Tomo-chan wa Onnanoko!
Tomo-chan Is a Girl!

Edit

What would you like to edit?

SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links  

With massive chapter count of 953, Tomo-chan might seem like an unconquerable mountain to those who don't know what the catch here is, but the truth is almost the polar opposite. Tomo-chan falls under the definition of 'short but sweet' as its chapter count is almost equivalent to its total page count due to it being originally released in one-page-a-day format. The overall length is the one of four regular manga volumes (tho for some reason they were released in eight), and time-wise, most people should be able to read the entire series in 2-5 hours. A mountain it is not.

The second thing that might ... raise some questions is the title itself, 'Tomo-chan is a Girl' as it's giving quite strong implication of gender-bender, but that's not its deal either. Tomo-chan deals with much more simple concept. Childhood friendship between a girl and a boy starts developing into something more. Tomo herself is the first one to realize that she is in love with her best male friend, but unfortunately conveying those feelings seems to be a hard task due to mr. love interest seeing Tomo as his "strongest bro", but... Tomo-chan is a Girl. Hence the title. The daily lives of our two main protagonists are presented as a romantic comedy.

In terms of characters, Tomo herself is a tomboy who is very ignorant to how female x female frienships commonly work as well as to romantic feelings that boys have. The way her tomboyish traits are dealt with counter her weaker sides and make her very likable and real person, making it easy for the reader to side with her. The main dude himself doesn't have very strong characteristics or many visible character traits even, but the way the story is approached makes this seem like a decent choice. He is at his best when he embarrasses Tomo with bro acts or throws in some dialogue/witty remarks that rekts everyone. Since both of our main leads have some dense and embarrassment going on with their characters, side characters goof around and wingman the shit out of our main leads, sometimes teasing them, other times actually proving to be helpful and very much all the time cracking up due to Tomo's and her crush's reactions and behavior. The entire cast certainly has been created one things in mind: to work better as a team, together than alone as separate characters, but it all works well here and offers some nice chemistry and charm. I won't go into detail with how good the side characters are, but they stand out a lot, tie the series together, and as a whole the series feels like light, casual version of Kaguya-sama thanks to its cast.

Story-wise, we face a lot of cliches here. This is not a series one should read for its original take on plot. It's a rom-com that relies on comedy and interactions, going into further detail with what type of events these resolve around would be rather pointless. However, it should be noted that comedy is prioritized over romance and that the work doesn't contain much actual romance development. The entire series has two strong sides that stand above the rest and those are;

1) The colorful characters and their interaction with each others. This is perhaps best seen in forms of casual talk which is close to banter majority of the time. Such simple yet essential things as word choices and ways to phrase a sentence with euphemisms are put in the spotlight. Creativity is chosen most of the time for the sake of comedy and entertainment value + to make the characters more likable. While it occasionally seems like the author is just trying to deliver gags and wits with the help of characters, it's a mild flaw when character behavior remains loyal and doesn't go out of character even when the dialogue seems like sit-com script at times.

2) its unusual 1-page long format which manages to capture good amount of detail and present the story and its characters with minimalist story events via art that has gone thru great deal of planning and polish. The artwork itself is not technically mind-blowing or anything of the sort. It's simplistic and not very praise-worthy when it comes to drawings itself. The part that stands out is the way its panels are constructed, how much is manages to do with so little, how incredibly smooth the series is to read due to its artwork and the art format. So basically, the art itself is a form of story-telling and story presentation, and these are among the greatest merits this work has to offer. This manga presents itself incredibly well and its strongest sides benefit its comedy a great deal. In short: it delivers.

As far as enjoyment goes, Tomo-chan is quality time. It's not a ground-breaking work that can be read with serious mindset. It's a rom-com and can be disliked for the same reasons why any rom-com fails to entertain. Many seem to dislike its ending/not be pleased with it, but this is an attribute that majority of romances have. It's true that the length is unnecessary long for this content when taking into consideration the things that were not done instead of what was done. Partially filler-ish comedy is chosen over character development/relationship development for example. But as for me, this was rather fresh, smooth and entertaining read + ever so smooth reading experience. It managed to make me laugh and react + tomboy is the best girl type, so yes, easy pass from me. With fewer blushing scenes and more solid pace, and definitely with fewer feelings pondering, it could have been even better, but nevertheless, a good series for the reason that it's so enjoyable.

