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天使なんかじゃない [Tenshi Nanka ja Nai] #1

天使なんかじゃない 1 [Tenshi Nanka ja Nai 1]

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No soy un ángel (Tenshi nanka ja nai) es una historia de Yazawa que gira en torno a sus temas más habituales: la adolescencia, el amor y otras emociones propias de la edad... Un manga con mucho humor y, como es característico en ella, con un inigualable toque de moda y modernidad.

Título original: Tenshi Nanka Ja Nai Vol. 1.

426 pages, Paperback

First published October 30, 2000

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About the author

Ai Yazawa

317 books3,459 followers
Ai Yazawa (Japanese: 矢沢あい, Yazawa Ai) is a Japanese manga author and illustrator. Her pen name comes from singer Eikichi Yazawa, of whom she is a fan.
Yazawa started her comics career in 1985. She specialises in shojo manga (girls' comics). Most of her works have been serialised in the magazines 'Ribon', 'Cookie' and 'Zipper'.
Yazawa's stories focus on young, often rebellious women and their relationships. The characters are always very stylish, and Yazawa herself is known for her sense of fashion. (She even attended a fashion school for some time after high school.)
Among her most famous manga are Tenshi Nanka Ja Nai (I'm No Angel, 1992–1995), Neighborhood Story (1995-1998), Paradise Kiss (1999-2004), and Nana (2000-2009), the latter awarded a Shogakukan Manga Award in 2003. Some of these works have been adapted into anime and live action movies.


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5 stars
459 (46%)
4 stars
358 (36%)
3 stars
146 (14%)
2 stars
22 (2%)
1 star
6 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 121 reviews
Profile Image for Léa.
221 reviews6 followers
January 2, 2023
Amoureuse !
Ils sont trop choupis purée
+ "t'as le goût du chocolat" mes puces !!!
Profile Image for .゚*.゚ ⭒⠀ཐིiཋྀ⠀⭒ .゚*.゚.
28 reviews1 follower
February 9, 2023
♫ When the night has come
And the land is dark
And the moon is the only light we'll see
No, I won't be afraid
No, I won't be afraid
Just as long as you stand
Stand by me
So darlin', darlin', stand by me
Oh, stand by me
Oh, stand
Stand by me, stand by me
If the sky that we look upon
Should tumble and fall
Or the mountains should crumble to the sea
I won't cry, I won't cry
No I won't shed a tear
Just as long as you stand
Stand by me
And darlin', darlin', stand by me
Oh, stand by me
Oh, stand now
Stand by me, stand by me
And darlin', darlin', stand by me
Oh, stand by me
Oh, stand now
Stand by me, stand by me
Whenever you're in trouble won't you stand by me
Oh, stand by me
Won't you stand by ♪⁠
Profile Image for Mark.
3,049 reviews302 followers
May 26, 2026
[Thanks to Viz and Edelweiss for an ARC of this manga in exchange for an unbiased review.]

This is very, very old-school and it took me a while to adjust to it because the cover is very much modern Ai Yazawa art and the interiors are absolutely not. It takes some adjustment, but it did grow on me.

Being an early 90’s shojo story had me bracing for the worst, but it’s actually reasonably well done and, while it took me an age to get through all 400+ pages, I wasn’t mad at it.

Oh, sometimes it’s woefully of its time - I can’t see that ridiculous striptease comment going anywhere in this day and age, but they’re running with it here for quite a bit. Modern day series in other genres still do it, but I think shojo has evolved slightly.

Our lead, Midori, definitely feels of the same, earlier, time. It’s great that she’s good at art and can sing well, but she cries so frequently that you’d think a malicious onion vendor was chasing her around.

The object of her affection is the motorcycle riding bad boy with grade-A delinquent hair, Akira, who rescues cats and finds himself getting closer and closer to Midori. Akira’s not particularly threatening as bad boys go; I think the term pompadourable would be apt.

The two of them end up on the student council together with a bunch of other characters, including the prickly Mamiya, who is no match for Midori’s friendly and persistent nature.

As the expected trials and tribulations come and go, I found myself getting oddly attached to the characters. It can be a bit too old-school at times, but seeing love blossom before text messaging is fun. The Christmas scene where Midori decides to stake out Akira would be hard to pull off these days (depleted phone batteries aside).

There’s also Mamiya’s complicated relationship with another member of the council, who turns out to have a girlfriend already. Said girlfriend shows up in the latter part due to the unique nature of the school and adds some extra drama.

Akira and Midori’s relationship slowly moves forward, but is hamstrung by a case of double identity that might or might not mean that Akira already has his sights set on a much older woman that the two know.

This storyline was… fine. It’s one of those where literally one conversation would have cleared it up and Midori dithers on it forever (I guess the more things change in the genre…), threatening both her friendship and relationship.

I will point out that this is pretty dang funny at times. There are a lot of solid jokes, from the way that a rumour escalates to become a full-on after school special if it were even true to a ridiculous school play (which also has all the drama, naturally).

Overall, it’s pretty good at what it does and coming to it on those terms definitely helps. I wasn’t planning to keep going at the halfway point, but by the end I had really come to like what this was doing. It doesn’t hurt that some of the romantic moments are a cut above.

