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Where wacky hijinks can't stop a great romance!

"Hi, how's it going? The name's Yusaku, but they all call me by my last name, Godai. I'm what you'd call a ronin, a student who couldn't pass the college entrance exam. That means I get to cram for another year before I can take it again. This is Japan, remember, and you know what they say: good school, good job, good life. Usually, I do my best studying on rainy nights like these. Well, that is, before I moved into Maison Ikkoku..."
Yusaku Godai

Yusaku Godai is a lovable, somewhat serious, but hopelessly inept Rōninnote  who is trying to study to pass college entrance exams while living at Maison Ikkoku, a somewhat run-down boarding house. His own disorganized, gormless lifestyle does not make this an easy task. Neither do the antics of his neighbours, including a party girl, an older mom fond of the bottle, and a surreal mooch, all of whom use his room for their frequent booze-ups. The building manager has not been seen in some time. Godai finally has enough and is walking out the door, bags in hand…

…and in walks Kyoko Otonashi, a beautiful, sweet-tempered woman who announces herself as the new manager.

In order, Godai's suitcase, jaw, and heart hit the floor, and from then on it's a roller coaster ride of strangeness, complications, botched courting, miscommunicated feelings, and every so often some achingly sweet, poignant moments.

Running from 1980 to 1987 in the seinen magazine Big Comic Spirits, Maison Ikkoku clocks in at 15 volumes – lengthy, but actually the shortest of Rumiko Takahashi's major works. Compared to her other series, it is very true-to-life, at least of the time period in which it's set, and rarely strays into fantastical scenarios – very little Love Dodecahedron, no supernatural hijinks, convoluted logic, or most of the standard trappings of Takahashi's better-known series. The anime adaptation by Studio DEEN aired for 96 episodes from 1986 to 1988, which is also short compared to the lengths of other anime series based on Takahashi's works, though it still manages to cover the manga's whole story.

Despite being well-liked by North American anime fans and critics, the series still has a history of struggling there in regards to commercial success. An English dub of the anime was started in the mid-90's, but cancelled after 36 episodes due to low VHS sales. The subtitled tapes stopped at Episode 64 for the same reason. Years later, Viz Media gave Maison another chance after Inuyasha exploded in popularity – they miraculously managed to put the entire series out on DVD and finally finish the dub (albeit with several cast changes due to the long hiatus), but sales were never strong; it got so bad that the only reason the final boxset came out at all was because retailer RightStuf.com offered to buy the entire print run. The manga was released twice –- once in "flipped" collections with a few chapters cut away to get the story going quicker, and then again a few years later in "unflipped" volumes that included the cut-away chapters and that matched the Japanese books… but quickly fell out of print afterwards.

However, Viz announced they will be releasing the Collector's Edition of the manga. The first volume was released on September 15, 2020.

Nonetheless, the series received great reception among those who did see/read it, and it enjoys a passionate cult following in the States among anime fans, especially Takahashi fans, who often claim it to be her magmum opus.

It has inspired many similar series, among them Love Hina and Mahoraba.


This series provides examples of:

  • Accidental Pervert: Happens to many of Kyoko's suitors.
  • After-Action Patch-Up: After thanking Godai for saving the day by returning her bikini top to her at the hotel pool earlier in the day (which Godai had thought he had accomplished anonymously, since he was supposed to be elsewhere other than working at the hotel), Kyoko treats the scrapes on Godai's arms, which he incurred in the process of trying to remain anonymous while returning it.
  • Babies Ever After:
    • Haruka, Godai and Kyouko's baby daughter.
    • Mitaka and Asuna's twins and a third baby on the way.
  • Baseball Episode: In chapter 49 of the manga. Episode 68 of the anime.
  • Beach Episode: Episode 10 and the Shipwrecked on Ikkoku Island OVA.
  • Belligerent Sexual Tension: Godai and Kyoko have it more downplayed than Rumiko's other couples, but there's still friction in their romance.
  • Better by a Different Name: Indirect Trope Namer. "It was better when it was called Maison Ikkoku" has reached this status when applied to romance anime.
  • Broke Episode: Many. Godai was trying to balance study, work, and life on a regular basis.
  • Broken Ace: Mitaka seems to be The Ace at first - drop-dead gorgeous, athletic, and even an excellent cook - but he has his own issues.
  • Cannot Spit It Out:
    • Godai finally does spit it out in the final chapters, dumping Kozue and proposing to Kyoko. Kyoko as well, when she finally tells Godai not only that she loves him but that she has for a very long time.
    • The first time he does spit it out he's drunk, which leads to a major setback when the neighbors tease Godai by telling him he did a striptease while drunk, and Godai, believing this, tells Kyoko it was just a joke. Kyoko, assuming he meant his saying "I love you" was a joke, is devastated, slaps him and runs off in tears.
  • Chekhov's Gun: Godai buys a brooch for Kyoko as a Christmas present in Episode 2 but, through a series of pratfalls, never manages to give to her. Sixteen episodes later, a year has gone by in canon and Godai, broke and desperate to get Kyoko a gift, manages to find the brooch behind his desk and give it to Kyoko.
  • Close-Knit Community: Maison Ikkoku itself is a tiny, aging apartment complex. And while most of the tenants are a real jerk most of the times. They also do care for each other and will help out when needed.
  • Cloud Cuckoolander: Yotsuya, easily one of the strangest characters created by Takahashi despite being in a real-world setting.
  • Cock Fight: Mitaka and Godai often engage in this when Kyoko is around.
  • Comedic Sociopathy: If watching the entire cast make one man's life a living hell for 161 chapters/96 episodes is your idea of fun, this is the show for you. It doesn't help that Godai has no backbone. The tenants are so terrible that when Godai and Kyoko finally get together, and the tenants congratulate them, a simple act of kindness renders Godai and Kyoko speechless.
  • Coming of Age Story: Godai is very clearly a boy at the beginning of the series. As time goes on, he slowly but surely grows into a (somewhat) mature, responsible man.
  • Corner of Woe: The puppeteer club's president does this after scaring a child he was trying to offer candy to.
  • Demoted to Extra: Kozue. By the middle of the series when Ibuki came in, Kozue disappeared for the most part only making occasional appearances with Baseball Episode being a remote exception. Kozue did start to have a bit more of a presence late in the series in which it even got Lampshaded until she and Godai actually break up.
  • Disappeared Dad: Mr. Ichinose, husband to Mrs. Ichinose and father to Kentaro. He works long hours, leaving in the early morning and not coming home until after dark, and only meets the other tenents when he is laid-off, and thus home during the day. Much is made over how none of the other characters have ever seen him, and most imagined he was dead (when Kentaro introduces him to Godai, Godai promptly responds with "You have a dad?!?).
  • Distracted by the Sexy: Yusaku Godai often gets distracted fantasizing about Kyoko, causing him to fall down/run into things/kiss inanimate objects.
  • The Ditz: Nozomu, when it comes social situations. The other characters take pity on him and give him hints. He finally figures out that Godai and Otonashi have feelings for each other... after one hundred and twenty six hints from the other tenants. Godai and Otonashi then deny it, and he believes them.
  • Drama Bomb: Chapter 7 of the manga/episode 6 of the anime, where it's revealed that Kyoko is a widow.