Ladies and Gentlemen, we are now arriving at the next station, the evolution of manga and 4-koma:

*Tired of waiting a week, a month or in case of Miura, a few ages for new material?
*Are you suffering even slightly from a short attention span as real life worries are more important than your entertainment?
*Do you want to be able to read more chapters a day, but have no time?

Well look no further, as we have Yanagida Fumita's first full blown manga, 'Tomo-chan Is a Girl!'.

As those of you who are familiar with this manga, you probably decided to read it on a whim, because it has ... cute art, cute girls, and romance in the tag.

But then... you were surprised.

"WHAT?! One page per chapter? What is this madness? A daily manga?
How in the world would that work?"

I've came to tell you it works better than a lot of current Japanese entertainment features.

Welcome to the probable 'successor' of other great 4-koma that were made into full anime such as the likes of Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki Girls, Watamote and Mikakunin de Shinkoukei.

Story: 9
Tomo-chan Is a Girl! synopsis is misleading, as the story is a lot more clever and well planned than you think it is if you judge it by its cover.

Just like Monthly Nozaki girls, this manga features the antics of a few oddball characters in a high school setting, something we've seen a lot, but it wasn't executed properly most of the time.

The initial premise is, that Tomo, the main female character is in love Jun, the male lead. She is tomboyish and Jun doesn't notice her womanly features. He socializes all buddy-buddy with her as guy-guy thing. But as each daily chapter unfolds carefully, it manages to surprise and uses, breaks and fleshes out cliches in clever ways.

As I don't want to spoil, just know, in the universe of Tomo is a girl, things are not always as they may first seem. The story develops in many ways other manga and anime series sometimes fail. We are not always in the same 'Namek', stuck in the non-creativeness of the writer to write a proper development. As I read 236 short chapters that are currently out in 2 hours, the amount of story development is respectable.

Art: 9
The art is in great quality. Usually we don't see well polished art in 4-koma, but in other cases, those with art that manages to catch your eye are those who will be picked up by enthusiastic manga readers, and that Tomo chan is a Girl! succeeded in.

The character designs are fitting to what the mangaka wanted to visualize on each panel. It has good consistency as each daily page is not made in purpose of just being a filler, but always has something to show the readers.

Character: 10
One of the biggest strengths of the series, are the ability of the characters to carry on the story without getting you bored. Each character fulfills its colorful role, in both whimsical personality and variety.

Tomo sometimes may be or may not be your typical tomboy character who blushes a lot. Jun also may be dense, or is he? Misuzu is one hell of a well written character, and pretty smart too to boot. Carol is quite the British prima donna with the same reaction face that trolls the readers.
In a successful 4-koma, the characters mean a lot, and that Tomo chan is a Girl especially delivers.

Enjoyment: 10
You will probably read all of the current available chapters in one sitting and never be bored. Enjoyment is high on this one.

Overall: 9
TL;DR: 'This manga is freaking good. Everyone go read it!!' Eks Dee

Don't let the fact that Tomo-chan wa Onnanoko! is a 4-koma manga or the fact that its summary statement seems rather week drive you away.

Tomo-chan wa Onnanoko! is an amazing manga about a teenage girl, Tomo Aizawa, confessing her love to her childhood friend, Juunichirou Kubota. The only problem is that Jun thought Tomo was a boy until they entered middle school and he keeps treating her as if she was a guy even in high school.


Story:

The main plot of this story is Tomo trying to get Jun to notice her and accept her as a girl more, even if it ... means totally stepping out of her comfort zone and becoming more feminine. Though I wouldn't say that this plot is the most unique or original, the execution of it is flawless. Right in the first chapter of this manga, it already seems to be leaving a strong and hilarious impression on you, and that impression will surely grow as you read the next dozen or so chapters.

Though, as it is a 4-koma manga and there's barely enough material to get one volume, don't expect there to be any major changes in characters. No character development yet, folks. The story progresses nicely and it moves at a fairly quick pace, but that's a good thing since it doesn't really drag any scenes out so that they're unnecessarily long.