3.5 stars - it’s sometimes mired in the past, but mostly a good time. Not perfect, but holds up well for something over 30 years old. Worth a look.
Profile Image for Célia Rahmani.
10 reviews
April 4, 2026
Je voulais lire cette série depuis très longtemps, le tome 1 était introuvable ! Il m’a été offert par mon amie génial (la goat que tu es), MERCIII ! TU VAS CLAIREMENT LE LIRE AUSSI !

Il y avait tout ce que j’aime, j’ai hâte de lire la suite je me gratte les veines…

Midori est tellement attachante, un peu messy mais she’s just a girl. Je veux savoir la suite pour Midori et Akira. Par contre, je n’aime déjà pas Takigawa qui m’a clairement donné l’envie de le frapper lui et sa Shino. Je sais d’avance que ce triangle amoureux va me faire m’énerver !
Mamiya mérite clairement mieux.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Lucía.
153 reviews
September 30, 2025
Me ha encantado, estoy deseando seguir leyendo esta obra en cuanto pueda pillarme el resto de tomos. Ai Yazawa nunca decepciona 🙂‍↕️
Profile Image for Yunebooks.
444 reviews39 followers
January 5, 2023
Estoy enganchadisima y la protagonista me gusta mucho. En general, las mujeres en este manga me están encantando. ¡No sé por qué pero estoy enganchada a todos los dramas que hay! Además, estoy deseando que explote todo por qué es inevitable y necesito confirma una cosita de los psj secundarios. A seguir leyendo 🫡
Profile Image for CarolineAlaska.
28 reviews26 followers
June 13, 2015
Ai Yazawa me décevra-t-elle un jour? Ses histoires si simples et quotidiennes soient-elles sont toujours empreintes d'une émotion que je trouve presque magique.
Profile Image for Lola D..
417 reviews60 followers
May 10, 2026
Relecture - Shôjo coup de cœur.
Profile Image for Dasha.
1,636 reviews22 followers
January 5, 2025
La primera vez que vi estas ediciones fue en el año 2010 en el aeropuerto Charles De Gaulle (París). Por supuesto, en francés. Me arrepentí durante mucho tiempo de no haberlas comprado, así que para mí fue una sorpresaca que anunciasen una reedición de Planeta Cómic 😍
Tuve que hacerlas mías como buena fan de Yazawa que soy. A día de hoy (enero de 2025) quedan por publicar los dos últimos tomos de esta edición ultimate.
Esta serie es un shoujo romántico que sucede durante los tres años de instituto (o bachillerato) de Midori Saejima. Nuestra protagonista es divertida, empollona, dibuja muy bien y además está loquita por Akira Sudou.
Se puede apreciar el inicio de lo que sería el tono característico de las historias de Yazawa y todos los elementos que la hacen única en el mundillo manga: el arte tiene un gran peso siendo parte de algunos de sus personajes. La moda, por supuesto. Y, además, ese toque de melancolía que no sabes muy bien porqué, siempre acompaña sus historias.
Todavía no puedo comentar más sobre esta historia en particular, solo que me encanta el arte de Yazawa, como siempre. Y que los universos que creaba me parecen tan adictivos. De una te enganchan y no te sueltan, ya pasen los años...
Profile Image for a.
1,322 reviews
July 3, 2026
This was such a cute story! The story feels very innocent and light, which feels so different from some of Ai Yazawa's other works but I also like that it's different.

The romance is not hitting the way I want though which is why I'm giving this 4 stars instead of 5. Honestly, it comes across sometimes like the hero doesn't really like the heroine and that she likes him wayyy more than he likes her and I really don't love that...
Profile Image for Adelysetcie.
26 reviews3 followers
February 13, 2022
C'est avec un grand bonheur que j'ai pu retrouver l'univers de Ai Yazawa. Ce série est une vraie bouffée d'air frais ! Très agréable à lire, je l'ai dévoré en 2 soirs à peine. Au premier abord on pourrait croire que tout tourne autour de Midori et Akira mais ce n'est pas le cas, il y a également d'autres histoires qui se suivent en parallèle (même si on reste centré sur Midori). Les personnages sont extrêmement attachants, en particulier Midori qui déborde de joie de vivre, j'ai également beaucoup apprécié Akira. Tous les personnages sont chouettes ! J'ai peut-être eu un peu de mal avec Takigawa car même s'il est très sympa, j'ai parfois du mal avec son comportement notamment vis-à-vis de Mamiya. J'ai vraiment hâte de découvrir la suite !
Profile Image for Camille Baclet.
Author 4 books3 followers
August 17, 2022
On retrouve le style de Nana d'Ai Yazawa. L'héroine est si attachante, bienveillante et adorable, je peux totalement m'y identifier étant dans Nana team Hatchi. J'adore les bads boys qui au fond sont adorables. Sauf qu'ici on y retrouve une histoire d'amour saine, où les personnages communique et sont bienveillants. Cela fait du bien de ne pas lire une histoire toxique. C'est frais et cela fait du bien de retrouver la pate de Ai Yazawa !
Profile Image for Marc.
1,607 reviews31 followers
March 12, 2023
Un premier tome feelgood plein de fraîcheur et de bonne humeur, tous les personnages sont rapidement attachants et leur dynamique est vraiment bien mise en scène.
Hormis l’absence de technologies, certains personnages aux coupes old school et quelques références culturelles de l’époque, rien ne laisse penser que ce manga a plus de 30 ans.
Profile Image for Melody.
670 reviews93 followers
June 12, 2013
Le dessin est un peu moins beau que dans les séries suivantes de l'auteur (Gokinjo, Paradise Kiss, Nana), mais j'ai adoré l'histoire, les personnes et surtout le ton.

