Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
xShiningxMoonx
6.5/10 (This review is for the entire series: TV, Movie, OVA)
-Unlikeable protagonist that’s very hard to root for
-Complex character dynamics leave a bad taste
-Sub-par animation and inconsistent frame-rates
+Bubbly, eye-catching designs
+Pleasant, classical soundtrack adds to melodramatic tone
It’s stated the definition of Marmalade is a fruit spread made from boiling water, sugar, and citrus peel, resulting in a combination of sweet, tart, and bitter flavors. On the surface Marmalade Boy is just that—a sugary tale of growing pains and finding love between two members of the same family. Bright colors, a classical soundtrack, and characters with wide, emotive features draw the viewer in. However, the resulting melodrama may leave a sour taste for some.
Watching step siblings Miki an…
Read at the sourceThe_Namer
This show has been on my radar for decades as one I wanted to watch some day, but its length (76 episodes) made it a costly proposition for importing until recent years. I'm glad I finally bought it, since it's instantly become one of my favourite shows.
Miki finds herself living with a handsome but aggravating boy called Yuu when their parents swap partners and all start living together. After this quirky setup, Miki falls for Yuu, and the two become embroiled in the kind of love dodecahedron you would expect from a romance anime as various other suitors show up. What makes Marmalade Boy special is how sympathetic most of the characters become, and how every shift in the relationships between any of them tends to have a devastating knock-on effect on others. Though the mid-episode eyecat…
Read at the sourceHikari-Kuro
Granted it’s anime, but who came out with such a degenerate plot?
From swinging parents to teacher, student relationship to parents allowing teenage step siblings having relationship?
No joke, even the side characters are swapping love interest like it’s going out of style. Let me save you the trouble of having to go through 76 boring episodes by giving you the synopsis of every episode, the two mc will always have some sort of misunderstanding in every episode. I literally dosed off a couple of times for a couple of episodes because it’s so predictable.
This series is boring, mc is annoying and the plot is ridiculous at times, example is side characters always appearing wherever the mc are, even when the mc are another location in Japan or America, mind you, these are teenagers who can…
Read at the sourceTakaCode
What makes a romcom anime good? Is it the show's ability to present relatable characters, is it the strong character chemistry or maybe is the fantasising love journey that is filled with strong character development, emotion and thematic exploration?
1994’s Toei Animation Marmalade Boy fits the bill. Marmalade Boy is a special and rare breed. It takes all the elements that the genre has established in the past and manages to not only to enhance those elements. It also creates its own elements that would appear in later romcoms anime down the line. Add up this show’s fantastic balance of journey and destination elements of a story and you get yourself a beautifully crafted romcom on your hands.
The story follows a happy go, lucky schoolgirl, Miki Koishikawa who is living a perfect home li…
Read at the sourceInuyashafan100
so the truth this is my first review even though I have been watching anime pretty much since I was borne so tell if I need to change anything
Story 10/10
the truth is that when I saw the first episode of this anime I was completely shocked because of how unique the plot was, this story is basically about Miki koichikawa this girl suddenly gets her world turn around when her parents suddenly came home that day and happily said to her that they were going to basically switch partners with the matsuura family, and as if that was not bad enough the other family has a son of her same age, who enjoys teasing 24/7 but the truth that only she knows is that she is actually in love with the young boy, to tell you the truth at first I though that it was going to be the typical sibling forbidden l…
Read at the sourcebellenutt
Story: The main story of this anime was pretty original and different. Although sometimes the characters can make very sudden decisions which sometimes make me feel too unrealistic. For example, Miki and Yuu's parents moving into the same house. The love triangles throughout the story were pretty cliche and nothing extraordinary. Also, the plot twist towards the very end was pretty hard to watch because it was a very emotional part of this anime. However, it was all a misunderstanding in the end, which makes me feel like the story ends very abruptly even though the entire anime was 76 eps long.
Art: The quality was pretty good considering that this anime was released in the late 80s/early 90s. I personally love this style of anime the most.
Sound: I thought the music was cringe at first…
Read at the sourceHappy_Mask
I remember watching this series when I was in high school but due to school stuff I didn't get to finish the whole 76 episodes, only made it until episode 15 I think.So fast forward, 11 years later, I've finally decided to re watch this anime. I've also read the manga prior to watching and although I loved every bit of the manga - the anime series, imo was even betterl! This anime marked my really high standards when it comes to the romance type genre.