Art:

The art is very nice and neat. It's easy to distinguish between main characters and some of the facial expressions the characters make are absolutely phenomenal. Plus, there are times where Tomo looks like a girl and other times where she looks like a guy, adding to the beautiful confusion of why Jun might have seen her as a boy when they were younger.

Characters:

The characters are absolutely amazing. They all have different and contrasting personalities that blend and balance out the mood of the story. None of them fall into any of the /dere/ categories (except maybe Tomo, but that depends on how you see her.)

Tomo tries her best to be open with Jun, but ends up using violence almost every time to cover up her shyness and embarrassment. Jun is hilariously dense when it comes to Tomo and romance in general, but he has a good heart and always means well. Tomo's best friend aka the MVP, Misuzu, is a cool type of girl, one that you'd mistake for a sadist in the beginning but find out that she's more than just cold glares and petty insults. There's a whole bunch of other fantastic characters that make up the pretty amusing cast.

Enjoyment:

I definitely enjoyed this manga. I read it at 12am at night and it had me in absolute stitches. I was laughing so loudly that my dad had to text me to be quiet and go to sleep. I'd definitely read it and recommend it to so many people because this manga is absolutely amazing and funny in so many ways.

Overall:

I'd give it a 9 out of 10 score. I probably repeated this over and over again, but this manga is absolutely hilarious. If you're a comedy lover and don't mind a few perverted jokes, this is for you.

FINAL SCORE:

Story: 9
Art: 9
Character: 9
Enjoyment: 10
>>Overall: 9

A high school romCOM where the friends outshine the main pair.

Story: Generic school life events that follows and drags out the plot of what you'd come to expect for a high school romance.
Art: Solid and improves throughout the story, especially considering Tomo-chan was a daily release.
Characters: Main cast consists of a generic main couple, Tomo and Jun, overshadowed by their friends Carol and Misuzu. Side characters are mostly forgettable or adult versions of the main cast.
Enjoyment: It's a light read and has its comedic moments, but blue balls the reader when it comes to the romance and compensates by overusing some jokes.

Tomo-chan is all about ... the chase. The quality fluctuates quite a bit from arc to arc, especially as the story progresses. There's nothing really special about the plot at all, as it doesn't try to innovate, but rather focus mostly on the interactions and dialogue between characters in their positions.

The art is solid for a daily 4-koma. It improves throughout the story, although as it's a daily release, the limitations the mangaka faces are obvious. The panels leading up to the jokes flow nicely and although each "chapter" is split into a page, that doesn't really affect the continuity of the manga.

The main couple are simple people, which makes chapters that revolve solely around the two feel rather repetitive. Both are naive, strong, clueless, and good people at heart. However, Misuzu is a welcome change of pace as someone who's a bit edgier, serving as a valuable foil to the flat personalities of the main two. Carol is the wild card of the cast, able to make things happen while maintaining her misleading smile. As for side characters, the most notable one is Misaki, who makes up for what he lacks in strength compared to the main couple with his common sense. The parents of the main characters are just older versions of the main ones, aside from Gorou, who is just the typical jealous doting dad. The rest of the characters are entirely forgettable and may as well not have a name.

Strangely enough, the best character and romantic developments are reserved not for the main couple. Not only do they act as wingwomen for Tomo and Jun, but they also legitimately learn from their mistakes and try to improve as people. When it eventually does come time for Tomo and Jun to make some progress, they fall flat in comparison. Their static characters can make the manga feel stale for a while, especially considering how plain their initial character design is in the first place. For a titular character, Tomo is surprisingly underdeveloped (outside of her physical growth).

Tomo-chan is first and foremost a comedy, with the vast majority of its chapters setting up for punchlines at the end of them. Although I don't think it's as funny as others do, it certainly does have some good jokes. At points, it relies on a bunch of running jokes, but they generally manage to continue being funny throughout. There are certainly some parts, however, that feel like filler and are a slog to get through. It's really only until the last couple dozen or chapters that this feels overly obvious. Despite my criticisms, it still has some fun arcs, but just like a hospice patient, the enjoyment flatlined at the end.

