There are now officially 101 reasons to love the Rentarou family, as Shueisha has announced that Weekly Young Jump’s comedy harem series The 100 Girlfriends Who Really Really Really Really Really Love You (or The 100 Girlfriends for short) is one of their next series to make the jump from print to the small screen.
Rentarou’s Family in The 100 Girlfriends Chapter 53 “This is Basically a Commercial” (2021), Shueisha. Words by Rikito Nakamura and Art by Yukiko Nozawa via Digital Issue
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Written by Rikito Nakamura and illustrated by Yukiko Nozawa, The 100 Girlfriends follows the life of Rentarou Aijou (CV: Watarou Kato – Touka Scott in The Legendary Hero Is Dead!), a young man who by the end of his middle school years has confessed to and been rejected by exactly 100 girls.
Rentarou Aijou recalls his history of rejection on the color page to The 100 Girlfriends Chapter 1 “Hanazono-san and Inda-san” (2019), Shueisha. Words by Rikito Nakamura and Art by Yukiko Nozawa.
Tired of constantly coming up short in the game of love, Rentarou visits a matchmacking shrine after his 100th rejection and prays to the God of Love for help finding a girlfriend in his coming high school years.
Much to his surprise, this prayer actually catches the direct attention of the God of Love, who in turn appears before Rentarou to reveal that due to a clerical error, he is not destined to have one soulmate, but rather one hundred.
Rentarou’s current harem appears on Yukiko Nozawa’s color page for The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You Ch. 34 “Coach Rentarou’s Hot’n’loving Training” (2021), Shueisha
However, having 100 soulmates unsurprisingly comes with a price, as according to the God, those who have met their soulmates but don’t end up with them are destined to die as the result of a tragic accident.
Not wanting any of the women to die, Rentarou takes it upon himself to date every single one of his one hundred soulmates – with hilarious results.
Rentarou’s Family Picnic in The 100 Girlfriends Chapter 100 “Working on This Series Has Made Me Happier Than I Can Say. Honestly, Thank You All So Much. We’re in This for the Long Haul!” (2022), Shueisha. Words by Rikito Nakamura and Art by Yukiko Nozawa via Digital Issue
In true Jump-comedy fashion, in addition to the comedy derived from Rentarou’s new challenge, the series also brings the laughs by poking fun at the brand’s other series, including Demon Slayer, Dragon Ball and One Piece.
The series even features some fun chapters wherein Rentarou himself meets and works with Nozawa, the series’ artist herself.
Rentarou Aijou and Yukiko Nozawa drawing manga in The 100 Girlfriends Chapter 69 “Momi-san” (2021), Shueisha. Words by Rikito Nakamura and Art by Yukiko Nozawa via Digital Issue
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On March 13th, Shueisha officially confirmed The 100 Girlfriends‘ anime adaptation with a debut trailer featuring a montage of various manga panels taken from across Rentarou’s romantic journey:
Following the announcement, both series creators Nakamura and Nozawa took to social media to express their excitement and gratitude towards the new project.
“Thank you so much for all your support!” tweeted Nakamura (via DeepL). “I will step on the accelerator more in the future for the original manga to keep up with the anime!”
Source: Rikito Nakamura Twitter
Putting her own talents to use, Nozawa commemorated the announcement by unveiling a new illustration depicting Rentarou and his current family of 23 girlfriends.
“Congratulations on the anime adaptation~! ” she cheered. “I’m looking forward to the broadcast~!”
Source: Yukiko Nozawa Twitter
At current, The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really, Love You is set to air sometime later this year.