History YMMV / LoveHina

* CharacterPerceptionEvolution: The girls were beloved by critics and fans alike when the series first came out for their comedic antics and [[MsFanservice attractive designs]], in part because the HaremGenre was in its infancy. Female lead Naru Narusegawa in particular is one of the popularizers of the {{Tsundere}} archetype. But as perceptions of abuse changed and female-on-male abuse started being taken more seriously, the girls [[DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale beating up Keitaro]] stopped being funny, especially since so many {{Tsundere}}s who did exactly that appeared in many such series, making it into a stale cliche at best. Naru and Motoko assaulting Keitaro for being an AccidentalPervert now gets on people's nerves and is generally seen as DomesticAbuse, to the point of it becoming a FandomSpecificPlot for a fic to be a DeconstructionFic that takes the girls to task for their awful treatment of Keitaro. The only exceptions are Shinobu and Mutsumi, who never mistreat Keitaro and are thus [[FanPreferredCouple far more liked over his canonical choice Naru]]. And since the series stars these girls, the series as a whole is no longer as well-regarded as it used to be.

* OnceOriginalNowCommon: While ''Love Hina'' shares a considerable number of clichés with modern works (like the tsundere lead girl and the accidental pervert guy), it still has some refreshing ideas. While most harems are set in a school environment with teenagers, ''Love Hina'' is set in a post-school setting from Keitaro's perspective, in an inn with young adults and teenagers. Also, ''Love Hina'' never was a fully-fledged harem series, considering [[spoiler:Keitaro chose Narusegawa since the beginning and most of the girls are either rooting for them to become a couple or, at best, waiting for a chance if Keitaro changes his mind]], while most harems after it have the main character unsure about which girl to choose. Unfortunately, the harem-related tropes the series introduced have been used by so many other manga and anime in the years since that most people would dismiss it as a typical harem comedy, and the liberal use of DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale in particular, while uncontroversial back then, would go on to get it it a lot of backlash once female-on-male abuse started being taken seriously.

* FanPreferredCouple: Keitaro's canon love interest Naru is generally the ''least'' favored girl by the fandom, with many outright hating her for [[DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale how she treats Keitaro]]. As such, the other girls tend to be preferred, with a FandomSpecificPlot being to save said girl rescue Keitaro from Naru. Shinobu and Mutsumi in particular are the most well-liked choices as they're the only girls who never mistreat Keitaro (even the other girls are depicted as doing a HeelFaceTurn first).

* CriticalDissonance: The series was adored by critics, [[BrokenBase but some people]], [[SeinfeldIsUnfunny especially in recent years]], dislike it for [[ClicheStorm using]] or [[TropeCodifier inventing]] some of the most hated cliches in harem manga and anime, most of the characters being [[JerkAss Jerk Asses]], or for constantly playing what looks like domestic abuse for laughs. This was Lampshaded by WebVideo/BennettTheSage in one of his reviews for the series, where he would have quotes from positive reviews on the screen during a really absurd scene.

* DesignatedMonkey: Keitaro. All his mistreatment and injuries are supposedly to be PlayedForLaughs, [[SeinfeldIsUnfunny but today]], these are so exaggerated and unjustified they hardly can be considered funny anymore.

* FanonDiscontinuity: Many fans want to forget the existence of the anime adaptation. The fact that [[SeinfeldIsUnfunny it didn't]] [[ValuesDissonance age well]] and didn't cover the entire story (some chapters were skipped and the OVA ends at Kanako's arc) doesn't help its case.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: While ''Love Hina'' shares a considerable number of clichés with modern works (like the tsundere lead girl and the accidental pervert guy), it still has some refreshing ideas. While most harems are set in a school environment with teenagers, ''Love Hina'' is set in a post-school setting from Keitaro's perspective, in an inn with young adults and teenagers. Also, ''Love Hina'' never was a fully-fledged harem series, considering [[spoiler:Keitaro chose Narusegawa since the beginning and most of the girls are either rooting for them to become a couple or, at best, waiting for a chance if Keitaro changes his mind]], while most harems after it have the main character unsure about which girl to choose. Unfortunately, the harem-related tropes the series introduced have been used by so many other manga and anime in the years since that most people would dismiss it as a typical harem comedy, and the liberal use of DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale in particular, while uncontroversial back then, would go on to get it it a lot of backlash once female-on-male abuse started being taken seriously.

* FandomSpecificPlot: {{Deconstruction Fic}}s that target the use of DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale as one of the primary sources of comedy are rather common.

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: While the series doesn't usually exhibit this trope aside from some ValuesDissonance, the anime's ChristmasEpisode is built almost entirely around the fact that it aired and is set on Christmas Day of 2000, with an in-universe rumor that anyone who confesses their love on Christmas of that year will have their wish granted. Quite a few problems that the episode sets up would also likely have been easily solved if the characters had cellphones, which weren't in wider use yet during the early 2000s.

