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Studentin Ichika wünscht sich nichts sehnlicher als eine ganz normale Beziehung, doch sie wird von der Männerwelt oft nur auf ihr Äußeres reduziert. Auf einer Party lernt sie Kosei kennen, mit dem alles anders zu sein scheint: Endlich ein Mann, bei dem sie sich verstanden fühlt! Doch während ihre Gefühle für ihn wachsen, hält er sie merkwürdig auf Distanz und scheint nicht ganz ehrlich zu ihr zu sein... Wie viel Wahrheit kann die Liebe ertragen?

192 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 28, 2025

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Megumu Seto

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5 stars
56 (18%)
4 stars
120 (40%)
3 stars
98 (32%)
2 stars
21 (7%)
1 star
5 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 154 reviews
Profile Image for DianaRose.
1,219 reviews453 followers
May 31, 2026
firstly, thank you to the publisher for an arc!

4.5 stars — you might as well be the one is ultimately a gender swapped 500 days of summer, except in manga form. i am interested in seeing where this goes, so i’ll be continuing the series to see how sanari’s and nakajo’s relationship develops, but i have a feeling nakajo won’t wait for sanari to change…
Profile Image for Bibliothecat.
1,933 reviews87 followers
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
June 2, 2026



Thank you Kodansha for providing me with the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This review is for volume 1 only.


Ichika is on the lookout for a boyfriend. Instead, she meets and befriends Kosei - the two get along really well Ichika begins to develop feelings for him. Kosei, however, doesn't do serious relationships and offers they can be friends or casual lovers. Ichika only wants a serious relationship but agrees to remain friends.

The art is really pretty, I actually like the inside art more than the covers. I think this is off on a good start - both characters seem quite mature and likeable in their own way. They do really have good chemistry and I appreciate that Kosei is upfront about not wanting a serious relationship. Ichika is also a nice main character with a good portion of confidence, I like that she's got fairly specific standards. Because they agree to be friends and are both upfront on how they feel about things, this does dip into a bit of an angsty territory with blurred lines between friendship and more. At this stage, I would like to continue following their story, I think the main thing would really be how long this series ends up becoming as I can also see this turning into a bit of a drawn out slog. Fingers crossed!
Profile Image for Mella aka Maron.
1,348 reviews1 follower
May 26, 2026
So this manga was pretty cute but goodness, this guy is a major red flag. 🚩 I don’t like him at all; his insistence that she’s too good for him… She really needs to move on and find a man who respects her more.

Still, it was a fun read and I liked the FMC quite a lot!
Profile Image for Mark.
3,064 reviews303 followers
August 8, 2026
[Thanks to Netgalley and Kodansha for an ARC of this manga in exchange for an unbiased review.]

This isn’t a bad title, but it is a bit wanting in a couple of places in ways that stuck under my craw, which means I’m going to be a little hard on it. I can see this being a pretty divisive title too.

Ichika’s trying to find a decent guy and thinks she’s found one in Kosei. He, however, would be much happier fooling around than settling down and has several female friends who agree. The stage is thus set for this series.

The best part of the story is the opening mixer where Ichika and Kosei meet and start bonding. Their chemistry is pretty much instantaneous and they make for such a compelling pair together. There’s no question of why the two of them would make a great couple.

I especially found Ichika to be a fantastic character. The confidence she carries herself with and the way she dresses how she wants and enjoys her height? All great traits and she makes a killer first impression.

Kosei’s fine. Your tolerance for him is going to be down to how you feel about his casual attitude towards his dating, but, for me, as long as everybody’s on the same page then there isn’t anything wrong with that. Yeah, he could tell Ichika sooner about his disposition, but at least he does.

What really made me lose some of my fondness for this was that, as the story goes on, it really feels like Ichika is getting less and less confident the more she falls for Kosei. That’s maybe believable, given his flat rejection, but it throttles her as a character.

The idea that these two would become friends isn’t crazy, they get along really well, nor is it implausible that they would keep being friends after Kosei comes clean about things. That dynamic is believably awkward.

A romance about two people who want two different things isn’t bad, I just fault the execution a little. It would have been nice if Ichika didn’t suddenly decide she needed to change to find a guy, but you could argue that that’s a negative consequence from her friendship with Kosei and her string of previous failures.

