re in luck, we could see more gaming adventures in FOS in a potential second season, as well as more real-world obstacles for the Chocolate Rabbit guild. If that’s the case, sign me up for the update.