Danica Davidson
February 26, 2021 
Ikuma Saeki has known Sumika since childhood and he’s adored her the whole time. Now they’re adults and married, with Ikuma working as an app developer and Sumika working as a high school nurse. Despite their history, despite all the time dating, and despite the fact they’re newlyweds, they’re still both virgins.
And when they try to remedy that, they find themselves in a comedy of errors, because one thing or another goes wrong and they continue to be virgins. This is the running gag. Maybe Ikuma is too tired from work. Maybe it’s too early in the morning. Or maybe something unexpected happens. But at the end of the day, they’re still virgins, and Sumika calls her husband a “know-nothing virgin.” He really doesn’t like that!
Ikuma is the more romantic of the two, while Sumika is just blunt with what she wants. Though the whole first volume is about two people trying to get laid, it never actually shows very much, and the series gets a 16+ rating. What we do see are a lot of blushing faces.
While this setup could lead to a very over-the-top and outrageous comedy, We’re New at This feels more like a slice-of-life mellow comedy (with some exaggerations) that is a very quick read. So far we haven’t gotten to know Ikuma and Sumika that well, though we can sense some of the differences in their personalities. It’s told from Ikuma’s point-of-view, so Sumika remains more elusive, and her quiet stares leave many questions when she’s not blurting things out. Then she might say something very crude that shocks her husband, or set up the bedroom in a way she thinks he’d like but he just finds horrifying.
We’re New at This is from Ren Kawahara, who is the same mangaka behind Ao-Chan Can’t Study!, and is a digital-only release from Kodansha. It straddles the line between being realistic and being absurd (in the comedic sense), and is here for readers who want a quick read and a laugh about married life.
Story & Art: Ren Kawahara
Publisher: Kodansha USA