It would have helped if Kosei’s side of things was more developed as well. Between some of his actions and words it seems like there’s maybe something behind his attitude - not that there has to be - and getting to that sooner would definitely make him seem less like he’s just making Ichika weaker.

Such a strong female character deserves slightly better than to become a ball of nerves over a guy, no matter how many moments they have together. It’s not that I was opposed to this, but I feel it could have been done a bit better. I’m just happier when being in love actually makes people stronger and that doesn’t feel the case here.

3 stars - I’ll definitely check out the next volume, but I would say that I understand why some people just can’t with Kosei. If what I’ve described makes him sound like a jerk, you might want to avoid this one.
Profile Image for Skirmantė.
228 reviews20 followers
May 31, 2026
The art style was really cute, and I really liked the FMC - she's strong and interesting.

The MMC is such a playboy and a major red flag. Honestly, the girl should run, though he's kind of hot?? lol

Overall, this was a fun read, and I'm curious to see what happens next.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Profile Image for Anni K. Mars.
440 reviews97 followers
November 8, 2025
mega mega süß! erinnert mich vom zeichenstil manchmal an ai yazawa. Ich weiß nur nicht, wie lange man eine Reihe mit so einem Thema ziehen kann. hoffe, das wird nicht so endlos und so ein hin und her.
Profile Image for Emma.
407 reviews7 followers
Read
September 12, 2025
J’adore ! Ichika est très attachante j’ai trop hâte de découvrir la suite + le style graphique est très mimi 🥰
Profile Image for Emylia.
395 reviews
October 24, 2024
ML is a very smartly written character, giving the FL the last word without actually doing it. He's fully aware that he's not really rejecting her, and that glimpse of hope is what keeps the "I can fix him" thought in the FL head.

He hangs out with her and dates her without a label, all the while knowing she's attracted to him. He mentions the friends with benefit (FWB) thing to assert that he will only accept this aside from friendship, which will make her more desperate for more. He gives her options to give her the illusion of choice. He shows self-control from not pouncing on her to tantalize her. I am not 100% sure about this, but IRL his actions look purely manipulative. He's definitely a red flag for me. In real life, this is not a red flag, is a red freaking wall, but this is manga universe so go gurl.

Unhealthy and destructive.. It hurts so bad, yet i like reading these stuff lol. Angst college modern romance is why I’m even alive.
Profile Image for Kadi P.
928 reviews151 followers
July 27, 2026
*Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.*

The art was great, it looked just like a number of other romance manga I’ve read. The protagonist is what sets this manga apart from other romance manga.

I loved that the protagonist had integrity because often protagonists in these romance manga lose their values when they fall in love, but the protagonist was clear what she wanted and she stuck to it even when she had a golden opportunity to be with the love interest by any means necessary.

I didn’t hate the love interest. I didn’t particularly like him either, but I got the feeling that there was more to his characterisation that first met the eye. It’s likely that his backstory will reveal some sort of daddy issues or trauma which causes him to have commitment issues which is why he doesn’t want to commit to a relationship with the protagonist despite the fact that he clearly likes her as much as the protagonist likes him. Still, the friends to lover trope is an interesting angle you don’t often see in josei manga and pushing that angle does make this manga feel more fresh whilst recycling the same environments of summer festivals, etc that every manga has. Next they’ll surely be having a summer trip with friends.

Seeing the will they-won’t they tense atmosphere throughout this volume is enticing, especially because they’ve flipped the script by having it so that the mysteriousness of the love interest acts as the barrier rather than the protagonist rejecting the love interest. If there’s more of that to come, I’d be interested to see it…
Profile Image for bailey elizabeth smith.
593 reviews252 followers
May 30, 2026
2⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Love the main girl! SAVE YOURSELF AND RUN AWAY. YOU’RE TOO GOOD FOR HIM; HE SUCKS!!!!!!!!!! He is just toying with your feelings, and it was completely unfair. Just because he's being honest, it doesn't excuse him from simply being a bad person.
Profile Image for Yolanda Galiana.
131 reviews10 followers
May 31, 2026
First of all, thanks NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for the opportunity to read an ARC of this story.