Overall, it's a mediocre/decent comedy series with a unsatisfying climax. It feels like Tomo being a girl is often only relevant to the comedic bits rather than to the romance; if only the mangaka had remembered Tomo-chan is a girl earlier.

Tomo-chan is a Girl! is a romcom about a tomboy (Tomo) who confesses to her crush (jun) but he gets the wrong idea and treats her like a close guy friend instead. She spends her time trying to become more girly to catch his attention and laughter ensues.

The story progresses at a decent pace. The 4-koma format might be offputting at first but I think it suits this manga well. They could have cut some filler pages out in some cases but for the most part there isn't too much filler.

The characters are pretty well written and interesting. The 4-koma format might make it a ... bit harder for complex character development in some cases but the writers have done well to avoid the pitfalls of this format.

The comedy is pretty solid and the romance is also quite well done, all in all it is a pretty charming manga.

Artwork is decent as well.

If you want a decent romcom in the 4-koma format you can't go wrong with Tomo-chan is a Girl! The character writing, story writing and comedy is consistent. I give it a solid 8.

I picked up this manga with the expectation that i would drop it within the first few chapters. My thought process was something along the lines of "If you've read one slice of life school romance you have ready them all." To my pleasant surprise this was not the case. With one page per chapter and near daily releases, this manga is low cost high reward read. Not long after finding this manga it quickly became part of may daily routine to the point found myself struggling to maintain my normal rhythm when stopped releasing for a week.


Story Overall: 7/10
Mystery: 6/10
Thrill: N/A
Uniqueness: 10/10

Unlike most stories ... in the same genera, the romance in Tomo-chan wa Onnanoko is more a undercurrent that accentuated a characters personality and drifts the story foreword instead of being the primary focus. Though the story progresses slowly the overall, the pacing is rather fast with each arch spanning somewhere between 5-10 pages. In the end what you get is a collection of interesting situations and witty dialog all created and resolved in the course of 1-2 pages.

Characters: 9/10

Though each character has a somewhat stereo-typical role that would normally earn -1 for creativity, but considering that comedies really heavily on stereo-type and the level at witch they have been evolved into their own person, i can not hold it against the writer. It sure beats a lot of popular anime of our time *cough* Eren Yeager *cough* kirito/Asuna *COUGH* *HACK*. As good as the characters are can cant consider them masterpieces. They are simply very well designed characters.

Art: 8/10

I feel that the manga does a good job extenuating the little gestures and such that emphasizes the existing mood or exposes some character trait that might normally be overlooked. This aspect might be why it is so easy to forgive the stereo-typing.

Enjoyment: 10/10

No complaints here.

Overall: 9/10

'What's up, gamer boy?'

That's all it took for Tomo to start a friendship with Jun. You'd think with 953 chapters count that be a lot? Each chapter is a single page that's all the more reason this manga is so easy to digest. There's an overarching narrative, thus making it all the more enjoyable.

Our story centers around Tomo-chan, our tomboy protagonist. She's a strong female lead and is more on the physical spectrum. Tomo has two female friends, one being Misuzu, who is devious and shows little no emotion towards anything. The other is Carol, who has a bubbly personality and wants to be ... everyone's friend. Tomo's only has one male friend, that being Jun. They've been childhood friends.

The main plot consists of Tomo-chan wanting to Jun to see her as a romantic interest. Every since they meet, Jun always saw Tomo as dude figuratively and literally. It was due to her appearance and attitude towards activities and the fact that she was in a dojo. The art is what sells the manga having a certain charm to it. It has many cliches but executes on them well, benefiting the story as well. Tomo-Chan is a girl! It is a short manga that's a pleasant and digestible read with many charming characters.

Honestly I can't tell you how much I began to grow bored of this 4-koma 1 page comic after reading 435 chapters. All it's about is dimwitted lad called Jun who isn't just bothered by his childhood friend Tomos confession just because she ain't "girly enough" to make him self aware that she is in fact, the opposite sex. Literally gender labelling involved in this manga is just a joke. It's like I feel the characters surrounding Tomo just can't accept for who she is. I have to give credit tho that she does stand up for herself whenever any character pisses her off.

