The look and feel is simply less “inked” as I’d like,

Funny, because I did notice that, and it sort of nagged at me, but I mostly overlooked it, because overall I was just so impressed by how true to the manga the art was (even with some sort of thin and sketchy lines). Most of the time, they don’t even bother with that - it’s more like the manga style as filtered through the studio’s style. But there were moments in this where it actually looked as if they had just taken the manga art and colored it and made it move, which I thought was a really neat touch.

And yeah - we’re in for a treat (and even more the people who haven’t read the manga). There’s so much character development in this, and so much warmth and humor.

Are you watching Class de 2-banme ni Kawaii Onnanoko to Tomodachi ni Natta too?

I watched the first episode and really did not like it.

I haven’t read the manga, but the impression I got from the synopsis for the adaptation was that it was a similar ‘pretty girl is a secret otaku’ setup. But the way it played out in the first episode was the girl approached him, basically forced her way into his home to supposedly share in their otaku interests, which lasted for an unconvincing matter of minutes, and then she sort of spontaneously transformed into a manic pixie dream girl and started trying to drag him out into the outside world with her.

I couldn’t even figure out what the point was supposed to be. If felt like a bait and switch - as if the whole secret otaku thing was just a gimmick that they ditched almost immediately and now it’s just a standard “awkward guy somehow gets a harem” story.

I assume that’s not how it played out in the manga.

The Klutzy Class Monitor and the Girl with the Short Skirt looks to have the best art out of the current rom-com adaptations, but I’m less familiar with the manga, so I can’t vouch for the story there.

That one I have read, and the adaptation (so far) is following the manga almost 1 to 1. There’s not a lot of story, or maybe more precisely, there’s not a lot of direct engagement with a story. It’s mostly episodic, and it’s just that the two of them keep interacting, and as they keep interacting, their attitudes and behavior shift. It’s a romance that sort of sneaks up on both of them - we can see it, and in-universe, pretty much everyone other than them can see it. They stubbornly refuse.

And yeah - the art in the adaptation was terrific - I really liked the exaggerated touches, like him striking a pose on the steps and pointing at her with such force that it generates a wind that blows over passersby.