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Review: Chitose is in the Ramune Bottle (Volumes 1 & 2)
26th of October, 2025
So a lot of anime, light novels and manga are set in high school. There are a lot of reasons for that, but the main reason is that high school is of greater cultural importance in Japan (and much of East Asia) than in the West.
The three precious years of high school (and to some extent middle school too) are essentially the only time in their lives when a Japanese person can be truly free. Before high school, they are still children who are largely under the control of their parents and after high school, they join the real world where they have to work long hours to fuel the Japanese economic engine.
So you might think, yeah, this is the same case everywhere else. Why does Japan have such an obsession with high school?
My guess would be that adult life after high school comes with almost no freedoms in Japan, whereas in the West, adult life after high school tends to come with more perks. And that is mainly a cultural thing.
In East Asia, Confucianism is essentially the cultural foundation on which the three big East Asian nations are built. Upon entering the workforce, you are expected to work long hours, dedicate yourself to your company, and put your company ahead of everything else. On top of that, adult children are often expected to quickly get married, start a family, and also take care of their aging parents (who may be living in the same household). So in a sense, Japanese people (and East Asians in general) have far less freedom in adulthood than their Western counterparts.
Added on top of that, Japanese literature and media especially tend to have a very sentimental tilt, often glorifying youth.
ALL of that compounds into a cultural environment where the three short years of high school are far more important to a person in Japan than elsewhere.
Because those three years are the only time when they can spend lots of time with friends. When they can play whatever sport they want. When they can dream.
(Of course high school in Japan is still stricter than it is in the West, but even so, it is still a lot more freedom compared to what came before and after that.)
When I was at Tokyo Disneyland, I saw tons of students skipping school and going to Disneyland wearing their uniforms. Why would they do that? At least take off your uniform if you’re skipping school. But it turns out that wearing your uniform is the whole point.
‘Uniform dates’ are something unique to Japan.
‘I can only wear this uniform for a limited time’ seems to be a common sentiment in Japan.
Hell, even high schoolers view high school with sentimentality while they are in the middle of high school.
Why did I explain all of that just now?
Because I want to review Chitose is in the Ramune Bottle (from here on referred to as ‘Chitose’).
(FULL spoilers below.)
The first couple of episodes of Chitose have come out, and being the impatient person that I am, I decided to read the light novels to see what happens afterwards.
Chitose is about a high school student called Chitose who hangs out without his friends.
It is a high school story in a long, long, very long line of anime and light novels set in high school.
But this is where the similarities end.
Right from the first episode, the production quality of Chitose is off the charts. There is a sense of atmosphere and style that other series simply do not have. A simple scene of the characters walking along the river after school is filled with nostalgia.
The light novels themselves won the Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi! prize, which led to it being adapted into an anime.
And after reading the first few pages of Volume 1 of the light novel, I immediately understood why it won the prize.
The light novel starts off with our main character Chitose walking together with a random girl he met at the library. They just met but are obviously intimate. She is very much attracted to him. They bump shoulders.
But their lovey-dovey scene is interrupted when the girl’s boyfriend shows up. Despite having a boyfriend, the girl was still trying to go out with Chitose because he is the hottest guy in town.
And that is our main character.
Instead of being some otaku or someone at the bottom of the class hierarchy, he is the hottest guy in school.
All the girls he hangs out with want to go out with him. He is sociable, friendly, athletic – the perfect guy.
He is the total opposite of the traditional high school rom-com protagonist who is awkward and has trouble making friends and is too shy to talk to the girl he likes. Chitose doesn’t hesitate to talk to girls.
But above all, the writing of this light novel series is just so smooth. It reads effortlessly and there is a sense of voice and style that not many other light novels have. It feels unique, but familiar at the same time.
So what is the story about?
This is where Chitose is more similar to other light novels.
Basically in volume 1 they are tasked with getting a shut-in out of his room and back to attending class. Throughout volume 1 they convince him to go outside and then help him deal with his old toxic friends, dress him up, give him a haircut and teach him how to fit into class.
In Volume 2, one of the girls in Chitose’s group gets stalked and they deal with the stalker and the other toxic guys who hang about.
The format of the story is essentially Chitose going around fixing other people’s problems.
He knows he is hot and all the hottest girls in class love him.
He is a bit of a narcissist too.
It is a refreshing light novel, but at the same time, there are some things in there I don’t fully agree with.
In Volume 1, the shut-in otaku says that he hates popular kids because popular kids use their social position to bully people like him. He says popular kids are popular because they are naturally athletic and born good-looking.
Chitose then shuts down his argument that popular people are only popular because of their own hard work. Some people might be born with gifts, but these natural gifts are quickly dismissed and Chitose argues that the reason for his own popularity and the popularity of the girls he hangs around with are due to their own effort.
Chitose points out that the athletic kids practice all the time.
The hot girls put great care into their hair and makeup.
Chitose himself used to be a baseball club ace because he worked really hard.
Basically he argues that popular people are popular because they work hard.
And this is where I disagree with the premise of volume 1 of the light novel.
The author completely ignores that lookism is a big thing in society, especially high school. If you’re born good-looking, then you will be generally popular. People treat you differently from a young age, and that forms the foundation of your confidence. Late in life, this confidence will make you even more popular, which makes you even more confident.
Short, ugly guys will be unpopular. Period. It takes a lot more effort to turn the ship around.
The author argues that even plain guys can give themselves a ‘hot guy’ aura by dressing well, essentially saying that if you’re unpopular, it is your own fault.
While the argument has some merit, it simply ignores the reality of some things in life.
I think this light novel makes a great argument against the eternal pity party of unpopular people, but at the same time, it also ignores important parts (or rather, dismisses them quickly) of why popular people are popular.
But despite all that, I would still recommend this light novel series.
Why?
Because the writing is excellent.
I don’t agree with all of the ideas in there, but the writing is simply a pleasure to read. It flows well, there is style and voice. It is similar to other light novels and totally unique at the same time. It really makes you feel like you are back in high school (even though you’re experiencing the story through the hottest guy in town).
And most importantly, the characters are memorable. I purposefully didn’t describe the character in great detail here so that you can discover them for yourself.
Please take a look. Chitose Is In the Ramune Bottle Volumes 1–6 are available everywhere where you can buy light novels.
—Oniisanbomber
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