I ... really thought this long manga series was going to change my mind as the comic went on, of course it didn't. It gave me the waiting game to when both characters finally admit they love one another. Bro...945 chapters is too much to find out and rather too little too late in my personal opinion. I just don't care anymore what happens at the end of it, I literally give up!

One of the best rom-com I have ever read.

This manga uses the perfect mixture of comedy and romance to reach the peak of rom-coms. Not a second feels wasted in this manga. At the start, you might feel that the same stuff is repeating over and over but it isn't the case at all. The characters slowly but surely develop, and the development pace is so realistic that if you try re-reading the manga from the start, you will notice things that changed in the characters clearly. The short and sweet story enhanced the plot as there wasn't any wasted time. It never feel as ... if it was being elongated more than needed and felt very natural. The characters aren't straight-up dumb which we get to see a lot. There was no un need for shipping of other characters. The author didn't make all the main girls fall for someone which was quite surprising but it was the most natural of all which felt really refreshing. Nothing in this manga felt forced. The characters were realistic.

The characters arent 'normal' by any means. They are so over-exaggerated that it clearly couldn't be a rom-com... or so would you think. Each and every character has depth to them and it's clear that every single one of their actions had some or other reason behind them. I can't say much about this rom-com as saying stuff might spoil it for you. I enjoyed this manga way too fricking much.

Overall: It is a really dope rom-com which you will complete in about 2 hours or so.

Story:

A well planned and well foreshadowed story. Despite the 4-koma structure, this manga manages to convey important details and leave readers thinking while maintaining the humor that it's known for on the surface. There are many elements of drama between the cast that are not apparent at first, and are revealed as the story progresses. There are many times where you will go and reread a certain chapter as an event revealed in the future allows you to view the scene in a different light.

Art:

While not as impressive as series known for art, such as Tokyo Ghoul, Tomo-chan holds it's own. It's character designs and ... settings are exceptionally good at conveying what they need to. The art style is a bit generic, but that's nothing to dock points for. Compared to other 4-koma its art is amazing, and still above average for manga.

Characters:

This is another very strong category of the manga. All of the main cast are incredibly fleshed out, each with a diverse personality. At first glance there are many tropes, such is the nature of manga. But the backstory for each character that is introduced throughout the story allows the reader to develop a new perspective and build attachment. Characters that appear to be villainous, e.g. Misuzu Gundou, have deep reasons for acting the way they do. Carefree characters perhaps have more worries than one would initially assume. My recommendation is to give the characters some time before you judge who they truly are.

Enjoyment:

Enjoyment is a highly subjective category to be sure. If you put a lot of stock in character likability and a solid storyline, then give this manga a shot.

Overall:

A 4-koma that manages to keep it lighthearted but maintain a more solid story that most manga. There are quite a few subplots that you should watch for. Without going into spoilers, the story is a lot more than just a love story for Jun and Tomo.

661 chapters and 4 omake in and I honestly can't remember what made me start watching this in the first place. But whatever it is, I thank my lucky stars that it compelled me to do so because this is a diamond in the rough.

The story is quite good, albeit a little slow. But that is forgivable because this is meant to be a 4-koma comedy. Releasing 1 chapter a day, you never have to wait for too long to find out what happened in the story. It becomes a daily ritual of sorts, wake up, clean yourself up, read Tomo-chan, eat breakfast, go ... for work/school...

The best thing about this is the characters, especially the female cast. You have such interesting characters that keep you hooked throughout the story that you just have to open the next chapter on the next day. You start off with Tomo, Jun, and Misuzu, who you discover within the first 10 chapters (pages). Then you get introduced to some more characters I won't reveal for spoilers sake. But among them, you have one of the most amazing characters to ever grace the manga world. Cotton Candy will never be the same again.

Anyways, please check it out. You will love it, especially if you love slice of life.

Story - 9.5/10
Art - 10/10 (for a daily manga)
Character - 12/10
Enjoyment - 11/10
Overall - 11/10

Overall it is a lightweight (no love-triangle or drama in general) romance, with interesting, hilarious and really loveable characters.

First of all, don't be shocked by the amount of chapters this manga has (871 right now). Each chapter is only one page.

