She’s My Knight Volume 1 Review

Haruma Ichinose is a 17-year-old boy who’s cool and admired by the ladies in his school. He had no rival for their affections until Yuki Mogami came along…but Yuki isn’t a guy, she’s a girl who’s not only super charming but also taller than Haruma! He can’t stand having a rival at school, someone as cool as him, but is what he’s feeling truly antagonistic? Or is he developing romantic feelings for her???

She’s My Knight is a romantic comedy with shojo tropes, but twisted on their head, parodied but not in a mean-spirited way. Haruma starts off as your typical hot-headed male protagonist, who can’t stand that another girl is not only taller than him but also seems to be more charming and popular than he is. But he slowly starts to realise that his feelings for her are way more romantic in nature as they spend time together, and the pair are often put into situations that a male character wouldn’t normally be put in. For example, when he trips over at school, it’s Yuki who ends up catching him before he hits the floor, or when he tries to do the classic ‘hand on wall’ trick with Yuki, it doesn’t work because not only is she oblivious to his feelings but also she towers over him. The manga is quite tongue-in-cheek and fourth-wall-breaking in places when it says outright that Haruma is in the ‘heroine’ role whilst Yuki is the ‘hero’ role and it’s where the exploration of male and female ‘roles’ in society are explored and played with in this story. Haruma is being treated by the story as the female, being put in situations that require someone else (usually male) to help out. He spends the first half of the manga trying to push back on his ‘heroine’ role, wanting to be the more charming, feeling emasculated by the height difference and trying to do gentlemanly things such as offering to carry boxes for Yuki. But ironically, it’s when he starts to be more honest with himself and his feelings for Yuki and to worry less about what his ‘role’ according to his gender is supposed to be, he becomes more endearing as a protagonist and starts to appreciate what makes Yuki…Yuki – height difference and all! He does imagine many scenarios where he’s the one who sweeps Yuki off her feet (like wanting to snuggle up with her at the fireworks show) but he never once wants Yuki to be more feminine (she presents as androgynous at school) or lose the height difference, if anything he gets the most flustered when he’s being courted (intentionally or not) by Yuki, and it’s funny but also sweet to see unfold.

Yuki herself, however, is completely oblivious to his emotions, and later we find more about her; she’s kind and supportive to everyone, so when someone says they ‘like’ her she responds in kind but not in the same way they mean. As the book is told from Haruma’s point of view, we don’t get much from her side apart from the odd panel or two, but we get nuggets of her backstory, such as having brothers, childhood friends and being a bit unaware of social cues too at times. She’s a cute love interest, and it’s easy to see why Haruma (and others at the school) have totally fallen for her as well.

The mangaka Saisou doesn’t have many series to their name; their most known work will probably be My Tiny Senpai, which got an anime adaptation in Summer 2023, but She’s My Knight is so far the only manga of theirs that’s been translated into English. It’s clear the mangaka has a grasp on comedy and the distinct voices for the characters in the series, which is a good thing. The story feels like it’s made by someone who’s conscious of what they’re doing in the writing, as well as where they want the series to go. The art is also quite good; whilst the backgrounds are nothing to write home about (very generic school grounds, then the beach, and the mall, etc) but the character designs themselves are distinct and the comedy flourishes on the page with very animated panels that express the emotions of the characters too. It’s definitely one that would make the jump to anime very smoothly (if an adaptation ever comes).

Translation for this book is split between Mari Au and amimaru, a company that has been controversial for numerous reasons. For this book, the translation is readable and I didn’t notice any errors or things to worry about. It should be noted that the translator notes, instead being at the end, were instead peppered across the book, usually in the spaces between the panels. I don’t mind this, as we get an explanation for a translation choice when it happens, but for some it might break immersion. It should be noted that the book is very packed: there are thirteen regular chapters, seventeen bonus chapters AND extras bonus’ such as a POV from Haruma’s friend Miyoshi at the very end too – so you get a lot of material for your money!

The comedy romance She’s My Knight boldly makes its way into the English market and first impressions are good; it flips shojo tropes and explores gender roles in a fun, light-hearted manner. Worth checking out.

Our review copy from Kodansha was supplied by Diamond Book Distributors UK.