This next one won't be for everyone, but I appreciate the way to tries to interject some weirdness and awfulness into the standard shojo romance formula.
NO LONGER HEROINE (Heroine Shikkaku), by Momoko Koda. First published in 2010 and first published in North America in 2022.
PLOT:
Hatori Matsuzaki is convinced that she is the heroine of her own life and she knows just who her love interest should be: her handsome playboy childhood best friend Rita. Sure, she's never told him about her feelings, but she's certain that after breaking so many hearts, he'll figure out that she's always been there, knows everything about him, and is meant to be his true love!
...that is, until he starts dating their mousy classmate Miho Adachi and seems to be getting serious about it.
Hatori won't take this lying down, though. She's gonna get her man, even if requires a bit of scheming, passive aggression, and maybe the odd failed group date.
STORY:
No Longer Heroine is going to be a very divisive shojo manga, and where you fall on that divide will depend on two things:
(1) How you feel about Hatori
(2) How much you enjoy cringe humor
Hatori is kind of an awful person. She is one of those people who is convinced that life is like a shojo manga where she is the heroine and everyone who isn't Rita are merely bit players. Putting aside the meta nature of this joke, it's an incredibly self-centered approach to life, romance, and everything. If she were a real person, she would be absolutely tiresome (and some of her other friends are clearly starting to reach this point). Hatori tries to get her way entirely through passive-aggressive comments and schemes, convinced that Rita will just magically come to his sense, pick up on her silent "love me" vibes, and their epic romance will begin!
So it goes without saying that of course Rita would instead prefer a cozy, sincere girl who doesn't take his affections for granted. Of course he would value Hatori more as a friend than as a romantic prospect precisely because he's known her forever, and when she actually properly confesses her feelings he gently turns her down.
It's at this point where the comedy truly begins, but it's a style of comedy that is not going to be to everyone's taste. If you're the sort of person who can laugh at things like the UK version of The Office or It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia or anything else about horrible or dumb people acting horribly, you will probably enjoy the latter half of this volume. It's all about Hatori flailing about, trying to move on, and flailing about as she interprets every little shred of kindness from Rita as a sign that she totally still has a chance. She's a mess who is making an absolute mess of things in the most ridiculous fashion possible. Any moment of self-reflection on her part is fleeting. Yet I could see this being too awkward and cringey for others, and that's a legitimate reaction. How many people will even read far enough to get to that point?
ART:
Hatori and the rest of class look pretty typical of shojo characters at the turn of the last decade. They could easily fit in with the cast of Kimi ni Todoke with their big plaintive eyes, slender builds, and well-defined profiles. There's nothing that really dates it beyond the lack of modern smartphones. Where it shines most is with its faces, specifically Hatori's. She makes some of the weird, wildest faces, from blank-eyed shock to snotty scrunch-faced weeping. It's the backbone of the comedy here (such as it is), and Koda absolutely nails it.
Also, I can't hate on anyone brave enough to slip in an Attack No. 1 reference in the 2010s.
PRESENTATION:
Shoutout to the translator, Alexandra McCullough-Garcia, for giving this series a voice that's suitably slangy and modern without turning it into an old try-hard Tokyopop-style one. She really nails Hatori's personal voice in particular.
RATING:
This series is published by Yen Press. This series is complete in Japan with 10 volumes available. 1 volume has been released and is currently in print.
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