Equal parts cute, silly, and subversive, the four-panel comedy manga Ahogaru was a surprise hit in Japan. Fans of anarchic slice-of-life gag manga like Azumanga Daioh – these are the new laughs you’ve been waiting for! Yoshiko is a hopefully clueless high school girl. Her rock-paper-scissors strategy is "rock." She somehow gets zeroes on multiple-choice tests. And she has an often-nearly-fatal weakness for bananas. Her devoted friends have no choice but to hang around and make sure nobody takes advantage of her. (Of course, the entertainment value might have something to do with it, too.) Cute characters, weird gags, and lots and lots of bananas!
The title character is stupid. The gag strips are stupid. Me reading this book all the way to the end was stupid.
This seems to be another manga whose target audience may be pedophiles: a young high school girl eats a lot of bananas, flashes her panties, gropes her classmate's breasts and is physically abused by the object of her affection. There really seems to be no point beyond the plentiful fan service.
For a manga that is suppose to be a comedy it is funny how unfunny and boring it is. After about 30 pages I wanted to stop reading it but I persevered. Maybe I like punishing myself as the pages after 30 were just as bad.
This book has exactly one joke and it's "Yoshiko is too dumb to live and so is most everyone around her."
Comparisons to Azumanga Daioh (one of my favorites) had me hopeful that it would turn into something more complex (or at least cleverly amusing) than that, but nope. Add in its often-uncomfortable physical humor (lots of boob-grabbing and characters being in sexual situations that they clearly don't want to be in) and characters too dumb to be likable, and this series becomes a definite no for me.
I really wanted to like this. I had been waiting to read it for months and I'm so disappointed. The first couple pages were silly and funny but there were so many times that I cringed because of how much her "friend" hit her and called her stupid (even just for liking a kids movie??). And then her mother tried looking at her friends underwear to see if she was a slut? I mean, I get it, Japan has a different culture than us but Jesus this book was just downright mean.
I wanted to like it since I love Azumanga Daioh, but it was too stupid. The main character isn't even funny with how dumb she is and every gag is repeated 20 times in this first volume alone. Not to mention the slut shaming for NO reason and there isn't a likable character in the book at all. Not worth the time to read on.
For one, the main character is too stupid -- she manages to get all zeroes on her tests. Which would, honestly, be less of a problem, but somehow she seems to be in the proper grade for her age, not her capacity? Idk, that bugged me.
But what bugged me the most was the sexual assault-y stuff. The main character grabs other girls' boobs, calls a girl 'tits' rather than her name, and tries to pin down a girl to see what kind of panties she's wearing. It's not funny; it's creepy.
So yeah, not giving this a high rating. There was a little bit of potential, as when the main character is acting childlike, rather than braindead, she's funny, but that's squandered by the groping et al. Would not recommend.
Someone accepted it for magazine publication and later for publication as a book.
Someone decided to translate this to English so it could be available to the English-speaking market.
Someone bought this (all 12 volumes) -- that someone was me!
A lesson: never invest in a series without first reading some of it!
How did this rate in the 3's on goodreads? It was all I could do to finish volume 1. The other 11 volumes will be included in my donation to the library book sale; I will not read them.
I will probably never again feel that a girl getting hit in a manga is justified...but I don’t think anyone would blame me if they read about Dunce Queen Yoshiko. I thought this was more stupid, like the heroine, than comedic — though I do like Sayaka and the Head Monitor enough to see what happens with them in future volumes. I also feel sorry for Akkun if he DOES end up with Yoshiko.
Manga de humor en forma de tiras cómicas sobre una muchacha amante de las bananas a la que le faltan varios hervores y su serio compañero de clase, un tipo estudioso y sin amigos que se encarga de "cuidarla", o más bien sufrirla a medida que el elenco de secundarios a cual más zumbao se van uniendo a la fiesta. Vamos, lo que viene siendo la ancestral dinámica del payaso serio vs los payasos del caos.
