Aoi-kun ni wa Kanawanai

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Alternative Titles

Synonyms: No Match for Aoi-kun

Japanese: 蒼井くんにはかなわない

Information

Type: Manga

Volumes: 2

Chapters: 13

Status: Finished

Published: May 15, 2020 to May 21, 2021

Genres: Comedy, Supernatural

Themes: Mahou Shoujo, School

Serialization: Zero-Sum Online

Authors: Oshikawa, Ii (Story & Art)

Statistics

Score: 6.70¹ (scored by 339 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #13244²

² based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #16489

Members: 853

Favorites: 6

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6.70

Ranked #13244Popularity #16489Members 853

MangaZero-Sum OnlineOshikawa, Ii (Story & Art)

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Volumes: /2

Chapters: /13

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Synopsis

There is only one thing that gets a certain 16-year-old boy to wake up early on a Sunday morning—the weekly broadcast of his favorite show, Magical Girl Pretty Eririn (PreEri)! But as much as he loves magical girl anime, Rio Aoi feels too ashamed to let his interest in a children's show be known to the public. In order to have as little contact with his classmates as possible, he usually leaves school immediately after classes, excluding some occasional shopping for PreEri merch on the side. This is how he currently spends his high school days.

However, this routine is suddenly broken when Aoi saves a girl falling from the sky who was trying to fight a monster. The next day, she finds him at school and introduces herself as Nagi Sumire. Despite being a magical girl, she is not sure what she should do and has yet to defeat a single enemy. While trying to boost her confidence, Aoi accidentally lets his knowledge of PreEri slip. But to his surprise, Sumire reacts excitedly and quickly asks him to teach her about magical girls!

And just like that, a supportive friendship—along with some extensive training—begins.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Reviews

Sep 21, 2022

dir_ennoshita

Recommended

This series was adorable, and had way too few reviews for me to not add one!

The premise is simple - Aoi, a magical girl otaku, stumbles upon Sumire, a burgeoning magical girl who knows nothing of what being a magical girl entails. He takes it upon himself to teach her the ways and techniques of being one.

Rather than being a direct parody of magical girl series, it is actually a loving tribute to them. You get the transformation sequences, the power of friendship, the cute aesthetics, all with load of humor and heart. The dynamic between the two main characters is very sweet, and ...

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Jan 26, 2021

IDK_No

Recommended

Preliminary (7/13 eps)

There aren't that many chapters so I don't really have a full picture of the overall story and the direction its taking. However, I can say that the art and characters are really good. The chapters have good length and the quality stays good the whole time.

the main characters are likable and the side characters add for good interaction and moments. However, they aren't a main focus of the story which I like. This manga wastes no time with buildup and filler and goes straight to the story. Often times, manga gets stretched out longer than necessary but this manga, was able to have what ...

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Jul 7, 2021

justgivemeanyUN

Recommended

Preliminary (11/13 eps)

Deconstruction is a loose term nowadays. No Match For Aoi-kun! is not a deconstruction of the Mahou Shoujo genre, but rather, and in pretty awesome taste may I add, an extension of the stylistic choices and elaboration of said choices that is seen in many Mahou Shoujo media.

It begins with Aoi Rio, titular main character, who is a self loathing student due to the fact he is in his late teens and still likes the magical girl show Pretty Eririn. His insecurity comes at the end of the fact that on top of that immature enjoyment, he is unable to live up to the ... great expectations of his father and standards that his brother have set. He is, without a doubt, an awesome character, in every sense of the word. His worries are extremely realistic and relatable. Despite labeling himself as an otaku, he really isn't attached to any of the negative connotations of that word. He is, despite his claims about being an average academic, extremely studious. While this fact remains unbeknownst to him only, he is caught up with the implications of liking anime that is directed at younger audiences, despite the fact that that in of itself is not indicative of anything bad.

And while our main hero is probably the only character in the manga who is so well explored, multifaceted, and interesting, the art on this thing does every character justice. The deuteragonist, Sumire looks absolutely stunning, and, a small little detail that is more appreciated than the mangaka could ever know, is how he changes the character's looks chapter by chapter. It might not be every chapter, but I remember when I saw Sumire with a different hairstyle in one chapter compared to an earlier one and upon noticing it, immediately acknowledged the subtle effort towards making the story an authentic and immersive one.

Throughout the course of the story, as your eyes are continuously bombarded with gorgeous visuals, Mahou Shoujo tropes are consistently brought up in a way that would usually stir one the wrong way. Things such as overly philosophical conversations in the middle of battle are used, but despite that, No Match for Aoi-Kun! doesn't really feel like a Mahou Shoujo manga to begin with. Aoi is a walking reminder that the manga is a halfway parody (I'll admit it takes the Mahou Shoujo stuff seriously at times) of those ideals and themes that are often thrown around in Mahou Shoujo media. When he sees Lily, his first thought, despite the fact that he has just been KIDNAPPED is that she is likely the final boss. During her fight with Sumire, he talks about how despite her position usually placing the main heroine in deep trouble, she is losing handedly. Yes, No Match for Aoi-kun! is a Mahou Shoujo manga but in reality, it handles that aspect with so much comedy and satire that it might as well not be.

So when things like, "You should just stay yourself!", or "You have to change and become better!" are thrown around, it's less the makings of cheesy dialogue in the middle of a fight to convince a villain to turn heel, but emblematic of a dialogue based work. Conversations are at the heart of this manga, and each of the character's lines to each other are great and meaningful. Every character finds something inspiring in another, and they all have their own struggles that make them pop out.

At the end, Aoi stays himself, despite coming to struggle in school. But, and this is just my feeling, it seems he's back on track for academic success because he's found the answer that's been waiting for him all the time. It's okay to like works that would deem you too mature to watch it. It's okay to not live up to everyone's goals for you. It's okay to just be yourself.

And for the characters who've changed, such as Lily, it just shows how multidimensional this story really was. Different characters got different answers, and it still remains a thematically coherent manga.

No Match for Aoi-kun's tragedy is that it's 11 chapters long and I couldn't read even more and get to know the characters even better. But even then, it was a fun read all throughout, and not to mention eye-catching and hopeful.

I'm feeling a decent to strong 8.