Considering the overall premise of the story, it could've easily been that sort of comedy without any real development, constantly revolving around how Tomo is tomboyish and Jun not being able to take a hint.
But luckily, this isn't the case. The pacing isn't the fastest, but there is a decent development to the characters as well as the relationship between Tomo and Jun. I ... also really liked the comedy aspect to it, it's just exactly my type of humour.

The characters, Jun, Tomo, their classmates, their parents.. all of them are absolutely awesome and make the dialogues all the more entertaining. In my opinion the author managed to find the perfect balance - none of the characters seem unnecessary or boring, but they aren't repetitive or clichee'd either. They all have their twists and quirks to them which make them funny (and for some also a bit unpredictable) in their own way.

So if you want to read some adorable love-story developing between two childhood friends while having some laughs, this will probably be a good read for you.

A random guy passing and sees this manga and you know what? I gave it a chance. Then oh my god i don't regret anything about finding this Manga!

Soiler Alert!

Let me start with the story.
The story talks about a girl named Tomo_chan. Tomo_chan was a girl who liked to play with her childhood friends especially with a boy named Junichirou. Tomo and Junichirou are best friends they played together alot when they were kids. and the girl named Tomo liked sports and likes to play outside while Junichirou liked to play video games.

Then when Tomo met Junichirou the kid named Junichirou changed from playing video ... games into playing sports with Tomo.

After growing and becoming High_schoolers Tomo wanted to confess to the boy named Junichirou. But the shock was after Tomo confessed to Junichirou that Tomo knew that Junichirou treats Tomo like a boy.

Story: (10)


The art is good everything looked beautifull and realistic but it needed some improvments to become a master piece.

Art: (9)


The characters are cool each character has a personality. But the most character i liked was Misuzu Gundou. She cares for her friend Tomo and she is rare smiling girl.

Characters: (10)


My personal opinion i enjoyed this manga alot more than everything and i really enjoyed every chapter that i read even if it was a (1) page each chapter.

Enjoyment: (10)


Overall: (9.5)

I totally recommend this manga for everyone give it a chance it is a good manga. And this is it folks this is my first review and i hope you liked it.

And thank you!

Tomo-chan Is a Girl! | Tomo-chan wa Onnanoko! Review. Romance about a muscular boy and an even muscular woman.

Tomo-chan starts off with a confession.... that our dense MMC doesn't understand. The main heroine is an incredibly tomboyish girl as such she's always been treated like a boy (honestly its almost 50/50 her fault) by her best friend and her Crush. Jun is character made of steel and is incredibly, unnecessarily chiseled. Along side with the help of her 2 other friends can Tomo find a way to make Jun see her as a woman and hopefully make him fall in love with her.

First thing you'll ... notice is its large ass amount of chapters. Relax its a short and sweet series. Its a daily manga with 1 page representing each chapter. Similar to Mousou telepathy. The series is 8 volumes long. Its also much shorter than your average read being only 140 pages but at the same time being a faster read than your average 4koma manga.

Now lets talk characters. They are spanktastic. I really enjoyed the chemistry between. They are likable with their more than friends and less than lovers like relationship (Jun and Tomo). Tomo-chan's difference between her feminine side and her boyish is done incredibly well. Its this contrast and the reactions about the people around her that makes this series so interesting and hilarious. The side characters are pretty funny too. Especially the=side-main duo gundou and Carol. They are just a joy to watch especially due to there conflicting personalities. The author is so good at making contradictions and contrasts absolutely hilarious. I laughed quite a lot in this manga. More so than i thought i would. The romance is also surprisingly good. Not just when it happens. But there is constant tension and chemistry from the start. So watching it all unfold is always fun.

The problem with this series is the serious side. I just could not take any of the *serious* moments seriously. Maybe they weren't supposed to be taken seriously but they weren't funny either so moments like those always feel wasted. They were some that were below average... those were better ones of the lot. Remember when i said the romance is always fun? I lied. The romance takes hits here and there. More specifically the Firework festival. Its kind of annoying that the author decided to pull this kind of nonsense. He pulls it again but though not forgivable its still pretty damn funny.