No hay mucho más que rascar, es un tebeo puramente de gags, de escasa o nula progresión argumental o de personajes, que no dejan de ser caricaturas. Y se lee como el que come pipas, en general resulta bastante gracioso, con varios chistes muy tontos que me han arrancado la carcajada (tomo cuatro pastillas de antidepresivos al día), una agradecida "lectura de wc" muy bien dibujada además. A mí me ha recordado mucho a la estructura y el tipo de humor del primer arco de Bola de Dragón, aún sin llegar a su nivel, con Goku como personaje zoquete alrededor del cual gravitan los secundarios que también tienen lo suyo y cuya burricie/inocencia provoca la mayoría de chistes de típico humor chorra japonés; chistes de tetas, chistes de pitos, chistes de bragas, chistes de gente en pelotas, chistes de pervertidos, chistes de reírse de los defectos de los personajes, porrazos, trompazos, en fin, todo lo que hace que la vida merezca ser vivida.
Finalmente, y leyendo las reseñas negativas de este tebeo, no puedo evitar señalar que me resulta muy interesante que varios lectores sean incapaces de entender los géneros o ya directamente la ficción y no puedan interpretar los códigos del humor, tomándose por lo literal un tebeo cómico protagonizado por caricaturas, elevando un catálogo de situaciones humorísticas chorras a prácticamente delitos de pederastia o violencia y abuso contra las mujeres. Siendo absolutamente lógico y respetable que a uno no le pueda gustar este tipo de humor, este fenómeno del lector alcornoque me resulta a la vez increíble y fascinante.
Meet Yoshiko a very hyper and not that smart of a girl. She is our Aho-Girl!
My hubby and I loved the anime for this one and so I decided to gift him almost all of the manga so he (but also I) could read the series while we kept hoping for a second season.
I was in the mood for something silly and dumb and decided to start with the first volume. I have to say I really enjoyed it, but yes, at times I was a bit nope-ing out of things. Just like the anime. Some things were just not right (like the mom making a cocktail so Akkun would sleep and her daughter could do things, or Sayaka underwear). The violence at times by Akkun gets a bit too much. Dude, I understand that you hate her, and probably almost everything around you given how you react to people around you, but come on, no need to throw her like a sack of potatoes against a wall, or hit her on the head?
But there were also enough parts that had me laughing so hard. Wondering how the hell Yoshiko got through school is one, did her mom pay for it or does the school feel sorry for Yoshiko’s empty head? Because this girl can barely multiple and it took her ages to figure out 5+2 is 7. See her be proud of her achievements even if they are zeroes. See her be a total child which was both cute and hilarious. I loved that she never was put down by anything, not Akkun the love of her life being mean, not her grades, not falling on the ground, nothing. She just keeps going. Her endless energy just went on. I loved those parts were she was playing with a group of kids and their reactions when she tackled a dog. 😛 Or the time she ran out of class, initiated a fight between her henchman and Akkun and then ran off to watch her drama… this all taking place while classes were ongoing. And then there is her henchman, as everyone and I totally agree would call him. He is dedicated to his boss lady. Very dedicated.
I loved meeting new people. From the head monitor who turns from sweet girl to stalker to Ruri the little sister of Akkun and who has just as an empty head as Yoshiko (though I think even more so as Ruri actually tries to study… and gets zeroes whereas Yoshiko never studies).
The 4-koma format works perfectly for this series. I don’t think the jokes would have the same impact/the same feeling if it was done in normal format. However, there were some parts that just worked better in the anime. Some needed motion. Sounds.
The art is OK. It does fit with the gags/the feeling of the manga.
All in all, despite the awkwardness and some scenes which weren’t too OK, I had fun reading this one and I cannot wait to read the next volume.
Think of Aho-girl like a bag of chips: it’s not really good but hard to put down when you’ve started it. Basically Aho-girl (Yoshiko Hanabatake) as protagonist is so stupid that there is no shortage of slapstick situations she can get into. She is like a minion in someways, cause she also has a crazy craving for banana’s. Her guardian angel is Akuru Akutsu, a childhood friend who tries to keep her out of too much trouble by punching her around when she goes to crazy, as any good tsundere archetype character would do. There is a large cast of ancillary characters at their high-school, of which I especially enjoyed the pervy head monitor (who has a secret crush on Akutsu) and the mother of Yoshiko (who tries to couple her daughter to Akutsu in a not so secret way). Basically there is no plot, just brief sketches that sometimes are hilarious and sometimes a bit cringeworthy if you look at it with a post #metoo lens. However I haven’t read a manga in ages and I did enjoy Aho-girl enough to “binge” the first three volumes so still three stars.
