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Love Me, Love Me Not (manga)

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Love Me, Love Me Not
First tankōbon volume cover, featuring Yuna Ichihara and Akari Yamamoto
思い、思われ、ふり、ふられ
(Omoi, Omoware, Furi, Furare)
Genre
Manga
Written byIo Sakisaka
Published byShueisha
English publisherViz Media
ImprintMargaret Comics
MagazineBessatsu Margaret
DemographicShōjo
Original runJune 13, 2015May 13, 2019
Volumes12 (List of volumes)
Live-action film
Directed byTakahiro Miki
Written byTakahiro Miki
Yōko Yonaiyama
Music byGoro Ito
Akira Kosemura
ReleasedAugust 14, 2020 (2020-08-14)
Runtime124 minutes
Anime film
Directed byToshimasa Kuroyanagi
Written byErika Yoshida
Music byYuuji Nomi
StudioA-1 Pictures
ReleasedSeptember 18, 2020 (2020-09-18)
Runtime103 minutes

Love Me, Love Me Not (Japanese: 思い、思われ、ふり、ふられ, Hepburn: Omoi, Omoware, Furi, Furare) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Io Sakisaka. It was serialized in Shueisha's Bessatsu Margaret magazine from June 2015 to May 2019, with Its chapters collected in 12 tankōbon volumes. Viz Media licensed the manga in English release.

A live-action film adaptation opened in Japan in August 2020, while an anime film adaptation produced by A-1 Pictures premiered in September 2020.

By July 2020, the manga had over 5.5 million copies in circulation. In 2018, Love Me, Love Me Not won the 63rd Shogakukan Manga Award in the shōjo category.

Plot

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Yuna Ichihara is in the spring before her first year of high school and is pained to be separated from her best friend Sacchan who is moving away. On her way to the train station, she is stopped by a random girl named Akari Yamamoto, who asks her for money for her train fare. Although Yuna is somewhat afraid and reluctant, she gives the girl money, who in turns give Yuna her bracelet as a promise she will meet her tomorrow to pay her back. On the same day, Yuna runs twice into a boy who looks like the idolized prince of her childhood who she referred to as her first love. After that, the girl named Akari returns Yuna's money, they head home together only to find out that they live in the same apartment building. The girls instantly become friends. However, they find that they explore love in completely different ways, and Yuna may be in love with Akari's younger brother and Akari in love with Yuna's childhood friend.

Characters

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Yuna Ichihara (市原 由奈, Ichihara Yuna)
Voiced by: Marika Suzuki[3]
Portrayed by: Riko Fukumoto[4]
A shy girl who loves to read romance manga,[5] but has never experienced love herself. Her best friend, Sacchan, moves away after they graduate middle school, and Yuna worries that she will be alone in high school.[6] However, when she unexpectedly meets Akari at the train station and befriends her. Due to Yuna's wary and shy personality, she is initially suspicious of Akari following her home, when they are actually just neighbors in the same apartment building. She is in love with Rio, Akari's step-younger brother. She confesses the first time but is rejected due to Rio's love for Akari. Later on, however, she confesses a second time and Rio happily accepts her as his girlfriend.
Akari Yamamoto (山本 朱里, Yamamoto Akari)
Voiced by: Megumi Han[3]
Portrayed by: Minami Hamabe[4]
Yuna's apartment neighbor who is also a first year in high school. She initially has a boyfriend at the beginning of the series,[7] but he later breaks up with her. Her step-younger brother is Rio,[8] whom Yuna is in love with. She thinks that Yuna's childhood friend, Inui, is a good guy and initially tries to push the two together but stops when she finds out that Yuna is in love with Rio. She eventually grows closer to Inui and falls in love with him. Akari's mother married Rio's father recent to the series beginning, and hates that her mother doesn't trust her and Rio alone together.[9] She pretends to not know that Rio loved her but actually has known since the beginning of the series. Both are able to reconcile, with the help of Yuna, which gives way for both to be able to move on. By the end of the manga, Akari is living in America with her parents and eagerly awaits Inui who has decided to move to America to be with her.
Rio Yamamoto (山本 理央, Yamamoto Rio)
Voiced by: Nobunaga Shimazaki[3]
Portrayed by: Takumi Kitamura[4]
Akari's step-younger brother and the boy of Yuna's affection. He is asked out by many girls but claims he only likes pretty faces, and rejects the girls.[10] He knew Akari before his father married her mother and was in love with her.[11] Akari's mother knows this and is suspicious of Rio spending time alone with Akari.[12] Rio develops a close friendship with Yuna early on in the series, often confiding in her when he found himself frustrated over Akari. He eventually falls for Yuna, but is hesitant to confess due to the fact that his friend has also fallen for Yuna. Both compete for her affection, but eventually he musters up the courage to confess at the same time that Yuna confesses to him that she is still in love with him. Both become a couple and are happily attending college together at the end of the manga.
Kazuomi Inui (乾 和臣, Inui Kazuomi)
Voiced by: Soma Saito[3]
Portrayed by: Eiji Akaso[4]
Yuna's childhood friend. Akari describes him as a "good guy" and wishes that Yuna and him would get together. Inui has often been referred to as an "airhead" by Akari due to his carefree and sincere nature. He and Akari both develop feelings for each other, but he rejects her confession out of consideration for Rio's feelings. After he finds out Rio has moved on, he confesses to Akari. He faces some trouble when Akari's ex-boyfriend comes back into the picture and especially so when Akari decides to move to America, but he asks her to wait for him. By the end of the manga, he meets with Akari at the airport as he has decided to also live in America to pursue his dream and to be with her.

