Orange is a unique shoujo. So unique, in fact, that it made a switch to a seinen magazine at about the halfway mark.

It goes far beyond the cookie-cutter romcoms that seem to dominate the shoujo market, focusing on a dramatic, slowly-building relationship which not only involves the boy and girl falling in love, but the girl saving his life in the process.

STORY (8/10):

I've heard a lot of complaints recently about time travel anime/manga, referring to it as cliche and it making sure the characters won't get into any real danger, as there's a reset button available at any time.

However, Orange doesn't have this reset button - the manga explores some very interesting themes involving parallel worlds and alternate reality. Also, as there is no real way for the characters themselves to time travel, there is still danger that keeps the story gripping.

ART (9/10):

The art in Orange is very good. I loved the full-color pages, and this manga has a very unique way with facial expressions that can tell you a lot about a scene, even if there's little to no dialogue in said scene.

CHARACTER (7/10):

Despite the fact that I still gave the Character category a good score, this is my main issue with Orange. It has a full set of characters, the majority of which have clearly defined personalities - there's Hagita and Asusa, who fight like an old married couple but deny they like each other. Hiroto, a muscular big eater boy who is also best friends with Naho.

And then there's Naho herself.

Much to my disappointment, we didn't really learn much about Naho, other then she likes Kakeru and wants to save him. Her MAL bio basically says she likes Kakeru and wants to save him. That's pretty much her only defining character trait.

However, due to the personality of the other characters, as well as the above-average translation in which the dialogue flows very well, I was still able to give the Character category a good score.

ENJOYMENT (8/10):

I read all of Orange in one night, and it did a great job at keeping my attention through its mixture of suspenseful and sad moments, as well as some humor to keep everything from getting too depressing.

OVERALL (8/10):

I highly recommend Orange, even if you aren't traditionally a shoujo fan...or is this seinen? I really don't know. Despite my complaints about the main character, this is a very unique, enthralling manga that deserves its spot in MAL's top manga.

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CONTENT WARNING: This manga is officially rated Teen in the North American print release. The only real content issue is mild language; however, those sensitive to the subject of suicide are advised that this manga may be hard for them to read. Anyone who can handle/comprehend the mature themes is old enough to read it in my opinion.