This was AWFUL! I mean, really, really awful. The jokes weren't funny, Yoshiko was extremely irritating. I considered finishing this just so I could give it a 1 star rating, but I could barely get through Chapter 3! I liked the male characters (Akkun and what I've seen of Ryuichi), but it's just not enough for me to keep reading this dumb, smutty book.
Enjoyable, simple, but quite repeating haha. Something to pick up for beginners that wants to learn to read Japanese in Manga. The title speaks for itself, what an idiotic girl indeed.
As a warning there are scenes of violence, use of handcuffs, undergarment exposure, and forced unwanted affections in this volume so take note if such things might offend you before trying this book.
If you find stories about flawed people being exploited for cheap slapstick jokes (if you want to call them that) and verbal abuse to be your cup of tea this series may have been created for you. The main character of the story is the "clueless girl" as seen on the cover of the book who loves playing, bananas, and her childhood friend. On the down side she is basically incapable of any real school work above possibly grade school even though she is probably a middle to high school student now and has absolutely no ability to read the room as her imagination constantly lets her ignore reality even as she is yelled at or beaten at times.
Of course she is not the only flawed character you will find as each character has their unique quirks that drive what little story outside of the ongoing joke of clueless girl is dumb so do whatever it takes to either make her change or make sure she has someone that will take care of her potentially mentally damaged self. All in all I did not enjoy the manga all that much but perhaps that may be because there were inside jokes someone in Japanese would appreciate that we readers outside of the culture wouldn't get (these get explained at the end of the book.) All I know is I felt a little less intelligent by time I got through this book and do not plan on testing to see if I become a clueless man by continuing this series any further.
The comedy anime of the year has its original source material released now. Took a peek at it this past week.
So, you know the set up. We get Yoshiko, the clueless banana loving gal. Akkun, her childhood friend. Also, a decently interesting supporting cast that plays off Yoshiko's stupidity, including her mother, the class rep, and the perhaps too boringly normal girl Sayaka.
The manga had a few panels that I didn't recall from the anime. One of such panels was a bit tough to stomach, Yoshiko's mother trying to get Yoshiko to trick Akuun into drinking a spiked drink to knock him out and then "seal the deal". Still, this series isn't a social commentary... I think, so I try to roll with those annoying punches. Maybe someone who isn't an anime viewer may find other panels equally offending, but I had seen the show before.
Overall, solid work. I love these sort of four-koma works like this. This is a decently sized work for a four-koma, so I don't think you'll walk away disappointed. I'm hoping volume 2 will get into some more stuff that wasn't in the show, and I'm curious if Akuun is just destined to be stuck with Yoshiko for life (personally rooting for the class rep).
[This review is for the first 3 volumes] I'm so torn about this series so far! I like it, it's funny and ridiculous and lighthearted, but the amount of fanservice makes me uncomfortable, as well as how horribly Akkun speaks to Yoshiko ("idiot" seeming to be the most common). And that no one seems to challenge him in how he treats her. In fact, all of the female characters have some kind of characteristic insecurity or dysfunction and I don't know enough abouy Japanese culture to know how much of my perception has to do with that lack of understanding. It feels like there was a slight shift in volume 3-Akkun is slowly being revealed to be the one who has issues, while Yoshiko's approach to life sometimes comes off looking better-and not just for her, but for anyone. I hope it continues in volume 4. I picked up this series because of comparisons to Azumanga Daioh, which I LOVED (shout out to Yotsuba&!) but it feels a little less human than AD. As I said, the tone has shifted a little. I hope it's indicative of the direction the story's going. P.S. Yoshiko's mother has issues.
To start with, this book seems really mean-spirited, and the male main character frequently hits the female main character, which is not great. Despite that souring my enjoyment of some of the mildly amusing situations, otherwise, I kept on reading, because I tend not to quit books. About halfway through I realized that this book had juxtaposed the actions of the male and female protagonists compared to how they usually act in manga and anime that I have read, which was interesting, but really failed to make me enjoy the book any more. It was also around then that the author's attempts to titillate with upskirt shots and the main character grabbing everyone's breasts started to ramp up, which really didn't appeal to me, either. Ultimately, while I can understand the appeal of this book, I also find that appeal kind of sad. Perhaps it gets better as we get to know the characters, but at least for now, I'm not really interested in finding out.