Production

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The series was announced in Bessatsu Margaret's June 2015 issue.[13] Io Sakisaka reflected on plot lines in her previous series, Ao Haru Ride, and wanted to display love experiences in a different way.[14] The original Japanese title was inspired by a tagline from an advertisement campaign for acne from the 1980s that became popular among schoolgirls; the tagline claimed certain locations of where acne appeared on the face foretold if the person or the person's admirer like or are ignoring each other.[15]

Media

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Manga

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Love Me, Love Me Not is written and illustrated by Io Sakisaka. It was serialized in Shueisha's Bessatsu Margaret magazine from June 13, 2015, to May 13, 2019.[13][16] Its chapters were collected in twelve tankōbon volumes released from October 13, 2015, to June 25, 2019.[17][18]

In North America, Viz Media licensed the series for English release.[19] The first volume was released on March 3, 2020;[20] and the last one was released on January 4, 2022.[21]

Volume list

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No. Original release date Original ISBN English release date English ISBN
1 October 13, 2015 (2015-10-13)978-4-08-845467-2March 3, 2020 (2020-03-03)978-1-9747-1309-7
2 February 25, 2016 (2016-02-25)978-4-08-845528-0May 5, 2020 (2020-05-05)978-1-9747-1310-3
3 June 24, 2016 (2016-06-24)978-4-08-845596-9July 7, 2020 (2020-07-07)978-1-9747-1311-0
4 October 25, 2016 (2016-10-25)978-4-08-845653-9September 1, 2020 (2020-09-01)978-1-9747-1312-7
5 March 24, 2017 (2017-03-24)978-4-08-845732-1November 3, 2020 (2020-11-03)978-1-9747-1313-4
6 August 25, 2017 (2017-08-25)978-4-08-845804-5January 5, 2021 (2021-01-05)978-1-9747-1314-1
7 December 25, 2017 (2017-12-25)978-4-08-845868-7March 2, 2021 (2021-03-02)978-1-9747-1315-8
8 April 25, 2018 (2018-04-25)978-4-08-844025-5May 4, 2021 (2021-05-04)978-1-9747-1316-5
9 July 25, 2018 (2018-07-25)978-4-08-844066-8July 6, 2021 (2021-07-06)978-1-9747-1317-2
10 October 25, 2018 (2018-10-25)978-4-08-844109-2September 7, 2021 (2021-09-07)978-1-9747-1318-9
11 February 25, 2019 (2019-02-25)978-4-08-844172-6November 2, 2021 (2021-11-02)978-1-9747-1319-6
12 June 25, 2019 (2019-06-25)978-4-08-844213-6January 4, 2022 (2022-01-04)978-1-9747-2092-7

Live-action film

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A live-action film directed by Takahiro Miki was released on August 14, 2020. It stars Eiji Akaso as Kazuomi Inui and Minami Hamabe as Akari Yamamoto. Riko Fukumoto plays Yuna Ichihara and Takumi Kitamura plays Rio Yamamoto.[4] Official Hige Dandism performed the theme song with "115man Kilo no Film".[22]

Anime film

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On April 22, 2019, it was announced by Shueisha that the series would receive an anime film adaptation by A-1 Pictures. It was originally scheduled to premiere on May 29, 2020,[4] but was delayed to September 18, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan.[23][24] The film is directed by Toshimasa Kuroyanagi, with Erika Yoshida handling the film's scripts, Yuu Yamashita designing the characters, and Yuuji Nomi composing the film's music.[3] The theme song for the film is "Gravity" by Bump of Chicken.[25] The main cast members from the live-action film also have cameo roles in the film.[26]

Reception

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Love Me, Love Me Not was awarded the 63rd Shogakukan Manga Award in the shōjo category in 2018.[27][28][29] It was nominated for the 41st Kodansha Manga Award in the shōjo category in 2017.[30] On Takarajimasha's Kono Manga ga Sugoi! ranking of top manga series of 2017 for female readers, the series ranked 9th.[31]

By July 2020, Love Me, Love Me Not had over 5.5 million copies in circulation.[32] Volume 3 of the series debuted at No. 4 on Oricon's Japanese Comic Ranking;[33] and peaked at No. 2;[34] and sold an estimated 325,010 copies.[35] Volume 4 debuted at No. 1 and sold an estimated 168,863 copies in its first week alone.[36] It sold an estimated 293,419 copies in a month and consistently ranked from October to November.[37] Volume 5 debuted at No. 6, selling 110,175 copies;[38] in its first week and peaking at No. 1 in its second week with 121,903 additional copies sold.[39]