  • Drives Like Crazy: Kyoko, mostly because she only gets behind the wheel once in a while.
    Shun: Nothing would make me happier than to die at your hands.
  • Drunken Song: PAAARTY PAAARTY PAAARTY!
  • Earn Your Happy Ending: After many struggles, Godai gets everything he wanted: he got into college and married Kyoko, starting a family with her.
  • Egg Sitting: In one filer episode, Yotsuya leaves an egg to Godai for safekeeping in a dream. Only it wasn't a dream...
  • Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": The Master of the Chachamaru bar is only ever called "Master".
  • The First Cut Is the Deepest: For most of the series, Kyoko is unwilling to enter a new relationship after being widowed at a young age.
  • Foreign Language Theme: The anime uses two songs by Irish singer-songwriter Gilbert O'Sullivan as themes; "Alone Again (Naturally)" for the second opening, and "Get Down" for the third ending.
  • For the Evulz: In the beginning, this is the reason why Akemi, Hanae, and Yotsuya torment Godai on a regular basis through their frequent binge drinking. Though later on their motives seem to be more about "If you want us to stop then man up and talk to the manager!" (not that this justifies it)
  • From Roommates to Romance: The premise of the series is Godai's growing romance with Kyoko, a beautiful young widow who moves in as the manager of the boarding house he lives in.
  • Grand Finale: Reputedly the first of long-running series from Rumiko Takahashi that had a definitive ending.
  • Hands-On Approach: In a scene, Mitaka is teaching Kyoko to improve her swing using this approach. When he notes Kyoko is reluctant to stay so close to him, he assures her that his behaviour in the court is downright professional and he would never try to hit on a woman while pretending training her. Kyoko is reassured by this, but Mrs. Ichinose notes that he still is keeping his hand on Kyoko's waist.
  • He Is Not My Boyfriend: Kyoko does this all the time towards Godai.
  • Hot Springs Episode: Episodes 41 and 62.
  • Imagine Spot: Godai often imagines himself getting intimate with Kyoko.
  • I Want Grandkids: Kyoko's mother brings this up in one of her schemes to get Kyoko to remarry. While she might genuinely want some, the subject is primarily means to an end.
  • Jerkass: Many characters. A huge portion of the supporting cast acts this way, including Yotsuya, Mrs. Ichinose, and Akemi – the three others at Ikkoku, with Kyoko and Godai being among the rare exceptions. Yotsuya tops the list, though, almost treading over the line sometimes with his callousness. Most of the Jerkasses have a few kind moments, however, and some of them (like Mitaka's uncle) are genuinely cheerful.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Hanae Ichinose, out of the drunkard trio she is most likely to do a Pet the Dog scene. Hanae's son Kentaro is like this. Mitaka can be like this as well since, despite on how he may seem like a smug, rich pretty boy, he does genuinely care for Kyoko and is actually generally nice to everyone but Godai.
  • Last Minute Hook Up: Kozue and Akemi get together in the last episode.
  • Last-Name Basis: A strong element in setting the tone of relationships in the series. For example, in most of the series, Godai does not refer to Kyoko as anything but Kanrinin-san ("Miss Manager"), and she does not use his first name, thus keeping a certain distance between the two characters despite their closeness.
  • Lethal Chef: From the looks of the ramen Godai prepares for a recuperating Kyoko in episode 16 suggests, Godai is this. Nevertheless, Kyoko manages to eat every bite, even if only to be polite. This is only suggested in the anime however.
  • Live-Action Adaptation: The live-action film Apartment Fantasy and the television drama.
  • Look Behind You: Godai pulls this on Kozue in episode 24, when she tried to kiss him.
  • Loony Friends Improve Your Personality: The residents of Maison Ikkoku spend most of their time driving Yusaku Godai insane with their alcohol-induced insanity, but also end up somehow making him the man he needs to be for Kyoko, as well as get Kyoko to reflect on her feelings for him.
  • Lost in Translation: In the final manga chapter, during Godai and Kyoko's wedding reception, Godai is presenting a speech. He is about to say "Kyoko-san" but stops mid-name. He turns to his wife and says "Kyoko", dropping the honorific. This is glossed over in the English translation, since English does not work the same way.
