I’ll Never Have a Romantic Comedy Anime Adds More Cast

The team behind the anime adaptation of Shinya Misu’s manga Osananajimi to wa LoveCom ni Naranai, known in English as I’ll Never Have a Romantic Comedy with My Childhood Friend, announced on Tuesday that the series will premiere in January on TV Tokyo, AT-X, and BS NTV.

Alongside the date came a new teaser visual featuring the heroine Haru Hinata, the tanned, athletic, short haired member of the story’s four leading girls, with Yūki Yamamoto announced to voice her.

The story follows Eiyū, a high school boy whose two childhood friends, Shio and Akari, attend the same school. He has begun seeing them in a more romantic light, but is convinced they have no interest in him, which leaves him in a constant state of worry.

What he does not realize is that Shio and Akari are each keeping secrets of their own, which is where much of the comedy and tension comes from.

Misu launched the manga on Kodansha’s Magazine Pocket in 2022, and it has grown steadily since, with its eighteenth volume due in early November.

My take: Childhood friend romances are a beloved staple, and the twist that the girls have their own hidden feelings adds a nice layer. It sounds like a fun, low stakes romantic comedy to ease into the new season.