Unfolding Love is War: A Non-Cliché Rom-Com

The very infamous, Kagayu-sama: Love is War won millions of fans over as soon as it came out in start of 2019. But why have we chosen it for dissection? It’s because this artful depiction of high school romance is totally unconventional. The intensity of suspense and witty humor hooks the viewers to the screen.

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The series was written and produced by Akasaka who is well-known for traditional rom-com anime and manga screenplays. With Kagayu-sama: Love is War, Akasaka broke the rut and came out with something more elaborate, deep and interesting.

The series explores an egoistic and fierce side of love. The couple knows that they are in love with each other but are too proud to confess. To push one another towards confessing first, both characters start strategizing witty tactics and funny tricks.

Primary Plot (No Spoilers: Promise!)

Love is War is set out as pure Manga series which ticks all the boxes of a perfect and stunning work. What actually sets it apart from hundreds of Anime series out there is its intriguing plot. The series belongs to rom-com genre with witty humor and oh, so much suspense!

Two high school genius students fall in love as soon as they lay first sight on each other. The egoistical pride immediately comes between them.

Too proud to confess, they keep their feelings in their heart and try pricking each other to confess first. Increasingly complex mind games and puzzling tactics are articulated by both individuals. They try too hard to win affection from each other, but it’s all about who does it first.

The series remains attached to the big question; who will confess first? Until things change entirely.

The Intriguing Protagonist Duo

Although almost all characters in Love is War have their distinctive and interesting parts to play, but the protagonist duo is the vital source of electricity. Let’s get to know them more.

Kaguya Shinomiya 

Drool-worthy heroin in the series, Kaguya Shinomiya is a genius student and also very efficient vice president of the Shuchiin Academy Student Body Council. She is not only intelligent but also extremely pretty and attractive. She comes from a wealthy conglomerate family in Japan. Being born with a silver spoon, Kaguya was raised with utmost pampering and care. She was prideful, cold-hearted, mysterious, and extremely witty.

Well, this is what she portrayed herself to be, strong and upfront. However, underneath, she was very innocent, kind-hearted, and had thoughts like any other teenager. Due to her social standards and wealth, she suffered from loneliness. She had a broad social gathering, but rarely did she connect heart-to-heart with anyone.

Social media and digital presence never wowed her or consumed her personality. Furthermore, Kaguya was also very simple and less exposed to romance and sexuality. She always tried to put up a great look by wearing stunning clothes and grooming her beauty.

Kaguya is attracted to Miyuki, the handsome student. He is goofy, smart, and equally intelligent like herself. However, although Kaguya develops strong feeling for Miyuki, she keeps them bottled up and tries hard to get Miyuki to confess first.

Miyuki Shirogane 

Miyuki Shirogane is the witty and intelligent president of Shuchiin Academy Student Body Council. He is very popular among the high school students. His character is super studious and secures top positions in examinations as well as maintains high participation in co-circulars.

Being a nerd, Miyuki is portrayed with messy hair and glaring stares. Like Kaguya, Miyuki is also inexperienced when it comes to romantic relationships. Miyuki has fear of insects and bugs. Unlike Kaguya, Miyuki has a rather imbalanced family background. His father is unemployed because his former factory shut down. His mother left them when he was a little kid and hence, he lacks motherly love in his life.

He also has strong feelings for Kaguya but because she belongs to a high-income class, he is afraid to make a fool of himself. Hence, he refrains from confessing his feelings. He has a great fear of rejection. Akasaka portrays Miyuki as a boy who is calm on the outside but his mind is always racing.

Akasaka Explores New Kind of Plot in Love is War

In Love is War, Akasaka has done a brilliant job in narrating a super mysterious yet a goofy rom-com. The protagonists play their parts well and their roles are super pivotal. Akasaka was initially writing under influence of Instant Bullets. He revealed in an interview that the story of Love is War was thought out to be like a game of death with intensely cunning tricks put into play. However, the editor made Akaska leave his comfort zone and write it as a rom-com series with a complex romantic storyline.

At the time when Akasaka was writing the series, he was not experienced with romance and dating. He thought high school romance is very cliché and childish. Hence, he started incorporating some youth fantasy into it. He made it more like a battle of complex mindful games and the protagonists played these roles well.

Initially it was set out to be more intense like a death or life brigade but came out with a strong inclination towards being a mix of deep and complex feelings.

Character and Story Development

The storyline, characters and the theme of series develops in every episode and grows even more intense. The series started off as portraying both characters having feelings for each other but not being able to confess.

In this bubble, uncertain strategies with a touch of humor are carried out on both sides. It may feel like no emotion buildup is happening in the couple but it surely is. Miyuki and Kaguya play intense tricks on each other in order to gain affection.

As the name implies, the story is constructed as a War. The couple constantly targets each other with sharp tricks like they are in a battlefield. Supporting characters include Chika and Yu who play the part of nefarious allies. However, even after all of this, the show constantly reminds viewers that it is about love. There have been 2 seasons of this series and both have proved to be consistently energetic.

Will the couple give in and confess? Who will confess first? Will the battlefield intensify? Only time will unfold this epic mystery.

Summing Up

The series thrives on the epic love battle between Kagayu and Miyuki. It takes interesting leaps as the plot develops and time passes. Viewers become hooked and are unable to resist successive episodes. It is true that the couple’s lives would have been so easy if they just talked about how they felt, but what’s the fun in that?

The show is super hilarious and intensely energetic. We love the mysterious and suspenseful vibe throughout the series. It is so well crafted that on one side, it feels like another slice of live high school romance and on the other side, it’s a complete warzone.