You and I Are Polar Opposites – Episode 1

What’s it about? Suzuki’s a high schooler in love, but the object of her affections is her absolute opposite. Yusuke is quiet where she’s loud, stoic where she’s bubbly, standoffish where she wants to belong, and confident…where Suzuki’s not. But that won’t stop her as she tries to overcome her anxiety and just ask him out!

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It feels so joyful to be ending the Winter 2026 premiere season with a high school romantic comedy. I’ve really come back around to loving them, and being able to review them has been a quiet joy for me since more started getting adapted. So naturally, when I got to pick You and I Are Polar Opposites, I whispered, “Hell yeah!”—because I’m conscious of my neighbors—and decided it would be the perfect cherry on top of my reviews this season.

Now, I’m a lover, sometimes a fighter, always affectionate, and never one to close off my heart, but…will this show prove that love truly is alive and well to me? Will it show me the answer to what K-pop group TWICE asked, years ago? (What is love?)

Well I’ve watched and I’ve got words to say, so let’s get into it!

Episode 1 is upbeat, starting with high school students making their way to school. Enter Suzuki, a young woman who is as cheerful as her pink hair and cute fangs—only she’s very late, because she’s trying to figure out juuuuust how to approach her crush,. You see, while they’re both coeds, and while Suzuki is basically friends with everyone, he’s the one person she can’t seem to connect with.

However, Suzuki’s determined to finally engage with Yusuke on his own terms. Only her heart won’t stop beating so fast and her palms get sweaty: will she ever be able to talk to him like she wants?

This is some good goddamn food y’all; and it’s primarily because of Suzuki, who’s giving Galko-chan without, you know…a pedophilic author. (Sigh…) 

Suzuki is immediately refreshing, a total girl’s girl who likes being feminine and loves to be friendly; but inside, she’s also still a teenager. She’s awkward, she’s klutzy, and she gets excited about sitting near her crush. All of that combines into a girl who’s the opposite of Yusuke, but who doesn’t want to change Yusuke, and I think that’s when this show really clicked for me. It’s a romantic comedy that wants to meet its love interests where they are instead of forcing them to change. 

But don’t let me forget Yusuke: he’s just as interesting, offering a different view of high school masculinity. He’s quiet, he’s helpful, and he’s bookish, but that’s not seen as being unmasculine: instead, his classmates appreciate him all the same, even if they’re not as verbose with him as they are with Suzuki.

This makes the “polar opposites” really engaging because it sets the foundation for Suzuki and Yusuke to continue growing into themselves as students who are a part of a community that embraces them as they grow closer together. It’s the perfect buffet of ideas for someone like me who is getting into the current generation of shonen and seinen romance manga adaptation. (By the by, Polar Opposites is a breezy eight volumes with the final localized volume coming out in February 2026. So…will be buying.)

I loved You and I Are Polar Opposites from the start, and that’s in part to the fantastic Day 1 dub. It’s an excellent demonstration of what happens when you get the right voices in the booth and make modern magic, demonstrating what I’ll always say: dubs are freakin’ fantastic when they’re not AI-generated and are given the space and budget to excel. I also have to say that I’m fully into Suzuki, Yusuke, and their classmates growing into a gaggle of kids that I come to love.

If you’re hungry for a little rom-com to fill out your watchlist, please make sure you’re checking this one out. Polar Opposites is so incredibly fun to watch, feeling just like the sensation of soda pop: bubbly, sweet, and satisfying!