I feel like valid criticism and issues of the anime community were brought up, but it just wasn’t handled in a good way, or at least in a way that made the story interested. I felt bombarded by the issues and conflicts, but none of the solutions made me satisfied. I think this graphic novel can benefit greatly from more explanation and set up into the characters and their issues, and maybe one to two more volumes.

This graphic novel is a story about friends, being true to oneself and uniting for the love of anime. This was a pretty fun read and I managed to finish reading in a day. All in all, its a pretty interesting book but to be honest, I was more interested by the show they're watching and cosplaying as the characters instead of the actual story. I suppose its just me but still, this is a short and light.

Weekaboo features pages packed with visual poetry. This colorful assembly of images and words is entertaining and another beautiful book from Oni.

I really loved the art styles(s) and the characters. It covered lots of important topics and reminded me a lot of me and my sisters growing up with anime and how much it influenced our behaviour.
It felt a bit rushed, sometimes hard to follow, but overall an enjoyable read

Thank you NetGalley and Oni for the ARC.

I gave 2 stars, i like the color used on the graphic. The characters are cliche and i dont really understand the story it was messy and we can be lost easilly.
I liked the anime thing but that was all.

A rather forgettable graphic novel about three friends graduating high school and figuring out what they want to do after, all the while being fans of Anime and Manga culture.

I feel like this book had so much potential and didn’t act on it. Dan was the most interesting character out of the three, because we got the most time with them and their struggles. But even then we still don’t know their pronouns or sexuality or anything. Things are hinted at but never actually stated. It felt kind of like a cop out.

The other two characters have such little development that it’s hard to connect with them at all.

The best parts of this book was the elements of the fake anime, which were kind of confusing to follow, and the parts where they were all crafting their costumes together.

As far as the art goes it was ok, not super appealing, which I found strange since it’s obvious the artist is talented. The characters faces were just so strange compared to the bodies. Also I was really not a fan of the backgrounds in some of the scenes, they were obviously photos and some had people in it… which is concerning since they never gave their consent to be in a published work like this. I wish the backgrounds were just watercolor like the rest of the comic.

The whole friend group was kind of terrible to each other and they apologized in the end, but never really discussed it deeply so it all felt somewhat hollow.

I found this work to try too hard and end up not really achieving much of anything.

Initially, this graphic novel was very confusing and chaotic. I had no idea about any of the relationships between characters, the characters’ personalities or what was happening in general.
I think this type of graphic novel would be even more confusing for those not previously versed in anime and the anime community. The premise is very niche but as someone with background knowledge in anime I enjoyed the concept.
Some of the issues and problems faced in the novel were very implicit and not well covered. For example we never know the details of the character Dan’s gender crisis their gender queerness is only encountered in a few scenes and is never confirmed leaving me as a reader questioning how to address them. And I agree with others when they say this book can come off problematic at times.
Overall, for a debut novel it was enjoyable and I don’t regret reading it and I especially praise the art.
Thank you NetGalley and Oni Press for kindly providing me with an arc of this book in exchange for this review.

Thank you netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for a review.
I didn't like the art style, but that's a very personal opinion and you might like it.
I couldn't relate to the characters and it sometimes felt like the story is full of cliches, and the plot wasn't that great.
Sadly, I was disappointed by this comic.

I was so excited to read this book, but I was so disappointed! The art was okay, but the story and the characters were so messy. As a fan of anime and all things comic, this sounded so good but I feel like the author needs to do much more research to have concrete backgrounds for characters. Overall, a problematic book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Oni Press for a free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I definitely benefited from a second read of this book. Weeaboo explores the inner workings of anime fandom through the lens of three high schoolers from different backgrounds. Although I appreciate how some topics were brought up (including, but not limited to, homophobia, racism, cultural appropriation), I wish they were explored with more depth on the page. I also wish that James, one of the three main characters who is white and Japanese, was given more attention especially since his inner conflict with racial identity was integral to the plot but also not explored much more than on a surface level.

