When I first read the synopsis of Ao Haru Ride many years ago I brushed it aside. The synopsis kind of reminded me of a bad fanfiction. The guys liked her so much that the girls didnt like her anymore. It felt like a not like the other girls story. And I am so glad that I decided to read it despite my misgivings. Im glad I did. My life experiences were able to put the premise into perspective and I realized that the things that happen in the premise are a part of the high school dynamic. I have been in situations where girls put each other down in the hope that the guys would pay more attention to them. Ao Haru Ride does a good job encapsulating the toxic elements of the high school experience in the very beginning. The story begins with Futaba a girl who is desperate to change who she is. She lost a lot of friends due to appearing too cute and feminine thus attracting some male attention. Upon entering high school Futaba has decided to make herself into tomboy. However shes not the only one whos changed. She encounters her middle school boyfriend who has a new name and a new attitude. The beginning of Ao Haru Ride is focused on change. In the time theyve been apart Futaba and her middle school crush Kou have changed. Theyve been through a few things and theyre not the same people they were two years ago. A big part of their story is getting to know the people that they have become. However the second half has a storyline Im not too fond of: the love triangle. Im not talking about the one that features Kous friend Narumi. That love triangle was very good and played a huge part in Kous journey as a character. Im talking about the one that features Toma Kikuchi. I hate Toma. I dont know why and I am willing to admit that its perfectly irrational. He just annoys me for unknown reasons. Maybe its because he feels so shallow in comparison to Kou and maybe its because he was really pushy during a time where Futaba really needed to sort her feelings out. He really isnt that bad and Kou is objectively the more problematic of the two. I just dont like him for unknown reasons. Futaba herself has identity issues. Shes worried about how people perceive her and shes desperate enough for friends that she will pretend to be someone shes not. Kou has a lot of darkness. Its not a big dark family secret but his parents are divorced and hes dealt with a painful loss. Hes stuck in the past and hes a lot more jaded than he used to be. The other characters are really good. Murao has deep feelings for her teacher Kous older brother. I was really happy with how the author dealt with that and how she realized the consequences of pursuing an authority figure at her age. My other favorite was Kominato. Hes in love with Murao and hes open and sociable unlike most of the other characters. The third side character I will mention is Yuri who was likeable despite being a static character. She represents who Futaba used to be before changing herself. As for the art I love it. Im a fan of Io Sakisakas cute style which has now become the default for shoujo manga. Its so beautiful and I have a strong attachment to it ever since I started to read what volumes of Love Me Love Me Not my library had. In all it wasnt perfect but it was really engaging and entertaining. I think it had a lot of good ideas. Its part overly dramatic and part realistic. Though apparently the mangaka really lives the shoujo manga life and the overly dramatic parts are based on things that actually happened to her. Either way I feel like this is a solid high school shoujo romance.