It was fun… at first. "Psychological thriller" quickly turned oddball romantic comedy was a welcome change for most, and the series quickly found its place among modern rom-coms with a relatable protagonist and steady relationship growth. At some point, I figured they'd soon acknowledge their relationship and start dating, with the series establishing itself as one of the few well-paced romance manga out there.
That point was two years ago.
Now, the manga feels like Zeno's paradox in practice: every two weeks a new chapter comes out and their relationship makes half as much progress as last week's, getting so close to but never actually reaching any sort of cathartic release. We're constantly being reminded of how close the two are– and how little that means as every new batch of chapters finds a new excuse for the gridlock of 'will-they-won't they' that has become the norm for the series. Ichikawa's hesitation and lack of self-confidence goes from endearing to just plain annoying as he continues to find new reasons not to press forward with his relationship, and eventually my ability to empathize with him was thrown out the window..
The series seems to be part of a larger trend of romcom manga where the characters, aware (or at least semi-aware) of each other's feelings, behave like they're dating without ever actually crossing that line. This style, admittedly, seems to have worked out in BokuYaba's favor given its sheer popularity (both the manga itself, and the horny art of Yamada that keeps being posted to the author's Twitter). Personally, I don't enjoy this type of romcom– I like the satisfaction of more conventional romance milestones much more. Unfortunately, BokuYaba takes an even uglier middle ground, where the unchanging nature of the series is combined with the emotional urgency of wanting to take that next step. I quickly went from rooting for them, to getting frustrated at the lack of progression, to finding it all meaningless in the end.
I'm aware I'm in the minority opinion here and if you want to see for yourself how the series is, don't let me stop you– just be aware that the brisk pace set by the series' early chapters will soon become much, much slower.