To start, the story is not your normal highschool romance type plot.The first few episodes started with a very cute light drama between the main protagonist Miki and her love interest, Yuu (main guy) but as the episodes progressed, it gets more complicated. Each episodes gets a hold of you like how soap opera's would where in you can't real…
Read at the sourcelolypop303
I loved Marmalade boy. The story was just pure genius. There's drama, romance, a lot of comedy; Practically everything a hopeless romantic needs. In the pilot episode you see that Yuu is in love with Miki. We know the reason in the movie.
Although the show is long, it is worth it. It's a very light show, but then builds up more tension and drama as the show ends.
Overall I give this show a 10 because it was a just a whole package delivered; An interesting plot line and good characters, with a solid background. It just kept me hooked.
Read at the sourceggultra2764
Marmalade Boy is one of those mid-90s shoujo romantic melodramas that were popular with older fans and this one particularly stuck out due to the complicated romance angles it played with throughout much of its run. Through the bizarre marital mix-arounds that their parents make, Miki and Yuu find themselves living together under the same roof and try to adjust to their bizarre predicament while slowly finding themselves falling for one another. With their developing relationship, however, comes a number of characters who each take their own romantic interests in one of our two leads, often conspiring to break the two apart so they they can have the one that interests them to themselves. For the first 20+ episodes, this involved close friends of the two leads which did make this aspect of…
Read at the sourcehater23
Let me start by first saying that Marlade Boy is amazing. I loved it and it changed my life , and I reccomend to all looking for a very well done/ complete romance story, it is very heartwarming , with many plot twists you will never be bored YOU WILL LOVE THIS ANIME.
IF YOU DONT FEEL YOUR HEART WARMED AND DONT FEEL THE LOVE AND SADNESS YOU ARE NOT HUMAN
The story was very complex and you will fall in love with Miki and Yuu, you will feel sad when the characters are sad you will feel happy when the characters are happy. The show includes many love triangles and follows many other couples relationships as a secondary while Miki and Yuu's relationship is in the forefront.
I am a 22yr old male who saw this anime 3 yeras ago and i still love this anime it will forever be one of my favorites…
Read at the sourcecoocooformanga
I've really LOVED this anime and this anime really IS my FAVORITE, ANIME, EVER! I've watched 40 of the episodes subbed, but I was really upset when I had to switch to dubs, but I did because I just LOVED the anime so much!
Story: Story is VERY good and you really don't find a story like this often. The whole story is what made you fall in love with it every episode. Every time, you were always at the edge of your seat at the end of each and every episode. I give this a 10.
Art: I'm very picky with my art but this anime, the art was FANTASTIC! I loved how the characters looked, but it wasn't "perfect", you know what I'm saying? Again, I really LOVED how the characters looked, but due to this anime being pretty old and being aired in 1994, it doesn't look all new and stuff, but that's what…
Read at the sourceSoftCoyote
Well, let me start out by saying that this has to be one of the most overdramatized anime's I have ever seen! Everything about it reminded me of a soap opera!
However, I completely enjoyed watching this, which is odd since I hate soap opera's! The characters, though a bit annoying at some times, were really well thought out. For the time period this was made in the animation was decent. I LOVE the music they chose, the voices all fit! And the story...
Well, the story could've been perfect but I really had to dock it down a point because it really did get repetive at times. Way too much jealousy over and over again.
The ending was what really did it for me though. Two of the most important things for a story; the beginning and the end. Of course the beginning was wonderful otherwise I wou…
Read at the sourceHias
Shoujo stories honestly are very hit or miss with me, and not just because I'm a guy! But they tend to be much too sweet, too fluffy and indulgent for it's own good. Catering to the daydream love fantasies of both young girls and middle aged women alike, I heard the name Marmalade Boy for a few years, and even considered picking it up at one point when I read an article about the series on another site. But a critical opinion of the show, given to me by a friend made me lose any interest in pursuing this one.
About 2 years later, I took the plunge and decided to give an actual try...and I think it's safe to say that I'm glad I did. Marmalade Boy is a classic shoujo series from the 90's, and it's influence is probably seen in just about every other shoujo manga ever since. There are love t…
Read at the sourceLolaStarr
I enjoyed this anime for the first 20-30 episodes, however after that I felt it went downhill. The story line was repetitive and unimaginative, the silly twist at the end, which turns out not to be a twist, seemed like a pointless desperate attempt to salvage what was left of the plot. The characters experience that same problems over and over again, without any change or development. At first I found the characters lovable and amusing, but as the anime progresses, they become more and more tired and frustrating. I unfortunately couldn't find many subbed episodes, and I'm not a massive fan of Michelle Ruff's voice acting, so that was off putting. The art work wasn't the style I'm interested in, however I loved the tennis scenes, and thought the art in those moments was superb. I only finis…
Read at the sourceBexter27
This is going to be short and sweet.