Si les volumes suivants sont aussi bons que celui-ci, cette série fera partie de mes séries mangas préférées.
Profile Image for Gégé☆.
71 reviews
April 9, 2026
C'était trop kiki. J'ai adoré cette romance et je savais même pas que c'était le même auteur que NANA que je n'ai pas aimé (oupsi).
Merci à Célia de me l'avoir fait lire c'était une bonne découverte
Bon Midori il s'agirait d'arrêter de chialer et Elvis Presley il s'agirait d'être moins nonchalant.
Profile Image for eirignis.
248 reviews7 followers
November 13, 2022
OMGGG JADOREEEE, c’est ultra mimi je suis amoureuse des personnages mais j’ai peur??? si le tome 1 finit si bien les autres tomes vont forcément me briser le coeur à un moment…
Profile Image for Lou.
184 reviews7 followers
November 21, 2024
J’avais oublié combien j’aimais cette histoire et ces personnages que j’adore. C’est tout mignon ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Profile Image for Ebony.
127 reviews2 followers
April 13, 2026
Oh, the woes of being a teen girl with a crush. If you’re a fan of Neighborhood Story, you’ll love this one! I can’t wait to read the other volumes!
Profile Image for Laura A. Grace.
2,112 reviews338 followers
June 29, 2026
YOUTUBE FIRST IMPRESSION VIDEO: https://youtu.be/8HVvwkWuFmI

This was cute!

I had some reservations when starting because I heard Midori cries A LOT, and while I think that's true, I adore her as a heroine! She's kind, upbeat, and does everything she can to stay positive and encouraging to those around her! And honestly, even her crying a lot felt very relatable to teen me, who was very similar! LOL! I think her being easily emotional showed how deeply she feels and was touched by her actions at multiple points in trying to cheer up those around her, even if there were times I'm like, please, Midori, be happy too!

The male lead was also great! I liked how he was rough around the edges, but truly had a kind heart! Seeing several panels where his face is just so soft really touched my heart. Plus, he drives a motorcycle, and that was AWESOME! (Though Midori's first time riding it was hilarious! Sorry, Midori!)

I found myself getting attached to all the characters in the student council, and I also found the story engaging. Each character felt like their own, and thought it was fun at several points, how they came together for the sake of some kind of event. Plus, they all balanced each other so well!

The romance has been slow, but not painfully slow, where I'm like UGH, this is getting drawn out just for the sake of drama. I was especially happy with the ending and hope that the romance will be in full swing in the next volume!

Overall, I'm thankful my library got this and that I was able to read it because I enjoyed my time with these characters! I'll definitely keep an eye out for volume two!
Profile Image for Noelia.
23 reviews3 followers
September 12, 2022
Relectura MARAVILLOSA de mi manga favorito. Ai Yazawa siempre siempre siempre me atrapa el corazón. Llevaba muchísimos años sin leer un manga y no me arrepiento de haberlo cogido, esperemos no haber creado un monstruito otra vez. #NoQuieroLlorar #AiYazawaSiempreMeHaceLlorarPeroLaQuiero
Profile Image for Annaëlle.
118 reviews3 followers
December 5, 2022
C’était vraiment trop mignon et j’ai hâte que Marie me raconte la fin de l’histoire. J’ai passé un bon moment mais je pense que je ne lirais pas la suite car c’est pas trop mon style de manga. C’était quand même super cool. J’aurais mis 5 étoiles si j’étais fan de shojos
Profile Image for Coke Fernández.
360 reviews9 followers
January 6, 2020
7/10
Empiezo el año con la relectura de No soy un ángel. Me gusta el tono de la serie, muy ameno, sencillo y con encanto.
Profile Image for Savannah.
44 reviews1 follower
April 14, 2026
Super cute! Midori is so relatable. I love a first impressions trope, but I hope Akira gets nicer in the following volumes.

Thank you Ai Yazawa, Viz, and Netgalley for the ARC.
Profile Image for koup.
91 reviews
March 12, 2026
mes bbbbbbb je m'en lasserai jamais j'ai encore relu la saga ça me rappelle trop les émotions dramatiques et de joie du lycée (l'héteresexualité fait des ravages par ailleurs)
Profile Image for UneMyrtille.
82 reviews
July 31, 2025
L’histoire est très mignonne, et on remarque un peu que la mangaka a aussi écrit Nana sans que ce soit la même ambiance !
J’ai hâte de découvrir plus en détail le passé du mec !!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 121 reviews