Love*Com Manga Volumes: All 17 Books Explained

LoveCom Manga Volumes: A Complete 17-Volume Romantic Comedy

LoveCom — also known as Lovely Complex — is a completed shojo (girls’) manga spanning 17 volumes. If you’re looking for a guide to all the LoveCom manga volumes, the good news is simple: the series is finished, every volume is available in English, and you can read the whole thing right now.

Created by Aya Nakahara (中原アヤ), the series was originally published in the Japanese magazine Bessatsu Margaret by Shueisha. The premise is simple and perfect: Risa Koizumi is a tall girl and Atsushi Otani is a short boy, and their classmates can’t stop treating them like a comedy act. Risa towers over Otani. They bicker constantly. And then, of course, feelings start creeping in — because this is a romance manga and we are here for exactly that.

What makes LoveCom stick with readers isn’t just the romantic comedy setup. It’s how genuinely funny the manga is. The comedy hits hard and fast, with Risa’s over-the-top reactions and Otani’s stubbornness creating a dynamic that feels alive on every page. But underneath all that humor, there’s a sincere and surprisingly emotional love story that earns every major moment.

The English edition is published by VIZ Media under their Shojo Beat label — one of VIZ’s lines focused on manga for teen and young-adult readers. It’s rated Teen and available in both paperback and digital formats. All 17 volumes are out — no waiting, no gaps. The genres are comedy and romance, with the comedy especially front-loaded in the early volumes.

Story Arcs Across the 17 Volumes

One of the nicest things about LoveCom is how naturally the story evolves. The tone shifts gradually from pure physical comedy into something with real emotional weight, and it never feels forced. Here’s a thematic breakdown of how the series moves across its 17 volumes.

Note: these groupings are thematic reading guides, not official labels. A “story arc” here just means a stretch of volumes that share a common theme or focus.

Volumes 1–3: The Comedy Duo Era

This is where the series earns its reputation as a comedy first. Risa and Otani are known throughout school as the All Hanshin-Kyojin — a nickname borrowed from a famous Japanese comedy duo known for their height difference. The label fits: Risa is tall, Otani is short, and their classmates treat them like a permanent double act. They argue, they riff off each other, and everyone around them eats it up.

But underneath all that comedy, Risa starts noticing things about Otani that don’t fit neatly into the “comedy partner” box. These early volumes establish the core dynamic that the entire series builds on: two people who are already completely in sync but don’t realize what that means yet. The humor in these volumes is relentless and will set the pace for how quickly you tear through the rest.

Volumes 4–7: Confession and Fallout

Here’s where LoveCom shifts gears. Risa works up the courage to actually confess her feelings — and the series doesn’t let her off easy. The emotional core moves from pure comedy to genuine romantic tension, with Otani’s obliviousness driving much of the conflict. The boy is staggeringly slow to pick up on what’s right in front of him.

These volumes are where a lot of readers get hooked. The misunderstandings feel organic rather than contrived, and watching Risa put herself out there while Otani struggles to process his own feelings is both frustrating and deeply satisfying. The comedy doesn’t disappear — it’s still very much a funny manga — but now there are real stakes behind the jokes.

Volumes 8–12: The Relationship Evolves

With the central romantic question shifting, these middle volumes explore what happens when the comedy duo actually has to navigate being a couple. New characters with romantic interest in Risa or Otani show up. School events create pressure. Personal insecurities — especially around the height difference and what other people think — get tested in ways that feel honest.

The balance between comedy and drama deepens here. LoveCom never becomes a heavy series, but it’s willing to sit with uncomfortable moments and let characters feel genuinely hurt before bouncing back. The relationship between Risa and Otani matures in ways that keep you invested rather than settling into a comfortable status quo.

Volumes 13–16: Future Decisions

As graduation approaches, LoveCom does something a lot of school-set romance manga avoid: it takes the future seriously. Risa and Otani face career paths and life decisions that could pull them apart, and the stakes shift from school-drama to real-world concerns about what their relationship looks like outside the safety of high school.

These volumes build momentum steadily toward the finale. The humor is still present, but there’s an undercurrent of urgency that makes these chapters feel different from everything that came before. If the early volumes hooked you with comedy, these keep you reading because you care about where these two end up.

Volume 17: Lovely Complex Plus

Volume 17 is a bonus-story collection titled Lovely Complex Plus. It doesn’t continue the main plot — instead, it revisits the characters after the main story concludes with a set of extra stories. Think of it as a victory lap: you already know how things turned out, and now you get to spend a little more time in that world.

It’s a satisfying way to close out the series, especially if you’ve marathoned the first 16 volumes and aren’t quite ready to say goodbye.

A Marathon Reading Plan for LoveCom

Seventeen volumes of a fast-paced comedy manga is extremely manageable for a marathon read. Each volume collects several chapters and can typically be read in under an hour, so LoveCom moves quickly — the pacing is tight, and the comedy keeps the pages turning. You could realistically read the entire series in a weekend if you’re committed.

That said, here’s a plan with natural stopping points if you prefer to pace yourself:

Break Point 1: After Volume 7

The first major emotional arc resolves around here, making it a natural pause. You’ll have experienced the full comedy-duo setup, Risa’s confession, and the messy fallout. It’s a satisfying chunk of story that works as a standalone reading session.