I just finished watching the series and I feel physically exhausted. There were so many ups and downs, it certainly put the audience through the wringer.
Liked: the characters (particularly the parents as a group) and the last 20 or so episodes, the Meiko storyline
Disliked: the CONSTANT (and I do mean constant) "I love you!" quickly followed by "we can't be together!" - it was freakin exhausting and instead of making me more interested in the show, it really just irritated me to the point of almost giving up the series a few times. I compromised and ended up just skipping over parts. Also, the love triangle theme was incredibly overused - see above for a recommendation on how to cope with this.
If you're in the mood for something that will take y…
Read at the sourceBishounen_Hunter
For a lot of people when they think “shoujo” they think of Full Moon wo Sagashite, Boys Over Flowers, Fruits Basket and of course, Marmalade Boy. That's why I picked the title.....Buuuuuuuuut while I DO love shoujo but I could barely tolerate Marmalade Boy mainly there is too much unnecessary angst and most of the drama is self-inflicted. This show did not touch me neither on an emotional nor intellectual level.
It has a very dated look, very 80's with flat coloring as well as stiff unnatural movements that's predictably associated with anime from that era.
Out of the whole series I the song I loved most was MOMENT, even though it's completely overused in the series. I dunno, something about the xylophone and that 80's base beat really worked for me. I include it on every anime playlist I…
Read at the sourceAnistylez
MY OVERVIEW:
Miki Koshikawa is a high-school girl looking for a change of pace in her life. Little did she know that as soon as she had entertained this thought her parents were downstairs conspiring to reveal something that she would not have expected in her wildest dreams. They had met another couple and are going to switch partners with them.
Yes, you heard me, switch partners.
Miki is entirely against this and will not stand for it. Hearing that they have a son of their own a new hope emerges. She will have someone to assist her who disagrees with this situation entirely.
Boy, was she wrong. Not only does Yuu not mind what is happening but he is completely cruel to Miki, playing jokes and making fun of her at every chance he gets. Or at least that's what she initially thinks until…
Read at the sourcemlluu92
Intro: This anime had the most UNIQUE story ever. Girl meets boy through her parents. Her parents met eachother on vacation in Hawaii and have decided to switch spouses with another couple. The story takes place from there. I honestly thought this anime to be one of the most messed up shows out there,but once again,i'm proven wrong. (:
Story: Like I said,this was one of the most UNIQUE stories on the face of romantic comedies. HAHA. The first time you read or hear about the story and plot line,you may be feeling iffy about watching it,but believe me when i say that despite all the ups and downs of the story,it is WORTH sticking through and seeing it to the very end. It's soooooooooo worth it. I ended up liking the story way more than i thought. & i really hope that all of you that conside…
Read at the sourcealtergenesis
Highs:
Fantastic Cast of Characters; has good humor; fascinating Relationships
Lows:
Overused Themes; very predictable; unlikable lead character; a season too long
This one was quite the adventure. It took me a significant amount of time to complete this anime and for the most part I was fairly pleased. Spanning 76 Episodes, Marmalade Boy is your standard high school romance, with a twist. Our two main characters have two parents who switch spouses that force them to live together. This alone was an interesting concept.
There are many other strengths in this anime. For one is the wonderful cast in Marmalade Boy. Almost each and every one of the characters is memorable and have marvelous, fleshed out personalities. The cast is truly what makes Marmalade Boy special. Of course, with great…
Read at the sourceTalu
"Marmalade Boy" is one of the sweet shoujo anime in the world, maybe even the sweetest. It is one of my favorite anime, and I can watch it over and over again and not get bored. I can even cry in sone scenes every time... T___T
The story was written by Wataru Yushizumi (Ultra Maniac belongs to her too).
The art is very nice, but the animation is actually not that good (an anime from 1995, what do you expect?) but you can live with that.
The OST of the anime is very good. In some ways it is very childish (the opening theme, for an example), but mature too (some songs).
Most of the melodies in the series are actually kind of karaoke of the songs. The voice actress of Miki, the main female character, sang many songs in the series.
The love story in the anime is very original and displayed…
Read at the source