The Spring 2024 Manga Guide

She Likes Gays, but Not Me

What's It About? 

Based on the critically claimed novel. High schooler Atsushi Andou has always hidden the fact that he's gay. But one day, he sees his classmate Sae Miura with a BL book—a small moment with major consequences. Atsushi longs for a “normal” happiness with a loving wife and a biological child, but what can he do when women do not turn him on?

She Likes Gays, but Not Me has a story by Naoto Asahara and art by Akira Hirahara. English translation by Leighann Harvey and lettered by Rochelle Gancio. Published by ‎Yen Press (May 21, 2024).

CW: This manga includes discussion and depictions of self-harm, homophobia, and sexual assault.

Is It Worth Reading?

This is a difficult book. It's probably more difficult if you fall somewhere on the LGBTQIA+ spectrum, no matter which letter you embody, because it follows a conversation that I think a lot of us have had with ourselves, especially if we grew up in less understanding times: why aren't I “normal?” Jun Andou is in the closet because he feels he has to be. He's painfully aware that he's gay and that that makes him different from most, if not all, of the people he knows in his daily life, and he's not sure what that means for him. He does know that being gay seems to stand in the way of what he wants from life – a spouse and children, and he's trying desperately to come to terms with everything. Is that what leads him to engage in a sexual relationship with an older man, one who seems to be using him as a substitute for his son? I don't think even Jun knows the answer to that.

This is a painful book. Jun is so caught inside his mind and trauma that he can't find a way out of either of them. When he bumps into a classmate at a bookstore buying BL, she begs him not to reveal that she's a fujoshi, which somehow morphs into her falling for him. Even though Jun knows that he doesn't like her the same way, he goes along with her, hoping that he can find a way to become sexually attracted to her, at least enough that he can prove to himself that he can be like everyone else. (Or at least his idea of “everyone else.”)

Interestingly, he wishes he were bisexual, not straight, indicating that he truly accepts himself deep down. He's just afraid that the world won't, and that's something he gets repeated reminders of: a college guy consistently tells him how “gross” gay men are, his online friend is HIV positive and has a bad relationship with his parents, his childhood friend's behavior is completely confusing. His one positive association with his sexuality is the band Queen.

This is not a book for everyone. It deals with queer trauma in a way that may not see any resolution, and it is full to the brim with troubling content, from homophobia to statutory rape tinged with incest to suicide. It's the kind of story that can bring you back to your dark days if you have them, and not the kind of uplifting queer manga we more often get translated. But I think it's worth reading (although you may want to wait until the second volume is out as well), and if it has a terrible title, I'd say that's on purpose and reflective of Jun's internal conflict. Read with caution, but do read.

She Likes Gays, but Not Me is a difficult read, but that's surprisingly not because of the borderline offensive title. (Does anyone refer to “gays” in a kind way?) Instead, it's a challenging narrative that portrays homosexuality the way some would portray a death sentence. There is no queer joy to be found in this volume, only queer despair. It's the story of Jun, a high schooler who navigates his unwanted gay identity by using other people and being used by them in turn. Featuring a fujoshi main character who is treated with more sympathy than the gay protagonist, this manga is an ice-cold bucket of water over the BL fantasy genre.

Jun's life changes after encountering a classmate, Miura, buying a BL manga. Miura is humiliated but soon develops a crush on Jun because he knows her secret. Little does she know that Jun is gay—because he's not about to tell her. Their relationship grows messier as Jun decides to use Miura to appear straight. It's not like Jun has any role models to tell him differently. The only gay people in his life are Mr. Fahrenheit, an HIV-positive net pal, and Makoto, his married boyfriend who is old enough to be his father (and has a son Jun's age whom, Jun tells us, Makoto would rather be banging). In the world of this manga, homosexuality is paired with infidelity, secrecy, and risk of disease. To this American reader, it feels like a very dated take on gay despair, but there are, of course, many parts of the world (and heck, in the US) where queer people have no choice but to hide their true selves.

This volume has an explicit content warning, but it's not because of any enjoyable sexual scenes. (Not to mention, Jun has the most severe case of invisi-dick I've ever seen.) Misery and disgust are inseparable from sex here. There is Jun's botched attempt at deflowering Miura, who doesn't understand what she did wrong. Jun's decades-older boyfriend coerces him into condom-free sex. His childhood friend Ryouhei, always greets Jun with a crotch grope and won't take no for an answer. And, of course, every time a character comments in passing that gay people are “gross,” which is agonizingly frequent, it feels like a punch in the gut.

Reading She Likes Gays, but Not Me made me feel icky, but at the same time, I'm glad I read it because of its severe difference in perspective from other LGBTQ+ manga I've read. This is not for everyone—since my review is one big content warning—but I'll pick up volume two because the cliffhanger, which appears to herald a major character death, is criminal. Of course, that means this story's queer misery is far from over.