Review of Romantics Anonymous: The Sweet Affection That Breaks Down Barriers

The story follows Hana Lee, a brilliant chocolatier who is exceptionally talented and gentle. Hana, however, is tormented by her condition. She suffers from scopophobia, which means she fears social interactions so intensely that even looking someone in the eyes becomes difficult. Because of this, she prefers to keep her identity hidden while working at a prestigious chocolate shop.

Sosuke Fujiwara, on the other hand, is the heir to a major sweets and confectionery company and lives with haphephobia, also referred to as germophobia. Because of a childhood trauma, he believes he is too unclean to touch others. This prevents him from making physical contact with anyone and further deepens his isolation.

When Sosuke takes over the company, fate leads him to the mysterious chocolatier Hana. From that moment on, their lives change significantly. Despite their phobias, the two seem strangely unaffected by each other. As they get to know one another, showing respect and learning to understand each other's fears, they discover a shared mission: saving the chocolate shop.

The romance between them avoids grand declarations or dramatic intensity. Instead, it grows with subtlety, shy gestures, uneasy glances, hesitant touches, and small acts of inner courage. The series relies on emotional minimalism, empathy, and gentle humor, which makes the theme lighter and less triggering for sensitive viewers without slipping into caricature. In short, it shows how vulnerability can also become strength.

The show also explores identity, self-acceptance, healing from trauma, and the search for deep human connection.

The series is an Asian adaptation of the 2010 French-Belgian film of the same name and premiered in 2025 as a Netflix original production co-produced by Japan and Korea.

Created by Park So-yeon, written by Kim Ji-hyun and Yoshikazu Okada, and directed by Sho Tsukikawa, it stars Shun Oguri as Sosuke Fujiwara and Han Hyo-joo as Hana Lee.

The overall reception highlights the show's gentle and calm tone along with its sensitive and contemplative storytelling, which is ideal for anyone who enjoys a soft and comforting romance.

The chemistry between the leads is also praised, as well as the way the series handles fear and vulnerability without exaggeration, treating the topic of phobias with respect and natural progression.

To understand why their relationship becomes meaningful enough to help them face their struggles, it is helpful to understand Hana and Sosuke's conditions.

Hana is a Korean woman who moved to Japan as a child and suffers from scopophobia. Since her mother's death, Hana has had almost no contact with anyone, isolating herself from the world and finding comfort only in making her chocolates and watching the person she admires from afar.

Scopophobia is the intense fear of being watched. It is not shyness or stage fright. It is a fear that triggers severe anxiety and physical reactions. People with scopophobia often feel judged at all times, even in simple situations such as crossing a street, walking into a room, or ordering something at a counter. The gaze of others feels threatening not because people are actually hostile but because the body interprets that attention as danger.

The impact is significant. The person avoids eye contact, turns down social invitations, prefers isolated workplaces, and may even adjust their routine to avoid being noticed. This creates a harmful cycle because the more they try not to draw attention to themselves, the more exposed they feel.

The most painful part is that scopophobia steals more than social presence. It takes away life experiences. A person may stop meeting new people, trying new opportunities, or participating in ordinary situations because the fear of being seen becomes paralyzing.

Treatment often involves therapy and coping strategies. In safe environments, the person gradually learns to reshape how they see themselves and the world.

Sosuke's life, meanwhile, changed after another loss, the death of his older brother. He feels responsible in some way and developed haphephobia, which is characterized by an intense, irrational, and persistent fear of touching or being touched.

It is not simply avoiding physical contact. It is a fear that causes real suffering that is often disproportionate to the situation and significantly affects daily life.

When someone with haphephobia thinks about the possibility of being touched or experiences even a light or accidental touch, they may have strong physical and emotional reactions. Common symptoms include heart palpitations, sweating, trembling, dizziness or faintness, nausea, or hives, which can escalate into panic attacks.

The person tends to avoid situations where touch may occur, such as hugs, kisses, handshakes, close interactions, public transportation, crowded places, intimate relationships, or even medical exams.

This can lead to social isolation, difficulties in relationships, problems at work or school, and feelings of alienation, guilt, loneliness, or low self-worth.

