In this Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You review, I give my first impressions of the anime that adapts Haruka Mitsui’s original manga of the same name.
The series has been published in Kodansha’s shojo manga magazine Nakayoshi since November 2020. Produced by studio Typhoon Graphics, the anime makes it debut on January 9, 2025 (PT).
The official synopsis sums up the first few minutes of episode one succinctly: On July 1, 2020, Mizuho, a second-year high school student, is experiencing the most dreadful 17th birthday. Not only was she rejected by the senior she admired, her dad had also forgotten the occasion.
To make matters worse, the outbreak of an unknown infectious disease led to the cancellation of both club competitions and school trips.
Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You is one of the first anime to reference the COVID-19 pandemic that peaked in 2020, breaking new ground.
A coming of age romance story, it uses time skips to unravel the journey of female protagonist Mizuho Nishino and her relationship with her four male childhood friends Kizuki Hazawa, Shin Kashiwagi, Airu Izumi, and Shugo Hoshikawa across time.
Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You review
I own a copy of Nakayoshi and do enjoy the occasional dose of shojo to break up my shonen streaks. Most recently, Nina the Starry Bride and Yakuza Fiancé, both available on Crunchyroll, have captured my attention, which is why I thought of giving Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You a try.
Knowing nothing about the series beforehand, it first reminded me of HoYoverse’s otome game Tears of Themis just based off the key visual. While it’s premise is entirely different, I am curious to find out whether Mizuho dates any of them… or all four of them at some point in her life.
A big fan of Japanese male voice actors, I was quick to notice that Kazuki Ura, who voices protagonist Yoichi Isagi in Blue Lock, plays a leading role as purple-haired Kizuki. Both of these characters are sportsmen, and have taut bods, and are confident, but in two totally different areas — Kizuki boarded the love train and doesn’t seem to be giving up anytime soon.
The main cast comprises budding voice actors supported by veterans like Yuto Uemura who voices Atsushi Nakajima in Bungo Stray Dogs and Minato Narumiya in Tsurune, and Yuichiro Umehara who needs no introduction as a handsome staple in the shojo genre.
Because it’s a coming of age story, you’ll need to give the anime time to develop as Mizuho figures out her feelings as she navigates a disrupted school life. Episode one’s plot doesn’t offer much beyond the synopsis so viewers might feel that the pacing is a bit slow.
If you’re here for the four male characters and secretly hope that at least two might end up together, I’m afraid you’re also going to have to watch on because episode one gave us crumbs.
As a gamer, being surrounded by male friends feels natural and normal. While it’s too early to say, I am hoping that Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You gives a platform shining the light that platonic relationships between genders do not have to lead to romance. Friendship should transcend all genders.
So while I haven’t fallen in love with Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You yet, I can say that I am very invested in who Mizuho chooses as an adult. Or perhaps she ends up with no one at all as the manga is still ongoing.
Whatever the case, I’m ready to form new attachments to the four male leads, especially since they’re all going to grow up into fine young men… right?
READ MORE: The 9 best anime friendships of all time
