# Maison Ikkoku (1986)

> A failed university applicant falls hopelessly for the young widow managing his shabby boarding house.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/39261

## Facts

- Seasons: 4
- Episodes: 96
- Episode runtime: 26 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: animation, comedy, romance
- Network: Fuji TV
- Cast: Issei Futamata, Sumi Shimamoto, Kazuyo Aoki, Minoru Yada, Chika Sakamoto, Ryo Horikawa, Akira Kamiya, Shigeru Chiba
- TMDB rating: 8.1/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090479/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: none
- Tone: wistful, gently comic, sincere, nostalgic, warm

## Synopsis

Maison Ikkoku (1986-1988) is a Japanese animated romantic comedy series created by Akemi Takada's manga tradition and produced by Studio Deen for Fuji Television Network. Yusaku Godai (voiced by Issei Futamata) is a ronin who failed his university entrance exams and lives in a rundown boarding house, where he is distracted by noisy parties from the other tenants. When the recently widowed Kyoko Otonashi (voiced by Sumi Shimamoto) becomes the new live-in manager, Godai falls for her but cannot summon the nerve to say so. The engine of the series is this stalled courtship, played out through everyday episodes of chores, rowdy neighbors and rival suitors among residents like Akemi Roppongi (voiced by Yuko Mita) and the mysterious Yotsuya (voiced by Shigeru Chiba). Across four seasons and 96 episodes, the story unfolds as one continuing thread in which small setbacks accumulate into real emotional stakes. The tone is wistful and gently comic, with an undercurrent of grief and hope. Set in late 1980s Japan, it sits in the tradition of shonen romantic comedy and will appeal to viewers who enjoy the slow, sincere romance of Urusei Yatsura and Ranma and the quiet longing of Your Lie in April.

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