Honey Lemon Soda Episodes 1 and 2 Review

A couple of years after the release of the English version of the manga and ten years on from the original release in Japan, Honey Lemon Soda has finally been adapted into an anime, premiering on Crunchyroll on 8th January 2025.

The story sees Uka Ishimori starting her first year at Hachimitsu High School. She has had a terrible experience during her middle school years as she was merciless bullied. Her nickname was ‘stony’ because she had a hard time with social interactions, so she tended to freeze and not know what to say nor how to act. With no one around her to tell her otherwise, she started to believe what her classmates were saying about her. But her chance to change comes during the high school entrance exam when she meets a random boy with blonde hair who gives her the push she needs to take a step forward.

Kai Miura is also starting his first year of high school and happens to be Uka’s classmate. He’s the same boy who gave Uka some hope, and now she’s pushing herself to make the changes she has visualised for so long. Kai is the opposite of Uka. While she’s shy and socially awkward, he’s outgoing and seems to attract people to him, no matter what he does. And it seems he can’t stay out of Uka’s business. He’s always there lending her a helping hand, even when she doesn’t know how to ask for help. It seems like the start of a sweet love story.

Thanks to Crunchyroll, I was able to watch the first two episodes of the anime before their release. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but the manga has been on my reading list for years, so I thought why not start with the anime? I wasn’t captivated by the heroine straightaway: I was mad at her because she wouldn’t stand up for herself and let others treat her poorly. However, the more the episodes went on, the more I started seeing her in a new light. The mean comments from Uka’s ex-classmates influence how she thinks of herself, as she doesn’t have anyone else to tell her they aren’t true. It’s only when it’s time to choose a high school that she realises that she can’t continue this way; she needs to change. Her lucky encounter with Kai, who at the time is just a random boy, helps her take the first step forward. She’s not trying to completely change herself and become a new person, but she recognises her weaknesses, and she wants to improve.

It’s a hard battle that awaits Uka, yet I couldn’t help but cheer for her to succeed. What I appreciate about this series so far is that Uka is not changing for anyone else but herself. She’s slowly finding a support network in her new classmates and Kai is the driving force. He can’t help but take notice of her shyness and her efforts to make a difference so, thanks to his group of friends, she slowly starts to open up. As a victim of bullying, Uka has a lot of traumas, and her bullies don’t let her forget her past as some of them end up at Hachimitsu High School as well. I’m glad to see how the mangaka, Mayu Murata, and the anime’s creative team have threaded the bullying aspect through the first two episodes, showing that it’s an invisible wound that can affect someone, even years later.

As Honey Lemon Soda is a shojo series, I’m pretty sure that we’ll see some romance developing between the characters pretty soon. Although Kai doesn’t actively try to meddle with Uka’s life, he always ends up by her side. Even involuntarily, he’s turning into Uka’s knight in shining armour. While I’m not averse to romance (it’s usually a must for me in a series), I’d like to see Uka keep on growing and finding herself before she finds romance.

Honey Lemon Soda is written and illustrated by Mayu Murata. There are currently seven volumes released in the English language by Yen Press, and my colleague Demelza is doing the series justice with her reviews. The anime is produced by J.C. Staff (Maid Sama!) and directed by Hiroshi Nishikiori (Azumanga Daioh: The Animation). It will be available in the Japanese language with Uka and Kai voiced by Kana Ichinose (Vampire Dormitory) and Shogo Yano (Pretty Boy Detective Club) respectively, with subtitles in multiple languages, including English.

©Mayu Murata/SHUEISHA・Honey Lemon Soda Production Committee