
Manga
I Love Amy
Manga
Characters are boring and barely have any to nearly no depth. Conclusion is just a time-skip to make them healthy.
60How I felt reading this.
I disliked reading this, and I genuinely do not understand how it holds an 8.27 on MAL and a majority "9" on AniList. I read I Love Amy about two years ago, but the frustration stuck with me so vividly that the title might should be "I hate Bibi."
Bibi is a boring yandere archetype.
Bibi, in my opinion, is easily one of the most bland, poorly handled attempts at a yandere archetype I’ve ever seen. The story throws a massive salad of psychological issues at her, but instead of actually exploring her toxic and manipulative behavior, she just feels static and boring. The story knows she’s a bad person, but it never forces her to take accountability. I think my biggest issue with Bibi is that the narrative treats her dangerous, toxic behavior like an quirky personality trait rather than a serious plot point. A "consequence-free yandere." Bibi starts the story doing genuinely horrific things. stalking, injuring people, manipulation, and isolating Amy.
Yet, instead of exploring the terrifying reality of a yandere like that, it shifts into making her antics look "silly" or "misunderstood". A lot of the time it felt less like it was being treated seriously, and more like comedic relief (I think is the word). It feels like it cowards out of it's own premise. The story treats the realization that she likes Amy romantically as if it automatically cures her of severe personality disorders.
The manhwa itself 'subverts' the yandere trope by making it fluffy at the end, but it feels a bit like a lazy bait-and-switch. The romance is stretched out for ages, only to completely fall flat at the finish line because the author uses a massive timeskip right after the confession. We don't get to see Bibi actually put in the work to grow or change; we are just forced to accept her unearned redemption off-screen.
Amy is a nothing-burger.
Meanwhile, I couldn't connect with Amy at all. Her entire motivation boils down to wanting to reunite with a mother who literally tried to kill her. The narrative constantly uses her extreme trauma as cheap emotional bait, repeating her pitiful backstory in vague flashes without ever offering a satisfying resolution to her psychological issues. Trauma survivors often have complex and irrational feelings toward their abusers. Amy’s obsession with her mother is handled with zero nuance. She lacks any internal logic or self-preservation instincts. Strip away Amy's past, and what is left of her character? She has almost no hobbies, independent goals, or distinct personality traits outside of being pitiful. At least Bibi has that.
Conclusion?
The characters take themselves so seriously that the whole reading experience becomes exhausting. I think I'd have less of a problem with it if it didn't think it was something serious. To me, it relies entirely on its cute art style and unique character designs to trick people into overlooking a shallow story.
6: Could have been good.
