I realized today that I really enjoy - I’m not sure exactly what genre to call them... tsundere? mixed signals? nuisance girls? flirteasers? series. Like, I’d call them “romcom”, but they’re more specific than that.
I think Teasing Master Takagi, Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out, and Don’t Bully Me Nagatoro are the best known.
I found one recently called “Please Go Home, Akutsu-san” which seems like a cross between Nagatoro and Uzaki-chan, but with a delinquent girl. Chapters are super short, but some of the setups are clever.
My favorite, other than Nagatoro, is definitely Yancha Gal no Anjou-San, another series about a gyaru messing witha nerd. It’s still got some really funny teasing and harassing, but also has some genuinely sweet and nice scenes.
And on the topic of gyaru - Gal Gohan is more on the romance side, with a girl falling for her Home Ec teacher. Also part of the already full cooking manga genre.
Kaname Bandai Wants to Play is funnier and lighter. It’s also a weird nostalgia piece, though it’s strange reading a series that has to explain to kids today what the toys of my childhood were all about.
Sorademo Ayamu no Yotorokisu is actually a nice gender-flip, done by the person who wrote Takagi. Because of that, the feel of both the flirting and the teasing is a little different, which I actually found impressive considering it was the same writer doing a very similar concept. I need to catch up on this one.
Also on the gender-flip is Yankee-kun to Hakujou Gaaru which, if you liked Koe no Katachi, but wanted something that didn’t feel like a knife through the gut, this one is good. It has some good romcom stuff, while also having some good growing up moments for a character who’s falling in love with someone with a disability and learning what that really means and what it means to be respectful without babying them.
The one I keep asking myself if it fits is Tonari no Seki-kun. On the one hand, I feel like it’s close to these, and predates them, so if anything it‘s maybe a proto-example. On the other hand, it’s very hard to the humor and teasing side and very low on the romance side.
Anyway, that’s my thoughts on a bunch of them, so if anyone else has some recommendations, lemme know. I always feel weird about just dropping lists.