TLDR: This is a nice quick read. Though there are quite a few issues and 1 big issue. I think considering the fact that i liked the series enough to actually remember the names of the 4 main characters i guess i'll let this series barely get away with a 7/10. Also the ending is fine if you binge it.

yo like i think tomo is hella cute and i'd let her break my back if it means i could see her smile but jun's skull is as thick as a concrete wall like come on mannnn slay that shiiiitttt

carol is too pure for this world and she is great and the other one is evil and i would let her set me on fire if i can see that smug sinister smile as she dances on my corpse

please jun, get your head in game and slayyyyyyy i have counted more times than i can possibly imagine where i just wanted to strangle jun for ... being a moron like lmao come on ill treat tomo like the princess she deserves to be protect that smile jun and dont be a wanglong

I don't normally write preliminary reviews.
Normally when I do its because I simply couldn't bring myself to go on.
But Tomo-Chan is one of the rare casee where I feel safe voicing my opinion AND that I feel like recommending the manga.

It's a simple romantic comedy, with emphasis on the comedy.
The lead is Aizawa Tomo, a compete tomboy whose lost sight of her feminine side. The main thrust of the comedy is her attempts to woo her best friend Jun, which is a nice break from the usual male lead romantic comedy set up.

The humor is the main selling point for me, most of it ... relies on a constant stream of misunderstands but there's the occasional bit of physical comedy too.
Though I can't say I'm won over by the cliche romance plot, I suppose its serviceable enough as a vehicle for more haha-funny.

I think my favourite part is the character design itself. Throughout Tomo-Chan the art work is genuinely amazing with each character being extremely well drawn.
Yanagida is a master at creating a character through purely visual means.
Not only that but his panel flow is excellent, each page contains only 4 panels and all of them are identically shaped rectangles.
So it really speaks to Yanagida's ability to move the eye around a scene without being able to use a more inventive panel layout.

Another excellent part of Tomo-Chan and the reason why I feel so safe recommending it is the pacing. A lot of romance and slice of life manga will draw themselves out into hundreds of issues and thousands of chapters. Tomo-Chan on the other hand has only 8 issues and maintains a brisk pace throughout. Introducing characters, making some jokes with them and then moving on before anything gets stale.

I realize that if you look at it online what I just said probably sounds like a lie.
The issue is with how you define a chapter.
Each page has its own title, so some sources like manganelo.com will give you a chapter count of almost 400.
While MAL here uses the count given in the books (each chapter being roughly 10 pages) which totals out at 56 pages.

No mater how you slice it at sub 1000 pages Tomo-Chan is far shorter than most manga.

I highly recommend Tomo-Chan, in the same vein as After Hours. A short sweet romance to give you a smile and put a laugh in your belly.

I don't document the manga I read on MAL, but Tomo-chan has a special place in my heart, being the very first manga I actually read, back in 2016. This manga was probably one of the reasons why I really got into the whole anime industry and otaku culture. I may be a 'lil biased, but here goes:

Story: 6/10
The story of "Tomo-chan wa Onnanoko" is quite simple. A gorl with a big rack is known for being considered a boy by Jun, the boy mc. It's a bit basic and cliche, but its quite addictive, with the mass amounts of cutesiness and fun that occurs ... over the timespan of their love-life. It does the job.

Art: 8/10
The art, as always is quite good. I can't really say much, it does the job well enough. The quick and easy panels to read are very beneficial and easily goes through your brain and keeps you entertained.

Characters: 9/10
Now-- the characters are really what in MY mind are the highlights of this show. The basis of each of them are generic, but are really memorable, each and every one of them. The rich girl, the sadistic girl, the oppressive father, etc. They give an opportunity for each of these characters to shine.

Enjoyment: 8/10
I thoroughly enjoyed the manga, and couldn't stop reading a few years ago. If you asked me to re-read it, I probably would. It isn't memorable in the sort of way that leaves a scar in your heart, changes your opinion on a genre, or utterly confuses you. It's memorable in the way that even a basic story can be eternally entertaining.

Overall: 8/10
Hopefully this manga gets an anime adaptation.

