Boku no Hatsukoi wo Kimi ni Sasagu (I’ll Give You My First Love) is a refreshing Shoujo, Romance, Drama, Slice of Life about the promised love that may not be fulfilled. A bittersweet tale that will likely end in heartache. If only it wasn't so melodramatic about everything...

Well here's an interesting manga that follows the story of two childhood friends; Takuma & Mayu who’ve known each other since they were 8 yrs old. They are close. So close in fact that they want to remain together forever, but Takuma may not be able to keep that promise, due to his heart condition. Knowing that, it is easy for anyone to become wary of this manga, seeing how it has all the usual trappings to become a tragic romance. Nonetheless the story is just too great to pass up on. The beginning of the story certainly progresses rapidly, skipping years at a time, but the pacing slows down nicely once they reach middle school. It is from that point on that the shoujo romance really kicks in and what's interesting is how it mostly tells the story from the guy's perspective, instead of the girl's and how his thoughts and conflicting feelings are all portrayed in a way that gives off the same feel as a diary/memoir, preparing the reader for what’s to come. However I did have some issues with how melodramatic certain moments were and how unnecessary all the spoilerific, foreshadowing was. It's these little annoyances and some others, in the latter half, that prevent the story from being as intriguing it should have been.

With the story mostly focusing on Takuma & Mayu, they really had to be great characters, to leave an impression on the reader and they certainly left an impression but I can't exactly say great. I mean sure, I started of initially being captivated by the pair and how realistically portrayed they were. Seeing their personal struggles in life really gripped me. However as the story progresses they suffer from some inconsistencies, in both plot and personality. There’s also quite a lot of supporting characters and they all managed to contribute to the overall story, in some way. But too often that contribution results in some truly interesting side characters being used, merely as devices to drive the plot forward.

Now we come to the aspect of a manga, that I have become more and more critical of over the years... the artwork. Compared to most shoujo manga out there, the artwork is quite remarkable, with the characters having nicely defined looks and appealing styles. Unfortunately I've seen it all before, since it has all the typical shoujo characteristics. This mangaka really lacks that truly defines her work but she's certainly put more effort than most.

Overall BokuKimi undoubtedly gives off the impression of a tragic romance; however the very touching story makes the reader think more about the present moment and not about what may happen in the end. But there's no telling what will happen, because there's always this sense of hope, as the reader strives on to see how it all comes together. The romance is endearing, which eventually culminates into something truly passionate and engaging. The bits of comedy tend to pivot between jarring and entertaining. So there you have it. BokuKimi in a nutshell. Personally I enjoyed finally reaching the end of this touching story, however I wish I could have fully enjoyed my time getting there. If only it wasn't so melodramatic.