All Love Rivals are Evil (unless male): on blatant sexism and vilification in shoujo

Few shoujos avoid vilifying the love rival to a certain extent. Even Kimi Ni Todoke, a series that has garnered a large readership (for good reason), is guilty of this. Kurumi is introduced as a villain rather than a character in the story in my personal opinion (her later development is subversive and stunning but does not erase the fact that she was introduced as a villain). The only shoujos I have read that don’t vilify the female love rival off the bat are ‘Strobe Edge’ and ‘Heroine Shikkaku’. Most others portray the love rival in an antagonistic way because they oppose the heroine’s romance, and most readers end up dismissing the love rival because of the way she is presented. The upsetting trend in all of this is that the love rival is always evil, always female, and always disliked by the majority of the active/vocal fandom.

Manga Spotlight: Lesser Known Girls

The typical formula that makes up a shoujo is this: A heroine, a love interest, a love rival, and hurdles to overcome in a relationship. It’s usually a story about a young girl and love, and when we talk about memorable shoujo, the most stunning, heartwarming and beautifully written stories comes to mind. We have older, ‘classic’ series like Fruits Basket and Sailor Moon, and more recent works that show as much heart and thought like Strobe Edge, Ao Haru Ride, Kimi ni Todoke. What do all of these popular series have in common that have allowed them rise to the pinnacle of this genre? Character might be the answer. Instead of merely presenting the conflict and the love interest, I feel that a lot of the more successful shoujos focus immensely on character development and realism, comedy and well-timed drama.

That being said, I feel like some other shoujos also deserve to get honorable mentions in this list of wonderful heroines and their love. So I’m getting to the crux of this post – underappreciated shoujos that you have to read at least once!

The Problematic Portrayal of the Yamato Nadeshiko (in Hibi Chouchou)

Before I share my views, I have to tell you that I did enjoy reading some parts of Hibi Chouchou! It is a very light and calming read about a shy boy and a shy girl, and their awkward attempts to communicate with each other are very comedic and heartwarming. That being said, Chouchou is far from being a manga that I can personally commend. While I think the relationship dynamic between the heroine and her love interest is well-enacted, I feel that it sorely fails in the individual character department.