Break Point 2: After Volume 12

The mid-series relationship storylines wrap up before the final stretch. Stopping here gives you a breather before the graduation-focused volumes, which have a different energy and read best when you can give them your full attention.

Volumes 13–16: One Sitting Recommended

These four volumes build momentum toward the finale in a way that makes stopping between them feel wrong. If you can, block out time for all four. The pacing rewards continuous reading.

Volume 17: Save It

Lovely Complex Plus works as a standalone epilogue read. You don’t need to read it immediately after Volume 16 — it pairs well with a return visit after some time away from the series.

LoveCom Manga vs. Anime: What the Adaptation Covers

A 24-episode TV anime adaptation exists, produced by Toei Animation. If you’ve already watched it and are wondering whether you need to read the manga — yes, absolutely.

The anime does not cover the full manga. The story continues in the manga beyond where the anime ends, which means there’s significant content in the later volumes that anime-only viewers have never experienced. The graduation storylines, the future-focused volumes, and the Lovely Complex Plus bonus stories are all manga-exclusive territory. If you watched the anime and want to continue in the manga, starting from Volume 1 is the recommended approach — the manga’s comedy and Risa’s inner thoughts on the page make the early material worth revisiting even if you know the broad strokes.

Even for the portions the anime does cover, the manga offers a different experience. Nakahara’s art style is expressive and energetic, and the narration you get from Risa’s perspective on the page — her running inner thoughts and reactions — adds layers to scenes that play differently in animated form. The comedy, in particular, has a rhythm in the manga’s page layouts that’s distinct from how it lands in the anime.

If you loved the anime and want the complete story, the manga is where you’ll find it. If you haven’t seen the anime at all, starting with Volume 1 of the manga gives you everything in one format — no switching required.

Which Edition of LoveCom Should You Buy?

English Edition (VIZ Media / Shojo Beat)

The VIZ Media Shojo Beat edition is the only official English release. It covers all 17 LoveCom manga volumes in both paperback and digital formats. This is the standard edition — there are no omnibus editions (multiple volumes collected into one thicker book), no oversized special editions, and no box set. What you see is what you get: 17 individual volumes.

For digital readers, LoveCom is also available through the VIZ Manga chapter subscription — a monthly service from VIZ that gives you access to read from their manga library on a phone, tablet, or browser. It’s a convenient option if you prefer reading on a screen and want access to VIZ’s broader catalog alongside LoveCom.

The paperback volumes were released between the mid-2000s and early 2010, with the final volume (Volume 17) published on March 2, 2010. Because the physical books have been out of print for a while — meaning the publisher is no longer actively printing new copies — availability and pricing on paperback copies can vary. Some volumes are easy to find through online retailers or used-book sellers, while others might take some patience. Digital is the most reliable way to get every volume right now and is always available.

Japanese Editions

For readers comfortable with Japanese, three editions exist:

Edition	Format	Volumes
Margaret Comics	Paperback	1–17
Digital Monochrome	Digital	1–17
Digital Full Color	Digital	1–17

The full-color digital edition is a nice option — seeing Nakahara’s art in color adds something genuinely fun to the comedy scenes.

What About LoveCom TWO?

LoveCom TWO is a separate related work that is not part of the main 17-volume series. It uses characters connected to LoveCom but exists outside the main volume numbering. Don’t worry about it when collecting the core series — your collection is complete at Volume 17.

The Bottom Line on Collecting

The series is complete at 17 volumes in both English and Japanese — no missing translations, no untranslated volumes, no gaps. For English readers, the VIZ paperbacks are the collector’s choice if you can find them at reasonable prices through online retailers or used-book sellers, and digital is the no-hassle alternative that’s always available.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many LoveCom manga volumes are there?

17 volumes in both the Japanese original and the English edition published by VIZ Media.

Is LoveCom finished?

Yes. The manga is fully completed. All 17 volumes have been published in both Japanese and English — you can read the entire story from start to finish right now with no waiting.

Who publishes LoveCom in English?

VIZ Media publishes the English edition under their Shojo Beat label, a line focused on manga for teen and young-adult readers. It’s available in paperback and digital formats, rated Teen.

Is Volume 17 different from the rest of the series?

Yes — Volume 17 is a bonus-story collection titled Lovely Complex Plus. Rather than continuing the main plot, it contains extra stories that revisit the characters after the main story wraps up. It’s a treat for fans, but the core narrative concludes in Volume 16.

What about LoveCom TWO?

LoveCom TWO is a separate related work with characters connected to LoveCom, but it is excluded from the main 1–17 volume series. When people refer to “the 17 volumes of LoveCom,” they mean the main series only. LoveCom TWO is its own thing.

Should I read the manga if I’ve already watched the anime?

Absolutely. The 24-episode anime doesn’t cover the full manga, so there’s substantial story content in the later volumes — including the graduation storylines and Lovely Complex Plus — that the anime never reached. Starting from Volume 1 is recommended even if you’ve seen the anime, since Risa’s inner narration and the manga’s comedy pacing make the early material worth experiencing on the page.