  • Meaningful Name: Not obvious in English, but the last name of every character who lives in the complex starts with the number of their apartment. Kyoko, who is the manager and thus has no number on her door, has the last name essentially meaning "No number".
  • Mistaken for Cheating:
    • Kyoko once saw Mitaka with another woman, however this was just another misunderstanding.
    • Akemi invokes this as she uses this trope to get Kozue to dump Godai by tricking her into thinking that Godai and Akemi were at a Love Hotel.
  • Mood Whiplash: Sometimes the mood of the story can changed from a lighthearted comedy to a serious drama.
  • The Movie: The live-action film Apartment Fantasy and the anime film The Final Chapter.
  • My Beloved Smother: Kyoko's mother Ritsuko Chigusa is a definite case of this at first but she does slightly mellow out later on in the series. One Running Gag involves her inability to remember Godai's name or pick up on his interest in her daughter. Once Mitaka is firmly engaged to Asuna, she finally takes notice and handles the situation more tactfully.
  • Nice Guy: Godai, where the entire concept is played with in great detail, and with great skill. The story does not shy away from the common (and often Real Life) faults of this character type, such as indecisiveness, spinelessness, and mediocrity, but it also suggests that Godai's innate kindness and decency, combined with his willingness to grow, more than compensates in the long run.
  • Not What It Looks Like: Many, many, many of these.
  • Numerical Theme Naming: Most of the characters' family names are written with kanji relating to numbers; for the Maison Ikkoku residents, their names also correspond with their room numbers.
    • Kyoko's family name, Otonashi (音無), means "soundless", and the second kanji means "nothing" or "zero". Her maiden name, Chigusa (千草), means "thousand grass".
    • The Ichinose family live in Room 1, and their family name (一の瀬) means "first ford".
    • Nozomu Nikaido lives in Room 2, and his family name (二階堂) means "two-story temple".
    • Shun Mitaka's family name (三鷹) means "three hawks".
    • Yotsuya lives in Room 4, and his name (四谷) means "four valleys".
    • Yusaku Godai lives in Room 5, and his family name (五代) means "five generations".
    • Akemi Roppongi lives in Room 6, and her family name (六本木) means "six trees".
    • Kozue Nanao's family name (七尾) means "seven ridges".
    • Ibuki Yagami's family name (八神) means "eight gods".
    • Asuna Kujo's family name (九条) means "ninth avenue".
  • Once per Episode: Godai daydreaming of Kyoko, and ending up in embarrassing and painful situations while distracted, at least the first 20 or so episodes.
  • One Dialogue, Two Conversations: In chapter 9 of the manga/episode 8 of the anime, Godai apologizes to Kyoko for what he thinks he did during his Alcohol-Induced Idiocy (resulting in a What Did I Do Last Night? sequence during which the other Ikkoku residents horrify him with made-up stories about his supposed behavior). But because he doesn't say what exactly he's apologizing for, Kyoko thinks he's apologizing for what he actually did. She slaps him.
  • OVA: There are three: Through the Passing Seasons, Shipwrecked on Ikkoku Island, and Prelude: When the Cherry Blossoms Return in the Spring.
  • Passive-Aggressive Kombat: How Mitaka and Godai communicate. Especially visible in episode 10. Though they sometimes drops this act when it comes to serious situation. Like how are they going to drive a car with Soichiro inside.
  • Pet the Dog: Many of the characters such as Yotsuya, Mrs. Ichinose, and Ibuki do this every now & then. Some more than others, though.
  • Poor Communication Kills:
    • The source of many misunderstanding of the series. While not as bad as Three's Company or anything, horrible misunderstandings are common. Though at least it's played realistically enough that sometimes things are explained – it's just that the situations Godai ends up in are so bizarre that Kyoko disbelieves it anyways.
    • Mitaka runs into a bit of this which spearheads his relationship with Asuna. Upon realizing he had no chance with Kyoko, Mitaka utterly drowns his sorrows and winds up at his apartment when Asuna shows up. He wakes up the following morning not remembering a thing, but assuming the worst because while he can't remember the details, he is able to recall having kissed her. While he tries to mentally sort this all out, Asuna shows up at the tennis court with her beloved dog Salad with the revelation, "We're having a baby!!". Believing their apparent one-night stand produced a child and wanting to man-up, Mitaka immediately proposes to Asuna. However, it's at their engagement—after their engagement was completely officialized in front of their families—that Asuna clarifies the "pregnancy" by revealing that it's Salad who's pregnant! And by the dog that Mitaka had adopted to help him get used to dogs!
