When he was just a kid, Keitaro Urashima lived in the Hinata apartments (run by his grandmother) when he met a girl who would become a childhood sweetheart. She told him that if a young couple were to meet again in Tokyo University, they would enjoy a happy life together. Before the girl went away, they promised each other that they would fulfill that dream and meet again in Tokyo University.

Now, we turn to the present...where Keitaro is still trying to get into Tokyo University. Just then, his grandmother calls. It seems she wants Keitaro to come back to the Hinata apartments. Needing a better place to study, Keitaro agrees.

There's just one problem. The place has since become a girls' dormitory! And when hapless Keitaro stumbles into the lives of the residents, he gets beaten a hair shy of a bloody pulp...until the news comes in. Girls, say hello to your new manager!

Then, to top it all off, one of the girls at Hinata bears an uncanny resemblence. Could she actually be his childhood sweetheart?

Such is love, such is life, such is Love Hina, a re-emergence of the romantic comedy genre that had taken a back seat after such memorable works as Maison Ikkoku and the Tenchi Muyo! series.