I love starting new manga series and watch the romance develop volume after volumen, so I was excited when I saw this one in NetGalley. Its synopsis caught my attention, since I like a good friends-to-lovers storyline. Unfortunately, «You Might As Well Be The One» didn’t live up to my expectations.

I’ll start by saying what I really loved: Megumu Seto’s style. The author has a really nice way of drawing her characters. I specially fell in love with Ichika’s looking and expressions, I connected with her immediately. It didn’t happen that way with Kosei, who I found annoying and quite plain.

Ichiko is looking for love, she’s tired of boys who don’t commit so now she’s searching for a forever love, someone who will stay. She meets Kosei and she connects with him instantly. They become friends, they have a lot of things in common and their bond grows stronger. She starts falling in love with him, but he’s clear that he doesn’t want a relationship, he wants to keep things casual with the girls he’s meeting. Everything would be fine for me if it wasn’t because he plays with her and her feelings; he knows she’s into him —she talks and is open about it— and he keeps rejecting her BUT doesn’t stop being ambiguous, doesn’t stop being close to her, doing gestures... He doesn’t let her be. He wants everything, all at once, but without commitment and that doesn’t sit well with me since he knows her situation, what she wants and what she needs. I didn’t really feel the connection between those two, their relationship is too one-sided for my liking.

This story wasn’t for me but it kept me entertained for a few hours. I hope that he changes through the next volumes and stops playing with her, I really think she deserves it —although the best ending for this story, for me, would be for her to find someone else, someone worthy of her love—.
Profile Image for Jack Goff.
243 reviews76 followers
June 25, 2026
I really enjoyed this! Our main character Nakajo is frustrated trying to find a boyfriend. She’s tried matchmaking mixers and all the apps and nothing seems to be working. That is until she meets Sanari at one of her matchmaking parties. He seems to be perfect for her. Funny, down to earth, and easy to talk to. The problem? He doesn’t want a serious relationship. So, instead, they decide to be friends. Which would be great if Nakajo didn’t have all of these confusing feelings for him.

I love a good slice of life romance. This was so fun and nice to read. I can see the makings of a really good slow burn here with lots of pining. Sign me up. The characters are fun and relatable, and I love their chemistry. They’re so cute together. My only small gripe is that I wish we got more about Sanari’s character. There is a bonus mini scene at the end (no spoilers) where he talks about how he doesn’t get social media and Nakajo tells him just to send her the pictures he wants to post. He sends her a picture of a cool bug he finds, and it is so cute. I want more stuff like that! More little things to fill out his character more.

But this is just the first volume. We’ll probably learn more about him as we go, and maybe that’s part of the point, since Nakajo is also trying to weedle information out of him.

Thanks so much to Kodansha and NetGalley for the DRC!!!
Profile Image for Mary.
639 reviews28 followers
July 9, 2026
3.5 ⭐️

I like the art a lot. I really like that our fmc is confident, dresses how she wants to, and doesn’t let comments about her height bother her. This series has a lot of potential, I like that both of the main characters seem to be mature and know what they want/don’t want. I am worried that our fmc won’t wait for our mmc to be ready for a serious relationship and that might ruin it a little bit for me. While he was upfront about wanting a casual relationship, it also feels like he is leading her on a little bit (letting her be the one to turn down his offer, telling her she’s too good for him, holding her hand, etc.) I’m hoping it doesn’t become too angsty. I do like the chemistry between the main characters and I like that they’re becoming friends.

I’m not a huge fan of slice of life romances because the pacing always feels a little weird to me with things moving really fast.

I’m really interested in seeing where Nakajo and Sanari’s relationship goes. I’m curious about learning more about our mmc and why he doesn’t want a serious relationship.

Thanks to Kodansha and Edelweiss for the ARC! All thoughts are my own.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Morally_Gray_Nola.
1,067 reviews54 followers
June 15, 2026
YOU MIGHT AS WELL BE THE ONE is bittersweet chocolate with sweet morsels blended in. Itchika craves loving someone & being loved back—to the point of desperation. Kosei likes lovin’, but it’s the casual kind, the no strings attached kind, the opposite of what his good friend Itchika needs.