  • "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Akemi lays a brief but huge one on Kyoko after her ultimate hissy-fit towards Godai.
    Akemi: I can't believe you. Crying and carrying on over a guy you won't even let hold your hand. What's wrong with you? You think I'm so desperate I'd bother to steal a man from a neurotic twit like you? Grow up!
  • Relationship Upgrade: Not only the main couple but also many side ships end up being resolved.
  • Rescue Hug: At one time, Kyoko is trying to fix the porch globe light when Yusaku arrives, startling her. Kyoko falls off the ladder and not only do they end up hugging as he catches her, but their lips touch as well. Since no one else saw it happen, and they're both supposed to be dating other people, they decide to pretend all that happened was that Kyoko slipped and dropped the globe.
  • Rich Suitor, Poor Suitor:
    • Mitaka has enough to go to an expensive resort for the weekend on a whim, whereas Godai barely manages to keep himself stocked with ramen, let alone buy gifts for Kyoko. By the time Godai and Kyoko actually get together, though, he has a steady job as a preschool teacher.
    • Grandma Godai had two of these many years ago and chose the poor one. Which is why she tells Kyoko to take the rich guy.
  • Ridiculously Cute Critter: McEnroe, the tiny little fluffy dog that Mitaka adopts to overcome his fear of dogs.
  • The Rival: Mitaka and Godai. And to the lesser extent, Ibuki and Kyoko.
  • Romancing the Widow: The main plot involves a beautiful widow who works as a landlady and is courted by a penniless would-be college student and a rich tennis coach. There's even a huge lampshade:
    Kyoko: "Promise me that even if it's by one day... you'll outlive me. I don't want to be alone again."
  • Romantic False Lead: Mitaka for Kyoko and Kozue for Godai, both designed as appealing alternatives to the Official Couple. Ibuki is a less-appealing one, both to the audience and to Godai himself.
  • Romantic Runner-Up: Kozue is a definite and occasionally Lampshaded case while Mitaka can be a case of this (but not always).
  • Rōnin: Godai starts off as one. Unlike some other series that use this, he doesn't stay one for long.
  • Rugby Is Slaughter: Godai plays rugby with his old high school team during New Year holidays – he ends up with a black eye because of it.
  • Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Subverted with Godai at the beginning of the series. After enduring enough of his roommates interfering with his studying for the third time, Godai decides to pack up and leave Maison Ikkoku, but it doesn't work out thanks to Kyoko's sudden arrival.
  • Secondary Character Title: In the Italian and French adaptations, the anime is named after the Deuteragonist and main love interest Kyoko, even if Godai is the main character.
  • Shout-Out: The anime has several to Takahashi's earlier Urusei Yatsura in just the first episode alone, including an image of Lum on a magazine cover and chibi versions of Ataru, Shinobu and Megane (among others) as kindergarteners. That's just one of many in both the manga and the anime. Also, in the English manga, Sakamoto wears a jacket with Ranma ½ printed on the back; both Maison Ikkoku and Ranma were released by Viz in the USA.
  • Shipper on Deck: Yotsuya, Akemi and Mrs. Ichinose all want Kyoko to end up with Shun Mitaka. They even hold a wake (in Godai's room, of course) when he gets married to someone else.
  • Sick Episode:
    • Episode 16 has Kyoko spraining her ankle. Godai is terribly worried, but, as happens so often in this series, constantly gets blocked by circumstances, neighbors, and Mitaka when he tries to take care of her. It's only a minor sprain, but having to eat the food Akemi and Yotsuya brought for her PLUS Godai's unappetizing-looking ramen (after having already eaten Mitaka's delicious gourmet cooking) upsets her stomach, making her sick for real.
    • Chapter 44 of the manga has Godai being sick due to getting wet at night in chapter 42. Unfortunately the tenants only make his sickness worse. By the end, he ended up resting on his bed for almost two weeks!
    • Episode 42 has Godai breaking his leg, and Kyoko taking care of him in the hospital. At the end of the episode, Mitaka managed to break his leg as well, and would share a room with Godai.