I enjoyed Sallah's cartooning and the art was charming. It was loose, had nice shapes, and allowed for a lot of expression.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with this ARC.
This graphic novel was weird. I liked it, but it was weird. Sometimes it was cringey teenage shenanigans, and at other times it was deep and emotional stuff. Some important topics that are touched upon include: economic privilege, gatekeeping (specifically in the cosplay community), racism, cultural appropriation. I liked the "messy" artstyle and thought it was pretty unique. It was a little confusing at times, however, particularly because the side-character André looks like a completely different person at times.

Thank you to Netgalley and Oni Press for the opportunity to read and review this graphic novel. I will be honest, I wasn't sure how this graphic novel was going to go. However, I think if you are looking for seniors in high school trying to discover their places in the world and how living in fandom can affect the real world, this can be a great graphic novel for you. Be that as it may though, I had some issues with this. First, I think the artstyle is unique and interesting, however, there were moments in this the paneling and placement in dialogue was confusing especially in the beginning of the story. Second, I think to a lot of people there are going to be some language in here that are going to be offensive and could have been presented another way especially when it came to stereotypes and assumptions. Some were corrected towards the end but the others that remained, personally I wish it could have been presented a different way. A way that doesn't date it or feel like old language. Lastly, I personally think that the play panels were only necessary in the second half of the play during opening night but otherwise, were unnecessary. I think it was to attempt to show how a certain character was trying to overcome their sexuality and life but honestly I think its unnecessary because I am not sure its purpose. Overall, I think again this is definitely a story to try, although I personally think this will make people unhappy more than enjoyable. Because of these points, I have to give this graphic novel a 2.5 out of 5 stars

This was such a cute graphic novel that reminded me of myself what I was younger. It's a journey of three friends who have known each other for years, but when their local anime convention is in town following their graduation; it's their time to shine and not be themselves for a change. This story follows a journey of self-discovering and the strength of friendship. When graduation rolls around, they each begin to follow their own paths and the true strength of their friendship is uncovered. Life isn't like a cartoon and as you grow older, changes are made. I loved how each of the character's true personalities was uncovered as they each became comfortable in their own skin.

I love the way this graphic novel shows a sense of celebration and respect for anime fandoms, small conventions, and the internet culture that surrounds them. The way the story was told in a style of various mange, anime, and our other favorite media.

Oni Press and NetGalley were so kind as to provide me with this reading.

I was trying to come up with something positive, but ... Art is still touching in my eyes, I can't swallow that. And my general impression is very strongly influenced mainly by this problem. I would never post something of my own that looks like this. It's good that I can't paint, so I'm wondering if I should try it anyway.
The idea is generally nice - fans of Japanese pop culture in the direction of anime and manga, who are passionate about the idea of ​​being cosplayers. There are certainly quite a few people whose love for the "sect" (I have relatives who think that we, the anime fans, are xD sectarians) encourages them to try cosplay at least once. This comic was inspired by fans, but instead of sounding fun with all the anime terms used, references and obsessive fans in front of anime stands ... It didn't work out. It still feels like a charge of fanaticism ... or at least I feel it, like an elderly member of the anime fans.

The original of this opinion is in Bulgarian, so the translation is not quite accurate. I am sorry about that. I am attaching a link.

I was leery of this book based on the title, but the blurb mentioned discussions of appropriation, etc., and I generally trust Oni Press, so I figured this would be a much deeper, more nuanced discussion of anime, fandom, and appropriation than I feared. I...was unfortunately wrong, in most ways. The author tries to do some things here, but it wasn't effective, and as other reviewers have said, this comes across as problematic in many ways. Also, I really didn't gel with the 'real-world' art style (as opposed to the anime fantasy elements, which were beautiful).