Some other reviews said this was supposed to be like Azumanga Daioh. I don't know who originally said that but the only similarities are it's a 4 panel comic strip and it's a high school comedy. I definitely wouldn't recommend this if you want something like Azumanga Daioh. If you want that read Yotsuba&!
The humor in Aho-Girl is a bit dirty and has slapstick. which I have noticed a lot of the younger gens don't get. Slapstick is still pretty popular in Japan. So it may be a cultural thing too. The Main characters Yoshiko is dumb or does she just have really bad ADHD? and has given up on a school system that doesn't help her learn the way she needs too. So she just has fun and does what she is good at instead. I really wish she realized that and got into sports or art or something instead of following loser Akkun around. All that being said it wasn't very funny. Was it good otherwise? Not really, it only had it's comedy going for it, and I didn't laugh once.🤷🏼♀️
Yoshiko is a high school girl who’s extremely kooky, gets poor grades and has a passion for bananas. Her only stable guides to her overactive personality is her childhood friend Akutsu who she also has a strange crush on and her other friend, shy Sayaka. Despite them trying to keep her under control, Yoshiko will only bring them on crazy misadventures and even try to win’s Akutsu-kun’s heart in very quirky ways.
“Aho-Girl” pretty much has the same brainless behavior as Hiroyuki’s other series “Girlfriend, Girlfriend”. Yoshiko is one zany girl that feels like she has many personalities and an animal-like spirit, she’s no Uzaki-Chan or Nagatoro. Her wild antics are of course the bread and butter of this manga that thankfully are funny half the time while also being a bit annoying. Just OK. B- (67%/Decent)
I bought this book at Powell's Bookstore in Portland on a trip. I was so excited when we went to the bookstore and they had this massive selection of manga. I'd never seen so much in one spot. Since I had to fly back home I limited myself to one book and sort of picked this at random. It looked fairly innocent.
It's about a girl who is VERY stupid and her best friend is a guy who is VERY smart. He can't stand how stupid she is and is always trying to help her stop being so silly.
It was pretty ridiculous but amusing enough. I wouldn't read any more of the series. The main girl is so annoying.
I reasonably enjoyed this overall. Although some of the humour was a bit hit and miss, given it is in the 4-koma style any less enjoyable parts are soon put behind. Although the characters may feel somewhat 'generic' and 'tropey', they were introduced in a consistent but gradual fashion - making it easy to keep track of who's who!
I'll likely read the subsequent volume(s) at some point, although i'm uncertain how just how much depth or development could potentially remain given the core theme of it.
2.5 Uhhh I don't even know what to say about this TBH. It was funny and cute at some points, but also very awkward. I'm wondering if a lot of the comedy was lost in translation or maybe just fell flat in manga form. I felt this could have been a funny, light-hearted friendship story with playful teasing, but it didn't always come off that way. Also, had the common manga issue of over-sexualizing female characters. The thing I liked the most about this was probably the art and manga panel layout. Nevertheless, I won't be continuing this series.
I didn't like this one. There are good jokes often enough that it was worth finishing, but most of them get old quickly (like second chapter quickly) and the main girl is completely unlikable. The male lead isn't much better, but the supporting cast is actually pretty great. The main pair is pretty one-note, but everyone else interacts with them differently, so they don't really get old. The sexual assault jokes, almost always without repercussions for the offending characters, don't help either. 3/10
I feel bad rating this so low as the author obviously put effort in to draw this but its honestly just that bad. There is no redeeming factors to read this book except maybe the art and even that is very simple. This book is filled with horrific fan service that is more cringe and weird that anything else. The humor just falls flat. Don't give it a chance. There are a million other four panel style comedy manga that actually achieve what this couldn't. Don't waste your time and money.
I actually was unable to get through more than a chapter of this garbage.
Boring, creepy, bland, unfunny.
Pedophile bait about a girl whos only character trait is being stupid (and eating bananas?) feels like what 12 year olds with random humor think is funny.
The paneling also sucks and makes no sense and the art-style is so bland. I really would pass on this. I can’t believe theres multiple books of this shit.