First-Year College student Shiratori Ryuushi moves into the boarding house, Narutakisou. Under the tender care of Aoba Kozue, Narutakisou provides a home to people whose personal lives are all painful in one way or another; yet together, somehow, they make up a true family. Not only does Shiratori find a home at Narutakisou, but he also finds himself falling in love with a girl who is far more than she seems. Compare with Maison Ikkoku.With An Aesop or a Crowning Moment of Heartwarming (or more likely, both) in every chapter, Mahoraba is one of those "feel good" sort of mangas. The sort you've likely never read before.Not to be confused with Maburaho, which sits comfortably on the exact opposite end of the romantic comedy spectrum.Now with a character sheet under construction.
This series provides examples of:
All That Glitters: The episode when the residents embark on a treasure hunt.
Alpha Bitch: Michiyo acts like an Alpha BitchOjou towards Asami, but it's really because she's too insecure that Asami won't like her.
Amusing Injuries: Inflicted upon Michiyo and Ero-Freak Boy on a semi-regular basis.
Battle Aura: Tamami and the Occult Club President can see each others' battle auras, but almost nobody else can.
Bittersweet Ending: Manga Only: Wherein Ryuushi has fallen in love with ALL of Kozue-chan's personalities but his love for her gradually cures her insanity and causes all her personalities, each lovely human-beings unto themselves, to be absorbed into her primary psyche, never to emerge again. Afterwards we are introduced to Kozue-chan and Ryuushi's four daughters, who each bore an uncanny resemblance to the four personalities whom their mother once transformed into.
Cloud Cuckoo Lander: Sayoko at one point practices her significant artistic talents by carving most of the trees in the courtyard into sculptures of her daughter Asami. Haibara spends his days fishing in a tiny, obviously fishless pond in the courtyard and only talks through his hand-puppet, Johnny. And those are just a couple of the less bizarre examples.
Comedic Sociopathy: In the beginning, mostly at Sayoko's expense, and quite a lot from Saki's side once she hooks up with Ryuushi, because she's too embarrassed. She tries her best to avoid it, but fails a lot.
Driven to Suicide: Played for laughs of all things with poor Sayo-chan in the very beginning of the manga. Due to "network regulations", this was changed to merely severe depression in the anime.
Four Temperament Ensemble: Kozue is sanguine (so is Nanako, because she's a kid version of Kozue), Saki is choleric, Chiyuri is phlegmatic, Natsume is melancholic. It's probably worth mentioning that this "ensemble" consists of Kozue's alternate personalities
Gender Vocabulary Slip: Shiratori Ryuushi, Dogged Nice Guy and The Chew Toy of Mahoraba, was dressed up (against his will and while asleep) to look like a very cute and beautiful blonde. When confronted with Chiyuri, one of his landlady's five personalities who does not know him, he accidentally uses "boku" (polite masculine pronoun) to refer to himself. Subverted in that Chiyuri finds this contrast quite Moe, and that although unusual for a girl, "boku" is used as a pronoun by the nicer tomboys out there.
Hot Shounen Mom: Sayoko and her mother, Minazuki Yu. By the end of the manga Momono Megumi AND Kozue-chan themselves become cute mommies to equally adorable little girls.
Kissing Cousins: Shiratori and Kozue-chan are actually second-cousins; a fact that is mentioned once in the beginning with a lampshade on how second cousins can get married*
technically, in Japan, even first cousins can get married and this does not evoke the same levels of Squick that Americans would have, but all the same it's good to keep your relations straight
. As such, this fact is fairly quickly forgotten about for the rest of the series.
Ninja Maid: Tachibana, who serves the Minazuki family, has a habit of materializing in rooms like one. She even goes through a car chase sequence to rescue Mahiru from the Italian mafia.
Shiratori's three art school friends. The plot for one of the drama CDs revolves around their trying to get names. The manga does give them names in the end: Ero Freak's name is Yamabuki Tsubasa, the yaoi fangirl is Aizawa Risona, and the 'normal' girl with the nail bat is Amane Mizuho.
The Occult Club President also was never given a name, until the end when it was revealed to be Erika Vermilion.
Official Couple: Loaded with them, including two nameless background characters.
Shout Out: In chapter 58, the books that won the novel contest share the same titles of games made by Treasure such as Radiant Silvergun or Ikaruga.
Space Whale Aesop: Before each episode, they warn about sitting too close to the TV. The consequences involve things like a monster from the TV eating you.
Suicide As Comedy: Poor Sayo-chan in the manga regularly tries to hang herself, but either the branch or the rope breaks whenever she tries. This is removed altogether in the anime.
Token Yuri Girls: Chanohata Tamami admits to Shiratori Ryuushi that she is in love with Aoba Kozue (who is completely oblivious), explaining her mean-spirited attitude.
Generally averted. Shiratori lives with five cute girls but four of them have no romantic interest in him.
Subverted when Momono appears to take Shiratori on a date, it turns out she was just "testing" herself.
Played straight if you consider Kozue's five personalities as a harem unto herself... themselves... whatever.
Victorious Childhood Friend - Shiratori and Kozue met as children about ten years before the start of the story. Shiratori has forgotten about it, but Kozue still remembers their meeting quite well.
We Want Out Jerk Back: Downplayed, but when the Occult Research Club President is cleansed by visiting a shrine, Tama starts to miss her annoying personality.
First-Year College student Shiratori Ryuushi moves into the boarding house, Narutakisou. Under the tender care of Aoba Kozue, Narutakisou provides a home to people whose personal lives are all painful in one way or another; yet together, somehow, they make up a true family. Not only does Shiratori find a home at Narutakisou, but he also finds himself falling in love with a girl who is far more than she seems. Compare with Maison Ikkoku.With An Aesop or a Crowning Moment of Heartwarming (or more likely, both) in every chapter, Mahoraba is one of those "feel good" sort of mangas. The sort you've likely never read before.Not to be confused with Maburaho, which sits comfortably on the exact opposite end of the romantic comedy spectrum.Now with a character sheet under construction.
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