I liked this black & white comic. The attention to detail in the line drawing is fantastic. It took me a minute to realize I needed to read the captions in the columns from right to left—once I got that straight, I thought it was a great YA comic, full of emotion, friendship, and mixed signals. I am looking forward to #2!

You Might As Well Be the One
Pages: 177
Author: Kondansha Comics
Publication Date: 8/11/2026
Review site: NetGalley

MMC:
✨Kosei Sanari
FMC:
✨Itchika
HEA/CLIFFHANGER:
✨to be continued, cliffhanger

*** Recommended ***

Thank you NetGalley, Megumu Seto, and Kodansha comics for this ARC.
Profile Image for Annabelle (Taylor’s Version).
45 reviews12 followers
July 4, 2026
*This book was an arc from NetGalley.*

This was a very cute read. However, I didn’t like the two characters very much. It’s too fast-paced, with time skips I was unaware of. In the first few chapters, we meet Kosei, the romantic interest. Ichika, the female main character, who supposedly wants a long-term relationship, becomes attracted to Kosei almost immediately. Somehow they already have each other’s numbers and are friends and casually texting by the next ten or so pages???

Ichika also becomes too into Kosei and it’s not how I thought or read about her character so I was a bit disappointed. I thought I was heading into a story where the female lead is searching for love and a long-term relationship instead of crushing on a boy she has just met on, like, the very first page! It was basically all Ichika desperate for Kosei to like her back. Incredibly cringy for a college romance. It was very frustrating for me.
Profile Image for Snail.
873 reviews1 follower
August 13, 2026
Terrible.
The “development” of the story felt so jerky; simultaneously too fast AND too slow.
I had no attachment to either character at all.

The writing was disjointed, the main character felt both shallow and inconsistent, unable to be honest with herself. Even she knows it’s a bad idea to fall for Playboy, and that he isn’t going to change. HE knows he isn’t going to change. Maybe the only redeeming quality is that at least he’s honest and straight forward about what he wants (no serious relationships). The fact that this looks like it’s building up to be a story about her trying to change him is also kind of boring and upsetting in its own right. Seems tedious, potentially heartbreaking (if I cared about either character). A lot of drama for no good reason at all.

It’s too bad because I do like the art.

If the second volume somehow gets way better, please let me know, I guess…

Art: ★★★★⭐︎
Plot: ★⭐︎⭐︎⭐︎⭐︎
Characters: ★⭐︎⭐︎⭐︎⭐︎
Profile Image for Chydie.
149 reviews12 followers
November 2, 2025
Ce style de shojo romance, c’est soit tu finis par apprécier fortement en lisant la suite… Soit t’es juste déçu et tu DNF aussi rapidement que tu l’as attrapé en rayon.
Pour une raison qui m’échappe… Je le sens bien pour la suite, j’attendrais donc la sortie du second volume pour vous en dire des nouvelles.

Mon avis est très mitigé… Autant j’aime les histoires d’amours semées d’embûches, parfois avec des débuts catastrophiques, remplis de dramas,…
Mais je ne trouve pas le MC particulièrement beau… Après ça c’est un détail, honnêtement osef.
Je trouve aussi que Sanari supplie TROP omg… Let that man go. Y’a trop d’hommes sur terre pour qu’une serial loveuse reste acharné sur un gars qui lui fait comprendre maintes et maintes fois qu’elle mérite mieux lui #leçon

Je sens du potentiel, mais on verra avec la suite…
Profile Image for Minna.
2,810 reviews
August 12, 2026
Thank you to NetGalley, Kodansha, and to the author/artist for the opportunity to read an ARC of this title. An honest review was requested but not required.

Loved this, the entire vibe of helplessly falling for someone you KNOW is not good for you is so painfully familiar. I've definitely been there. You wish you could pick and choose these feelings but sometimes they just take place, anyways. Ichika is trying hard to find someone serious but the heart wants what it wants, and it definitely wants Kohei. To be fair, Kohei is also sending some serious mixed signals so you can't blame the girl for being conflicted.