While the story, character, and art fall somewhat into the standard of mediocrity, I enjoyed the stories' lack of nuance, slow but fun pacing, and how it feels like while there could be a lot more development, I want nothing more than what was offered. There were some opportunities for better development, but I love the characters and how it was written. Not much objectivity, just telling you that the 973 chapters are single pages and are very fun if you don't come in expecting something amazing.

The story has a very flat and plain basis of tomboy and best friend treating her as a guy ... friend. While that would be the end of the discussion for the plot since they don't really divert, the one subplot involving two other side characters actually hit with decent impact. It used the fact that the story was very unassuming to hit us with an unexpected divergence from form.

The characters are very normal, but there's just something about hot blooded people with great hearts that tug at my heart strings. I really like how they used the childhood plot hooks and motivations despite how lackluster the characters seem.

While the early chapters had ok art style, once it got near the end the artist really started to get out of the comfort zone. I'm a bit biased because before reading this story, I was reading ao no ride, last game, and other not really well drawn mangas imo.

Tomo-chan wa Onnanoko is an aimless tomboy-fetish romcom with a story following the misadventures of a high school girl named Tomo, who attempts to confess her romantic feelings to her childhood friend, Jun, but is mistaken for a boy due to her masculine demeanor.

The manga reinforces the idea that girls who act like boys are somehow more admirable than those who exhibit traditionally feminine traits. This sends a damaging message to young readers that there is a right and wrong way to express one's gender, which can lead to confusion and self-doubt. Moreover, the manga's depiction of masculinity and femininity is oversimplified and reinforces rigid ... gender roles. Tomo is portrayed as a tomboy who is strong and capable, while Jun is depicted as a more traditional masculine figure who is protective and confident. This simplistic portrayal of gender reinforces harmful societal norms and limits readers' understanding of the complexities of gender and identity.

Another issue with is its lacklustre character development. For a plotless and supposedly character-driven story, the characters are one-dimensional caricatures rather than fully realised individuals. Tomo, in particular, is a frustratingly static character who rarely shows growth or change throughout the series. This lack of development makes it difficult for readers to become invested in the characters and their struggles.

Furthermore, the dialogue is repetitive and uninteresting. The humor often feels forced and falls flat, relying on tired gender stereotypes and overused tomboy tropes. This can make the manga feel tedious to read, as readers are subjected to the same tired jokes and gags over and over again.

The manga is nothing more than just an aimless meaningless silly romcom aimed at tomboy enthusiasts, add to that, regardless of intention, the underlying messages were reductive, and lacklustre execution make it another rubbish forgetable manga. The perpetuation of harmful gender stereotypes, lack of character development, and repetitive plot all detract from the overall quality of the series. Readers looking for a more nuanced and thoughtful exploration of gender and identity would be better served by seeking out other manga, such as Saotome Senshu Hitakakusu (for a better executed tomboy romcom), Okama Report, and a few Rumiko's classics such as Ranma and Urusei Yatsura.

"Tomo-chan is a girl!" is a rom com manga about a tomboy falling in love with her best friend who treats her like a boy. With a somewhat cliché setting in what is a slightly saturated genre, you'd expect this to be averagely mediocre.

Tomo-chan is one of the most enjoyable mangas I've read in a long time. It sets itself up as a classic romcom but it's format is very unique, being read as a one page chapter, for 953 chapters (So really 953 pages). It manages to fit solid comedy with great romance and relationship development. It has a great artstyle that drastically improves ... through the course of the manga and the author has the ability to adapt their art style perfectly to different situations within the story (A comedic scene, a fight, a romantic scene, fanservice, etc.). The characters are legitimately a perfect 10/10, with most of them not only being able to be serious with their own trauma and stories but be hilarious and not fall into any cliché's. From Gundou Misuzu's mischievous antics to Carol's amazing deadpan comedy, yet these characters manage to develop in the story perfectly, as we see Carol show real emotion, and especially Tomo break out of her shell. It's almost as if the mangaka wrote a slice of life comedy like Lucky Star while writing something along the lines of ReLIFE's character development and packaged it all together and somehow it works extremely well. The only thing that is a shame is that the story is to an extent pretty linear/predictable and the way that the story holds out until the very end to resolve the climax without much aftermath.

Also Misuzu is best girl