This season, Winter 2023, includes multiple romance anime. Among these, The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten stands out as one of this season’s gems. This is my mid-season review on The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten.
The plot starts off with the MC, Fujimiya Amane, as he happens upon a girl, Shiina Mahiru, sitting alone on a rainy day. He gives her his umbrella but ends up getting sick. When both decide to head home, they find out that they live next door to each other. This is where the story kicks off. Like most anime, this meeting is unrealistic, perhaps even absurd. The coincidence of them being neighbours is an overused trope.
Mahiru takes care of Amane out of guilt, which resulted in her finding out about his unkempt and unhealthy lifestyle. With this Mahiru decides to cook for him, as she claims she cannot stand to see him live like that. As these two start to meet on a regular basis their relationship starts to deepen and become something special. Mahiru, who initially appeared to be guarded against Amane, finds that Amane is a person whom she can trust and starts becoming more courteous towards him. Amane sure is one lucky guy as I cannot imagine a girl being this self-sacrificial towards someone whom she has just met not long ago.
Eventually the two exchange gifts with each other such as on Christmas. In a later episode, Mahiru spent the New Year with Amane, where she wound up meeting his parents. After watching the episode, it is safe to say that she made an impact on Amane’s parents for them to approve of their relationship. There is no doubt that Amane’s parents expect the relationship to become something else given time.
What I have particularly enjoyed thus far in the series are the dynamics between the characters, especially with Amane and Mahiru. Their relationship has progressed from complete strangers to a relationship mirroring that of a couple. One thing the directors have done well are the close up scenes between the two. Those scenes are extremely intimate and sweet and it makes my heart melt when I watch them.
However, there are a few criticisms that I have. The first of it being Amane and Mahiru’s constant denial of their feelings despite what we have seen so far. From Mahiru staying over at Amane’s place, to sharing food and drinks with each other, to holding hands and even having an indirect kiss, everything that they’ve done together are common things in a romantic relationship. It’s vexing to see this and my hope is that they’ll eventually acknowledge their feelings for each other.
The other criticism is the slow pacing. It is expected that some may drop the show due to this. Compared to other anime such as Kaguya Sama or Horimiya, the plot does not deliver the same level of excitement.
Despite these criticisms, The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten gets a pass for me as the story so far gravitates more towards the sweet side of romantic relationships. If anything, it’s more enjoyable than it is exciting and dramatic, and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed watching every minute of this series so far.
Preliminary rating: 9/10
