Content Warning: This book contains mild sexual harassment
Ayaka Really, Really Loves Hiroko!
Ayaka is a young office worker who’s madly in love with her senpai and team leader, Hiroko. She’s not shy in her attempts to get Hiroko’s attention. Unbeknownst to Ayaka, Hiroko is a closet lesbian who’s flustered by Ayaka’s advances, convinced that this “straight chick” is just innocently expressing her platonic affections. Ayaka’s attempts to confess to Hiroko end in abject failure, whereas Hiroko is convinced by office misunderstandings and her own biases that Ayaka’s completely straight.
Everyone in the office, including Hiroko, believes that Ayaka is crushing on her senior male colleague Yuya. But Risa, Ayaka’s coworker, is the only one to realize the truth: Ayaka is in love with Hiroko!
Sweet and Cozy Vibes, Perfect for Dokis
Ayaka Is in Love with Hiroko! takes place in a sweet and cozy world without prejudice or sexism. (Those who want more of an edge to their LGBTQ+ stories will not find that here.) The characters are all nice and supportive of each other. It’s very easy to root for the main couple, especially when the story shifts to Ayaka’s perspective. She’s so earnest and hard-working in striving for Hiroko’s attention that I felt upset on her behalf whenever she failed for reasons beyond her control.
Hiroko is also portrayed very well here. She’s a closet lesbian who’s been at the company for about a decade, and is idolized by the other women at the company. The divide between Hiroko-at-work and Hiroko-the-womanizer is reflected in Hiroko’s character design. Hiroko-the-womanizer’s expressions are wackier and more animated. She also lets her hair down, which is a detail that the author might be drawing our attention to with how Hiroko’s hairstyle is one of the first things Ayaka explicitly says is cute about her. This makes sense, as Hiroko isn’t on the job in these moments and so doesn’t need to spruce herself up, but it’s still a fun visual way to represent her double life.
The pacing of the story is also excellent. Ayaka’s attempts to confess backfire on her thanks to bad luck or Hiroko’s conviction that Ayaka is straight as an arrow. My experience with these sorts of romance stories, where miscommunication and contrived coincidences block progression and create drama for chapters on end, made me believe that the first volume would be nothing but wacky hijinks. Imagine my surprise when the first volume ended on a cliffhanger that promises, without a doubt, some progress will be made in the relationship.
Of course, there’s always the chance that Hiroko or Ayaka will do whatever mental gymnastics they need to in the second volume to return them both to square one. Hopefully not, though!
Though Sweet, It can Lack Substance
Let me preface this part by saying that I’m aware this is only the first volume, and that new series always endure growing pains. But as this is a review of the first volume, I do still have to point out parts that I couldn’t help but want to see more of.
Hiroko explicitly mentions that she’s Ayaka’s superior and thirteen years older. Ayaka is a new graduate from university, so she’s in her early twenties; I’m guessing that Hiroko is in her mid-thirties. That’s a hefty age gap when taking Ayaka’s age into account, not to mention that Hiroko is her superior. But whenever Hiroko convinces herself that Ayaka can’t possibly be flirting with her, she only ever focuses on sexuality rather than the power and age difference.
This might be addressed in later volumes after Ayaka and Hiroko get together. Granted, when Ayaka’s cohorts believe she has a crush on Yuya, they actively support the romance instead of assuming the worst about her. There’s always a chance that such workplace dynamics simply don’t matter in this world.
Verdict
Ayaka Is in Love with Hiroko! is a cutesy and sweet workplace yuri with some great characters who are easy to root for. Though the main meat of the first volume hinges on misunderstandings, it never gets old thanks to the fast pacing. I’m curious what conflicts Ayaka and Hiroko could face, considering they live in such an ideal world with so many supportive co-workers and friends. But I’m eager to find out.
You can purchase volume 1 of Ayaka Is in Love with Hiroko! on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Books-A-Million.
Credits
Story and Art: Sal Jiang
Translator: Katie Kimura
Editor: Katie van Amburg
Copy Editor: Tina Tseng
Proofreader: Massiel Gutierrez
Quality Check: Shingo Nemoto
Retouching & Lettering: Vibrant Publishing Studio
Cover Designer: Aracelliejarque Villegas
Published in English by Tokyopop
A special thank you to Tokyopop for allowing us to review this volume. Receiving this book for free has in no way altered the opinions expressed in this article.
Article edited by: Adam Wescott
The Good
- There's a sense of momentum in the story's pacing, feeling like the plot is moving along even though it still feels pretty slice-of-life.
- The art is very cute, and Ayaka's drawn so beautifully it's easy to see why Hiroko gets so flustered around her.
The Bad
- The fast pacing can leave characters feeling under-utilized. Risa doesn't feel like a character at all, and exists more as a convenient plot device.
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