  • Silk Hiding Steel: Though she's not as traditionally Japanese about it, Kyoko is much more independent-minded and temperamental than her sweet, proper demeanor suggests, as Godai soon discovers. Her resolve is probably the only thing that keeps Maison Ikkoku from descending into complete chaos.
  • Single Mom Stripper: This trope is the reason that Godai's job at the strip joint ended up not being so bad after all. He ended up as the babysitter for the strippers' young children, gaining tons of job experience for his intended field of early childhood education.
  • Sitting on the Roof: Kyoko does this a few times, though mostly because the roof need fixing. (And ended up nearly falling down once as a result). Godai does it once.
  • Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism: A good old fashioned case of a story that shows plenty of Cynicism but with Idealism winning out in the end.
  • Stealth Hi/Bye: Yotsuya seems to have perfected this, especially when Godai has something to hide and is vulnerable to blackmail.
  • Stopped Clock: Ikkoku-kan's clock tower is always stopped at 10:25.
  • Suggestive Collision: Yusaku accidentally kisses Kyoko when she falls from a ladder trying to replace a lightbulb.
  • Surrogate Soliloquy: The graveyard version is used extensively.
  • Teacher/Student Romance: Kyoko's deceased husband was a guest lecturer at her school. The same situation happens again when Godai works as a teacher, in the same school as Kyoko's even!
  • The Tell: You can tell Kyoko's hiding something when she reacts toward certain conversations said by others. Like consistently split out tea when Mrs. Ichinose wondering why Godai hasn't come back to Maison Ikkoku yet.
  • Theme Naming: Most of the characters have numbers in their names; the residents have numbers corresponding to their room numbers.
    • Most to all of the number names are also train stations/districts in Tokyo, which sometimes adds another meaning.
    • There's also the Edible Theme Naming of Asuna Kujo's dogs: Salad, Pot-au-feu, Foie Gras, Terrine, and Stroganoff.
  • There Are No Therapists:
    • Rather, there is no Alcoholics Anonymous.
    • Mitaka could probably have used some professional help in getting over his fear of dogs, although he eventually manages well enough on his own.
  • There Was a Door: Yotsuya prefers to go through wall into Godai's room when he wants in there.
  • Trickster Mentor: While Yotsuya, Akemi and Mrs. Ichinose all indulge in borderline (and in some cases way beyond borderline) cruelty mostly For the Evulz, some of their antics are meant to make Godai stronger or more honest about his feelings toward Kyoko.
  • Tsundere: Sweet type: Kyoko appears nice but has a much quicker temper than you'd imagine.
  • Twinkle Smile: Mitaka has it and it's seemingly hereditary, as his parents, his uncle, and even his dog share the same trait. Godai's grandmother can pull this off as well.
  • Umbrella of Togetherness: Featured prominently though episode 17.
  • Uncatty Resemblance: Shun gets a small dog to overcome his dog-phobia. While it doesn't look like him physically, it turns out to have quite the way with the (canine) ladies, including a duplicate of Shun's Twinkle Smile.
  • The Unfair Sex: While not as blatant as how other Takahashi shows can be, this series does show some of it. Both Kyoko and Godai are rather indecisive about which love interest they want to go with – the former is of course more sympathetically treated than the latter. (Granted the latter has some sympathy, but still)
    • Becomes more apparent in episode 12 where Godai and Kozue go on their first date, when Kyoko learns of this as she runs into Godai and Kozue in the middle of their date she gradually fumes in jealously at Godai for dating a cute girl that is younger than her. Keep in mind that is occurring while Kyoko was already having a date with Mitaka before she saw Godai with Kozue (and Kyoko's date with Mitaka is largely the reason why Godai was dating Kozue at the time.)
    • It is spelled out in story the first time Mitaka and Godai get drunk together (things repeat in this story, a LOT). They lay into Kyoko for her jealousy and stringing along and much else, in total agreement with each other. Then she comes to pick them up, and they shut up and take it (and give each other dirty looks for being spineless).
