One girl upon hitting a hardship in elementary school with her family makes the acquaintance of a young boy who wants to be friends with everyone. He changes her perspective to be the best that she can be. Now in high school another young interesting girl comes along. This girl wants to be an idol. And our first girl has secretly been wanting that as well. But will she take the affections of our young man? One cannot allow the other to be better than her. I felt like I have read this graphic novel before, I don’t know why. Maybe it’s another similar title, but it feels very very familiar. The art or and the story are cute. I do want to read the next volume, so that’s a favor.

I was not expecting to love this volume as much as I did. I honestly usually love sports manga, but I had no idea that this was initially that. The choreography that these girls learn as they do their competition to get noticed by the K-pop producers and all the feelings that go into fulfilling their dreams and finding out what one of their dreams is.
I also love how the romance in this series is there. It just is not at the forefront. I want more of it, but I'm happy with the pace and the obliviousness of the main male character. I'm hoping we get more stakes and more building of female friendship!
This volume is already released, and I will have a link to it on my profile!

Girl Crush is an entertaining manga that fans of kpop will devour - with interesting characters and a well-developed plot, it can't be missed.

I enjoyed this a lot! Tenka is pretty unlikable but I see the seeds of how she will grow into a kinder, more well-rounded person over the course of this manga series. Erian was cute and an interesting foil to Tenka. I'd agree with the Teen rating because of some hints at nudity (no actual nudity but there was a scene where Tenka was in the bath) so keep that in mind. Thank you so much to NetGalley and VIZ Media for the ARC!

Our main girl Momose has an unrequited crush (is it though?) on her childhood friend. When a new girl, Sato, has his attention Momose is willing to do whatever it takes to take her place. The outfits they were in this are super cute! And the art itself is the modern Manga style and it’s really good! Everything really fits the K-Pop vibe the mangaka is was going for. I really enjoyed it!

Really love the art style and personality of the "average" girl. Seeing her go for her dreams was really great. I'm not super caught up on kpop terms so at points it was a bit difficulty to keep up with. Tenka was not my favorite character and her personality was a tad bit irritating

K-pop continues to make waves everywhere so this inspired manga series about going to Korea to audition for a spot in the training camps to hopefully make it big on the scene. The girls all have their interests, quirks, and talents but obviously singing, dancing, and mere stage presence is what's needed in addition to a look and fashion sense.

It's a visual graphic novel with plenty of pretty girls trying to make it big. It had entertainment value and was a fun look behind the scenes at preparing and the nerve-wracking auditions with cutthroat competition. I'd definitely read a second volume.

Girls wanting to become K=Pop idols? Yes please! This was a very good volume, it was enough to peak my interest. I'm not sure how I feel about the main character, Tenka Momose, just yet. As of now, I'm getting misunderstood vibes, so there is hope for her yet. The other main character, Erian Sato, is a ball of energy and confetti. I want only the best for her pursing her idol career and am a fan already. I am excited (and scared) to see how these two handle the music industry. Bring on volume two baby!

I loved this manga! I found that it subverted the initial expectations of the main character being a mean girl, as she is attractive and skilled in everything. While Momose is competing with Sato for her love interest's affection, she goes out of her way to even the playing field by helping Sato with her makeup. They drop the title in conversation with Sato, mentioning her girl crush, but I have a feeling that Sato will be Momose's girl crush by the end! I am looking forward to seeing what happens in the rest of the series.

Such a fun concept of two girls who are supportive rivals becoming new friends while chasing the opportunity to become Kpop idols. We have one girl who is perfectly perfect in every way, she works hard to be good at anything she tries and is always put together because she's so dedicated and polished, and the other is cute but a bit silly and klutzy with major passion and innate charisma. I'm fascinated by their relationship, and while the major catalyst for this plot is the crush one of them has on a boy, I think the most interesting part of this series is going to be the friendship between the girls. I recommend this for anyone who liked Skip Beat! or Full Moon o Sagashite for their focus on people breaking into the idol scene.

Really solid start to a graphic novel series! I liked Tenka a lot. She could be very cold and unkind but simultaneously, flexible and welcoming! I’m curious to see where her friendship with Erians friendship goes! The art was good. I liked how the dance moves were depicted.

After hearing Erian’s dreams of becoming an idol, Tenka’s jealousy pushes her to try to audition for a K-pop agency. She’s pretty sure she’ll win the spot with her flawless performance but soon, she will learn that the companies are looking for much more than just perfection.

I really liked this manga. I think it filled so much in the first volume and that’s both great but also bad, because I wish there was more development in other areas. I still think it’s a great start and can’t wait to see where the story goes next.