References

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  1. ^ "咲坂伊緒が贈る青春三部作、最終章! 映画『思い、思われ、ふり、ふられ』豪華声優& 初映像&初ビジュアルが解禁! ―4人の高校生が織りなす、切なすぎる恋―". Cho! Animedia (in Japanese). December 11, 2019. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "The Official Website for Love Me, Love Me Not". Viz Media. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d e Pineda, Rafael Antonio (December 9, 2019). "'Love Me, Love Me Not' Shōjo Anime Film's Teaser Reveals Cast, Staff, May 29 Debut". Anime News Network. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Pineda, Rafael Antonio (April 22, 2019). "Io Sakisaka's 'Omoi, Omoware, Furi, Furare' Romance Manga Gets Anime Film, Live-Action Film". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
  5. ^ Chapter 1 page 33
  6. ^ Chapter 1
  7. ^ Chapter 1 page 34
  8. ^ Chapter 1 page 60
  9. ^ Chapter 4 page 42
  10. ^ Chapter 2 page 37
  11. ^ Chapter 5 page 33
  12. ^ Chapter 4 page 39
  13. ^ a b Sherman, Jennifer (May 10, 2015). "Story, Title Revealed for Blue Spring Ride Creator Io Sakisaka's New Manga". Anime News Network. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  14. ^ "Sakisaka Io Interview - Omoi, Omoware, Furi, Furare (Trans.)". Oh darling, begin again. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  15. ^ "恋とニキビのカンケイ" [The relationship between love and acne]. Rohto Pharmaceutical (in Japanese). Archived from the original on August 25, 2019. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  16. ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (April 14, 2019). "Io Sakisaka's 'Omoi, Omoware, Furi, Furare' Manga Ends on May 13". Anime News Network. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  17. ^ "思い、思われ、ふり、ふられ 1". Shueisha. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  18. ^ "思い、思われ、ふり、ふられ 12". Shueisha. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  19. ^ Sherman, Jennifer (July 4, 2019). "Viz Media Licences Downfall, Prince Freya, Blue Flag, 'Love Me, Love Me Not' Manga". Anime News Network. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  20. ^ "Love Me, Love Me Not, Vol. 1". Viz Media. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  21. ^ "Love Me, Love Me Not, Vol. 12". Viz Media. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  22. ^ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (June 16, 2020). "Live-Action 'Love Me, Love Me Not' Film's Trailer Reveals Theme Song". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
  23. ^ Loo, Egan (April 14, 2020). "'Love Me, Love Me Not' Anime Film Delayed Due to Coronavirus Disease COVID-19". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  24. ^ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (July 20, 2020). "'Love Me, Love Me Not' Anime Film Opens on September 18 After COVID-19 Delay". Anime News Network. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  25. ^ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (September 14, 2020). "'Love Me, Love Me Not' Anime Film Posts BUMP OF CHICKEN's Animated Music Video". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
  26. ^ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (August 26, 2020). "'Love Me, Love Me Not' Anime Film Features Cameos by Live-Action Version's Cast". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
  27. ^ Ressler, Karen (January 22, 2018). "The Promised Neverland, After the Rain, More Win 63rd Shogakukan Manga Awards". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on July 12, 2018. Retrieved August 30, 2022.
  28. ^ "第63回『小学館漫画賞』受賞作決定!– 小学館コミック". Shogakukan (in Japanese). January 22, 2018. Archived from the original on July 24, 2022. Retrieved August 30, 2022.
  29. ^ "第63回小学館漫画賞に「空母いぶき」「恋雨」「ふりふら」など5作品". Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. January 23, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  30. ^ "第41回講談社漫画賞の候補13タイトル決定、受賞作の発表は5月9日". Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. April 3, 2017. Retrieved August 30, 2022.
  31. ^ Ressler, Karen (December 9, 2016). "Kono Manga ga Sugoi! Reveals 2017's Series Ranking for Female Readers". Anime News Network. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  32. ^ "丸井グループはアニメ&実写映画『思い、思われ、ふり、ふられ』の製作委員会に参加します". PR Times (in Japanese). July 31, 2020. Retrieved August 30, 2022.
  33. ^ Ressler, Karen (June 29, 2016). "Japanese Comic Ranking, June 20–26". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  34. ^ Ressler, Karen (July 6, 2016). "Japanese Comic Ranking, June 27-July 3". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  35. ^ Ressler, Karen (July 27, 2016). "Japanese Comic Ranking, July 18–24". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  36. ^ Ressler, Karen (November 2, 2016). "Japanese Comic Ranking, October 24–30". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  37. ^ Ressler, Karen (November 23, 2016). "Japanese Comic Ranking, November 14–20". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  38. ^ Ressler, Karen (March 29, 2017). "Japanese Comic Ranking, March 20–26". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  39. ^ Ressler, Karen (April 5, 2017). "Japanese Comic Ranking, March 27-April 2". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
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