Title: Akira Failing in Love Vol. 2
Author: Shinta Harekawa
Publisher: Viz Media
Language: English
Format: Physical
Pages: 211
Genre: Romance, Comedy
Publication Date: May 12, 2026
The Story
Bearded vultures are the only known vertebrates whose diet is almost 100% bone. They pick up large bones that have been picked clean by other scavengers. One time, I saw a small child screaming in the countryside where…
The episodic adventures of Akira failing to capture Hajime’s heart continue, but it’s not just her who is feeling that way as Hajime has realized his feelings for her as well and turns to Rendaiji for help. He gives a long-winded speech, tapping into the sages of romance, and bestowing the best advice a man could give… all based on dating sim tactics! Despite knowing that he needs to get his crushability up, a sudden turn of events gets them stuck inside a locker, which in turn gets a muffin jammed into Hajime’s mouth. Well, we’re off to a great start.
The volume then takes us on some episodic adventures, such as trying to teach Akira how to ride a bike and inviting her to the summer festival. Along the way, though, we are introduced to some brand-new characters, who I will touch upon later, but even though we get three of them, they all share the same goal… to help Akira make her feelings come true and get her together with Hajime!
Despite their efforts, they may not be needed because, as we all know, when a summer (or any) festival occurs, certain things may just happen on their own!
Characters
We already established in the first volume that Akira and Hajime were aware of their feelings for one another, so not much has truly changed here. All we got were more cute and hilarious moments of Akira doing the same thing that the title of this series says. Hajime, on the other hand, is beginning to put more effort into trying to get closer to Akira, and this kind of messes up a bunch of her scripts. This is a slightly different take on the same running gag from the first volume, but it’s just fresh enough to lend some needed character development for Hajime. Plus, with him starting to take the initiative, it means that he’s not shy about his feelings… he’s just lost at how to get them across.
That brings us to Rendaiji. He has a bit of a shift in character in this volume. In the first volume, he came off as this arrogant kid, who I thought would end up bullying Hajime, but he turned out to be a friend who was very straightforward. Here, though, he mainly sticks to reciting dating sim strategies and being a male cheerleader for Hajine. His sharpness has been dulled, but the fact that he remains straight-faced and direct shows that the edgier side of him is still in there somewhere. Hopefully, he doesn’t slip too far into mediocrity because I loved the initial impression of him more than the one I’m getting now that his character is settling in.
Next, we have two new characters… Mei (MeiMei) Onimai and Tsumugi Kintetsu. They are first years who have heard of Akira because she is scheduled to give the keynote speech at school. They trail her because they heard she was from Tokyo, so they somehow think that she has magical city powers. When her paper flies away in the wind, they become worried and help her retrieve it, but when they discover it’s just her script for falling in love, they become enamored and pledge their help. I liked how they started as this weary pair who weren’t sure of Akira, but as they followed her, their reverence for her grew until they became her little foot soldiers in love. I have a feeling we’ll be seeing a lot more of these two.
Lastly, we have Urara Konoura, who is, um, a bit overnourished for a 15-year-old girl… especially when she can’t clear a classroom entrance without ducking. At a whopping 195 cm tall, she’s quite the specimen… one with so much running power that she can free students trapped in sports equipment sheds simply by jogging past; her thunderous steps shaking the Earth like a colossal quake rattling the land itself. She also speaks with a heavy country accent and cannot read the room. She has a history with Hajime since they went to middle school together, and when she learns that Akira loves him, she takes off like a freight train on a greased track to go tell Hajime the news. I doubt she even felt Akira holding onto her waist, flapping in the breeze behind her like a flag on a windy day as she charged forward like the gallant shire gelding that she is. In the end, she does come to her senses and steps aside, but we have an Amazon of a cheerleader in Akira’s corner… one that might catch the attention of Kif and Zap Brannigan.
Final Thoughts
This is quickly becoming my go-to series if I need a good laugh. Akira’s attempts at capturing Hajime’s heart are pure cringe, but at the same time, they are also heartwarming, sweet, and hilarious. Hajime is starting to become a heck of a main character. At first, I didn’t think he would take much initiative, but watching him put forth real effort here was refreshing to see. Now, it has kind of turned into a race to see who is going to be the first one to confess. With this only being the second volume, it’s quite hard to put money on someone, but I have a sneaky suspicion that Hajime is going to attempt it, something will interrupt him, and then Akira will get the confession in. I say that because he tried that when he asked for her contact information, and that very same scenario played out. I could be overthinking it, but it would be a nice callback to that moment if the time comes for the big confession.
As for the final pages of this volume, I wouldn’t read too much into them. I know it’s a big cliffhanger that might make us squeak with joy, but I’m sure our third volume is going to open up with them passing the event off as some big mistake. Embarrassment will be in abundance, and then we’ll move back to episodic attempts with Akira failing to capture Hajime’s heart; however, I can see her being way more cautious this time around, as what happened is going to live rent-free in her head. Either way, I’m more than certain we’ll be back to our regularly scheduled hijinks.
While I do like the addition of Mei and Tsumugi, I feel as if Urara has already made the forgettable. Her character stood out (in more ways than one) so much that I had completely forgotten about them, and there were only a couple of chapters separating their debuts. That is how much Urara stole the spotlight, and I can’t lie. I would much rather see more of her brute forcing her way through Akira’s failed love attempts than seeing her two new cheerleaders. Sorry, Mei and Tsumugi, but you’ve been galloped over thoroughly!
In any event, to say that I’m looking forward to volume three is an understatement. If you want an amazing romantic comedy… pick up the first two volumes. You won’t be disappointed.
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This item was provided for review by VIZ Media.