I rate this 4/5

Huge thanks to netgalley and VIZ Media for the ARC.

Midori Tayama's Girl Crush, Vol. 1 skillfully navigates identity, competition, and aspirations in a compelling story of two high school girls attempting to pursue their dreams in the K-pop world. From emotional realism to elegant artwork, this manga brings a new twist to the coming-of-age genre.

This was a really pretty and interesting manga! The main character is especially interesting--she has a lot of anger and deviousness to her. I haven't seen an anti-hero be the lead of a shoujo manga...ever? At least, in any of them I've read. I think it'd be really interesting to see how this story develops long-term.

Well, despite the main character being mean-spirited, I definitely want to see where things go in the next volume. I enjoyed the setting as I'm a kpop fan. The illustrations are clear, well drawn and portray movement really well. I think this has the potential to be a very popular series.

Girl Crush is the massive hit you may not yet have heard of—but Viz Manga will change that next month! Midori Tayama’s manga about two girls seeking fame in the world of K-pop pre-sold half a million copies in Japan. Will this huge hit see similar success overseas? We’re about to find out!

The story follows the practically perfect Tenka and the awkward but earnest Erian. Erian wants to be a K-pop idol, which Tenka thinks is impossible. But when Tenka’s crush starts taking an interest in Erian, this perfect princess decides to follow the same dream. Can her commitment to perfection keep all eyes on her, or will the world of K-pop demand a different sort of talent? With slick and gorgeous art, complex characters, and a keen look into the industry, Girl Crush is a promising title.

A fun and interesting start to a new series! This first volume packed a lot of info and background, but still made me care about the characters and their journey. I already want to read volume two!

The main character for this isn't necessarily super likable, but I find that's what I like the most about her. She's complex, and is a great driving force for the second female lead. Her motivation to "get the guy" is immature, but they're high school characters, so it makes sense. Honestly, I find the male love interesting to be the least interesting character, maybe there's more to his story but so far he just seems like some random friendly guy. This was an interesting starting volume, but it felt a bit repetitive at times. I'm interested in continuing the story, though!

A new manga series about love, self-image, and the k-pop industry.

I am surprised by how much I really loved the first volume of this manga. The illustrations are beautiful (they almost have to be when we’re talking about idols), the characters are individual and interesting, and it packs in a lot of real emotion.

Tenka has been in love with Harumi since they were little. In an effort to be worth of him, she strives for perfection: perfect grades, perfect appearance, perfect athleticism. When Harumi meets a new girl, Erian, as they enter high school, Tenka finds herself jealous of Harumi’s interest in her. Erian is plain but unabashedly herself. She’s also an aspiring k-pop idol.

First and foremost, I have to say that I loved the characters. They’re each distinctly individual, and I appreciate that everyone looks different. In a manga that relies so heavily on themes of self-image, each character has a distinct appearance with different facial features that were truer to the real world than a lot of graphic novels portray. We see the world through Tenka’s eyes, and while she’s the typical mean-girl on the outside, we’re able to see the self-doubt, the insecurities, that push her toward perfection. I loved her as a character and my high school self can really identify with her jealousies and concerns around others perceptions of her. I wouldn’t say she’s a role model for teens, but I think there’s many that would share my connection with her emotions.

The interactions between the characters all felt organic. I loved seeing Tenka break from the typical mean-girl stereotype to help Erian in achieving her dreams. While she’s doing it in part for her own benefit, Tenka and Erian’s relationship felt organic and realistic.

Just in this first volume, there’s a lot of food-for-thought moments, morals being planted for future volumes around self-image and the ways we can easily become self-absorbed. I look forward to seeing the way that these lessons are expanded and developed through the story. I also look forward to seeing how k-pop as an industry is tackled. Already, there are breadcrumbs alluding to less than stellar sides of the industry and, honestly, just fame in general.

Tenka was a shy outsider as a child until Harumi brought her out of her shell. Determined to make herself worthy of Harumi, she focused all of her energy on being the best at everything. In high school, Harumi befriends a new girl named Erian who has dreams of becoming a K-pop idol. Jealous that Harumi's attention has been drawn away from her, Tenka decides she will audition to become an idol as well, kicking off their relationship as friends and rivals.

This was a cute little story and I can definitely see that it's heading somewhere interesting. This first volume definitely felt like an introduction to the larger story, as we didn't really get to know any of the characters very well. The artwork was really cute and fit the tone of the story and I'm interested to see where it's heading. This will be a great one for fans of idol culture or stories about friendly rivals.