A boy approaches a girl sitting in the rain and offers her his umbrella. But these two aren’t quite strangers: they are next-door neighbors who attend the same high school. Mahiru, known around school as an “angel” for being practically perfect in every way, returns the favor of the umbrella by taking care of Amane when he catches a cold. In doing so, she discovers that Amane is a huge slob who doesn’t eat a healthy diet. Her motherly instincts kick in, and she starts cooking for him and cleaning his room. It turns out they both live alone, you see, and while the reasons aren’t discussed, there are hints that there could be weighty factors behind their respective living situations. She also takes him to task for making assumptions about her, and expresses dislike for the “angel” moniker. For his part, Amane appreciates the chance to see the real Mahiru, as opposed to the angelic facade she wears at school. He is surprised that their interactions continue, rather than going back to being virtual strangers, and he is insistent on not misconstruing Mahiru’s actions in a romantic way, considering her to be way out of his league. Still, as Humphrey Bogart said, “I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”
Well, that was cute. This is a light novel adaptation that we at BtT have mentioned several times. It’s a sweet high school romance, focusing more on the cuteness of Amane and Mahiru’s burgeoning relationship than on comedy or drama (although both elements are present to lesser degrees). Other than being able to convey the cuteness in new (i.e., audiovisual) ways, this adaptation doesn’t seem to add a lot to what the light novels offers, but if you’re in the mood for a chill, heartwarming high school romance anime, definitely check out this one. I’ll certainly keep watching.
The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten is streaming on Crunchyroll.
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I haven’t read the series, but does it ever feel like Amane is taking advantage of Mahiru?
No, I never got that sense.
[…] the feeling that this is just The Helpful Fox Senko-San and Oh My Goddess sprinkled liberally with The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten with a light sprinkling of A Certain Magical Index. This has been done before, my friends, and as […]