* TooBleakStoppedCaring: The way most of the females, especially Naru, treat Keitaro has put off a lot of people from the series. The fact that [[spoiler:Keitaro gets married to Naru, despite all the abuse she's inflicted on him,]] only makes it worse.

* GatewaySeries: For many anime/manga fans in the west, this was their first harem anime/manga along with ''Anime/TenchiMuyo'', even with all its faults.
* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: ''Love Hina'' was loved in the west during the 2000s (especially in Latin America) and still has a loyal fandom. As a result, the manga got reprints and special editions in some countries.

** The fact that the majority of the cast is under 18 yet not living with their parents or family will raise a bit of eyebrows in the west -- one can argue for Naru being emancipated, but not so much for the others -- ''especially'' Shinobu, who's the youngest of the girls at only 13 years old. However, in Japan, this is not that strange at all: children are given a lot of independence since very early age, and it's not rare for high school students to live away from their parents' houses in student inns like in ''Love Hina'', or even in a small apartment if their families can afford it.
** Also, the fact that physical abuse and accusations of sexual assault and molestation are PlayedForLaughs isn't very well received -- ''especially'' in this age and in the west, where DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale is more of a social issue that most people and the law will not tolerate anymore.

* CharacterPerceptionEvolution: The girls were beloved by critics and fans alike when the series first came out for their comedic antics and [[MsFanservice attractive designs]], in part because the HaremGenre was in its infancy. Female lead Naru Narusegawa in particular is one of the popularizers of the {{Tsundere}} archetype. But as perceptions of abuse changed and female-on-male abuse started being taken more seriously, the girls [[DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale beating up Keitaro]] stopped being funny, especially since so many {{Tsundere}}s who did exactly that appeared in many such series. Naru and Motoko assaulting Keitaro for being an AccidentalPervert now gets on people's nerves and is generally seen as DomesticAbuse, to the point of it becoming a FandomSpecificPlot for a fic to be a DeconstructionFic that takes the girls to task for their awful treatment of Keitaro. The only exceptions are Shinobu and Mutsumi, who never mistreat Keitaro and are thus [[FanPreferredCouple far more liked over his canonical choice Naru]]. And since the series stars these girls, the series as a whole is no longer as well-regarded as it used to be.

** The fact that the majority of the cast is under 18 yet not living with their parents or family will raise a bit of eyebrows in the west -- one can argue for Naru being emancipated, but not so much for the others --, ''especially'' [[ManChild Su]]. However, in Japan, this is not that strange at all: children are given a lot of independence since very early age, and it's not rare for high school students to live away from their parents' houses in student inns like in ''Love Hina'', or even in a small apartment if their families can afford it.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: While ''Love Hina'' shares a considerable number of clichés with modern works (like the tsundere lead girl and the accidental pervert guy), it still has some refreshing ideas. While most harems are set in a school environment with teenagers, ''Love Hina'' is set in a post-school setting from Keitaro's perspective, in an inn with young adults and teenagers. Also, ''Love Hina'' never was a fully-fledged harem series, considering [[spoiler:Keitaro chose Narusegawa since the beginning and most of the girls are either rooting for them to become a couple or, at best, waiting for a chance if Keitaro changes his mind]], while most harems after it have the main character unsure about which girl to choose. Unfortunately, the harem-related tropes the series introduced have been used by so many other manga and anime in the years since that most people would dismiss it as a typical harem comedy.

* FanonDiscontinuity: Many fans want to forget the existence of the anime adaptation. The fact that [[SeinfeldIsUnfunny it didn't]] [[ValuesDissonance age well]] and didn't cover the entire story (some chapter were skipped and the OVA ends at Kanako's arc) doesn't help it’s case.

* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: ''Love Hina'' was loved in the west during the 2000s (especially in Latin America) and still has a loyal fandom. As result, the manga got reprints and special editions in some countries.

* ItWasHisSled: It's common knowledge between anime/manga fans [[spoiler:Keitaro marries Naru in the end as show in the cover art of last volume]].

* AudienceAlienatingPremise: The series can be this for anyone who entered in fandom after 2003. To put it simple, due to changing perceptions on abuse, a bunch of girls constantly hitting and mistreating TheChewToy of a main male character over and over doesn't read as funny today as it was at the late nineties and the early years of the TurnOfTheMillennium. Heck, even back then there were people who didn't find it that funny to begin with, due to the moments when the abuse went beyond ComedicSociopathy and into uncomfortable territory.

** Mutsumi really stands out in this series for being a CuteClumsyGirl NiceGirl among a cast of girls who often act like [[JerkAss Jerkasses]]. With a touch of IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy on top of this giving her [[TheWoobie slight Woobie status]], not to mention [[BuxomIsBetter being nice to look at]], she is quite moe.