  • Unfortunate Item Swap: When a little girl from the preschool says she wants to marry Godai, he records a cheerful audio message for her, saying that he can't marry her because she's far too young. In the same episode, he records a message for Kyoko, in which he declares his love and swears he will do his best to become worthy of her hand. It's blatantly obvious he's going to get the tapes mixed up (especially since the child's name is also Kyoko), and sure enough, he does, to everyone's confusion.
  • Unlucky Everydude: Godai. Most prominently shown during when Kyoko is on a trip, where he keep missing her due to pure bad lucks.
  • We Named the Monkey "Jack": Mr. Soichiro, Kyoko's dog, named for the other Soichiro.
  • What the Hell, Hero?: Godai very often has fantasies of giving Kyoko a verbal beatdown for her blatant hypocrisy in condemning his relationship with Kozue while she dates Mitaka, but he never gathers the courage to do it. The closest thing is a very subtle reaction to Kyoko's violent verbal outburst after she hears about Godai and Akemi leaving a Love Hotel together. This, being after several weeks that Godai goes to her parents apartment pleading to see her and speak with her and getting rebuffed each time. Not to mention Godai takes up her responsibilities as the manager of Maison Ikkoku in her absence. After all this, despite returning to finally listen to Godai's side of the story, Kyoko again assumes the worst of him. She violently insults both Godai and Akemi to the point that Godai temporarily loses his anger and raises a hand to slap her. He stops himself before swinging, but Kyoko continues to verbally abuse him and goads him to smack her. His final response to her insults? He lightly taps her on the cheek, and says in a calm voice, "Please just listen to me." It was Akemi who ultimately delivers the intended trope to its logical conclusion.
  • When She Smiles: After the final conversaion with Kozue, Yusaku reflects that Kyoko is short-tempered, jealous, hard to deal with... but when she smiles, he feels that the world is his.
  • "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue: The final chapter shows where everyone is a couple years after Godai and Kyoko's wedding.
    • Kozue lives in Nagoya with her husband.
    • Asuna and Mitaka have twin daughters (who are shown to have inherited their father's sparkling smile) and are expecting a third child.
    • Ibuki is attending an all-women's college. She's still pining over Godai.
    • Nikaido graduated from college and is living with his mother.
    • Akemi married the Master of Chachamaru and moved out of Ikkoku, but she still visits the others frequently.
    • Godai and Kyoko have just had their first child, a daughter named Haruka.
  • Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Shun Mitaka is deathly afraid of dogs, making it harder than it should be for him to make passes at dog owner Kyoko. It also makes things awkward when it turns out his fiancee Asuna also has loads and loads of them. Later, when he undergoes "training" to overcome his fear, it results in some misunderstandings, and even results in him marrying Asuna, in a very roundabout sort of way.
  • Wise Beyond Their Years: Downplayed. Kentaro Ichinose is a normal kid who nevertheless feels like he has to play parent to his strange, heavy-drinking mother.
  • Yandere: Ibuki is a downplayed example. She comes up with a number of schemes to get involved with Godai's life even after his student teaching job is done, and she strongly dislikes Kyoko, she never does anything to harm either of them.
  • Yank the Dog's Chain: Any time Godai seems to come out ahead, he's practically guaranteed to lose it all within the next five minutes. One of the most prominent examples of this would be when Yagami's father writes Godai a recommendation for a job, only for the company to go bankrupt the day after he's hired. He even went into a Heroic BSoD for several days because of it.
  • You Need to Get Laid: After 149 chapters – containing dozens of fights and annoying misunderstandingsYusaku and Kyoko make love for first time. The next days the other residents of the boarding house notice that Kyoko is in an incredibly good mood, like if she had got something that she had spent a long time craving for. As they talk about it, they stare at Yusaku suspiciously before saying: "Nah, impossible," and "He wishes."

 
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Alone Again (Naturally)

Maison Ikkoku uses "Alone Again (Naturally") by Irish singer-songwriter Gilbert O'Sullivan as a theme for the second opening.

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