Our Dating Story

''You Were Experienced, I Was Not: Our Dating Story'', also known as ''KimiZero'' (キミゼロ) for short, is a Japanese light novel series written by Makiko Nagaoka and illustrated by magako. The series published ten volumes under Fujimi Shobo's Fujimi Fantasia Bunko imprint from September 2020 to March 2025. A manga adaptation by Noyama Carpaccio began serialization in Square Enix's ''Gangan Online'' web service in February 2022. An anime television series adaptation produced by ENGI aired from October to December 2023.

Premise

As a punishment for losing a game, Ryūto Kashima, a gloomy high school boy, is forced to confess his love to Runa Shirakawa, a beautiful girl who is at the top of the school pecking order and admired by everyone. The two end up going out simply because Runa happened to not be in a relationship. After Ryūto asks her out, Runa brings him to her room, where they discover that they have drastically different ideas of how they should date. The two are different in just about everything, from their friends, to personalities and hobbies. Nevertheless, they surprise each other by their differences every day, learn to accept the other for who they are, and gradually connect with each other.

Characters

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:A gloomy second-year high school boy. He has never had a girlfriend, does not have many friends, and his only hobby is watching live streams on the Internet. Initially, he had a crush on Maria Kurose, but following her rejection, he finds himself falling in love with Runa Shirakawa, a beautiful and popular girl admired by everyone in school. As a punishment for losing a game, he confesses his feelings to Runa in person, and to his surprise, she agrees to date him. Later in the series, he becomes a university student while still dating Runa.
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:A ''gyaru'' who is at the top of the school caste and is considered to be the most beautiful girl in her grade. She is bright, cheerful, can approach anyone without hesitation, and has dated many boys before. After Ryūto confesses to her, she accepts his confession and starts going out with him. Even though she has experience in dating, she still worries that their relationship might not last long. They remain a couple after graduating from high school, although due to Ryūto's university studies they only meet occasionally.
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:Ryūto's first crush and Runa's fraternal twin sister, but they grew up separately after their parents divorced when they were in the fifth grade. Though she initially rejected Ryūto's previous confession, she is jealous of her sister's charisma and popularity, including her relationship with him.
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:One of Runa's friends and also a ''gyaru''. In the anime's official English translation, her name is given as Nicole.
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:A friend of Runa.
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:A friend of Ryūto.
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:A friend of Ryūto.
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:A college student who reveals to be Nikoru's ex-boyfriend. He only dated Nikoru two weeks before dumping her.
;Ken
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:A popular online streamer who Ryuto and his friends are fans of.

Media

Light novels

Written by Makiko Nagaoka with illustrations by magako, the series began publication under Fujimi Shobo's Fujimi Fantasia Bunko imprint on September 19, 2020. A promotional video was released on Kadokawa's official YouTube channel on July 15, 2021 to promote the series, featuring Momo Asakura as Runa Shirakawa. The series ended with the release of its tenth volume in March 2025.

In September 2023, J-Novel Club announced that they licensed the novels for English publication.

Manga

A manga adaptation illustrated by Noyama Carpaccio began serialization in Square Enix's ''Gangan Online'' web service on February 23, 2022. As of January 2025, seven ''tankōbon'' volumes have been released. In June 2023, Square Enix began to publish the series in English on their '' Manga UP! Global'' service.

Anime

On September 9, 2022, an anime television series adaptation was announced. The anime is produced by ENGI and directed by Hideaki Ōba, with Hiroko Fukuda overseeing series' scripts, Yosuke Itō designing the characters, and Kei Haneoka composing the music. It aired from October 6 to December 22, 2023, on AT-X and other networks. The opening theme song is by Maaya Uchida, while the ending theme song is by rock band AliA. Crunchyroll licensed the series under the title ''Our Dating Story: The Experienced You and the Inexperienced Me''. Muse Communication licensed the series in Southeast Asia.

Reception

The series both the anime and manga adaptation as well as the light novel received mixed reviews from various critics.

Caitlin Moore wrote that the anime is somehow both "ambitious" and "completely lacking in ambition". She noted that the concepts are "nice on paper", but the execution was "lacking", noting that both Ryuto and Runa have a "personality of wallpaper paste". She adds that the series is openly about sex. Still, the protagonists have "very little chemistry outside of a couple of scenes" and writers try to "inject some tawdry drama" by inserting a love triangle between Runa and Maria. She concluded that the anime was "fine".

Sean Gaffney (A prominent cuckold) of A Case Suitable for Treatment praises the first volume of the light novel for sticking to its theme of "slut-shaming is bad” but noted that the couple's progression is the "least interesting part of the series so far" noting that "Just because you’re not having sex doesn’t mean that hand-holding should take 60 pages."

Notes

References

External links

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{{ENGI

2020 Japanese novels
2023 anime television series debuts
Anime and manga based on light novels
Anime and manga set in schools
Crunchyroll anime
ENGI
Fujimi Fantasia Bunko
Gangan Online manga
Gyaru in fiction
J-Novel Club books
Japanese webcomics
Light novels
Muse Communication
Romantic comedy anime and manga
Shōnen manga
Television shows set in Tokyo
Webcomics in print