Weeaboo is about three friends who decide to go to a con together after school. I don't entirely believe the friendship of the three characters. They each seemed invested in their own lives and only hung out occaisionally. Maya was the only one who seemed honestly interested in the otaku life and the other two didn't really seem that interested. They decide to do a group cosplay together and when James realizes that it's going to cost money he gets a job. His home life is difficult and he has a hard time being successful in school but he manages to graduate but has to run away to go to the con, which was questionable. Dan apparently is a girl but tried out for the male lead in the school play and wanted to cosplay as a male character. It was confusing the reasoning behind this and it was never made clear. I know for young people it can be confusing to them too but it could have been said to help the reader understand. The art style was really sketchy making all the characters kind of ambiguous. I couldn't tell their genders or races until it was pointed out, which it was except for Dan's gender. It was an okay story. There was a lot of layers to it and some language but not terribly compelling.

The book mixes its messages quite a bit and while I understand where it was trying to go, it never caught my attention. While you could understand the struggles certain characters were going through and could feel for them, then they presented other scenarios that were problematic and the Author was out of their depth.

This was a constant swing between unbelievably wholesome to Cringe levels rivaling My Immortal.
While the cringe is infinite, there is a good story about growing into your most authentic self.

3.5 stars!

This was really cute! I loved how they aren't ashamed to do cosplay, and to just be themselves. Teens will surely find solace in 'Weeaboo.' However, my only complaint is that the art is somewhat hard on the eyes. It wasn't my cup of tea, but that's okay. Overall, 'Weeaboo' is a unique and fun coming of age story that I recommend to all the cosplay and anime fans out there!

**Thank you to Netgalley and Oni Press for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. This in no way changed my rating**

I'm just going to be upfront: This book was garbage. It is quite possibly the most problematic graphic novel I have ever laid eyes on. I am just speechless after finishing this.

To begin with, I thought maybe the artwork was a stylized choice, but after seeing the difference in quality between the "anime" sequences versus the "real life" sequences, this maybe should have been given more time to go to publishing or been a webcomic. The artwork in the "real life" sequences is inconsistent, often very ugly. A great example of this is Danielle/Danny's hairline, which often is cut outward, which makes it look like she has a pointy forehead in many panels. Additionally, James is supposed to be biracial Japanese, but is white presenting in almost all panels. The idea that a white, blonde woman and a Japanese man would produce a white child with freckles and brown hair (which neither parent has) is biologically improbable and more could have been done to make the character present as biracial Japanese.

Artwork aside, the storyline needed a LOT of work. Sallah brings up a lot of issues within the anime fandom community and gives almost no commentary on ANY of it. She brings up the racism Black cosplayers get from non-Black cosplayers and...the character deletes the comment, the end. The biracial JAPANESE character is essentially being "taught" about this aspect of HIS culture by two non-Japanese people, which is a whole mess. The one character dresses Lolita style on a daily basis and drops random Japanese words in her language and the most she's called out for this co-opting of another culture is being called a "weeaboo" ONCE, a word which she "reclaims" as a good thing by the end of the book. She talks about "expectations" of how POC people should behave and it's never resolved. She has a homophobic grandmother. Never resolved or even discussed. The Black character consumes media that includes Blackface minstrelsy with ZERO pushback or commentary on it. The Black character has a crisis about her natural hair that isn't worked out on the page and she goes back to straightening her hair by the end of the book. Two side characters, one Japanese and one white, are, no joke, described as "short-tempered" and "[the] token white guy...Does everything Jun does, but with a tolerable attitude." The white side character is called out repeatedly for his "blaccent" and he tells the character calling him out to lighten up and that he takes things too seriously. This goes unresolved. This isn't even ALL of the problems, just the ones I can recall off the top of my head. I sat here stunned for most of the volume.

All in all, this needed to be workshopped more. I think the issues brought up are important and could have (and should have) been explored in a more comprehensive way. It's a clear case of trying to do too much and not really doing anything. I can't recommend this with a good conscience. It tried to address too many things and had little to say to address any of them.