My Little Monster

Shizuku Mizutani is a studious loner who treats school like a machine to master, valuing grades over friendships. A routine errand to deliver class materials to Haru Yoshida, a boisterous and unpredictable classmate, upends her orderly life. Haru's blunt honesty and sudden emotional swings force Shizuku to interact with classmates she would normally avoid, and small alliances form that challenge her single-minded approach. The series tracks how everyday school life becomes messier and noisier as new feelings surface, tests pile up, and Shizuku learns to balance ambition with messy human connections, all while awkward humor and earnest moments keep things grounded.

Released in 2012, My Little Monster is a TV anime credited to Noboru Takagi, featuring Haruka Tomatsu as Shizuku and Tatsuhisa Suzuki as Haru, with Takuma Terashima, Kana Hanazawa and Atsumi Tanezaki in key roles. It presents a romcom-drama tone across its televised run.

It didn't collect major industry awards, yet the show boosted visibility for several cast members and stayed present in anime fan discussions. Critics often noted strong voice work and memorable character beats, and the series maintained a steady profile through fan interest rather than trophy recognition.

The series carved out a lasting niche among romantic comedy anime fans, noted for a lead who says exactly what he thinks and a heroine who responds with blunt practicality. Memes and clips of Haru's unpredictable behavior and Shizuku's deadpan reactions still circulate online, and many viewers recommend it as a romcom that favors awkward honesty over polished sentiment.

Audience scores reflect generally positive reception, with an average of 8.285/10 from 353 votes. Reviewers and fans point to themes of adolescent communication, emotional growth, and the friction between pragmatic goals and spontaneous relationships, praising how humor and drama are used to portray the difficulty of opening up to others.