Treatment usually involves therapy and gradual exposure techniques, where the person slowly becomes accustomed to contact with proper support and begins to retrain the brain's fear response.

In some cases, when anxiety or panic is overwhelming, short-term use of anti-anxiety medication may be recommended. In addition, self-care practices such as breathing exercises, clear communication of boundaries, psychological support, and spending time in safe environments can greatly help with daily life.

The series shows how these two people who have always avoided even visual contact meet, recognize something familiar in each other, and build a relationship despite all the challenges around them.

There is mutual respect and understanding of each other's limits, which helps their relationship grow in a healthy and sincere way.

It becomes more than love. It becomes a place of emotional refuge.

Hana, who lives in constant fear of being observed and spends her life avoiding any situation in which she might be seen, judged, or exposed, meets Sosuke, and something extraordinary happens: she finds a man who never pressures her to be noticeable.

He doesn’t force eye contact, doesn’t demand social presence, and doesn’t push her into the spotlight. Instead, he recognizes in her the same discomfort he carries within himself. This creates the first crack in the wall of her scopophobia: the realization that she is not alone in a condition that has always isolated her.

The romance begins with a boss and employee dynamic and eventually turns into a friendship. It offers Hana a safe space where she can exist without fear of being scrutinized.

Sosuke knows what it’s like to be terrified of judgment, and that shared understanding removes the sense of threat from their interactions. They go through controlled exposure together, almost as if they are training side by side to cope with their fears.

As they work together, she is able to show her talent. Not because she has overcome her phobia, but because she is being seen by someone who does not hurt her with his gaze. Realizing that someone sees her with kindness slowly dismantles the belief that being seen is the same as being harmed. An emotional restructuring begins.

The most important point of the series is that the romance does not magically erase scopophobia or haphephobia. Instead, it creates an environment where they can breathe, relearn, and trust.

For Sosuke, who is trapped in the belief that touch is a threat and whose body reacts with repulsion, fear, and extreme discomfort in physical proximity, being close to Hana brings an entirely new experience. He finds someone who does not invade, does not touch without permission, and does not demand physical intimacy.

Hana naturally respects boundaries because she carries her own fears. This compatibility is transformative. It becomes a space where touch is not an obligation but a choice.

He gains the chance to experience physical contact as something safe. With Hana, touch is always asked for and never presumed, and that changes how he interprets the experience.

For someone with haphephobia, a relationship in which emotional closeness comes before physical closeness is essential, because trust can form first, and the body can follow later.

When her touch does not trigger panic, Sosuke begins to reconfigure his understanding of intimacy and sees it not as a risk but as an expression of care.

The story works because it does not turn love into a magical cure. Nothing is resolved overnight. What happens is more real and more beautiful. They become immune to each other.

Not literally immune, but emotionally, because what once caused panic in the outside world becomes comfort in the right arms.

The series also shows the struggle of another couple shaped by childhood trauma caused by abandonment.

It explores how the fear of putting oneself second to make room for love can cause someone to lose the courage to be with the person they care about.

This is why most analyses agree that the show’s greatest strength is empathy. It turns pain and fear into gentleness and vulnerability into intimacy. For those who identify with human fragility, with shyness, fear, the desire to be seen, and the simultaneous fear of exposure, the series resonates deeply.

On the other hand, if you are looking for a fast pace, tension, or intense drama, Romantics Anonymous may feel underwhelming. Its emotional sensitivity can come across as slow.

In other words, the value of the series depends greatly on the viewer’s expectations. It is for those who enjoy stories that unfold slowly until reaching a peak where the characters understand that standing beside someone who loves and welcomes you is also a way to confront fear.

Of course it is!

If you want a short, emotional series with a touch of humor and drama without tipping into heavy suffering, this is a great choice.

However, if you feel the theme is too sensitive or expect the series to go deeper into the phobias themselves, it might not be the best option.

Now tell me: if someone saw your vulnerabilities with the same tenderness that Hana and Sosuke see in each other, would you let that love into your life or would you keep hiding?