I will definitely pick up book 2 to see what happens because now I'm fully invested.
Profile Image for BreAnna (Bre'sBooks).
1,743 reviews60 followers
August 12, 2026
**ARC provided by NetGalley for honest review**

You Might As Well Be the One, Volume 1 by Megumu Seto follows a female college student as she tries again and again to find a nice, normal boyfriend. As soon as she finally finds a guy who gets her and is super sweet, she learns he's a player and only wants casual relationships! Somehow, she still can't stop her heart from falling for him, though. This was just okay for me. I really wanted to love this, but I thought the female lead was being way too naive for a college student. Why would she put herself in a situation where she would only get heartbroken?? Towards the end of the volume, it did kinda hint at the male lead reacting to her feelings a bit, but I'm still not on board for drama if that's what this series turns into.
Profile Image for Mary.
186 reviews4 followers
September 13, 2024
Oddio mi sono innamorata di questa storia e questi disegni💙

Questo manga promette molto bene, è infatti realistico e maturo, non solo perché ambientato all’università ma anche per il modo in cui si approcciano i due protagonisti.
Nonostante rimanga semplice e leggero in stile “slice of life”, l’ho trovato davvero originale perché ha un qualcosa di diverso dagli altri.
Me lo aspettavo più slow burn ma mi è piaciuto davvero tanto comunque, ho adorato il tipo di narrazione e i protagonisti.
Profile Image for Becky (romantic_pursuing_feels).
1,383 reviews1,913 followers
June 25, 2026
I love the artwork in this one! This had humor and sweetness and hints of something amazing.

but it also has a hero I just can't like yet.

I'm curious about where this will go - I want my heroes all in when I read romance so I found myself struggling with that aspect. But I adored the art and like how they are getting to be good friends first. I am curious enough to keep going with this series!

The finger touch was my fave part! I love that stuff 🥹
Profile Image for Awesome  Ashley Renee.
26 reviews1 follower
August 14, 2026
I really love this series so far! I absolutely love the art style and I honestly really like both main characters. Kosei feels like he's not a great person but I feel like he's super sweet 😂 and what ichika is going through is pretty relatable. This girl just wants to be in love and feel loved but the guys around seem to just want her for superficial reasons. I'm super excited for the next volume!

Thank you so much NetGalley and Kodansha for the review copy.
Profile Image for Brittany.
333 reviews7 followers
July 19, 2026
ARC from NetGalley

The art style for this manga is absolutely stunning. I truly love the character designs. The story, however, was not that great. The characters are in college and this felt like a typical high school story with a playboy. The romance is not there for me so I think this story needed more plot.
Profile Image for read with kath ✿.
353 reviews20 followers
August 13, 2024
I like Josei, the relationship is too realistic (situationships) and the plot is really interesting. There’s so much angst and the ML is so flawed — I think it’s nice. But if I was her friend, I would have to pray hard and smack the out of her to tell her to move on! 😕🙏🏻
Profile Image for pining.deciduous .
204 reviews6 followers
July 21, 2026
I'm a sucker for love triangles and drama when I read manga. This had the classical Playboy with sweet girl bff and they're navigation through dating. Art was awesome, reminded me of how peach girl was drawn.
Profile Image for Autumn Rose Dearborn.
391 reviews41 followers
August 1, 2026
I’m a sucker for emotional unavailable fiction men and I also love friends to lovers so I think I could end up loving this. As of now, it’s fine. Not super attached to the characters yet, but I do love the art style of this manga. Thank you NetGalley & Kodonsha for letting me check this out!
Profile Image for Stas.
314 reviews1 follower
August 10, 2026
A very cute manga, i really like the main character and how strong her personality and desires come through! it definitely feels like she has agency even though she is trapped in i can fix him mindset. I am definitely going to continue this series!

thanks netgalley for arc access!
Profile Image for givememycheetos.
603 reviews17 followers
September 20, 2024
3.5⭐️

Amo, al fin una prota no petite 🙌🕺 se conocen en un mixer y se llevan de ptm. El no se mete en relas porque dice que no puede desarrollar sentimientos, pero ella hará que caiga por ella.
Profile Image for rahama 🎐.
33 reviews
May 8, 2026
Bof un peu des doutes sur le mec, si il brise du cœur, je ne continuerai même pas la suite
Displaying 1 - 30 of 154 reviews